October 17 07:00 AM EDT
Unequal Justice: Poor more vulnerable to death penalty, critics say

By Max B. Baker, Star-Telegram Staff Writer

Last of three parts

FORT WORTH -- In two weeks, hired killer Jeffrey Dillingham is scheduled to die for brutally murdering socialite Caren Koslow in her west Fort Worth home.

The 1992 killing shocked North Texas, as did the identity of the three suspects: Koslow's stepdaughter, Kristi; Brian Salter, Kristi Koslow's boyfriend; and Dillingham, a 19- year-old honor student.

Only Dillingham received the death sentence. Like most capital murder defendants in Texas, he couldn't afford a lawyer and was represented by court-appointed attorneys.

The state's indigent defense system faces its most severe test, and criticism, when working with cases that can carry the death penalty.

Efforts have been made to ensure that indigent capital defendants have qualified counsel. State law, for instance, requires counties to develop standards that attorneys must meet before handling capital cases.

But critics say death-penalty cases are vulnerable to problems of unqualified attorneys, low pay that does not attract highly experienced attorneys, and an appeal process that expedites cases at the expense of fairness.