Queen of the Good Ol' Boys

The next morning, in the courtroom, Scardino asked the jurors to use this part of the trial as a stopping point, a place at which to pause and think about Calvin McGee's miserable life. If ever there were a case with mitigating circumstances, she said, this would be it: McGee is a living example of emotional abuse, physical abuse, sexual abuse and abject poverty.

"How can you expect someone to crawl out of that environment?" she asked. As she spoke, her gaze shifted slowly from juror to juror. Occasionally she gestured back toward McGee, who sat motionless with the same blank look that he'd had since the trial began. She pleaded with the jury. Scardino considers her own escape from poverty and abuse a matter of luck; McGee didn't get the same breaks.

This time, the jury deliberated a long time, long enough that Scardino and Morrow grew hopeful. But after eight hours, their hopes were dashed. The jury sentenced McGee to death.

Two days later, Scardino still looks tired. She's suffering from back spasms. And she can't sleep at night, not during capital murder cases. She doesn't seem to have had a solid night's sleep since McGee's sentencing.

McGee's was her fifth capital murder case. Of the four previous ones, she'd gotten one dismissal, one life sentence, one hung jury and one outright acquittal. McGee is her first client sentenced to die.

She used to believe in the death penalty. These days, she says, she's not so sure: "It's the people who don't have any money, who are not as fortunate as other people, who wind up on death row."

She'll move on, of course. In April she has a whopping 12 family-law court dates, and there are more guest appearances scheduled for the Johnnie Cochran show.

But more surprising is this: She has accepted yet another court-appointed capital murder case, this one in Brazoria County. It's a favor to attorney Jimmy Phillips, her significant other, who wants to work a murder trial but isn't state-certified in capital cases.

Scardino says this capital murder trial will be her last. But then, she has said that before.

E-mail Steve McVicker at steve_mcvicker@ houstonpress.com.