Feb. 17
OKLAHOMA:
Oklahoma House advances measure ending electric chair executions
The Oklahoma House approved legislation Thursday to eliminate the electric
chair as a method of execution, although it's been more than 50 years since the
state's last electrocution.
The bill lists which execution methods are allowed, including lethal injection,
nitrogen hypoxia - which causes death by depleting oxygen in the blood - firing
squad and any other form not prohibited by the U.S. Constitution.
Electrocution has not been used to execute an Oklahoma death row inmate since
1966, and a firing squad has never been used in the state.
The measure also would give the Department of Corrections' director the choice
of which method to use.
House members voted 74-22 for the bill and sent it to the Senate for a vote.
Oklahoma has executed 112 people since the death penalty was reinstated in
1976, the highest per-capita rate in the nation and second overall tally only
to Texas, where 537 inmates have been put to death over the last 40 years,
according to the Death Penalty Information Center.
But executions have been on hold in Oklahoma since a botched execution in 2014
and drug mix-ups during the last 2 scheduled lethal injections in 2015.
Oklahoma was the 1st state to authorize lethal injection as a method of
execution, and capital punishment has strong, bipartisan support in the
Oklahoma Legislature.
Lawmakers approved the use of nitrogen gas as an alternative method of
execution after an inmate writhed on the gurney during a 2014 lethal injection
that prison officials tried unsuccessfully to halt.
Last year, voters overwhelmingly approved a statewide referendum that enshrined
the death penalty in the state constitution, making it more difficult for
future legislators or the courts to end it.
(source: Associated Press)
*************************
Oklahoma House passes bill that would provide alternative ways to carry out
death penalty
The Oklahoma House passes House Bill 1679, which would provide alternative ways
to carry out death penalty.
The measure provides that the available manners of execution are to be lethal
drug, nitrogen hypoxia, firing squad, any method not prohibited by the United
States Constitution.
The manner of carrying out the punishment shall be selected by the Director of
the Department of Corrections.
(source: KOCO news)
COLORADO:
Still, Colorado must reconsider death penalty
A year after an effort to lower the bar for implementation of the death-penalty
in Colorado failed in the Senate Judiciary Committee, a move to repeal the
state's death penalty failed this week in the same committee.
As we noted when Berthoud Sen. Kevin Lundberg's bill failed last year, it's
unfortunate that Sen. Lucia Guzman's bill didn't advance this session, because
this is a public policy discussion that requires the state's attention.
There are practical reasons for eliminating the death penalty. Boulder County
District Attorney Stan Garnett has noted that prosecuting a death penalty case
through a verdict can cost the prosecution more than $1 million, about a fifth
of the annual budget of the district attorney's office.
But saving money is a far lesser concern than questions about whether the death
penalty, as applied now, is just.
Execution is not applied uniformly. In 2013, the Denver Post reported on a
review by University of Denver law experts of every first-degree murder case in
Colorado over 12 years found that of 500 cases meeting the state's criteria for
the death penalty, prosecutors sought death in only five, and a University of
Colorado at Boulder study looked for particularly heinous cases where a death
sentence could have been called for but was not and found many: "children who
were kidnapped, raped and murdered. A cocaine addict who killed his wife and
16-month-old son."
Nationwide, poorer defendants, and minorities, are most likely to face
execution.
Sir Mario Owens, who is black, is on death row in Colorado for the murder of 2
people. James Holmes, who is white, got life in prison after murdering 12
people and injuring 70 others. (It's worth noting that life in prison is a
punishment that some "career criminals" receive for drug and gun crimes, not
taking life.)
The continued exonerations of Americans on death row - 157 in the past 44 years
- reveals the risk of putting an innocent inmate to death. It is without
question that Americans have been executed for crimes of which they were not
guilty. It is the punishment that leaves no room for appeal or pardon, should
evidence surface that the defendant was not guilty
The death penalty is a punishment appropriate for murder. Therefore, lawmakers
should listen to prosecutors and to the families of murder victims regarding
the value of keeping the penalty available to the state. But there are too many
questions and legitimate concerns to keep the death penalty on the books as it
is.
(source: Editorial, Reporter-Herald)
*****************
Guzman: 'I came to the Legislature to repeal the death penalty'
Senate Minority Leader Lucia Guzman's death penalty repeal bill was voted down
by Republicans in committee Wednesday, just as she expected. Guzman said she
hoped mainly that the bill would foster heartfelt conversation. On that score,
she succeeded.
She speculated that she might have pulled off the repeal if the Democrats in
November had won a majority in the Senate. But Republicans maintained the
majority by 1 vote.
"It was not to be. Maybe it's the conversation that's important, going through
all these steps together," she said. "I think that's a good legacy."
Guzman, a Denver Democrat, arrived at the Senate as an appointee in 2010,
taking the District 34 seat vacated by Paula Sandoval. Guzman is term limited
and has only 1 more session to serve at the Capitol. She is also a minister
with a degree from the Iliff School of Theology in Denver.
"You know, I came to the Legislature to repeal the death penalty," she said.
"That's why I wanted to run for the Senate - the main reason. I believe that
Colorado can never be its best as long we're entangled with this [death
penalty] statute. As a state and community, transformation is what we need, and
transformation comes only when there's opportunity for people to have the time
to grow. If you just slap the death penalty onto people, there's no way to
grow, in my opinion. It doesn't provide closure."
Guzman told the Senate Judiciary Committee that she was appearing before them
as a senator and as a victim.
"Senate Bill 95 basically brings us to a question: Should we kill someone who
kills someone? We're here today to talk about crime and punishment and justice.
How do we as a society build and maintain a system of justice for all?"
She read aloud excerpts from the 1975 newspaper story that reported the murder
of her 72-year-old father, Tom Guzman, in Katy, Texas.
"He died Sunday morning after being hit in the head during a robbery at the
Highway 90 all-night service station where he worked," she said.
The murderer made off with $7 from Guzman's father's pocket. The cash register
was still locked. The murder weapon, a 12-inch crescent wrench, was found in a
nearby field with a pair of the criminal's shoes.
"The man on the floor of that gas station was my dad. He wasn't feeble," Guzman
said. "He was quite strong. It's amazing to me that the man arrested was not
charged with murder or robbery."
Guzman explained that the accused received a lesser charge that was tied to
what was described as "an argument over small change."
"But parts of my dad's skull were left on that floor... My Daddy didn't deserve
to die that way... What I learned is that you can change things around. There
are so many things that come into play in these cases. In Colorado, so much
depends on what judicial district you live in ... There's no across-the-board
rules.
"My dad didn't deserve to die that way, but I learned that there's no way that
killing someone who killed my dad would bring him back."
Testimony over the bill lasted for hours. Witnesses who testified against the
bill included District Attorney George Brauchler, the man who in 2015 tried and
failed to win a death penalty conviction for James Holmes, the Aurora Theater
shooter; and Maisha Fields, daughter of state Sen. Rhonda Fields and the sister
of Javad Marshall-Fields, who was gunned down on a street corner to prevent him
from testifying in a gangland murder case. The 2 men convicted of killing Javad
Marshall-Fields await execution on Colorado's death row.
Guzman talked at length with The Colorado Statesman about the bill. A larger
story of the interview will post in the print edition of The Statesman this
week.
(source: coloradostatesman.com)
******************
Colorado bill eliminating death penalty fails on party-line vote as emotions
run high
An effort to eliminate the death penalty in Colorado was rejected by a
legislative committee Wednesday night after an emotional hearing.
The effort from Senate Democratic Leader Lucia Guzman failed on a party-line
vote, with Republicans on the Senate Judiciary Committee opposing the proposal.
The hearing included tear-jerking testimony from people who lost loved ones to
murder, who said they found solace in the justice of capital punishment.
But Guzman offered her own perspective as a victim, having lost her father to
murder more than 40 years ago. While her father was working at a service
station, there was a robbery over $7 and some change. His skull was smashed
with a wrench, and parts of it were found strewn across the floor.
It was always infuriating to Guzman that the man who was arrested was charged
with manslaughter; not murder or robbery. But she said she never wished for the
man who murdered her father to be sentenced to death, despite what she
perceived as a light sentence.
"I want you to know that I'm a victim also," Guzman said. "I'm here tonight as
a victim and as a victim advocate. I'm also here as someone who does not
believe that we should be a society that kills people who kill people."
Senate Bill 95 was originally thought to fail with bipartisan opposition. But
Sen. Rhonda Fields, D-Aurora, asked to be replaced on the committee because she
felt too connected to the subject this year. She was replaced by Sen. Irene
Aguilar, D-Denver, who supported the measure.
Fields' son was murdered by 2 men sitting on death row. Javad Marshall-Fields
and his fiancee, Vivian Wolfe, were gunned down in 2005 as the 2 were expected
to testify in a pending murder case.
Sir Mario Owens and Robert Ray were both sentenced to death for their
involvement in the murders, though they are moving through lengthy appeals
steps. Fields said she didn't want to interfere with the continuing judicial
process.
Her daughter, Maisha Fields, testified at the hearing Wednesday night, pointing
out that the 2 men who killed her brother had already been sentenced to what
amounted to life in prison for their role in another case.
"We were able to get justice - justice for Javad and Vivian. The only
punishment that was available at that time, because the defendants were already
serving a life sentence, was death," Maisha Fields said.
"I'm ashamed that we're here today because I feel as if all the hard work that
the 12 jurors have done, the police department, and that the life that my
brother and his girlfriend Vivian lived, will be in vain . Have the political
courage to say 'no.'"
Lawmakers addressed the issue of repealing the death penalty for the 1st time
in 4 years. 2 efforts in the Democratic-controlled legislature in 2013 failed,
one of which was sponsored by Fields. She said her opinion on the death penalty
has "matured," though she still supports it.
A group has formed, the Better Priorities Initiative of Colorado, which is
pushing a repeal. There are no current plans for a ballot measure, though that
could change.
The group is building off of an effort in Nebraska, where proponents of
overturning the death penalty believe they made significant progress. The
Nebraska legislature repealed the death penalty in 2015 despite opposition led
by Republican Gov. Pete Ricketts.
The success, however, was short-lived, as Nebraska voters in November
reinstated the state's policy on capital punishment, with 61 % voting to
"repeal the repeal."
But given success in the legislature of the Republican state, proponents of a
repeal believe there is a way to reach bipartisan consensus in Colorado as
well.
High-profile cases have thrust Colorado into the spotlight, including jurors in
Arapahoe County who could not unanimously agree to sentence the 2012 Aurora
movie theater gunman to die by lethal injection. Gov. John Hickenlooper, a
Democrat, also upset some by granting a stay of execution to Nathan Dunlap, who
was convicted of murder for the 1993 deaths of 4 people at an Aurora Chuck E.
Cheese.
The governor's stance on the death penalty has evolved. In 2014, Hickenlooper
outlined his reasons for opposing the death penalty, which opened him up to
attacks from Republicans as he headed into re-election.
Critics of the death penalty point to costs, with some estimates placing it
between $5 million and $10 million per year thanks to the need for extensive
legal work.
The last time someone was executed in Colorado was in 1997. There are 3 people
sitting on death row in the state.
Opponents of the death penalty also point to an inequity, highlighting that a
gruesome crime committed in 1 jurisdiction could lead to capital punishment,
but the same horrible crime in another district might not because of the
discretion of prosecutors. At least 2 district attorneys, for Denver and
Boulder, have expressed concerns with capital punishment.
Faith leaders held a news conference ahead of the hearing on Wednesday to
express support for eliminating the death penalty. They feel capital punishment
goes against religious values that support life over death.
But George Brauchler, the Arapahoe County prosecutor who sought the death
penalty in the Aurora movie theater case, said the reason prosecutors use their
discretion is because sometimes crimes are elevated to a higher status.
"The death penalty exists because not all murders are the same," said
Brauchler, who is considering a run for governor in 2018. "If we're going to
try to seek justice, what we try to do is distinguish, as much as we can, one
person from another."
(source: Colorado Spring Gazette)
ARIZONA:
Former death-row inmate turned prisoner advocate: 'Hate the crime but still
love the person'
1-time death-row inmate turned prisoner-rights advocate Shujaa Graham had
himself and members of the audience in tears Thursday during "Life After Death
Row" at the Herberger Theater in Phoenix.
Graham recounted his experience spending 11 years in various California penal
institutions, part of which included time spent on death row for a wrongful
murder conviction. He was later exonerated in the death of a prison guard and
released from prison in 1981.
Graham, who now lives in Maryland, has toured the world telling his story
since. Born in Louisiana, Graham grew up on a plantation in the segregated
South of the 1950s. After moving to Southern California, he spent much of his
adolescence in juvenile institutions and was sent to Soledad Prison upon
turning 18. Graham taught himself to read and write and studied history and
world affairs while being mentored by leaders in the Black Prison Movement. He
later became a leader of the growing movement within the California prison
system as the Black Panther Party expanded.
With his head filled with stories of his time in and out of jail and a keen
speaking ability, Graham talked throughout the 45 minutes allotted Thursday
afternoon until the theater had to excuse everybody for the next show.
"I guess I'll just have to talk on the way walking out," Graham said.
Here are some of the highlights:
"No matter if you were a criminal, you were still a human being. I hate the
crime but still love the person."
Graham spoke about reading extensively into the works of Dr. Martin Luther King
Jr., and concluded in his study that the world, especially prisoners, needed
more love.
He actively opposes the death penalty, but is also concerned with the treatment
of prisoners, drawing on numerous accounts of beatings and racism he
experienced and observed.
"I always like to say this: I am here despite the justice system, not because
of it."
Graham said he endured four trials before finally being exonerated from the
murder charge, noting that the 1st jury had been systematically picked not to
include African-Americans.
He spoke about galvanizing fellow prisoners to form political-protest groups.
He believes he was framed for the murder based on his involvement in these
groups.
"They encircled me, and I just stood there in the middle, stripped totally
buck-naked, and they closed in on me."
Part of Graham's fight for justice includes the violence inmates endure on
death row.
He told a story of taking 2 beatings from prison staff in just two hours after
his murder conviction. He said the 1st took place in an elevator, and the 2nd
when he finally got to his jail cell, which included 12 to 15 people beating
him down.
"That's my goal, is for a better America."
Starting with students, Graham said he hopes to encourage those working toward
careers that the desire for social justice will not only make them better at
their jobs, but better people, as well.
In prison, and now out, a consistent theme in his life was fighting for his
ideals. He encouraged peaceful protest, and said he has participated in
multiple marches opposing the death penalty. He said death row serves to merely
kill more people, rather than telling society that killing is wrong.
"Don't be sorry for me. I am here to help all of you."
Graham met his wife in prison, where she was a nurse. He spoke on the "luxury"
he had with a support system after his release, something he says many
prisoners do not have.
As unhappy as many of his years were in jail, Graham said his goal isn't scare
people into acting better. His goal, he said, is to share his story and help
people understand what he believes are the changes necessary for society to
flourish.
(source: azcentral.com)
IDAHO:
Death Penalty Considered for Men Accused of Shooting Teen
Prosecutors are considering seeking the death penalty against 2 Buhl men
accused of killing a high school student last year. Gerardo Raul Chavez, 19,
and Jose Daniel Alvarez, 20, pleaded not guilty on Wednesday to felony counts
of murder and intimidating a witness, The Times-News reported
(http://bit.ly/2ktOOP8 ). The pair is accused of the May 7 drive-by shooting of
15-year-old Vason Lee Widaman.
"I've been giving (the death penalty) thought since the crime first occurred,"
prosecutor Grant Loebs said. "But I have not been seriously considering all of
the factors."
Loebs has 60 days to decide whether or not he will seek capital punishment for
the 2 men but said he's hoping to make a decision before that deadline.
"We look at the crime, look at the defendants as much as we can, look if there
are any aggravating circumstances surrounding the crime," Loebs said of what
goes into his decision. "We also look at what mitigating factors might be used
in favor of the defendant in a sentencing context."
The suspects are next due in court on March 27, making that the earliest date
at which Loebs could announce his decision.
During Wednesday's hearing, attorneys said a trial for the men will likely
begin July 11. They each face up to life in prison for the charges against them
if Loebs does not seek the death penalty.
Both men are being held without bond but Chavez informed the court this week
that he would seek a bond hearing.
(source: Associated Press)
NEVADA:
Court rules against man accused in slaying of 15-year-old girl
The Nevada Supreme Court ruled today that Javier Righetti should stand trial
for the torture slaying of a 15-year-old girl in Las Vegas and that the
prosecution could seek the death penalty.
The court, in a unanimous decision written by Justice Kristina Pickering,
rejected arguments to block consideration of the death penalty.
Righetti is accused of the rape and killing of Alyssa Otremba as she headed
home from school in September 2011. Righetti previously pleaded guilty in the
case without negotiations with the District Attorney's Office, but he did not
plead guilty to one count that the killing was "willful, deliberate and
premeditated," according to court records. That would limit the prosecution
from seeking the death penalty.
A judge later approved a motion to invalidate the guilty pleas.
Defense attorneys argued a District Court judge had no right to invalidate the
guilty pleas.
Pickering said a previous court decision holds a defendant does not have a
right to plead guilty to a lesser offense than that charged in an indictment
without the consent of the prosecution.
The court also rejected an argument that Righetti faces double jeopardy by
pleading guilty to all but one of the counts and the judge could not toss out
the guilty pleas.
Pickering said the double jeopardy protection "is not to shield defendants like
Righetti from their decisions to gamble on a novel interpretation of law which
ultimately proved unsuccessful."
(source: Las Vegas Sun)
WASHINGTON:
A bill in Olympia aims to ban the death penalty in Washington State, once and
for all.
In January 2017, Washington State Governor Jay Inslee and Attorney General Bob
Ferguson introduced Senate Bill 5354 to end the death penalty in Washington
State. In a press conference, Inslee said, "the evidence is absolutely clear
that death penalty sentences are unequally applied, they are frequently
overturned, and they are always costly."
The Senate Bill comes three years after Governor Inslee ordered a statewide
moratorium on the death penalty. The moratorium suspended the executions of all
individuals on death row and served to call attention to what Inslee called an
"imperfect system."
12 state senators have pledged their support for the bipartisan bill, including
Representative Maureen Walsh-R of Walla Walla's 16th District. The local
Washington State Penitentiary in Walsh's district is the only facility in the
state with an execution chamber and 1 of 2 facilities in the US with an active
gallows.
"As a means of effective punishment, the death penalty is outdated,"
Representative Walsh said.
Republican State Senator Mike Padden, who is opposed to the bill, told one
Seattle Times reporter, "I'm not a zealot for the death penalty ... but I do
think there are some heinous crimes where it should be on the table."
The debate over capital punishment has deep roots in the state. Washington's
death penalty has been abolished - and restored - twice in state history: 1st
in 1913, when a Seattle representative named Frank P. Goss passed a bill to
eliminate it, and again after a U.S. Supreme Court ruling in 1972 maintained
that capital punishment was unconstitutional. Washington reinstated the death
penalty in 1976 after amending its sentencing procedures to include a
bifurcated trial process in which the same jury determines guilt 1st and
punishment 2nd. To be a juror in a murder trial in Washington, a person must
tell the court that he or she is comfortable imposing the death penalty. Though
this arrangement attempts to ensure that juries across the state will be
consistent in their decisions, it necessarily excludes citizens who cannot
condone capital punishment.
"You create a system that is self-fulfilling if you won't let people sit on
juries who don't believe in the death penalty," Heather Hayes, Chair and
Assistant Professor of Rhetoric Studies at Whitman College, said.
Around 10 pm on the night of January 4, 1993, Timothy Kaufman-Osborn stood
outside the Washington State Penitentiary in Walla Walla. A little after
midnight on January 5, Westley Allan Dodd would face the death penalty on 3
counts of aggravated 1st-degree murder. Not only would Dodd's execution be the
1st in Washington State in 27 years, but it would also be the 1st legal hanging
in the United States since 1965.
Kaufman-Osborn, the Baker Ferguson Professor of Politics and Leadership at
Whitman College, was 1 of 12 people to show up in opposition to the death
penalty on the night of Dodd's execution. Over 200 people were present to
support it. Kaufman-Osborn remembers seeing a sign saying, "What the Heck,
Stretch His Neck."
Some people brought miniature nooses. At midnight, somebody in the crowd popped
the cork of a champagne bottle.
"On the one hand I was horrified by the spectacle," Professor Kaufman-Osborn
said. "On the other hand, as a good academic, I was fascinated by it. I had
never studied capital punishment as an academic area of inquiry."
Dodd's execution threw Kaufman-Osborn into activism. While teaching at Whitman,
he published a book on the politics of the death penalty titled From Noose To
Needle: Capital Punishment and the Late Liberal State. He also became a vocal
member of the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU), an organization which
advocates for the abolition of the death penalty nationwide. Washington is 1 of
31 states in the country that implements the death penalty, but 2017 just may
be the year the state abolishes death row.
Timothy Kaufman-Osborn has focused most of his research on the unequal
application of death sentences in Washington state. Kaufman-Osborn likened
capital punishment to "a rigged lottery" - not all offenders are treated
equally. As an example, in 2003, Gary Ridgway (often called the "Green River
Killer") pled guilty to 48 counts of aggravated 1st-degree murder. Despite
being the most prolific serial murderer in state history, Ridgway struck a plea
deal with the King County prosecutor and was spared a death sentence in
exchange for helping law enforcement officers locate the bodies of 41 missing
victims. "So you've got arguably the most heinous murderer in Washington State
... who will live out the rest of his life in a cell," Kaufman-Osborn said,
"whereas if you look at the number of victims of those who remain on death row
now ... the body count is considerably lower."
The exorbitant cost of death sentencing compounds the issue of unequal
application. A 2015 Seattle University study found that, on average, a death
penalty sentence costs the state $1 million more than a sentence to life
without parole.
"Capital cases are tremendously expensive to conduct, especially as you go
through the whole appeals process," Kaufman-Osborn said.
He noted that, because of the high expense, prosecutors in eastern counties are
less likely to pursue capital punishment than their wealthier Western
counterparts, "not because they think it should not be sought but because they
realize it is going to gut the coffers of county governments."
Of the 78 men executed in the state of Washington since 1904, only 22 have come
from counties east of the Cascades.
Data also suggests that in interracial homicides nationwide, black offenders
with white victims are 10 times more likely to be sentenced to death than white
offenders whose victims are black. "If we can demonstrate the system is
classist, racist - for which there are just reams of evidence - how can that
possibly be just?" Kaufman-Osborn said.
Scott Odem worked as a law enforcement officer in Walla Walla for 25 years. He
is now a Classifications Officer working with minimum security inmates at the
Washington State Penitentiary.
"I've seen personally what human beings can do to one another," he said.
Odem understands why many people believe the death penalty is fair punishment
for heinous crimes.
"I've seen the victims in that condition and ... [there are] a lot of emotions
that start swirling around," Odem said.
Professor Hayes agreed that the main argument for the death penalty is
retributive.
"People that support the death penalty ... [use] purely a punitive rhetoric,"
she said.
According to Hayes, the prevailing sentiment among death penalty defenders is
that the crimes committed by inmates on death row are "so awful they don't
deserve to continue to live among us."
"The anti-death-penalty sentiment now is greater than it has been," said Keith
Farrington, Professor of Sociology and The Laura and Carl Peterson Endowed
Chair of Social Science at Whitman College.
But, Farrington wrote in an email, "it is still the case that the majority of
Americans nationally support the use of the death penalty capital as an
appropriate penalty for certain kinds of criminal murder conviction." Bill 5354
is currently in Senate committee. It has a long way to go.
(source: whitmanwire.com)
USA:
Jury selection in death penalty case could take 4 weeks
The judge who will be hearing the 2nd death penalty of a man charged with
abducting and killing a Rutland supermarket worker in 2000 says jury selection
in the case could take 4 weeks.
U.S. District Court Judge Geoffrey Crawford's comments were contained in a
document filed in the case of Donald Fell, who is charged abducting Terry King
when she arrived for work and later killing her.
Fell was convicted and sentenced to death in 2005, but his conviction was
overturned in 2014 due to juror misconduct.
Juror orientation for Fell's 2nd trial began Tuesday. Formal jury selection
begins Feb. 27 in federal court in Rutland.
Crawford says the trial itself is expected to begin in late March and last 2 or
3 months.
(source: Associated Press)
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