Free Rob Will!

INMATE CALLS FAMILY'S SUIT MALICIOUS.JUDGE ALLOWS MAN CONVICTED OF KILLING DEPUTY ACCESS TO FOUNDS

   Source: Houston Chronicle
Jan. 6, 2004

A Texas death row inmate, convicted of killing a Harris County sheriff's deputy, is claiming that a recent lawsuit against him by the deputy's widow and family was filed "maliciously, in bad faith and for the purposes of harassment."

Cathy Hill and the deputy's parents, Barbara Jean and Edward Hill, sued Robert Gene Will II in December for $10 million in damages for pain and suffering and loss of companionship and support in the fatal shooting of
Deputy Barrett Hill.

Although the Hill family received a temporary court order at that time to stop Barrett Hill's killer from having access to money in his prisoner account, a judge denied a renewal of the order Friday.

After a tearful testimony from the widow and supportive testimony from the parents, state District Judge Tony Lindsay apologized to the family for her denial.

"One can see how the loss of a husband, father, and son is so devastating and terrible," Lindsay said.

"But we can't say it's irreparable harm for plaintiffs not to get $25 or $50 in a prisoner trust account. I'm sorry, but I'm going to deny" the order, she said.

Burt Springer, general counsel for the Harris County Deputies' Organization, who filed the lawsuit for the Hills, said they were not surprised by the denial of a temporary order until a trial and final judgment.

But Will's written response filed Dec. 31 to the lawsuit now "guarantees him a full-blown trial," Springer said. "I'd love to depose him," he said.

Will, acting as his own lawyer, accused the family of filing the lawsuit for maliciousness and harassment. He also claims a constitutional right to his private funds.

The judge said she may have him testify via telephone conferencing. Taxpayers are footing the bill for Will's food, clothing, housing, medical care and other necessities, Springer said.

Family members and others can place money in an inmate's personal account, which the prisoner can use to buy personal items from the commissary, a prison store.

If Will is allowed to continue using the funds, Barrett Hill's family could not recover those damages, the suit said.

Will, 24, shot Hill, 38, on Dec. 4, 2000, as he and another deputy were chasing 2 car-theft suspects through a wooded area off Dunson Glen in north Harris County.

Will was arrested a few hours later in Brenham with the murder weapon and
was convicted last January.

The American Civil Liberties Union is monitoring the family's lawsuit against Will. It has not decided whether to aid the defendant yet, said Huntsville lawyer Yolanda Torres.

"An inmate is entitled to due process and is entitled to be heard," said Torres, who is assisting in the ACLU prison and jail accountability project.

Other inmates are also closely watching the case, said Torres, a spectator at Friday's hearing.

Barbara Jean Hill, who is also president of the Greater Houston Concerns of Police Survivors, said she hopes that crime victims are paying attention to the case as well.

"I'm speaking as a mom. For those whose children are brutally murdered, this could open doors for them," Hill said. "Let's make these guys miserable. Prison isn't enough," she said.