[Deathpenalty] death penalty news----TENNESSEE
August 15 TENNESSEEexecution Tennessee Executes Stephen West for 1986 Rape and Murders West maintained that while he raped the 15-year-old victim, his accomplice killed the women Stephen West has been executed in the electric chair 33 years after he was sentenced to death for the 1986 murders of Wanda Romines, 51, and her 15-year-old daughter, Sheila, near Knoxville. West, who suffered from severe mental illness, was also convicted of raping the teen, and while he confessed to that crime he maintained that his accomplice stabbed the mother and daughter to death. The curtains opened at 7:15 on Thursday night, revealing West, who appeared to be crying, sitting in the electric chair. Warden Tony Mays asked West if he had any last words. He responded by referencing scripture. “In the beginning, God created man,” said West, pausing as he continued to weep. “And Jesus wept. That’s all.” After West’s final statement, members of the execution team fastened a helmet to his head and placed a shroud over his face. At 7:19, West’s body jolted upward from the chair as the first current of electricity was administered. His body returned to the chair for a matter of seconds, before rising once again with a second jolt of electricity. West was pronounced dead at 7:27 p.m. In West's petition for clemency, his attorneys write that then-17-year-old Ronnie Martin had tried to date Sheila Romines and was humiliated when she rejected him. They say Martin coerced West, who was 23 years old at the time, to rape Sheila before Martin stabbed the women to death. The attorneys also note that West was tried first, and that his jury never heard a tape recording of Martin admitting that he was the one who had killed the two victims. They also write that Martin threatened to have West and his then-pregnant wife killed if West didn't keep quiet about the crimes. Martin ultimately pleaded guilty to two counts of first-degree murder and is currently serving a life sentence. 2 of the surviving jurors from West's trial, both of whom had originally voted for the death sentence, told his attorneys they supported clemency in his case. Gov. Bill Lee announced Wednesday afternoon that he would not stop the execution. West was born in a mental institution, where his mother had been sent after she attempted suicide while pregnant with him. As a young boy he was abused. His aunt witnessed his mother's violent outbursts and is quoted describing them in a court filing from last year. “I came down,” she said. “[West’s sister] Patty came out to get some food for Steve, and [West’s mother] started swearing at them, and she ran in there and just slung Steve up against the wall; grabbed him by his feet. There was blood, and he started throwing up.” Prison officials have been treating West for severe mental illness for years, giving him powerful antipsychotic drugs that one psychiatrist described in a court filing as "chemical straitjackets." In an extensive 2002 psychiatric evaluation, Dr. Richard Dudley writes that, in his opinion, West “was suffering from a mental disorder” at the time of the killings that sent him to death row. Dudley also says West’s “mental disorder was of the type that would have been relevant to his defense during the guilt phase of his trial and also relevant as mitigation during the penalty phase of his trial.” West’s mental health was not discussed during his trial. West's legal team released a statement after the execution: We are deeply disappointed that the State of Tennessee has gone forward with the execution of a man whom the State has diagnosed with severe mental illness; a man of deep faith who has made a positive impact on those around him for decades; and a man who by overwhelming evidence did not commit these murders but has nevertheless taken personal responsibility for his involvement in these crimes. We don't believe the decisions of the courts and ultimately the Governor reflect the forgiving and merciful citizens of this State. Department of Correction spokesperson Dorinda Carter also read a statement from Eddie Campbell, the nephew of the late Jack Romines, husband and father to the victims. As for the execution of Mr. Stephen West, I am deeply sorry that any of his family had to go through such a horrible experience. I hope that he has made peace with God and has truly asked God for forgiveness for such a heinous crime that he was a part of. One of the worst things about this execution of Mr. West is that Mr. Ronnie Martin was not also included in the same punishment. Our family has suffered very deeply over the past 33 years through all the appeals that we think is very unfair for anyone to have to go through, when all the proof in the world was there for the case to be over in 24 hours let alone 33 years. I realize there are other families going through some of the same feelings and punishment that my family and
[Deathpenalty] death penalty news----TENN., ARIZ., CALIF., ORE., USA
August 15 TENNESSEEimpending execution Inmate asks for electric chair death in Thursday execution A Tennessee inmate has made a last-minute request to be put to death in the electric chair, an option his lawyer described as "also unconstitutional, yet still less painful" than the state's preference of a three-drug lethal injection. The state Department of Correction on Wednesday confirmed 56-year-old Stephen West made the request and said the Thursday execution will be carried out by electrocution. West previously opted against selecting a preference, which would have resulted in lethal injection. West's attorney described both options as unconstitutional in his still-active U.S. Supreme Court challenge, as he seeks a stay in the execution. "Seeking to avoid the constitutionally-impermissible pain and suffering created by Tennessee's 3-drug midazolam-based protocol, Mr. West has, as have two other Tennessee inmates before him, agreed to be executed by the also-unconstitutional, yet still less painful, method of execution, Tennessee's electric chair," his attorney wrote in the court filing. Two Tennessee inmates, David Miller and Edmund Zagorski, chose to die by electric chair in 2018 because of concerns about pain associated with the state's lethal injection procedure. Both unsuccessfully argued to courts that Tennessee's procedure, which uses the drug midazolam, results in a prolonged and torturous death. Before this year, the last time a state used the electric chair to execute an inmate was 2013. Zagorski, similar to West, made a last minute to request the electric chair after previously being set to use lethal injection which resulted in a brief delay in his execution to allow the state time to prepare for using the alternative method. Tennessee has also put 2 inmates to death by injection since August 2018. West's attorney has argued that some "feasible and readily implemented alternative methods of execution exist that significantly reduce the substantial risk of severe pain and suffering" compared with the state's three-drug protocol or electrocution: a single bullet to the back of the head, a firing squad, a "euthanasia oral cocktail" or 1-drug pentobarbital, according to a February court filing. West was 1 of 4 death row inmates who sued last year, asking a federal court's permission to use a firing squad as an execution method. Currently, just 3 states — Mississippi, Oklahoma and Utah — continue to allow the use of firing squads. However, the last time that method was used was in 2010. In Tennessee, condemned inmates whose crimes occurred before 1999 can opt for the electric chair. Tennessee is 1 of 6 states that allow such a choice, according to a database from the Death Penalty Information Center. 3 others allow the electric chair as a backup method. The last state other than Tennessee to carry out an execution by electrocution was Virginia in 2013, according to Death Penalty Information Center data. No state now uses electrocution as its main execution method, according to the center, which doesn't take a stand on the death penalty but has been critical of its application. Georgia and Nebraska courts have ruled the electric chair unconstitutional. About two decades ago it looked as if the U.S. Supreme Court would weigh in on the issue. It agreed to hear a Florida case after a series of botched executions there. But Florida adopted lethal injection, and the case was dropped. West was convicted of the 1986 kidnapping and stabbing deaths of a mother and her 15-year-old daughter, and of raping the teen. West has said his then-17-year-old accomplice killed both victims. The co-defendant received a life sentence, with parole possible in 2030. Republican Gov. Bill Lee has denied West's clemency application, which also said West takes powerful medication to treat mental illness (source: Associated Press) Judge: Captured Tennessee inmate could face death penalty A Tennessee convict accused of killing a corrections administrator and escaping prison could face the death penalty if convicted of first-degree murder, a judge told the prisoner Wednesday. Curtis Ray Watson appeared before Judge Janice Craig in a video arraignment in Lauderdale County court. Craig told Watson that he is charged with especially aggravated burglary, aggravated sexual assault and escape in addition to the murder charge. Lauderdale County District Attorney Mark Davidson said his office is considering seeking capital punishment, but a decision would come only after Watson is formally indicted when a grand jury convenes in October. Watson, 44, would face life in prison if the state does not seek death and he is found guilty of 1st-degree murder. Watson's court-appointed public defender Bo Burk made no comments in court and a plea was not entered. Watson's preliminary hearing is set for Sept. 25. Watson
[Deathpenalty] death penalty news----worldwide
Aug. 15 IRAN: Iranian Regime Continues to Use the Death Penalty The Iranian regime’s use of the death penalty as a punishment is something that concerns human rights organisations all over the world. Despite constant calls for the Iranian regime to stop resorting to the use of execution, the practice still continues on a regular basis. It was reported that 2 prisoners were hanged on Saturday 10th August. The prisoners were not named in state media, but they were incarcerated in the central prison of Mashhad. Last week, five prisoners in the Raja’i Shahr (Gohardasht) Prison in the city of Karaj were hanged. They were transferred to solitary confinement before their executions took place. They have been identified as Mohammad-Reza Shekari, Yousof Zakeri, Majid Arabali, Hossein Panjeh-Maryam and Bahram Tork. Iran Human Rights Monitor has reported that there have been 39 executions during the month of July. Four of these were women and one was done in public. The human rights organisation said that executions took place in a number of prisons across the country. The organisation’s annual report for 2018 said that there were almost three hundred executions that year alone. At least 4 of these were women and 10 were political prisoners. Furthermore, a handful of these executions were on prisoners who were minors at the time of the alleged crime. The Iranian regime uses execution as a means of supressing the people and trying to threaten them into silence. However, the people of Iran have been so badly mistreated by the regime for so many years that they are risking everything – arrest, torture, imprisonment and execution – to make sure that their voices are heard. The human rights situation in the country is deplorable and the most basic of freedoms are denied to the people. Minorities face harsh discrimination, especially religious and ethnic minorities. Human rights activists, lawyers, journalists, women and many more sectors of society are targeted by the regime that is unable to cope with the high levels of discontent and dissent. The people have been calling for regime change because they know that the only way they will ever have their human rights respected is if the regime falls and is replaced by an alternative that will not discriminate. Human rights organisations have drawn attention to the Iranian regime’s use of violence against protesters. Amnesty International highlighted the mistreatment of the people of Iran in its annual human rights report. It said that during the major nationwide protests in which tens of thousands of Iranian men and women protested about their situation, thousands were arrested. Iranians across the country took to the streets to protest against the repression, poverty and corruption that they face. During the protests, the security forces were seen beating protesters, using water cannons and tear gas, and firing on them. No one has been held responsible for the brutality against the protesters. Amnesty International said that Iran is one of “the world’s most prolific users of the death penalty” and deplored its practice of executing individuals that were under the age of 18 at the time the alleged crime was committed. (source: irannewsupdate.com) FRANCE: France Clashes With UN Human Rights Expert Over ISIS Suspects' Trials in Iraq The French government is pushing back on criticism from a U.N. human rights expert over the fact French citizens who joined ISIS are standing trial in Iraq, a country with a death penalty. Agnès Callamard, the U.N. “special rapporteur on extrajudicial, summary or arbitrary executions,” urged Paris this week to repatriate seven French jihadists who have been sentenced to death in Iraq. Public opinion in France remains opposed to the repatriation of French jihadists. ISIS has carried out several deadly attacks in France, including those in late 2015, when terrorists killed 130 people over 3 hours at a concert hall, sports stadium and restaurants in the French capital. Callamard, who met with the jihadists in prison, sent a letter to the French government criticizing the suspects’ transfer early this year from Syria – where they had been held by Kurdish forces – to Iraq. “France and the [anti-ISIS] coalition organized and sponsored this,” she charged, adding that the Syrian Kurds who had been holding them had opposed the transfer, favoring instead the establishment of an international tribunal in northeastern Syria, to deal with captured jihadists. According to media accounts, the Kurds had little choice but to comply, as they lacked the resources to put the suspects on trial themselves – and in any case, France and other countries refused to allow Kurdish courts to try their nationals, since the Kurdish administration is not internationally recognized. “There are serious allegations that the sentences were handed down following unfair
[Deathpenalty] death penalty news----TEXAS, ALA., LA., OHIO
August 15 TEXASstay of impending execution Federal court stops execution of Dexter Johnson within 24 hours of his scheduled deathIn his recent appeals, Johnson has claimed he is intellectually disabled and therefore ineligible for the death penalty. He was convicted of a double murder in Harris County that took place in 2006. A federal appellate court halted the execution of Texas inmate Dexter Johnson on Wednesday evening, less than 24 hours before he was set to die. The court stayed his execution and sent the case back to the district court to look into newly raised claims of intellectual disability. Johnson, 31, was sentenced to death for his role in a double murder in 2006 days after he turned 18. Johnson and 4 other teens carjacked and robbed Maria Aparece, 23, and Huy Ngo, 17, while they sat in her car outside Ngo's house. According to court records, Johnson and the others took the young couple to a secluded area where Johnson raped Aparece before he and another teen shot them both, killing them. The murders were part of what Harris County prosecutors have described as a 25-day crime spree by Johnson and others that also included 3 other slayings. Johnson has been on death row since his conviction in 2007. In recent appeals, Johnson has argued that he is intellectually disabled and therefore ineligible for the death penalty under U.S. Supreme Court precedent. Intellectual disability has become a main focus of Texas death penalty law after years of back and forth between the U.S. Supreme Court and the Texas Court of Criminal Appeals in the case of Bobby Moore. Ultimately, the high court invalidated Texas’ method of determining the disability, and then, after the state court still ruled Moore was not intellectually disabled, overruled that decision in February and said he has shown that he is. Johnson had already argued he was intellectually disabled in an April appeal rejected by the Texas Court of Criminal Appeals, shortly before a May execution date that a federal judge later postponed in an unrelated filing. But a new attorney raised a similar claim this month in both state and federal court, mentioning recent IQ and neuropsychological tests that put Johnson's IQ below the threshold of intellectual disability. The attorney also noted severe limitations in language skills and a “pronounced stutter.” His attorney argued that the disability could be raised under new evidence because medical standards on intellectual disability have changed since his trial. The state court again dismissed Johnson’s appeal Tuesday, but the federal appellate court issued a stay of execution Wednesday evening. He was set to be executed after 6 p.m. Thursday. In deciding to stop the execution, the U.S. 5th Circuit Court of Appeals listed numerous deficits Johnson had, such as struggling to articulate words and not being able to follow bus directions or manage money. The judges also noted that an expert witness at trial who claimed Johnson was not intellectually disabled said he would no longer testify to that. But the stay of execution doesn't state that Johnson is ineligible for the death penalty. The case goes back to the district court, which will look further into the appeal. Harris County, which argued for the Court of Criminal Appeals to lessen Moore’s sentence, fought against Johnson’s claim of intellectual disability in recent filings. Prosecutors said that at trial, Johnson raised not the issue of intellectual disability, but of low intellectual functioning caused by traumatic brain injury or mental illness, according to their filing. They also cited slightly higher IQ scores from the time of his trial and stated Johnson is "a man deserving of the ultimate punishment." Johnson was set to be the 4th execution in Texas this year. A dozen more are scheduled through December. (source: Texas Tribune) ** Executions under Greg Abbott, Jan. 21, 2015-present43 Executions in Texas: Dec. 7, 1982present-561 Abbott#scheduled execution date-nameTx. # 44-Aug. 21Larry Swearingen562 45-Sept. 4Billy Crutsinger563 46-Sept. 10---Mark Anthony Soliz--564 47-Sept. 25---Robert Sparks---565 48-Oct. 2-Stephen Barbee--566 49-oct. 10Randy Halprin---567 50-Oct. 16Randall Mays568 51-Oct. 30Ruben Gutierrez-569 52-Nov. 6-Justen Hall-570 53-Nov. 20Rodney Reed-571 54-Dec. 11---Travis Runnels---572 (sources: TDCJ & Rick Halperin) ** Death penalty sought in Oklahoma double murder case Prosecutors in Texas say
