Summary:

Tocarra Harris, Broussard's 9 year old stepdaughter, testified that she was sleeping at her home in the same bed with her mother (Dianna Broussard) and her 9 year old brother (Corey Harris), when she awoke to the sounds of screaming and saw both being stabbed by Windell Broussard.

He then began to stab Tocarra, and continued to stab her as her mother and brother ran out of the house. Both Dianna and Corey were found dead in the front yard. Tocarra was found with stab wounds just inside the front door, but survived.

At trial, Dianna Broussard's mother testified that Dianna separated from Broussard because he beat her, and a week before the murders threatened to kill her.

Broussard's aunt testified that on the night of the murders, Broussard came home wearing only his underwear. She said he "rushed in like something happened" and jumped up and down saying, "I did something." When she asked him, "Did you kill somebody?" Broussard said, "Yes, I killed somebody."

Broussard was on parole at the time of the murders and had prior convictions for aggravated kidnapping and aggravated robbery (10 years), assault (180 days), robbery (9 1/2 years-paroled after 3 months), and assault on Dianna Broussard (20 days).

Final Meal:

Smothered chicken and rice, pinto bens with salt pork, corn, homemade rolls, pecan pie.

Final Words:

"I just want everyone to know this here is a tragedy. What happened to Dianna, Corey, and what is happening to me, is a tragedy. Here I am Lord, I have come to do your will."

ClarkProsecutor.org

Texas Attorney General

Media Advisory

Monday, January 28, 2002

Windell Broussard Scheduled to be Executed.

AUSTIN - Texas Attorney General John Cornyn offers the following information on Windell Broussard, who is scheduled to be executed after 6 p.m. on Wednesday, Jan. 30, 2002.

On June 29, 1993 Windell Broussard was sentenced for the capital murder of Dianna Broussard and Corey Harris which occurred in Port Arthur, Texas, on April 24, 1992.

A summary of the evidence presented at trial follows:

FACTS OF THE CRIME

Tocarra Harris, Broussard's nine-year-old stepdaughter, testified that she was sleeping in the same bed with her mother, Dianna Broussard, and her then nine-year-old brother, Corey Harris, when she awoke to the sound of screaming in their Port Arthur, Texas, home.

She said the screams were coming from her mother and brother and that they were being stabbed by Broussard. Broussard then began to stab Tocarra.

She heard her mother and brother scream, "Windell, stop." Tocarra also testified that one side of her assailant's face was illuminated by the bathroom light. She recognized Windell Broussard. She said he continued to stab her as her mother and brother ran out of the house.

At trial, Dianna Broussard's mother testified that Dianna separated from Broussard because he beat her. Dianna's uncle, Elton Harris, testified that a week before the killings he witnessed an argument between Dianna and Broussard's girlfriend. When Broussard arrived on the scene, Dianna told him to leave.

Broussard's response was that "before he would leave her he'd rather see her dead before anybody else would have her again." Elton Harris also testified that at Dianna's request, he installed a new padlock on her door. He said she lost the key, and he saw Broussard in her house one week before the murders.

Broussard's friend Cornell Bush testified that Broussard asked him to drive him to his wife's house on the night of the murders.

He said something was "going on" between them and that Broussard "wanted to see if she was with some guy or something like that." On the way there, Broussard offered Bush money to use his car, which had dark tinted windows. Bush refused, and after driving past the victims' house, Bush and Broussard returned to Bush's house.

Broussard eventually left in his company truck at 9 or 9:30 p.m. Broussard's aunt testified that at 11 or 11:30 p.m. on the night of the murders, Broussard came home wearing only his underwear. She said he "rushed in like something happened" and jumped up and down saying, "I did something." When she asked him, "Did you kill somebody?" Broussard said, "Yes, I killed somebody."

A Port Arthur Police crime scene technician testified that Dianna and Corey were found lying in the yard, and that there was blood all over the house. The pathologist who examined the bodies found that each victim died from a stab wound to the heart.

He testified that they could have lived for five to 10 minutes after the wounds were inflicted. Officer Jimmy Clark testified that when he arrived at the scene around 11 or 11:30 p.m., "a little bloody girl" (Tocarra Harris) was sitting just inside the door.

A pack of Kool cigarettes, the brand Broussard smoked, was found on the bed along with the missing key to Dianna Harris' padlock. A cap bearing the logo of Broussard's employer was also found at the scene.

PROCEDURAL HISTORY

• April 8, 1993 - A grand jury indicted Broussard in the 252nd District Court of Jefferson County, Texas, for the capital offense of murdering Dianna Broussard and Corey Harris during the same criminal transaction.

• June 28, 1993 - Although Broussard entered a plea of not guilty, a jury found him guilty of capital murder.

• June 29, 1993 - Following a separate punishment hearing, the court assessed a sentence of death.

• October 25, 1995 - His conviction and sentence were affirmed by the Texas Court of Criminal Appeals.

• December 6, 1995 - The Court of Criminal Appeals denied rehearing.

• October 7, 1996 - The United States Supreme Court denied his petition for writ of certiorari.

• August 19, 1997 - Broussard filed an application for writ of habeas corpus in the trial court.

• September 14, 1998 - The state court recommended the denial of habeas relief.

• December 2, 1998 - The Court of Criminal Appeals adopted the findings and denied habeas relief.

• February 26, 1999 - Broussard filed a petition for writ of habeas corpus in the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Texas, Beaumont Division.

• February 17, 2000 - The federal district court denied habeas relief.

• March 10, 2000 - Broussard sought the appointment of a new attorney and rehearing of his petition.

• March 16, 2000 - The district court appointed a new attorney for Broussard, but denied rehearing.

• August 29, 2000 - The federal court denied permission to appeal.

• April 27, 2001 - The United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit denied permission to appeal.

• June 6, 2001 - The Court of Appeals declined to rehear the case.

• January 14, 2002 - The Court of Criminal Appeals declined a stay pending appeal for DNA testing.

PRIOR CRIMINAL HISTORY

The evidence at Broussard's trial revealed a long history of criminal violence.

In 1979, after pleading guilty to aggravated kidnapping and aggravated robbery, Broussard was sentenced to 10 years in prison.

In 1987, Broussard pleaded guilty and was convicted of assault and sentenced to 180 days in jail. Broussard was convicted again in 1990 of robbery and sentenced to nine and one-half years in prison.

In 1991, he received a sentence of 20 days for hitting Dianna Broussard in the face with his fist. Dianna's mother testified that Dianna was seeking a divorce because Broussard beat her. Broussard was on parole at the time he murdered his wife and son.

Texas Executions Information Center by David Carson

Txexecutions.org

Windell Broussard, 41, was executed by lethal injection on 30 January in Huntsville, Texas for the murder of his wife and stepson.

In October 1992, Dianna Fay Harris Broussard, 28, and her son, Corey Harris, 10, were stabbed to death in their home. Broussard's daughter, Toccara Harris, 9, was also stabbed, but survived.

She identified her stepfather, Windell Broussard, then 32, as the assailant. At his trial, Toccara told jurors that she was asleep in bed with her mother and brother and awoke to hear her mother screaming, "Windell, stop!" She also said that she saw Broussard's face as he slashed and stabbed all three of them. She said that Dianna and Corey ran out of the bedroom and out into the front yard and that Broussard followed them.

At Broussard's trial, other members of the Harris family testified that Dianna separated from Broussard because he beat her. They also testified witnessing arguments between them and heard Broussard make death threats against her.

Her uncle, Elton Harris, testified that he installed a new padlock on her door, but she lost the key and he saw Broussard in her house one week before the murders.

Broussard's friend, Cornell Bush, testified that Broussard asked him to drive to his wife's house on the night of the murders. Broussard offered Bush money to use his car, which had dark tinted windows, but Bush refused. After driving past the house, they went back to Bush's house.

Broussard eventually left in his truck at 9:00 or 9:30 p.m. Broussard's aunt, Lessie Hardage, testified that at 11:00 or 11:30 p.m., Broussard came home wearing only his underwear. She said he "rushed in like something happened" and jumped up and down saying, "I did something." When she asked him, "Did you kill somebody?" Broussard said, "Yes, I killed somebody."

Officer Jimmy Clark of the Port Arthur police department testified that when he arrived at the scene at around 11:00 or 11:30 p.m., Dianne Broussard and Corey Harris were lying in the yard, stabbed to death. He said that "a little bloody girl" (Tocarra Harris) was inside and there was blood all over the house.

A pack of Kool cigarettes -- the brand Broussard smoked -- was found on the bed along with the missing key to the padlock. A cap bearing the logo of Broussard's employer was also found at the scene. Tocarra Harris was seriously wounded, but survived.

Windell Broussard had previously been in prison three times. In 1981, he began serving a 10-year sentence for kidnapping.

He was paroled after 2½ years. In August 1986, he was returned as a parole violator, but he was released again in October. In March 1990, he received a new 9½-year sentence for robbery.

He was paroled after three months. (At the time, early release was common in Texas because of strict prison population caps imposed by U.S. District Judge William Wayne Justice.)

His criminal record also showed convictions for marijuana possession (30 days in jail), aggravated kidnapping (180 days in jail), and driving with a suspended license (6 months probation). In September 1991, he hit Dianna Broussard in the face with his fist and was sentenced to 20 days in jail for assault of a family member.

In June 1993, a jury found Windell Broussard guilty of the capital murder of Dianna Harris Broussard and Corey Harris, and sentenced him to death. The Texas Court of Criminal Appeals affirmed his conviction and sentence in October 1995. All of his other appeals in state and federal court were denied.

One of the grounds of Broussard's appeals was that DNA testing should have been done on blood and fingernail samples taken from the victim's home. The state district judge presiding over the case declined the request, writing that Broussard's attorneys had not shown a reasonable probability that the outcome of the case would have been different even if the results from a DNA test were in his favor.

Defense attorneys also claimed that Toccara Harris' testimony was dubious, since she was a child at the time, and the house was dark. They also said that Lessie Hardage has since recanted her testimony that Broussard confessed a murder to her. Broussard maintained his innocence throughout his stay on death row. On the day of his execution, the Texas Court of Criminal Appeals, the U.S. Supreme Court, and Governor Rick Perry all declined requests from Broussard's lawyers for a stay.

I just want everyone to know this here is a tragedy. What happened to Dianna, Corey, and what is happening to me, is a tragedy," Broussard said from the execution gurney. "Here I am Lord, I have come to do your will." Thus concluding his last statement, the lethal injection was administered. Windell Broussard was pronounced dead at 6:20 p.m.

ProDeathPenalty.com

Windell Broussard was convicted of stabbing his wife and his stepson to death in April 1992.

Diana Fay Harris Broussard, 28, and her 10-year-old son, Corey Harris, were found in the front yard of their Port Arthur home suffering from stab wounds. Diana's daughter, 12-year-old Toccara Harris, was also stabbed, but she lived and testified against Broussard.

UPDATE: A parolee convicted of killing his wife and stepson in a bloody stabbing rampage almost 10 years ago was executed Wednesday night. Broussard was pronounced dead at 6:20 p.m., 8 minutes after the flow of lethal drugs began.

Broussard, who was on parole for robbery and also had a kidnapping conviction on his record, was condemned for the fatal stabbing of his wife, Dianna, 28, and her 10-year-old son, Corey Harris, whose bodies were found in the yard of their Port Arthur home. Both were slashed repeatedly although they died of fatal heart wounds.

Another child, Toccara Harris, 9, was seriously wounded in the April 24, 1992, attacks but survived and identified Broussard as the knife-wielding intruder who came into their home as they slept. "It was horrible, horrible," Wendell Radford, the Jefferson County assistant district attorney who prosecuted Broussard, said this week. "He had slashed the hell out of them. Anyone that brutally stabs a mother and child to death while they sleep deserves to die."

Besides the testimony from the stepdaughter, Broussard's aunt testified he came home the night of the killings, wearing only his underwear. He jumped up and down and told her he "did something." "I killed somebody," he said. A cap from the company where Broussard worked along with a pack of cigarettes he smoked were recovered from the scene.

Broussard earlier was convicted of kidnapping in Harris County and served about 2 1/2 years of a 10-year sentence before he was returned to prison as a parole violator in August 1986. He was released three months later.

Then in March 1990, he received more than 9 years for robbery and was paroled after serving only 3 months.

The convictions were used by prosecutors in their arguments to the jury that Broussard was a continued threat for violence. "Just because I'd been to prison doesn't make me a murderer," Broussard said from death row. Four relatives of his slain wife, Dianna, witnessed the execution, staring straight at Broussard and showing no emotion.

National Coalition to Abolish the Death Penalty

Windell Broussard - Scheduled Execution Date and Time: 1/30/02 7:00 PM EST.

Windell Broussard is scheduled to die by lethal injection on Jan. 30, the fourth person Texas has scheduled for execution for the month of January. Broussard was convicted of the murder of his wife Dianna Broussard and her son Corey Harris and has been on death row for the past eight years.

Broussard’s defense has focused on what continues to be a disturbing trend in Texas capital cases: conviction based on single eyewitness testimony. He has argued that the state’s main witness- his 8-year-old stepdaughter –was overly suggestible and that police had programmed her with the idea that he was the assailant. As evidence of this, Broussard points out that she was unable to visually identify him as the murderer. You can read more of his personal statement at http://membres.tripod.fr/windell.

Windell Broussard Legal Defense Fund

Welcome and thank you for visiting our website. In these pages we would like to request your help to try to save the life of an innocent man who is currently incarcerated on Texas Death row.

Your financial support will be a key in our current work and investigations, which require a great amount of money in order to perform some very expensive but absolutely necessary DNA analysis to prove Windell's innocence

My name is Windell Broussard. I have been incarcerated 8 years and 7 of them on Texas death row. I am from Port Arthur, Texas, and I am Creole. My parents is from Louisiana. There isn't much difference between Port Arthur and Louisiana except being separated by the Sabine Lake and Lake Charles, Louisiana is on the other side. The reason why I am writing this letter is I need your support to help hire an attorney and investigator so please bare with me while I explain why I need your donations.

I was arrested by the Port Arthur Police Department, they claimed to have had a probable cause; but none was never filed with the justice of Peace whom they brought me before the next morning, or the District Clerk. I was arrested at my grand-mother's house where I was living and was suspected of allegedly committing the stabbing death of my wife and stepson, Dianna Broussard and Corey Harris whom I was separated from and living elsewhere. I have maintained my innocence from the very beginning, the trial was unfair and my trial attorney was denied access to the State's main chief witness : Toccara Harris who was only 8 years old at that time of the murders and was not interviewed until 3 days after by detectives who supposedly positively identified me as their attacker. Toccara was only asked twice during the entire trial specifically what she saw and whether she knew what that person looked like who had attacked them that night :

Mrs. Morris-Danials, State Attorney : How do you know that they were getting stabbed? What did you see?

Toccara : All I seen was a hand going up and down. I couldn't see the murder weapon. I saw a hand on his face.

Mr. Jim DeLee, Defense Counsel : Do you remember what the person looked like that night? Do you remember what they were wearing? Toccara : No. (from the innocence/guilt phase of the trial, Vol. 15, n° 64332)

When Toccara was presed further about what she saw by Mrs. Morris-Danials, she said "I couldn't see". Yet throughout all of my appeals, they're claiming that Toccara saw me committ these murders, this simply isn't the case. There wasn't any physical evidence or expert testimony that would link me to this crime scene, no blood was found on me or any of my belongings nor the vehicle I was last driving. This was a violent crime and none of my fingerprints were found, not even on this package of Kool cigarettes they claimed at trial was mine.

I had thought the courts were going to read the trial records fairly and see the many inconsistencies from state witnesses, but this has not been recognized so far. My federal appeals was dismissed thought no fault of mine, my counsel had a debilitating mental illness and nothing was done on my behalf and teh federal judge summarily dismissed my appeal. The new appeal law is suppose to allow one full fair opportunity to present and develop the case in the federal district courts. I have been denied that right. I am innocent, there are facts from the trial that reflect this as shown above.

An objective investigation has not been conducted on my behalf, none of the physical evidence or fingerprints been tested on my behalf that should have been found. The police went back to Dianna's house on three different occasions so they had to have found something. I also need to have DNA testing conducted, this was not done at the original trial 8 years ago.

As I have described above, I am asking for your donation to help me hire proper attorney, experts and investigator to help save me from being unlawfully put to death for this terrible crime I didn't commit. My family has supported me as best as they can but it isn't enough and my friend Priska Jaggi had too; it will be your support and donation that will make a difference at this critical stage I am forced with.

On April 24, 1992, near 11:00 p.m., Dianna Broussard and her son Cory Harris were each stabbed once in the chest. Each stab penetrated the victim's heart. Each victim ran from the house and collapsed in the front yard. Dianna's daughter, Tocara Harris was also attacked. Tocarra survived the attack.

Within an hour of police arriving at the scene, Windell Broussard, Dianna's estranged husband is arrested for the murder. Windell is arrested while talking on the phone in a bedroom of his grandmother's home. A search of Windell's person and clothing fails to discover any trace of blood. A search of the truck Windell had available failed to reveal any blood.

The police did not find a knife that could have created the deadly injuries. When the police canvassed the victim's neighborhood, no one mentioned seeing Windell that evening. No one claimed to have seen Windell approach or leave the scene. A next-door neighbor heard the victim screaming "help" and called the police. The neighbor did not see the person that stabbed the victims.

Tocarra was taken to the hospital in a state of shock and severely wounded. The ambulance arrived to transport her with ten minutes of police arriving. The police claim that Tocarra identified Windell as the assailant from the hospital. The police arrived at Windell's home near the time Tocarra arrived at the hospital.

A little more than a year later, Windell was convicted of capital murder and sentenced to die for the stabbing deaths of Dianna and Cory. Windell was sentenced to death before his case had been completely investigated. The convicting court appointed two attorney's to represent Windell but these attorneys failed pursue.

Thank you for your time and assistance in this fight for life and freedom!

Peace, Windell BROUSSARD