[Deathpenalty] death penalty news----worldwide
Jan. 29 KUWAIT: Kuwait rejects criticism of execution of 7 convictsKuwait insisted executions are being carried out 'after exhausting all levels of litigation' Kuwait has rejected criticism of its decision to go ahead with the execution of seven convicts, insisting that all legal avenues had been exhausted. Human Rights Watch said that hanging seven people by Kuwait was part of a worrying regional rise in use of the death penalty. However, Kuwait dismissed the criticism and said that the "carrying out of the death sentences against the 7 individuals convicted of murder was according to the provisions of the Kuwaiti Penal Code." "The death penalty verdicts pronounced by the courts were in cases of premeditated murders and the punishment was carried out after exhausting all levels of litigation," Ghanim Al Ghanim, assistant foreign minister for legal affairs, said in a statement carried by Kuwait News Agency (Kuna) on Friday. "The verdicts were based on indisputable evidence the convicts committed the crimes as charged. The evidence included testimonies from witnesses and confessions by the accused of committing the grave crimes." Al Ghanim said the verdicts were pronounced following fair and public trials "in which all the guarantees stipulated by the Kuwaiti law were provided and lawyers assumed the task of defending their clients." "The verdicts were upheld by the Cassation Court, the country's highest court, and became res judicata that could not be challenged. By carrying out the court verdicts, Kuwait did not violate any of the covenants it had ratified, in particular the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights and the Arab Charter for Human Rights, or international norms or the GCC Declaration of Human Rights," Al Ghanim said. The Kuwaiti official said that his country's national laws provided multiple safeguards in the case of the death penalty. "This is very clear in the fact that such verdicts are pronounced by a high independent and neutral judiciary in public trials where the accused are defended by their lawyers," he said. Kuwait on Wednesday executed 7 individuals, 4 men and 3 women, in the Central Prison. The convicts, 2 Kuwaitis (Shaikh Faisal Al Abdullah Al Sabah and Nasra Al Enezi), 2 Egyptians, a Bangladeshi, a Filipina, and an Ethiopian, were found guilty in cases of premediated murder, rape or theft and were hanged in application of the verdicts pronounced by lower courts and upheld by the Court of Appeals and the Court of Cassation and endorsed by the Emir. (source: Gulf News) PAKISTAN: Hanging the mentally ill EXECUTING mentally ill prisoners who cannot even comprehend the nature of their punishment is inhumane. That the death penalty violates human dignity, international law and medical standards, was raised in a letter reecntly by 17 Pakistani psychiatrists. Written in response to black warrants issued to mentally ill prisoners in Punjab, they noted that mentally ill convicts can't defend themselves and are unaware of their actions. The poor medical knowledge demonstrated by the courts, given the frequency with which black warrants for mentally ill prisoners have been issued of late is of concern. Consider this: despite the case of mentally ill prisoner Imdad Ali pending with the Supreme Court, a lower court issued yet another black warrant in January for Khizar Hayat who is also mentally ill. Executing unfit prisoners rather than treating them not only sets a dangerous precedent, it also defeats the purpose of criminal justice. When Hayat was served with his third death warrant in January, medical evidence was not considered. Despite his counsel filing an application in the Lahore High Court to stay the execution, the prison authorities approached the sessions court for the warrant. Given that the case is under review at the National Commission for Human Rights, issuing a black warrant perverts the course of justice. Moreover, the psychiatrist involved says Hayat requires specialised healthcare and that a forensic psychiatric institution would best serve prisoners like him. Last year, the Supreme Court ruled that schizophrenia is a 'recoverable' disease, clearing the path to execute Ali who is certified by doctors as schizophrenic - a ruling that was later stayed. At the time, Ali's medical reports presented as evidence were dismissed by the court. Most importantly, these cases make it imperative to improve the workings of the Punjab Mental Health Authority ensuring that the mentally ill are treated rather than given the death penalty - an irrevocable form of punishment this paper does not endorse. (source: Editorial, Dawn) TRINIDAD & TOBAGO Prescott: Killers should be hanged for certain murders Senior Counsel Elton Prescott, who once chaired a Commission of Enquiry into the death penalty, believes that convicted killers should be hanged as punishment for
[Deathpenalty] death penalty news----OKLA., KAN., COLO., NEV., US MIL.
Jan. 29 OKLAHOMA: Pro MMA fighter faces death penalty after being arrested for 'killing 2 people in a botched armed robbery of a laundromat' A professional MMA fighter allegedly killed 2 people during a botched robbery of a laundromat in Oklahoma on Monday. Roshaun Jones, 33, who has a record of 2-6 as a fighter in pro MAA, was arrested on Friday in connection with the robbery in Del City, TMZ reported. The Oklahoma native was last seen in an MMA ring in Kansas this past November. Authorities allege that he shot dead 2 people during the armed robbery of the Laundry Station laundromat in Del City, Oklahoma. 1 victim, Nekia Jackson, 42, was a laundromat manager and the other, 60-year-old Russ Roberts, was a bystander who tried to stop the robbery. Police allege that Jones entered the laundromat and during the attempted robbery got into an altercation with Jackson. Roberts, who was the only customer in the laundromat, intervened to try and help Jackson. At that point, police say Jones shot both of them and fled. 'She's a mom, and she just turned a grandma,' her father, Horace Jackson, told KFOR-TV. 'And, I'm a great grandfather. And, she was so passionate for the kids.' Nekia worked the day shift on Monday, requiring her to open the laundromat early. This worried her family because it would still be dark outside at dawn. 'I always was uneasy with her, because she opens, and it would be dark, and it would be like 6, and she was punctual, and she had a couple of times she would come to work and stuff would be broken and windows cracked and they don't keep money in here,' Horace said. 'He was just a super guy,' an acquaintance of Roberts, Dona Augsburger, told KFOR-TV. Augsburger managed the building in which Roberts lived. 'I said that would be just like him to jump in a try to help, because he was just that type of man. It's a great loss for society, really, he was a great guy. He will be missed. I will miss him for sure,' Augsburger said. Local law enforcement as well as the US Marshal service launched a manhunt in search of the suspects. Jones was arrested Friday and charged with 2 counts of 1st degree murder. If convicted, he faces the death penalty. (source: dailymail.co.uk) KANSAS: End death penalty in Kansas As an irreversible penalty, the death penalty demands perfection, and that is something our criminal justice system cannot guarantee. The criminal justice system is far from perfect. I know that too well after spending over 16 years in a Kansas prison for a murder I didn't commit. Since my release from prison after new DNA and other evidence proved my innocence, I have no interest in dwelling on past injustices and giving in to bitterness. Yet that doesn't mean we just forget the past and move on like nothing happened. What happened to me and hundreds of others wrongfully convicted needs to serve as a catalyst to enact meaningful reforms to protect the innocent. One reform that should to be at the top of the list is ending the death penalty. A variety of factors can send an innocent person to prison or, worse, death row: eyewitness errors, junk science, false confessions, snitch testimony, and prosecutorial misconduct. Needed reforms, such as videotaping interrogations, can help minimize these problems. But we can never eliminate wrongful convictions entirely. The criminal justice system is a human system and as such will always be imperfect. That is why the death penalty has no place in Kansas or anywhere for that matter. As an irreversible penalty, the death penalty demands perfection, and that is something our criminal justice system cannot guarantee. Whenever the death penalty remains in place, so does the risk of executing an innocent person. My case shows the danger in believing that Kansas somehow is immune from this risk. In 1999, I was wrongfully convicted of a murder in the small town of Oskaloosa. Though my murder occurred well after the advent of DNA technology, this technology failed to protect me at the time. By ignoring key evidence and relying on questionable testimony, officials became convinced of my guilt. As my experience illustrates, the criminal justice system in real life does not always play out like a CSI episode. On TV, officials rely on a bunch of high-tech gadgets to always catch the bad guy without any doubt. Reality is a lot messier. In many cases - including death penalty cases - prosecutors rely on questionable witnesses or junk science when making their case at trial. And at that point in the legal process, demonstrating your innocence becomes a monumental challenge. When the government says you're guilty - and marshals all its resources to prove it - who is going to believe you? No matter how much you protest, people assume you must be guilty. What happened to me is a tragedy. Every day, though, I am thankful that I am alive and have had the
[Deathpenalty] death penalty news----TEXAS, OHIO, KY., ARK., MO.
Jan. 29 TEXAS: Judge tells murder suspect he appointed 'best lawyers I could find' A Texas prison inmate's desire for a new lawyer in his Bowie County capital murder case was the subject of much discussion at a pretrial hearing Friday. "If I wanted him off my case, I could just assault him and he'd be off my case. But I'm not going to do that. That wouldn't help me at all," Billy Joel Tracy said of his lead defense attorney, Mac Cobb of Mount Pleasant, Texas, at a hearing before 102nd District Judge Bobby Lockhart at the Bowie County Courthouse in New Boston, Texas. Tracy clenched a cuffed fist as he spoke. Cobb was seated next to him at the defense table. "I know what my odds are in this courtroom. This man here made it clear to me what he wants to do with me," Tracy said, referring to Bowie County District Attorney Jerry Rochelle. At an earlier hearing, Rochelle told the court his office is taking extraordinary measures to work with Tracy's defense team, so that "when the time comes to put a needle in that guy's arm," there won't be any doubt that the state has followed the law. Tracy, 39, is charged with capital murder in the death of Correctional Officer Timothy Davison, who was beaten to death July 15, 2015, while working at the Barry Telford Unit of the Texas Department of Criminal Justice. Tracy was allegedly caught on multiple video surveillance cameras wielding a metal tray slot bar like a baseball bat to deliver blows during an attack lasting less than a minute, which proved fatal to Davison. The state is seeking the death penalty. Tracy recently filed motions on his own behalf asking for Cobb's removal. Lockhart addressed the concerns outlined in Tracy's motions, including complaints that Cobb wouldn't allow him to take possession of copies of court records at the courthouse following a previous pretrial hearing. "Defense counsel cannot hand you documents," Lockhart said. "They could be subject to criminal prosecution if they give you unredacted information." Information, such as the address of a witness, is removed from copies of court documents provided to criminal defendants by law. Lockhart said he has learned that Tracy currently has redacted copies of all the discovery, or information the state has provided the defense, in his possession. Lockhart pointed out that reading through and redacting the thousands of pages of documents in the case is a lengthy process. "It could take days, if not weeks, to go through all that," Lockhart said. In response to Tracy's complaints about Cobb, Lockhart explained the logic behind his decision to appoint Cobb as lead counsel and Texarkana lawyer Jeff Harrelson as 2nd chair. Lockhart said he was impressed with Cobb's performance as a defense lawyer in a case in Red River County. Cobb's grasp of the law, criminal procedure, his experience as both a defense attorney and a prosecutor, and the opinions of other judges who've seen Cobb in the courtroom led to Cobb's appointment, Lockhart said. "I deliberately didn't want a local attorney for lead counsel," Lockhart added. Lockhart spoke of Harrelson's experience and ability as well, mentioning a capital murder case Harrelson tried, which ended with a verdict of life in prison from a jury that had the death penalty as an option as well. "The state of Texas is trying to take your life. I have appointed you the best lawyers I could find. It would behoove you to pay attention to them," Lockhart said. "I will do this for you though; I'll let you speak at pretrials if you wish to speak again." At Friday's hearing, Lockhart expressed concern that Tracy's abundant pro se motions are filed with the purpose of delaying the trial or to establish grounds for appeal, particularly ineffective assistance of counsel. Tracy assured Lockhart that he wants to get the trial over with and that his complaints about Cobb are based in his desire to have good representation. Lockhart told Tracy that case law in Texas clearly establishes that a defendant does not have the right to "hybrid" representation, or to represent himself or herself at the same time they are being represented by a lawyer. "Hybrid representation has a great potential for chaos," Lockhart said, quoting Texas case law. "I want the record to show that this court is not ruling on any of the motions provided by the defendant unless they are adopted and re-urged by defense counsel." Lockhart told Tracy he is free to file whatever he wants and that the court will read the pro se motions and letters but that he will not rule on them. Lockhart asked Cobb and Harrelson to provide Tracy with copies of the opinions that deny a defendant the right to hybrid representation in Texas. Lockhart asked Cobb if he had any reservations about continuing to represent Tracy. Cobb said he has had similar, not identical, but similar experiences in other cases and doesn't plan to leave the
