The Sun Does Shine

The Alabama Supreme Court sends Ray’s case down to Jefferson County—they want the lower courts to rule on whether Payne was a competent expert. Since Judge Garrett has fully retired, a new judge, Laura Petro, is now deciding the case. It takes until March 2009 for Judge Petro to rule—her order concludes that Judge Garrett thought Payne was competent, but she doesn’t give her own opinion. Bryan says this is better than her agreeing with the state and independently finding Payne competent.

Ray is growing pessimistic. Since the day that Bryan hoped Ray would spend his last Thanksgiving on death row, 37 men have been executed. There are no more book club discussions. Relations between the guards and the inmates grow tense. The guards assure Ray that they would never kill him, but Ray knows this isn’t true.

Ray’s case goes back to the Court of Criminal Appeals, then to Judge Petro again because she didn’t rule on whether Payne was a qualified expert herself. In September 2010, Judge Petro rules that Payne was an expert because he had a knowledge of firearms identification beyond that of a normal witness, which is like Ray saying he is qualified as a heart surgeon because he once had an EKG. The case then bounces around the various courts again. Bryan never gives up, but Ray can tell that the work weighs heavily on him.

In 2013, the Alabama Supreme Court finally denies Ray’s appeal. When Bryan calls to tell Ray about the ruling, Bryan worries that he didn’t do enough. Ray stops Bryan and tells him to take the weekend off from worrying. Bryan thanks Ray, and when they hang up Ray is amazed at how much Bryan cares about him.

When Lester visits Ray next, they talk about where Ray would go if he ever got out of prison. Soon, Ray will be on death row longer than he was a free man, and he’s not sure if he’s ever going to get out of prison. Lester assures him that he can’t stop fighting. He reminds Ray of when they would walk home from baseball games and hide in ditches, afraid to face what was coming at them. He says that they can’t hide—they have to keep fighting, no matter what happens.

The next time Bryan visits, he presents Ray with their options. They can build a case based on Ray’s innocence with the Supreme Court, but if their petition is denied with the Supreme Court, it could also speed up the process for Ray’s execution. Otherwise, they can continue to appeal through the lower courts but not argue innocence. Hearing all of the options, Ray says that he wants to go to the Supreme Court. He doesn’t want to spend another 10 years bouncing around the lower courts. And he wants his innocence to matter.