Torres: Denied Crosley Green's death, Florida will now get its pound of flesh | Opinion

Editor's note: Updating story to clarify that no bullet casings were found at the scene of the crime and that the only bullet recovered could have come from the victim's own gun.

Crosley Green spent 19 years on Florida's death row waiting for first, the electric chair and then a lethal injection.

It must have been very frustrating for those thirsty for blood when in 2010 Green's attorneys successfully fought for his sentence to be changed to life in prison. Even more so when a federal judge overturned his conviction in 2018 and ordered his release or a new trial because prosecutors cheated in the case by not disclosing evidence favorable to Green.

And then even more so when Green was released pending the appellate process in 2021.

But 2022 was a bad year for Green. The 11th Circuit sided with the state and ruled that it didn't matter that prosecutors cheated in the case. The court said even if the defense had known before the trial that a deputy and a sergeant who responded to the crime and thought someone else ― not Crosley ― was responsible, it wouldn't have changed the outcome. The 11th also later turned down a request to have the case heard en banc, or in front of all its judges.

This year has been no kinder. The U.S. Supreme Court declined to hear the case despite four amicus filings in support of Green by prosecutors, judges, law professors and a non-partisan constitutional group.

The latest on the Crosley Green case: Crosley Green must turn himself in by April 17

More from Torres: No surprise, state wants Crosley Green back in prison

Deep dive into the Crosley Green case: A white man is murdered, a Black man is accused. Something doesn't add up.

Now the state gets to win. The powers that be, much like Shylock in Shakespeare's The Merchant Of Venice, will exact their pound of flesh. Barring an act of clemency or unforeseen mercy, the state will one day collect Green's last breath.

Apologies for the pessimism but this case and Green's troublesome conviction has shaken my belief in justice. Funny though, it hasn't shaken Green's faith in the elusive concept.

"It’s bad but it ain’t enough to affect me. It can’t make me feel down or out," a philosophical-sounding Green said this week after learning a judge rejected his petition for 60 more days of freedom to get his affairs in order. Instead, he now has until April 17 to surrender to the authorities and be returned to a prison cell to finish out his life sentence.

"I done saw a lot and I’ve done a lot," he said regarding his last two years of relative freedom while under house arrest in Titusville. "There’s a lot more I would like to do and one day I’m gonna get to do it. Right now, I just have to abide by the rules that have been set forth. It’s just another part of what I have to go through to get my freedom."

When asked how he can remain so calm despite the circumstances, Green provides a good lesson to share this Easter Sunday.

"If it weren’t for the Lord I would be down and out right now," admitted Green who became a Christian during his third year on death row. "I can’t let the devil come in."

The 65-year-old Green is content letting others do the fretting for him.

“This is a tragedy for the Green family and for justice in Florida,” said Keith J. Harrison, Crowell & Moring partner and attorney for Green. “The fight for Crosley’s freedom is far from over and we will continue to pursue every avenue to secure his freedom. Everyone who has met Crosley comes to understand pretty quickly that he is a good man, who is a great example for us all of strong faith and strong character. That is why we will never stop fighting for his freedom.”

Green was sent to death row after an all-white jury convicted him of murder for the 1989 killing of 22-year-old Charles "Chip" Flynn. With no physical evidence tying Green to the crime, the case was built on the word of Flynn's ex-girlfriend Kim Hallock, who said a Black man carjacked the couple from Holder Park and drove them to an orange field where she claimed a shootout ensued.

Hallock left a wounded Flynn in the orange grove and drove to get "help." But, in doing so, she passed payphones, a hospital and her own home where she lived with her parents and instead drove to the home of Flynn's friend who talked her into calling 911.

She did not give clear directions to the officers sent to the scene and more than an hour passed between the shooting and first responders reaching Flynn. When Brevard County Sheriff's officer Mark Rixey and Diane Clark arrived, Flynn ―who never mentioned an assailant nor asked if Hallock made it to safety ― simply told officers he wanted to go home.

Similarly, Hallock never asked for Flynn, who died on the way to the hospital.

Rixey and Clark saw no evidence of the struggle and shootout that Hallock had claimed and in fact Flynn's jacket and some clothes were laid out on the ground as if to create a makeshift blanket nearby. Homicide investigators, intent on finding the Black assailant from Hallock's account, ignored what Rixey and Clark told them.

Hallock was given a highly suggestive photo lineup and told the killer was among the men pictured. She picked Green's photo.

The two officers would eventually share their beliefs that Hallock was responsible with prosecutor Chris White, who took notes from their meeting. White never shared those notes with Green's defense attorney, Rob Parker. This infringement of Green's constitutional rights is known as a Brady violation and was the basis for Federal Judge Roy B. Dalton overturning Green's conviction in 2018.

There are many other problems with the case including four state witnesses recanting their testimony, saying they were coerced or threatened into testifying by Chris White. All four were facing legal problems of their own at the time.

Other problems with the conviction included:

• Green, who did not know how to drive a stick-shift vehicle, somehow managed to drive Flynn's truck while aiming a gun at his "prisoners."

• Green left no fingerprints at the scene, despite supposedly being in the car and driving it.

• A junk science dog track was admitted during the trial even though the dog was supposed to have followed sneaker tracks in Holder Park that were a sneaker brand Green did not wear.

• Despite Hallock's account of a shootout, there were no shell casings found at the scene. The only bullet recovered could have come from Flynn's own gun.

• Numerous inconsistencies with Hallock's story including her omission that she and Flynn had sex that night and it was her and not a Black assailant who tied Flynn's hands behind his back.

But none of that matters anymore. Green is out of appeals and his likely last hope rests with the governor.

I wish I had Green's faith. Even with all the evidence pointing to his innocence, this Holy Week I'm having a difficult time scraping up any hope.

Contact Torres at jtorres@floridatoday.com. You can follow him on Twitter @johnalbertorres or on Facebook at facebook.com/FTjohntorres.

Support local journalism and become a subscriber. Visit floridatoday.com/subscribe

This article originally appeared on Florida Today: Crosley Green case shakes faith in justice system, but not his