[Deathpenalty] death penalty news----worldwide
May 10 GLOBAL: Links Between Islamism and Executions People have, it seems, often been arrested or detained on the basis of a rumor; then convicted without trial, counsel or often even the chance to mount a defense. As Amnesty International points out, "In many countries where people were sentenced to death or executed, the proceedings did not meet international fair trial standards. In some cases, this included the extraction of 'confessions' through torture or other ill-treatment". The laws under which these people are sentenced to death are often not only vague and open to interpretation. Charges that warrant the death penalty, for instance, include being "corrupt on earth", "enemies of Allah on Earth", or alleged "crimes against chastity". What exactly does "corrupt on earth" or "enemies of Allah on Earth" mean? Just how strict and brutal it is to enforce Islamic law, sharia, has now been revealed by Amnesty International. Amnesty's study, which details the number of reported executions around the world, clearly maps out the most at-risk populations. Lands ruled predominantly by sharia are apparently the most vulnerable to multitudes of executions without fair trials. At the top of the list, with the most executions, are those nations that enforce Islamic sharia law. Despite many human rights violations, these nations, apparently undeterred, continue to execute their citizens. Sharia makes those in authority infallible and untouchable. Therefore, whatever the government or those in power deem to be "just" can be carried out without question or consequence. Under sharia law and the Islamic penal code, executions can be carried out in sickening forms. Those convicted may be beheaded, hanged, stoned, or shot to death. As disturbing as the numbers in the report may be, they do not represent the reality that the citizens in these nations across the world face every day. There is, evidently, a connection between radical Islamist governments and extremist groups. The report does not include the gruesome executions that are carried out on a regular basis by extremist Islamist groups and non-state fundamentalists, such as members of the Islamic State (ISIS) and their affiliated groups. These executions include, as we have seen, slitting throats, burning alive, drowning alive and crucifixion. If these acts were included in the Amnesty International report, the total number of executions committed under the authority of Islamist law would be far higher. The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, for example, pointed out that the Islamic State executed 33 people in the 1st week of April alone. The report also did not include the number of Westerners being shot, executed and terrorized by Islamist groups. Many of these, such as ISIS, Asaib Ahl al-Haq (AAH), Kata'ib Hezbollah (KH), the Badr Organization, Or Kata'ib al-Imam Ali (the Imam Ali Battalions), are funded and trained by Islamist governments and oil-rich, unaccountable leaders. Mass executions are evidently also being carried out by both extremist Islamist governments and Islamist groups. A culture of executions, often extra-judicial, as in Pakistan, seems to run rampant within the borders of these countries. Without any consequences for this horrifying disregard for human life, the numbers will only increase. In Pakistan, Asia Bibi, a Christian, sits on death row for "blasphemy." Asia's "crime" was to use the same water glass as her Muslim co-workers. "You defiled our water," the Muslim women told her. Both Islamist governments and Islamist groups justify their brutal acts by referring to the "religious" Islamist legitimacy of their murders. Members of fundamentalist Islamist governments, to legitimize these types of atrocities, also exploit the right of "sovereignty": they point out that they belong independent state with a fully operating and "legal" judiciary. In the Amnesty International report, the Iran ranked number one, per capita, in executing people. It also accounted for 66% of all officially recorded executions in the region. Again, this amount only represents those executions that were officially registered. It is also critical to point out that the statistics Amnesty International provides were given by the very governments that carried out the executions. This method means that those in power were the ones to calculate and decide what number should officially represent their country. The unofficial number is thought to be even higher. There is nothing to stop governments from simply keeping the true number to themselves. Executions carried out under the strict governmental laws of sharia and Islamist judicial systems can have even more grotesque characteristics. The high number of executions included children, some convicted before the age of 18. Death sentences may frequently have lacked due process and what many would consider acceptable standard
[Deathpenalty] death penalty news----IND. KY., WYO., UTAH, NEV. CALIF., USA
May 10 INDIANA: With death penalty, life without parole possible for Hagan, public defender forced from case The man accused of killing USI student Halee Rathgeber could also face life in prison. We've just learned Isaiah Hagan's public defender requested to be released from the case. Attorney Jonathan Young filed a motion, saying he is not certified for the "death penalty" or "life without parole cases" in the state of Indiana. While the state has not said it's going to pursue either of those in Hagan's case, Young says either one is possible. On Tuesday, Warrick County attorney Anthony Long, who was the defense attorney in the John Matthew Stevenson murder trial, says the stress is so intense in a death penalty case that he'll never take on one again. "When you're dealing with circumstantial evidence the stress is just phenomenal," Long explained. "I've never spent so much time on a case in my life as we did in Stevenson. I know, I don't even remember what our fees were but they were large, but I didn't make any money in my practice for a long time and it was financially not pleasant." Warrick County prosecutor Michael Perry tells us this motion could change the pace of the case. (source: WFIE news) KENTUCKY: Attorneys seek death penalty for Brice Rhodes A man who is accused of killing 2 brothers in May 2016 could now face the death penalty. WHAS11 News talked with the Commonwealth Attorney's office Tuesday and they say they intend to pursue capital punishment against Rhodes. Rhodes faces 2 counts of murder and other charges in the stabbing deaths of brothers Maurice Gordon and Larry Ordway. Rhodes also faces murder charges in the death of Christopher Jones. Since he has been in jail, Rhodes has racked up assault charges, accused of beating up another inmate and face charges for threatening Judge Amber Wolf. Police also say Rhodes tried to escape from Metro Corrections by digging through the cinder blocks. Rhodes is expected back in court May 11 for a pre-trial hearing. (source: WHAS news) WYOMING: Judge gives prosecutors time to consider death penalty in Riverton killing A judge has given central Wyoming prosecutors a month to decide if they want to pursue the death penalty in a claw hammer killing in Riverton. District Judge Norman Young gave Fremont County Attorney Pat LeBrun until June 3 to decide on the prosecution of 27-year-old Florin Brandon Wyatt for the March 3 beating death of 56-year-old Keith Stephenson. Court records say Wyatt had been living in Stephenson's basement and said that Stephenson had tried to kick him out of the house. The public defender's office asked for the deadline because it would need to bring in an attorney certified to handle death penalty cases. Wyatt has pleaded not guilty to 1st-degree murder. His trial is set for Sept. 25. The last execution in Wyoming was in 1992. (source: KGWN news) UTAH: Is It Time To Get Rid Of The Death Penalty? The death penalty is a crude, antiquated form of punishment that should be entirely disavowed. On Thursday, April 27, Kenneth Williams took his last breath as he lay strapped to a bed in a musty prison room. The execution chamber, which resides in Arkansas's Cummins Unit penitentiary, is lit with flickering florescent lights. A small team of medical personnel, prison staff and spiritual advisors wait for the intensive procedure to begin. On that night, Williams awaited a "chemical cocktail" that numbed his body and stopped his heart - a fitting end for a man convicted of murdering three innocent souls, right? Williams' execution came second out of four inmate executions. Prior to these, Arkansas had not put a prisoner to death since 2005. Yet on April 17, Governor Asa Hutchinson ordered prison officials to execute 8 men over the course of 10 days. Why? Well, according to Hutchinson, the state's supply of a necessary sedative was set to expire at month's end. Midazolam, which is particularly difficult to manufacture, has a tenured history of unpredictable outcomes. Regardless, Hutchinson pressed forward with the timeline which strongly resembled an assembly-line of death. Although 4 of the 8 inmates evaded execution via court orders, the rest were given only a few days' notice. The process began with prisoner Ledell Lee, who was sentenced for murdering his neighbor in 1993. While each of these men likely deserved an early death, the process of executing prisoners is unwarranted and borderline inhumane. According to a study conducted by the British Journal of American Legal Studies, approximately 270 executions between 1900-2010 involved "departures from the protocol of killing someone sentenced to death." Undeniably, many sentenced to death are guilty. The legal system, however, is far from perfect. Indeed, there remains a chance that one innocent inmate ultimately suffers an excruciating fate. Williams, who was
[Deathpenalty] death penalty news----TEXAS, DEL., VA., N.C., GA., FLA., ALA.
May 10 TEXASimpending execution Texas Gives Tilon Carter Execution Date of May 16, 2017 Tilon Lashon Carter is scheduled to be executed at 6 pm CST, on Tuesday, May 16, 2017, at the Walls Unit in the Huntsville State Penitentiary in Huntsville, Texas. 37-year-old Tilon is convicted of the robbery and murder of 89-year-old James Eldon Tomlin in Tarrant County, Texas. Tilon has spent the last 10 years of his life on Texas' death row. Tilon did not graduate from high school, dropping out after the 11th grade. He worked as an auto mechanic and a roofer. Tilon was previously arrested for robbing a couple at gunpoint and using the stolen money to pay off a drug debt. While in prison, he led a riot. Tilon was also convicted of indecent exposure and assault against his girlfriend. On April 28, 2004, Tilon Carter and his 31-year-old girlfriend Leketha Allen were discussing how they needed money. Allen's mother overhear them and suggested that they rob James Tomlin, and elderly man who lived nearby and was known to keep large quantities of cash in his house. Allen's mother then drove them by the house, pointing it out. Carter and Allen returned to James' home the next day, forcing their way inside after James opened the door. Cater bound James' hands and feet tightly with duct tape. Duct tape was also placed over his mouth. Carter and Allen then searched home, discovering approximately $6,000 in cash. James was discover the following day, lying face down in his hallway. A medical examiner determined that he had been severely beaten, but that the cause of death was asphyxiation. The evidence indicated that James was likely smothered to death. At his trial, Carter's ex-girlfriend and a cell mate testified that Carter had boasted about Laketha and him killing an old man during a robbery. Carter was convicted and sentenced to death. Leketha was convicted and sentenced to 25 years in prison. She is eligible for parole this year. Tilon Carter's execution had been scheduled for Tuesday, February 7, 2017. His execution was stayed by the Texas Court of Criminal Appeals due to a technical error; the trial court was a day late in notifying the Office of Capital and Forensic Writs that an execution date had been set. According to the law, the Office of Capital and Forensic Writs must be notified within 2 business days, however, in Tilon's case, it was 3 days before they were notified. Since the notification was late, the execution date was reset to Tuesday, May 16, 2017. Please pray for peace and healing for the family of James Tomlin. Please pray for peace and healing for the family of Tilon Carter. Please pray that if Tilon is innocent, lacks the competency to be executed or should not be executed for any other reason, that evidence will be provided prior to his execution. Please pray that Tilon will come to find peace through a personal relationship with Jesus Christ, if he has not already. (source: theforgivenessfoundation.org) DELAWARE: House lawmakers vote in favor of reinstating Delaware's death penalty The Delaware State House of Representatives has voted in favor of legislation that, if passed, would reinstate Delaware's death penalty. On Tuesday, House lawmakers voted to revive the death penalty with 21 votes in favor, 16 votes against, and 1 absent. House Bill 125 revises Delaware's death penalty statute to ensure its compliance with the U.S. Constitution, which would require that before a death sentence can be imposed, a jury (unless the Defendant waives their right to one) must first determine unanimously and beyond a reasonable doubt that at least one statutory aggravating circumstance exists. In an interview with Delaware 105.9's Rob Petree, Representative Steve Smyk, the primary sponsor of the Bill, made it clear that the death penalty is "still in the books," and this legislation is simply addressing what was deemed unconstitutional by Delaware's Supreme Court. "The Bill doesn't create the death penalty, that's actually still in the books, but there's parts of Delaware's death penalty that have found to be unconstitutional by a panel of our 5 chief justices, at only a margin of 3 to 2," said Rep. Smyk. "With that being said those issues, that 3 of our justices did find problematic, are addressed in the Bill. So that way it can be used as a tool for our criminal justice system. Those issues are the relationship between a judge, a jury, and unanimity." "What we know is that there are people in our society, a very small sliver of our society, that are predators. Those individuals actually do pray on the weakest and the most vulnerable of our society. Everytime Delaware, throughout its history has put a reprieve on the death penalty, we've suffered terrible terrible crimes," Rep. Smyk explained. "In 1958 when Delaware lifted the death penalty there was a series of activities where victims had suffered tremendous
