The 9th U

The 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals commuted the death sentence of Benjamin Wai Silva to life in prison and sent his case back to a lower court for a new sentencing hearing. The appeals court said Silva's lawyer, Thomas Buckwalter, never hired an investigator to look into Silva's background or mental state during both the guilt and penalty phases of the trial, despite having the money to hire such an expert. Silva was found guilty in the 1981 shooting death of Kevin Thorpe.