Aug. 31
NORTH CAROLINA:
Judge okays death penalty case against Jordan Lowdermilk
A Superior Court judge signed an order Tuesday allowing the Surry County
District Attorney's Office to proceed with a capital murder case against Jordan
Ross Lowdermilk.
Lowdermilk, 29, of Dobson, is charged with 1st-degree murder in the May death
of Claudia Smith, an elderly Mount Airy resident.
Smith was found beaten to death in her home at 409 Franklin St. after city
police officers were called there for a welfare check. Smith's Nissan was
missing when police arrived, and they later found the vehicle wrecked and
abandoned near Interstate 77.
Lowdermilk, who was being sought on probation violations at the time of the
crimes, is also accused in the stabbing of a motorist who was taking a rest
break on I-77 that morning. The motorist, Bryan James Mace, survived the
stabbing and was able to escape and call for help.
The state filed notice of intent to seek the death penalty in July.
North Carolina requires a "Rule 24" pretrial conference be held in all capital
cases where the state must show sufficient evidence of at least one statutory
aggravating circumstance.
Defense attorneys for Lowdermilk stipulated to that during the hearing Tuesday,
addressing the court only to make a clarification.
"We're not stipulating to the (existence of the) aggravating factor," stated
Vincent Rabil. "We agree they have evidence."
The case was placed on the calendar for April 2017 for other motions that may
emerge before a trial.
Lowdermilk is being held without bond in the Surry County Detention Center.
Family members of both the defendant and the victim were present in the
courtroom for the hearing.
(source: The Mount Airy News)
GEORGIA:
Accused killer has death penalty hearing
At a death penalty hearing for an Albany man charged with killing a toddler,
defense lawyers questioned the constitutionality of the make-up of the grand
jury that indicted him.
Gregory Evans is charged with murdering 19-month-old Janaysia Stevenson in
March 2011. He was re-indicted on 10 charges. Including murder, in February
2015.
Prosecutors got that 2nd indictment to make sure the grand jury was diverse
enough, but the District Attorney says defense attorneys Monday still argued
its constitutionality.
Prosecutors hope the death penalty trial can be held next year. "We are trying
to schedule all of the hearings that are related to pre-trial motions so that
we can get them done by the end of this calendar year," said Greg Edwards.
Dougherty D. A.
The next pre-trial hearing in the death penalty murder charge is September
12th.
(source: WALB news)
ALABAMA:
January trial likely; Death penalty hearing continued
The hearing set for Tuesday, in which attorneys for a man charged and indicted
with capital murder asked a judge to declare the death penalty section of the
Alabama Capital Murder Statue unconstitutional, was continued, but all parties
agreed on a tentative January 2017 trial date.
Shelton Lorenz Foster is accused of murdering 48-year-old Donnie Earl Bone in
an area off of Old Drag Strip Road in September 2012. He was shot in the back
of the head.
The hearing was continued pending service at the Attorney General's office.
Once the AG's office has been served, Circuit Judge Lex Short will hear the
motion.
Additionally, Shelton Lorenz Foster's attorneys - Manish Patel and Chris Sledge
- entered motions asking for the state to disclose aggravated circumstances for
the death penalty.
District Attorney Walt Merrell argued that some of that information comes from
the grand jury indictment and others could potentially not come until the
trial.
Merrell said his staff has adopted an open file policy for revealing discovery
in Foster's case.
Additionally, the attorneys asked for demographics of the grand jury, including
race, sex and age.
They also asked for testimony from the grand jury session.
Patel argued that was an unfair advantage to the state when his client was
facing the death penalty.
Merrell maintained that law requires that grand jury proceedings be kept
secret.
Patel said that ultimately it comes down to Judge Short's discretion.
In the event that Short ruled against the motion, Patel asked that the
testimony provided at grand jury that was recorded be transcribed and sealed.
Short said he would rule on the matters.
(source: Andalusia Star News)
MISSISSIPPI:
DA: Families a factor in death penalty decision
The Holmes County district attorney says she will consider the facts of the
case and the wishes of the families when deciding whether to pursue the death
penalty against the man accused of killing 2 Mississippi nuns in their home.
District Attorney Akillie Malone-Oliver said Monday, "We are going to consider
the heinous nature of the crime and their wishes," referring to the families of
Sisters Margaret Held and Paula Merrill and their religious orders.
During a memorial Mass on Monday in Jackson, the Rev. Greg Plata, who ministers
at the Lexington church where Held and Merrill worshipped, noted a joint
statement against the death penalty released Sunday by the Sisters of Charity
of Nazareth and the School Sisters of St. Francis of Milwaukee.
Ronald Earl Sanders of Kosciusko, Mississippi, faces 2 counts of capital
murder, 1 count of burglary and 1 count of grand larceny in the slayings.
The suspect accused in the killing of two nuns in Mississippi last week has
been ordered held without bond after a hearing Monday.
Sanders' wife attended the brief hearing in Durant Municipal Court. She broke
down in tears afterward as she addressed relatives and associates of Sisters
Margaret Held and Paula Merrill, whose bodies were found Thursday at their home
in Durant.
"I'm sorry. I don't know what to say to y'all. I'm so sorry ... I'm so sorry. I
can't take this. Oh my God," Marie Sanders said.
Sister Susan Gatz, the president of the Sisters of Charity of Nazareth order,
came over to Mrs. Sanders and hugged her. Merrill belonged to the order.
(source: Associated Press)
OHIO----2 new execution dates
Ohio execution dates now stretch in 2020
The list of convicted Ohio killers waiting to die keeps growing, with execution
dates now stretching into 2020.
As has been the case for 2 years, however, the lethal injection drugs required
to execute them aren't available.
The Ohio Supreme Court set 2 new execution dates in the past week, bringing the
total to 28 scheduled over the next 4 years. Added were John E. Drummond of
Mahoning County for Sept. 17, 2020, and Nathaniel Jackson of Trumbull County on
July 15, 2020.
Another 26 men are ahead of them, beginning with Ronald Phillips, of Summit
County, on Jan. 12, 2017. Phillips is the 1st of 11 slated to die next year at
the Southern Ohio Correctional Facility nearly Lucasville. Another 8 are on the
list in 2018 and 7 are scheduled in 2019.
The Ohio Department of Rehabilitation and Correction has not found drugs
required for the executions.
"DRC continues to seek all legal means to obtain the drugs necessary to carry
out court-ordered executions," spokeswoman JoEllen Smith said.
Prison officials have tried several methods to buy drugs, including from
overseas sources, and Ohio "compounding pharmacies," which mix drugs to
customer specifications. Neither panned out. Most major manufacturers have
either stopped making drugs used for lethal injection or refuse to sell them to
states for executions. The problem affects all states with the death penalty.
3 killers from Franklin County are on the list: Alva Campbell, Jr., May 10,
2017; Warren K. Henness, Feb. 13, 2018; and Kareem M. Jackson, July 10, 2019
8 men on the death list are from Hamilton County, 6 from Lucas County, and 4
from Cuyahoga County.
Ohio law only allows lethal injection in capital punishment cases. The electric
chair was decommissioned in November 2001. The law does not permit other forms
of execution.
(source: Columbus Dispatch)
**********
Court sets execution date for condemned killer of 3-year-old
The Ohio Supreme Court has set a 2020 execution date for a gang member who
fatally shot a 3-year-old boy.
The court ruled 6-1 Tuesday in the case of John Drummond. Drummond was
convicted of killing 3-month-old Jiyen Dent Jr. in March 2003 when a bullet hit
him in the head as he was sitting in a baby swing in the living room of his
home.
Authorities said Drummond and an accomplice fired 11 shots from an assault
rifle and several more from a 9 mm handgun into the homes of the child and a
neighbor in Youngstown.
The court scheduled a Sept. 17, 2020 execution date for the 39-year-old
Drummond.
The execution's likelihood is unclear since the state has struggled to find
supplies of lethal injection drugs.
(source: The Republic)
OKLAHOMA:
Dead Man Sitting: What's next for the death penalty in Oklahoma?
Nearly 50 offenders are sitting on death row in McAlester.
However, executions remain on hold while state leaders try to figure out what's
next for the death penalty in Oklahoma.
It was September 2015 when Gov. Mary Fallin issued a last-minute stay for
convicted killer Richard Glossip when corrections officials realized they'd
gotten the wrong execution drugs.
"No one was held accountable. We want to educate the people so that they will
hold our officials accountable," former State Senator Connie Johnson said.
Now, a state question you'll vote on in November would put the death penalty in
Oklahoma's constitution, allowing any method of execution to be used, as long
as it's legal under federal law.
Essentially, experts say it does nothing.
"It reminds me of the 'no Sharia law' question that we had a couple years ago.
I would challenge you to go anywhere in the state of Oklahoma and find a judge
who is employing Sharia law," Perry Hudson, a defense attorney, said.
As officials review execution protocols, they're facing a tough task after a
scathing 106 page grand jury report.
And now an independent panel is doing an in-depth study of the death penalty in
Oklahoma.
It's the 1st study of its kind, looking at everything from racial
discrimination to false confessions.
"If we are going to have the death penalty in Oklahoma, it must be done right.
And it hasn't been in the past," former Gov. Brad Henry said.
(source: KFOR news)
CALIFORNIA:
Death penalty for homeless suspect accused of killing 5 in fire?
A homeless man accused of setting a fire that killed 5 people in a vacant
office building in the Westlake district where he was living with other
transients pleaded not guilty Tuesday to capital murder charges.
Johnny Josue Sanchez, now 22, could face the death penalty after being charged
with five counts of murder and two counts of attempted murder in connection
with the June 13 blaze.
The murder charges include the special circumstance allegations of multiple
murders and murder during the commission of an arson. Prosecutors have yet to
decide whether to seek the death penalty against Sanchez, who is being held
without bail.
Authorities allege Sanchez intentionally set the fire because he had a dispute
with other transients living along with him in the 14,351-square-foot,
long-vacant building at 2411 W. Eighth St. near MacArthur Park.
"It was a dispute between Sanchez and other individuals that were residing in
the building that was the cause of him ultimately lighting the fire," Los
Angeles police Lt. William Hayes alleged.
A male victim was initially declared dead as a result of the blaze. The bodies
of 4 more homeless victims - 2 men and 2 women - were found the next day in the
ruins of the 2-story structure, which had no functional fire sprinklers.
Los Angeles Fire Department Chief Ralph Terrazas said the additional victims
were located together under debris on the 2nd floor.
Cadaver dogs and their handlers discovered the additional victims, according to
fire department spokesman Peter Sanders, who said all 5 victims appeared to be
transients.
2 of the victims were identified - Jerry Dean Clemons, 59, and Mary Ann Davis,
44 - but the names of 2 other males and another female victim have not been
released.
Firefighters used ladders to rescue 3 people from 2nd-story windows during the
blaze, Sanders said. One of them was transported to a local hospital, and the
other 2 were treated at the scene.
It took 147 firefighters nearly 2 1/2 hours to extinguish the blaze, which
broke out about 7 p.m. Sanchez was arrested at the scene.
He is due back in a downtown Los Angeles courtroom Oct. 13, when a date is
scheduled to be set for a hearing to determine if there is enough evidence to
require him to stand trial.
(source: mynewsla.com)
USA:
Why Does It Take So Long Between a Death Sentence and an Execution?
There's an ancient proverb that says the wheels of justice grind slowly, and
nowhere is that maxim more true than in conjunction with the death penalty. The
average prisoner remains on death row for over 16 years before being executed.
That's if the convicted person is executed at all. Many death row inmates are
left waiting for so long that they ultimately die of natural causes.
What's the hold up? Primarily, it's due to the various legal appeals. After
being sentenced to death, defendants have a number of options to appeal for a
less harsh sentence, if not overturning the conviction:
The 1st appeal, the direct appeal, is typically filed automatically after the
initial trial is complete. Here, attorneys argue before the state's highest
judges over issues that arose during the trial.
If the death sentence stands, defendants can file a post-conviction petition to
address other issues that didn???t come up during the original trial like new
evidence or inadequate legal counsel.
Next, defendants can file a federal habeas corpus with the U.S. District Court
to review any potential issues from the previous trials. Federal courts review
briefs by both sides before determining whether an appeal here is warranted.
Finally, defendants can appeal all the way to the U.S. Supreme Court. Though
the nation's highest court considers a limited number of death penalty cases,
this petition obviously extends the process while waiting to hear a definitive
answer.
In fact, all of these legal proceedings take a long time. Attorneys can easily
spend a full decade exhausting the various appeal options, which means that
states can't even reasonably entertain the idea of executing a death row inmate
anytime close to their original conviction.
Another factor that takes a lot of time is the reexamination of evidence.
Because of recent technological and DNA advancements, lawyers can push to
retest evidence in ways that were not possible at the time of the original
trial.
Allowing ample time for the appeals process matters because it is successful in
so many instances. In fact, death row inmates are 3 times more likely to have
their sentences reduced - generally to life without chance of parole - than to
actually be executed.
Plus, when you consider that over 150 death row inmates have subsequently been
exonerated in the past 4 decades, how much time is too much time to determine
whether a person is innocent before killing him? A legal study estimates that
about 4 % of those sentenced to death are actually innocent.
Though execution delays have gotten longer over time, delays themselves are
nothing new to capital punishment cases. An old study found in the Journal of
Empirical Legal Studies looked at all 5,826 inmates sentenced to death between
1973 and 1995. Only 5 % of the prisoners in this time frame were actually
executed.
In 2011, Supreme Court Justice Stephen Breyer wrote a dissenting opinion that
an inmate's 33 years on death row should be considered cruel and unusual
punishment. At the time the Constitution was written, Breyer posited,
executions occurred within a matter of days or weeks rather than decades.
Other countries' judicial systems agree with Breyer that leaving prisoners in a
position where they constantly think they could be killed soon amounts to
psychological torture.
Still, that doesn't seem like a reason to speed up the death penalty process,
as it might lead to the hasty execution of potentially innocent people. It
does, however, seem like a reason for ceasing capital punishment altogether. If
it can't be done responsibly in a short amount of time, perhaps it shouldn't be
done at all.
(source: Kevin Mathews, care2com.)
************
When A ZIP Code Can Determine A Death Sentence
"There's no more basic form of arbitrariness in the death penalty than
geography."
Critics of capital punishment have long cited the arbitrary nature of the death
penalty as a reason it should be abolished in the U.S. Who gets sentenced to
death can depend on a variety of arbitrary factors, including ZIP code.
"Too Broken To Fix," a report released earlier this month by Harvard Law
School's Fair Punishment Project, highlights 16 so-called "outlier" counties in
the U.S. where defendants are disproportionately sentenced to death.
"Of the 3,143 county or county equivalents in the United States, only 16 - or
1/2 of 1 % - imposed 5 or more death sentences between 2010 and 2015," the
report states.
Who gets sentenced to death can be heavily influenced by arbitrary factors like
race, gender and geography.
The study notes that the 16 counties are exceptional not just for their high
rates of death penalty convictions, but also because those rates persist even
as the rest of the country is trending in the other direction. Last year, fewer
people were sentenced to death in the U.S. than in any year since the 1970s.
As use of the death penalty has fallen in the U.S., many of the 31 states that
still have it on the books - like Kansas and New Hampshire - haven't carried
out an execution in 50 years or more.
What the 16 outlier counties have in common, the study found, is overzealous
prosecution, inadequate defense resources and a pattern of racial bias and
exclusion.
In reference to the Harvard report, Austin Sarat, who teaches law and political
science at Amherst College, said that because capital punishment is growing
more and more concentrated in specific areas, it requires greater precision in
the way we talk about it.
"We can say, 'In a way, the U.S. doesn't have the death penalty - Texas has the
death penalty,'" Sarat told The Huffington Post. "But even that's not right.
Harris County has the death penalty."
"There's no more basic form of arbitrariness in the death penalty than
geography," he continued. "I used to advise my students that if they're going
to murder someone, they should do it in Michigan, not Ohio. If you murdered
someone 1/2 a mile into Ohio, you could get the death penalty. It's the same
crime, but 1/2 a mile north [in Michigan], you're not eligible for the death
penalty."
6 of the 16 outlier counties are in Florida and Alabama - the only 2 states in
the country that don't require a unanimous jury decision to give a death
sentence. The remaining 10 counties are concentrated in Arizona, California,
Louisiana, Nevada and Texas.
Looking at statistics from the various counties, it becomes clear that people
of color and people with mental health issues are at especially high risk for
death sentences. Some of these people are almost certainly innocent - in fact,
in the 8 counties listed in the graphic below, there have been a combined 11
exonerations since 1976.
Even more striking is the small number of individuals behind the death
sentences. According to the Fair Punishment Project's analysis, three
prosecutors in particular - Donnie Myers in South Carolina, the late Bob Macy
in Oklahoma and the late Joe Freeman Britt in North Carolina - have been
responsible for a combined 131 death sentences, the equivalent of 1 in every 25
people currently on death row.
Defendants in these outlier counties face not only overzealous prosecution but
also inadequate defense. "In too many cases today, defendants are stuck with
attorneys who lack the time, resources, or ability to zealously represent their
clients as guaranteed by the Constitution," the report notes. In some of the
outlier counties, lawyers spend an average of less than a day on defense
mitigation for clients who are ultimately sentenced to death.
"I think there has been growing recognition that the death penalty machinery in
the U.S. is broken," Sarat said. "The situation with capital punishment today
is dramatically different than it was 15, 20 years ago."
Sarat argued that the death penalty is no longer really an aspect of the U.S.
justice system. Rather, he said, it's a feature of "these isolated and rather
idiosyncratic counties."
(source: Kim Bellware, Huffington Post)
*****************
Sparing Dylann Roof the death penalty says white lives matter more
Dylann Roof deserves the death penalty. Any way you slice it.
He shot dead 9 black Americans in a Charleston church. He committed a hate
crime against an entire race of people. He committed domestic terrorism in a
house of worship. He shows no remorse.
The death penalty prosecution of Roof is set to begin Nov. 7 in federal court
in Charleston. It's my hope that Roof is sentenced to death for his heinous,
racist and calculated crime. I say this not just as the brother of one of the
victims, but also as a Charleston native, as a churchgoer, as a former lawmaker
and as an American.
In a Washington Post op-ed that appeared in the Charlotte Observer on Tuesday,
Wade Henderson contends that executing Roof validates a punishment that a
disproportionate number of blacks versus whites receive. Mr. Henderson, an
African American civil rights attorney, believes Roof should be sentenced to
life in prison, not death. I disagree.
Dylann Roof deserves the death penalty. I say this despite being an African
American who knows all too well that police officers and courts don't treat my
people fairly.
Being a black man in America means wrestling with the issue of capital
punishment and the sad reality that more blacks are punished by death than
whites, especially when the victim is white. I've wrangled with the issue and
have always come down to the belief that some crimes are just too awful, too
heinous for the perpetrators to receive anything less.
As an N.C. senator, I voted for a racial justice act, legislation that gave
defendants greater opportunity to defend themselves and avoid capital
sentences. But I do believe there is a place for the death sentence and Roof
claimed his place when he slaughtered my sister, Cynthia Graham Hurd, and 8
other prayer group members.
Mr. Henderson's argument against the death penalty for Roof actually promotes
racism. Our African American brothers and sisters don't receive fair and equal
treatment in our judicial and criminal justice systems. But that doesn't mean
that when our people are the victims - the ones innocently slaughtered - that
we should seek some sort of moral high road rather than demand justice and a
punishment befitting the crime.
Black lives continue to matter less in this country - another sad truth that
news headlines remind us of on a daily basis.
Black lives matter less if you are a criminal or a suspect. Black lives matter
less if you are driving or walking down the wrong street at the wrong time.
Black lives matter less if you are wearing the "wrong" clothes or playing your
music too loudly.
Now you are telling me that black lives matter less if you are praying in a
church.
Suggesting that Roof be allowed to serve a life sentence is like validating a
prejudice that goes like this: Only blacks who commit heinous crimes against
humanity and our country deserve to be executed.
It is saying: White lives matter more and that white victims matter more.
My sister's life mattered. The lives of the 8 innocent souls who died by her
side mattered.
Dylann Roof deserves the death penalty.
(source: Opinion; Malcolm Graham is a Charleston native and former Charlotte
City Council member and N.C. state senator----Charlotte Observer
**********************
Group of Latino Legislators Call for an End to the Death Penalty
A group of Latino legislators passed a resolution demanding the end of the
death penalty in the United States because it disproportionately affects people
of color of all ages.
The National Hispanic Caucus of State Legislators said there is
disproportionate punishment for Latinos, Black Americans and Native Americans.
"The disproportionate and prejudicial application of the death penalty towards
Latinos and other minorities, the high costs of this cruel and unusual
punishment to our tax payers and the increasing likelihood that innocent people
can be wrongfully executed by the states - among many other compelling reasons
- led us to raise our voices to call for an end to capital punishment," said
NHCSL President and Pennsylvania State Representative Angel Cruz in a
statement.
The non-profit, non-partisan group is made up of 320 Hispanic legislators in
the U.S., Puerto Rico and the Virgin Islands.
"Black, Latino, Native Americans, and all people of color are sentenced to
longer prison terms, more likely to be tried as an adult, and are more likely
to be sentenced to death in the USA," the resolution reads.
The resolution asks the U.S. congress and local municipalities to search for
alternatives to combating violence and repeal the death penalty. The group
points out that death penalty cases often cost taxpayers millions of dollars -
an Urban Institute study found death penalty cases cost an average $3 million
per trial, nearly 3 times as expensive as a trial without the possibility of a
death penalty.
"We cannot allow more government dollars to be diverted to killing people,
instead of investing them in prevention, rehabilitation, and effective crime
fighting measures that ensure greater safety in our communities," Cruz stated.
"I encourage all states to follow the example of New Jersey in eliminating the
death penalty, and I look forward to working to eliminate it throughout the
United States with the help of other advocates such as Equal Justice USA," said
assemblywoman Annette Quijano, D-New Jersey,
The resolution states 150 innocent people on death row were exonerated after
being wrongfully convicted. Death penalty cases involving white victims were
more likely to find the defendant guilty, according to data curated by the
Death Penalty Information Center.
Rep. Dan Pabon, D-Colorado, said the death penalty is the "civil rights issue
of our time."
"Even if repealing the death penalty results in one innocent life being saved,
it's worth it. Our criminal justice system should focus on 'justice,'" Pabon
said.
(source: NBC News)
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