Feb. 27
IDAHO:
Is Idaho's death penalty worth it? Process is costly in all phases----Boise
County seeks death penalty in murder case, but some question its fiscal wisdom.
Which cases qualify for the death penalty?
In Idaho, 3 crimes are punishable by death: 1st-degree murder, 1st-degree
kidnapping and perjury that results in the execution of an innocent person.
State law says that the death penalty may be imposed in 1st-degree murder cases
only if prosecutors can prove to a jury, beyond a reasonable doubt, that one of
11 aggravating factors exists.
Those factors include: prior murder conviction, knowingly creating a risk of
death to many people, murder committed for remuneration or promise of
remuneration, utter disregard for human life, and "especially heinous,
atrocious or cruel."
The jury must also weigh mitigating circumstances presented by the defense.
DEATH PENALTY COSTS
The 65-page "Financial Costs of the Death Penalty" report done by Idaho's
Office of Performance Evaluations was released in March 2014.
Some key findings:
-- Of the 251 cases studied that went to trial, reaching a judgment of guilty
or not guilty took 7 months longer for capital cases than noncapital cases.
-- The State Appellate Public Defender's Office spent almost half a million
dollars on death penalty cases from 2004 to 2013.
-- The state spent $170,000 in 1-time costs to prepare for a 2011 execution,
the 1st in the state in 17 years.
-- The cost of executing 2 convicts in 2011 and 2012 was a little more than
$100,000 total.
"It's important for lawmakers to have an appreciation for all those things
going on in the judicial and corrections areas," said Sen. Clifford Bayer,
R-Meridian, one of the legislators who requested the study.
DEATH ROW IN IDAHO
Idaho is 1 of the 32 states that still have the death penalty, but at least a
few of those states - including Oregon and Washington - have moratoriums on
executions.
Earlier this month, Oregon Gov. Kate Brown announced that she will extend the
moratorium enacted in 2011 by then-Gov. John Kitzhaber, who called it a
"compromised and inequitable system."
In their written request for Idaho to study the financial cost of the death
penalty, a pair of legislators wrote that "with a spate of recent exonerations
and reduced sentences, its clear that our system of justice for death penalty
cases is flawed."
In 2001, after 17 years on death row, Charles Fain was exonerated by DNA
evidence.
Oregon currently has 34 inmates sentenced to death (33 men, 1 woman), while
Idaho has just 11 (10 men, 1 woman). Lengthy appeals processes mean those on
death row can delay execution for years.
Idaho has executed 3 people since 1977. The last 2 were Paul Ezra Rhoades in
2011 and Richard Leavitt in 2012.
Death row inmates by state as of Oct. 1, 2014
California: 745
Florida: 404
Texas: 276
Alabama: 198
Pennsylvania: 188
North Carolina: 160
Ohio: 144
Arizona: 123
Georgia: 90
Louisiana: 85
Nevada: 78
Tennessee: 75
U.S. government: 63
Oklahoma: 49
Mississippi: 49
South Carolina: 47
Missouri: 39
Oregon: 36
Kentucky: 35
Arkansas: 33
Delaware: 18
Indiana: 14
Connecticut: 12
Idaho: 11
Nebraska: 11
Kansas 10
Utah: 9
Washington: 9
Virginia: 8
U.S. military: 6
Maryland: 4
South Dakota: 3
Colorado: 3
Montana: 2
New Mexico: 2
Wyoming: 1
New Hampshire: 1
TOTAL: 3,035
[source: Death Penalty Information Center]
----
The Boise County Prosecutor's Office is small, staffed with just 3 attorneys
who handle about 2,500 cases a year.
It's been more than a decade since it had a 1st-degree murder case go to trial.
This year, Prosecutor Ian Gee and Chief Deputy Jay Rosenthal have their hands
full with 2 1st-degree murder cases heading to trial, including one death
penalty case. Gee recently added another full-time attorney, Jolene Maloney, to
the office.
Death penalty cases are time-intensive, expensive and rare in Idaho.
The last person in the state to receive a death sentence was Erick Hall in
2005, though Darrell Payne was resentenced to death in 2010 (the Idaho Supreme
Court reversed his 1st death sentence because of improper victim impact
statements). Both those cases were in Ada County and both remain on death row.
"In my opinion, this is the most serious decision that a prosecutor can make,"
said longtime Twin Falls County Prosecutor Grant Loebs, who agreed to talk with
the Statesman about the complexity and demands of death penalty cases.
Loebs, who has been prosecuting attorney since 1997, has sought the death
penalty in 3 cases, but none went to trial.
"If I think it's the right thing to do, then that's what we do," Loebs said.
"It does cost the county a lot more money."
PROSECUTION, DEFENSE TEAMS
State law requires that in death penalty cases in which the defendant cannot
afford to hire an attorney, 2 qualified trial attorneys (public defenders or
private attorneys) be assigned to the case, and both must be death-penalty
qualified.
Costs are usually covered by the defendant if he hires his own attorney.
Sometimes when a defendant hires an attorney, he may come back and say he's out
of money. In that case, the defendant can ask the county to cover costs of
experts, testing and investigation. A judge can require the county to cover
those costs.
Loebs said preparing murder cases for trial usually requires a team of at least
5 or 6 people: 2 prosecutors, an investigator, a legal assistant and 1 or more
victim/witness coordinators. Prosecutor offices with small budgets might not
have an investigator or victim/witness coordinator.
"Everyone jumps in to help," said Ada County Prosecutor Jan Bennetts, who
supervises a staff of 70 lawyers.
During one of its busiest 2-year periods ever, the Ada County office handled 18
murder cases in 2007-08. 2 of those cases involved 2 co-defendants and 1 had 3
co-defendants. Ada County has sought the death penalty about 8 times over the
past 20 years, Bennetts estimated.
When a prosecutor decides to seek the death penalty, it guarantees more work.
Because a person's life is at stake, there's an intense level of scrutiny
that's not present in other cases.
If the trial ends in a guilty verdict, then comes the sentencing phase. That's
essentially another trial, in which the prosecutor has to justify a death
sentence.
The Ada County Prosecutor's Office is assisting Boise County. Maloney and
Rosenthal are handling the death penalty case; 2 attorneys from Ada County are
handling the other. Boise County is covering all costs.
Boise County commissioners set aside $250,000 for the 1st murder trial, the
nondeath penalty case expected this year. That trial, expected to take about 3
weeks, will be at the Ada County Courthouse. Gee said the county likely will
need to budget extra money for 2016 to cover the costs of a 2nd trial. The
prosecutor's 2015 budget - not including the extra money - is $339,000.
Boise County Commission Chairwoman Vicki Wilkins said the county will seek
financial assistance from the state's Capital Crimes Defense Fund, a reserve
fund created in 1998 to help counties cover costs of death penalty cases. The
county, with its seat in tiny Idaho City and less than 7,000 people, has a 2015
budget of about $9 million.
In Idaho, more than $4 million has been reimbursed to counties for capital
defense costs since 1998.
WHICH CASES QUALIFY FOR DEATH PENALTY?
The 2 Boise County 1st-degree murder cases involve the same defendant: Michael
S. Dauber, a 46-year-old former Idaho City resident who worked in helicopter
logging.
Dauber is accused of killing 2 friends: Joshua Reddington, 25, in 2000, and
Steven Kalogerakos, 42, in 2007. Both men were missing for years. Kalogerakos'
remains were found in 2013; Reddington's remains were found in late 2014.
In December, Boise County prosecutors filed their intent to seek the death
penalty in the Reddington case. Gee has declined to discuss the case.
Dauber is being represented by attorneys Rob Chastain and Elisa Massoth.
Prosecutors brought in DNA experts from Washington, D.C., and Texas to testify
at Dauber's preliminary hearing for the Reddington case - one of the kind of
expenses that adds to trial costs.
Trial dates have not been set. Both cases will be discussed at a hearing at 10
a.m. March 12 before District Judge Patrick Owen at the Boise County
Courthouse.
DEATH PENALTY COSTS
A 2014 state report examined the financial costs of the death penalty in Idaho,
though it suggested more study was needed to determine exact figures.
The authors of the study reviewed the cases of 251 defendants charged with
first-degree murder from 1998 to 2013. Prosecutors sought the death penalty for
55 defendants, although the death penalty was later withdrawn for 13 of those
defendants.
Of the 42 eligible for the death sentence, 7 were sentenced to death.
Besides the possibility of a not guilty verdict, there are three possible
sentencing outcomes in a death penalty case:
-- If the jury determines the prosecution has proved that an aggravating
factor warranting the death penalty exists and there are no mitigating factors
that would make the death penalty unjust, then the court must impose a sentence
of death.
-- If the jury determines the prosecution proved at least one aggravating
factor, but a mitigating factor exists that makes imposition of the death
penalty unjust, the defendant would automatically receive a sentence of life in
prison without possibility of parole.
-- If the jury determines that the prosecution did not prove an aggravating
factor existed, then the defendant faces sentencing by the judge of up to life
in prison, including a minimum of 10 years before eligible for parole.
PRO AND CON
The death penalty stirs strong emotions. That's 1 reason why policymakers would
like a definitive judgment on whether executions work - in deterrence value and
bottom-line costs.
Critics say money spent on executions could be used for victim services or
other more beneficial programs.
"These statistics show clearly just how inefficient our government has been in
spending our tax dollars," Leo Morales, communications and advocacy director
for ACLU of Idaho, wrote in the Statesman when the report was released in
March.
Gov. Butch Otter said the study leaves open the policy question of whether tax
dollars are wisely spent on death penalty cases. And he said he's not changing
his mind about keeping the death penalty in Idaho.
"Let me leave no doubt about my own continuing support for existing laws and
procedures," Otter wrote.
(source: Idaho Statesman)
ARIZONA:
Arias jury deliberations to resume Monday
After 2 days, the jury continued to deliberate in the Jodi Arias sentencing
retrial until about 5 p.m. Thursday, when members left for the week.
Deliberations will resume Monday.
Arias faces the death penalty in the murder of her boyfriend, Travis Alexander.
She was found guilty a year ago but the jury was unable to decide on a
punishment.
The jury asked 3 questions Thursday morning. The 1st dealt with when they could
look at their notes. The 2nd was a request to work through their lunch break,
which the judge granted. The 3rd was a request for a list of all the evidence
from the 1st and 2nd trials.
The retrial of the sentencing phase is a far cry from the 1st trial, which was
marked by a flood of national media attention. Networks built entire sets just
for coverage of the verdict and sentence.
This time, the crowds are gone and very few national media outlets have
arrived. Judge Sherry Stephens banned live camera coverage this time around.
Local attorneys say waiting on a jury can be nerve-wracking, especially when
the stakes are so high.
Attorney Logan Elia with the Rose Law Group said he's not making any judgments
based on the length of time the Arias jury has deliberated.
"I tell my clients that you can't infer anything from the length of time a jury
is out but still," he said. "You're still waiting from someone to decide your
fate."
Attorney Adrian Fontes with Dessaules Law Group said with nothing else to do,
attorneys sometimes dwell on what might have been.
"I think it would be tough not to second guess some of the things that you've
done," Fontes said.
The Arias jury must vote unanimously for the death penalty in order for Arias
to die by lethal injection. They can also vote for life in prison without
parole. If the jury come back as a hung jury, Judge Stephens will sentence
Arias to life in prison.
(source: azcentral.com)
CALIFORNIA:
Judge refuses to let attorney off case for man facing death penalty in Anaheim
Hills burned-bodies murders, worries request is a delaying tactic
A judge on Thursday refused to allow a man convicted in one of the most brutal
murders in Orange County's history to change attorneys on the eve of his
scheduled sentencing.
Worrying that the request for new counsel was simply a delaying tactic, Orange
County Superior Court Judge Thomas Goethals ordered Iftekhar Murtaza to return
to court on Tuesday. Murtaza faces the death penalty for his role in the 2007
killings of the father and sister of his ex-girlfriend, Shayona Dhanak, and the
attempted murder of her mother.
On May 21, 2007, the 3 Dhanak family members - Jayprakash, Karishma and Leela -
were abducted from their Anaheim Hills home, brutally beaten and stabbed. The
burned bodies of Jayprakash and Karishma Dhanak were found the next morning
near a bike trail in Irvine. Leela Dhanak was found unconscious on a neighbor's
lawn, her throat slashed and the family's home burning nearby.
The deaths were thought to have resulted in Murtaza's failed efforts to win
back Shayona Dhanak. He believed their relationship had ended because her
parents, who are devout Hindus, disapproved of Murtaza, who is Muslim.
Murtaza's sentencing has been delayed several times over the past year. Last
month, attorney Mark Fredrick, who represents Murtaza, asked for a retrial,
arguing that he had new evidence pointing to a possible robbery at the home,
and a witness who could exonerate his client.
Goethals agreed to delay the sentencing to give Fredrick time to locate the
people he hoped to have testify, but the judge made it clear he would be
hard-pressed to support any additional delays. After the hearing, Fredrick
requested that he be taken off the case, citing an unspecified conflict.
On Thursday, Goethals took the rare step of requiring Fredrick to explain
exactly what conflict he faces in the case. The court was cleared of
spectators, media and prosecutors as the judge discussed the request with the
defense attorneys and Murtaza.
When the hearing was re-opened for the public, Fredrick denied to the judge
that his request was an effort to put off his client's sentencing.
"This is not for the purpose of a delay, and it is not something Mr. Murtaza
asked me to do," the attorney said.
While Goethals ruled against Fredrick's request to be taken off the case, he
agreed to give the attorney until Tuesday to take the matter up with an appeals
court.
(source: Orange County Register)
OREGON:
Kate Brown says she opposes death penalty but refuses to rule out executions on
her watch
Newly inaugurated Gov. Kate Brown said Thursday that she personally opposes the
death penalty, but she did not rule out that she might someday allow executions
to resume in Oregon.
Brown, interviewed by The Oregonian/OregonLive 8 days after taking office, said
she expected to support any measure reaching the ballot that would ask
Oregonians to abolish the death penalty.
Brown reaffirmed her earlier announcement that she would continue former Gov.
John Kitzhaber's moratorium on executions while she assembles an advisory panel
to come up with recommendations on a "clear path forward."
At the same time, the new Democratic governor spoke cautiously about how she
would proceed on an issue where she may well differ with most Oregonians.
Voters here overwhelmingly supported re-establishment of the death penalty in
1984 and more recent attempts to put the issue back on the ballot have
foundered for lack of support. One 2012 poll found that 57 % of Oregonians
favored the death penalty while 39 % were opposed.
"My personal view is that I am opposed to the death penalty," said Brown,
adding that over in her nearly 18 years in the Legislature, "my position
became, the only way I can describe it, as more nuanced."
In 2005, Brown backed legislation that would have allowed the death penalty to
be applied in the murder of pregnant women, reserve police officers and
witnesses to juvenile proceedings. The murder of full-time officers and
witnesses to adult crimes can already carry the death penalty and Brown said
she wanted to make capital punishment "more consistent."
Brown said that she has her "personal position and then obviously the role of
governor...I think we need a clear path not only for my governorship but for
other governors moving forward."
Asked if she would ever allow executions to resume in Oregon, Brown said:
"I don't know the answer to that at this point in time. I clearly stated that
we will continue the moratorium, and until we work through all of those issues,
that is where we are at."
Kitahaber announced in 2011 that he would issue a temporary reprieve for as
long as he was in office that would block any imminent execution.
Kitzhaber acted after convicted killer Gary Haugen waived further appeals and
sought to force his own execution.
When first elected governor in 1994, Kitzhaber had promised to abide by voters'
will on the death penalty despite his personal opposition to it. Before leaving
office in 2003, he allowed 2 executions - both of inmates who had waived
further appeals - on his watch.
After retaking office in 2011, Kitzhaber said Oregon's system of capital
punishment "fails to meet basic standards of justice."
Kitzhaber called for the Legislature to bring "potential reforms" to the 2013
session and for Oregonians to "engage in a long overdue debate" on the death
penalty.
(source: The Oregonian)
WASHINGTON:
Carnation: Ex-boyfriend testifies in defense of accused killer
The defense team called an unlikely witness as it works to defend accused
killer Joseph McEnroe.
McEnroe confessed to killing 6 members of his girlfriend???s family on
Christmas Eve in Carnation in 2007. Michele Anderson is also charged with the
murders.
Defense attorneys called Michele Anderson's ex-boyfriend, Marc Mann.
Mann met Michele Anderson when she was in high school. They dated for years.
When he moved out of the apartment they shared, Joe McEnroe moved in.
He'd been out of touch with Anderson but when he heard she was arrested for
killing her family, Mann contacted police.
"I felt they needed to know she wasn't well," said Mann on the stand. He said
Anderson suffered from depression and took medicine off and on.
Anderson called Mann from the jail after her arrest. The defense played some of
those phone conversations for the jury. In the call, Anderson demands that Mann
help her get a new attorney. Here's one of the exchanges:
MICHELE: You don't understand. This is life or death, you gotta do it.
MARC: Okay. I'll, I'll do what I can do. Okay.
MICHELE: No, you will.
MARC: Okay. I'll, I'll do what I can.
MICHELE: No, you, you gotta get one. You promise me.
Mann told the court he finally canceled Anderson's jail phone card because she
was abusive. Mann, now married with 4 children, says he didn't follow through
with Anderson's demands. Instead, he says he warned her attorney.
The defense called Mann to testify to reinforce Anderson's controlling nature.
When cross- examined by the prosecution, he denied ever being controlled by
Anderson.
"The fact that you didn't drive didn't mean Michele Anderson controlled you?"
asked Senior Deputy Prosecutor Scott O'Toole.
"That would be true," answered Mann.
"Made you do things against your will?" inquired O'Toole.
"That would also be true," replied Mann.
When Mann was interviewed by investigators in 2008, prosecutors say he didn't
think Anderson was capable of the killings, he told them it was more likely she
was an "observer."
Prosecutor O'Toole read from the investigation, where Mann points the finger at
McEnroe.
"You were talking about Michele Anderson couldn't have done it," asked O'Toole
in court Thursday. "It must have been Joe who did it?"
"Yes," replied Mann.
The murders happened more than 7 years ago. The trial was delayed because
McEnroe tried to make a plea deal to avoid the death penalty. The prosecutor
wouldn't agree to a deal. McEnroe also tried to plead guilty by reason of
insanity; the court found no proof of that.
This is a death penalty case. Even if McEnroe is convicted of 6 counts of
aggravated 1st-degree murder and sentenced to death, he wouldn't be executed as
long as Jay Inslee is the governor of Washington.
Michele Anderson's trial starts in the fall. Her trial was delayed because her
mental competency was in question.
McEnroe will decide if he will takes the stand on Monday. Court is in recess
until then.
(source: KIRO news)
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