Scheduled Executions: April 5: Glen Ocha (FL): http://www.demaction.org/dia/organizations/ncadp/campaign.jsp?campaign_KEY=5 24 April 15: Richard Longworth (SC) http://www.demaction.org/dia/organizations/ncadp/campaign.jsp?campaign_KEY=5 25 April 20: Milton Mathis (TX): http://www.demaction.org/dia/organizations/ncadp/campaign.jsp?campaign_KEY=5 26 April 20: Douglas Alan Roberts (TX): http://www.demaction.org/dia/organizations/ncadp/campaign.jsp?campaign_KEY=5 27 April 21: Bill J. Benefiel (IN): http://www.demaction.org/dia/organizations/ncadp/campaign.jsp?campaign_KEY=5 28 April 28 : Mario Centobie (AL): http://www.demaction.org/dia/organizations/ncadp/campaign.jsp?campaign_KEY=5 29 *April 27: Donald Jones (MO): (Alert not posted) FLORIDA Glen Ocha April 5, 2005 6:00 PM EST http://www.demaction.org/dia/organizations/ncadp/campaign.jsp?campaign_KEY=5 24 The state of Florida is scheduled to execute Glen Ocha, who has legally changed his name to Raven Raven, April 5, 2005 for the 1999 murder of Carol Skjerva in Osceola County. Ocha met Skjerva at a bar while under the influence of alcohol and ecstasy. She drove him home and the two had consensual sex. Afterwards she made a disparaging comment which enraged him. He then strangled her and placed her detached head in his lap and began talking to her. He was arrested the following day for disorderly intoxication while in the possession of Skherva's car. He confessed to the murder and told authorities where her body could be located. Ocha plead guilty and waived his right to a trial by jury, as well as to the presentation of mitigating evidence. At the trial he refused to let a public defender present evidence to try and avoid an execution. Furthermore, he asked the trial judge to sentence him to death. He later wrote in a letter, "Sir, I wish for my execution to come swift and unhampered. Please understand my sincerest request! Its better for me, and everyone for me to face my punishment sooner than later." He then fired an attorney who tried to help him appeal his death sentence. At trial, two psychological experts stated they believed further testing on Ocha was necessary. One psychologist went so far as to suggest he undergo a neuro-psychiatric evaluation to rule out the possibility of a brain tumor which may have affected his behavior and thinking. Ocha did not receive any of the additional testing suggested by the mental health experts. If these tests had taken place they may have provided valuable information at the trial concerning his mental health and competency to stand trial. Ocha had a history of suicidal thoughts and drug and alcohol abuse. He had previously suffered two severe head injuries which are often linked to violent disturbing behaviors. Ocha also suffers from post-traumatic stress disorder and a learning disability. Ocha suffered from a chaotic and violent childhood. He had a history of psychiatric disturbances and mental illness and may possibly have a bipolar disorder. It is apparent that Ocha is not sane and needs medical help, a point that is further supported by his legal name change from Glen Ocha to Raven Raven. The history of Ocha's suicidal tendencies are clearly documented. When previously arrested for an unrelated crime he asked the arresting officers to shoot him. In 1999, while incarcerated in Volusia County, he was placed on suicide watch. Five of the last eight executions in Florida have been of prisoners who have waived their appeals and volunteered to be put to death. During Governor Bush's tenure, 16 persons on death row have been executed, seven of whom have dropped their appeals in order to expedite their own deaths. The execution of those with mental illness is prohibited by international law as well as by most countries in the world. In April of 2000, The UN Commission on Human Rights urged that all states that do maintain the death penalty do not impose it on those who are suffering from any form of mental disorder. However, it is a common occurrence in the United States. There is clear evidence that Ocha is mentally ill and suicidal. By signing his death warrant Governor Jeb Bush is merely assisting in the suicide of a sick man and continuing the unjust practice of executing the mentally ill. Please take a moment to urge Governor Bush to stop the suicide of Glen Ocha! SOUTH CAROLINA Richard Longworth April 15, 2005 6:00 PM EST http://www.demaction.org/dia/organizations/ncadp/campaign.jsp?campaign_KEY=5 25 The state of South Carolina is set to execute Richard Longworth, 37, on April 15, 2005 for the 1991 murders of Alex Hopps and James Greene in Spartanburg County. On January 7, 1991, Longworth and accomplice David Rocheville robbed a Spartanburg movie theatre, shooting and killing employees Hopps and Greene. Police arrested both men, who later confessed to the crimes. Longworth and Rocheville were both convicted of armed robbery, kidnapping, and two counts of murder in separate trials. Rocheville was executed in December of 1999. Longworth's attorneys have raised several issues in his appeals, including evidence supporting claims of ineffective assistance of counsel. Longworth's trial attorney represented both Longworth and his parents, resulting in a conflict of interest that allowed for the suppression of potentially important mitigating evidence. In interviews with her son's attorney, Longworth's mother mentioned a history of domestic violence and alcohol abuse while he was growing up. However, in the interest of saving the family from publicly admitting their problems, which may have resulted in the loss of her husband's job or her position as a foster parent, Mrs. Longworth requested that the information remain private. Longworth's attorney agreed, and this information was not brought up at trial in an effort to spare her son's life. The ineffective assistance of counsel claim was expanded in Longworth's appeals to include his attorney's incompetence and inexperience through his failure to disclose Longworth's use of cocaine at the time of the crime and his full family and childhood background. Although the Fourth Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals maintained that these claims have no merit, they refused to review them due to a procedural matter. Longworth's attorneys failed to raise these issues in his petition for certiorari to the South Carolina Supreme Court. Because the claims were not made at the state level before turning to the federal court system, the judges in the U.S. Court of Appeals found them to be procedurally barred from their review. Longworth's case magnifies the problems with the United States criminal justice system, especially an outdated appeals process that places more emphasis on an abstract set of rules than to the idea of justice outlined in the Constitution. Longworth's arguments regarding ineffective assistance of counsel as guaranteed by the Sixth Amendment may have fallen on deaf ears in the U.S. Courts, but it is not too late to spare his life. Please contact Gov. Sanford of South Carolina and request that he stop the execution of Richard Longworth. TEXAS Milton Mathis Texas 6:00 PM CST http://www.demaction.org/dia/organizations/ncadp/campaign.jsp?campaign_KEY=5 26 The state of Texas is scheduled to execute Milton Mathis April 20 for the Fort. Bend County murders of Travis Brown and Daniel Hibbard on Dec. 15, 1998. Mathis, a black man, was 19 years old at the time of the crime. He shot the victims and a 15 -year- old girl who was subsequently paralyzed. Mathis made several claims on appeals including ineffective assistance of counsel. His defense attorney at trial did not object when the prosecutor, while speaking to the jury, called the defendant a "despicable piece of human trash" during closing statements. Also, Mathis has some serious mental impairments that may not have been adequately developed and presented to the court. After performing tests on Mathis, Dr. Stephen Martin, a neurological expert, was prepared to testify that Mathis had frontal lobe damage and that brain damage impaired Mathis' ability to think and function normally, particularly when under stress. Pheobe Smith, one of Mathis' lead attorneys at trial presented an affidavit during appeals stating that she had given this information to the lead counsel at trial. Smith stated that she did not know why the lead counsel chose not to present this potentially mitigating evidence to the trial. The state of Texas has executed more people than the next five highest states combined. Thus far, in 2005 Texas has carried out one third of all executions with six more scheduled in April and May. Please write the state of Texas protesting the execution of Milton Mathis. Douglas Alan Roberts April 20, 2005 6:00 PM CST http://www.demaction.org/dia/organizations/ncadp/campaign.jsp?campaign_KEY=5 27 The state of Texas is scheduled to execute Douglas Alan Roberts, a white man, April 20 for the 1996 murder of Jerry Velez in Kendall County. Roberts stabbed Velez during a confrontation after he had stolen Velez's car. Roberts committed the crime while using crack cocaine. After the effects of the cocaine wore off, he dialed 911 from a pay phone reporting what he had done and disclosing his location. He waited to be arrested by a responding officer. Roberts told his attorney that he wanted to be executed, rather than spend the rest of his life in prison. The trial that followed was one of the shortest death penalty trials in the modern era lasting two to three days including jury selection. He has a strong ineffective assistance of counsel claim. His trial attorney presented no mitigating arguments and no competency hearing was held. Roberts and his attorney deliberately sought out pro-death penalty jurors in an effort to assure his death sentence. When the jury came back deadlocked, the judge, instead of ordering a sentence of life imprisonment, instructed the jury to continue deliberating in accord with Roberts' wishes. The problem of ineffective assistance of counsel highlights one of the most common and difficult flaws with the death penalty system. More than 90 percent of persons on death row were not able to hire their own attorney. Frequently when attorneys are appointed to defendants they are ill-equipped to give their client quality or even competent legal representation. Roberts' trial attorney assisting in seeking out a death sentence and the judge's behavior make a mockery of the justice system. Please write Governor Perry and the Board of Pardons and Paroles protesting a death penalty system which would allow such a blatant miscarriage of justice to take place. INDIANA Bill J. Benefiel Jr. April 21, 2005 After Midnight http://www.demaction.org/dia/organizations/ncadp/campaign.jsp?campaign_KEY=5 28 The state of Indiana is scheduled to execute Bill J. Benefiel, Jr., a white man, April 21, 2005 for the Feb. 7, 1987 murder of Delores Wells, 18, of Vigo County. Wells was kept in Benefiel's home for several days. She was sexually abused and tortured before Benefiel killed her. Benefiel also kept another victim in his home who survived and testified against him. Court-appointed experts testified during the guilt phase of the trial that Benefiel suffered from schizophrenic personality disorder, and from a mental disease or defect. As a baby, Benefiel's birth mother gave him to an unfit mother in exchange for having a place to live. Benefiel endured a traumatic childhood including abandonment and sexual abuse by his adoptive mother's boyfriend. During trial, Benefiel was reluctant to disclose the details of abuse he suffered and also reluctant to discuss the crimes he had committed. He suffered an emotional breakdown during the trial, refusing to go back into the courtroom after a recess. The trial court, however, ruled that Benefiel was not mentally ill due to the fact that he "showed the ability to monitor police, commit numerous burglaries, conceal and destroy evidence, and his manner of carrying out various crimes." In 1991, the Supreme Court of Indiana stated that Benefiel's "impairment suffered as a result of mental disease is entitled to substantial mitigating weight ." However, the court maintained that this mental illness issue as mitigation was diminished because Benefiel exhibited both periods of non-violent behavior and control and because of the way in which the crimes were carried out. There is strong evidence to support the argument that Benefiel suffers from mental illness. The execution of persons with mental illness is a clear violation of international human rights standards as violating the 1964 and 1989 U.N. Economic and Social Council Resolution and the U.N. Human Rights Commission Resolution. Please take a moment to write the state of Indiana protesting the execution of Bill Benefiel. This cycle of violence must not be further perpetuated by the state. ALABAMA Mario Centobie April 28, 2005 6:00 PM CST http://www.demaction.org/dia/organizations/ncadp/campaign.jsp?campaign_KEY=5 29 The state of Alabama is scheduled to execute Mario Centobie April 28. Centobie was sentenced to death for the 1998 fatal shooting of Moody Police Officer Keith Turner in St. Clair. The police officer was killed after Centobie and Jeremy Granberry escaped from Missisippi authorities while being held for another crime. Centobie was also given three life prison terms for the wounding of Tuscaloosa police Capt. Cecil Lancaster. Centobie's trial took place in Elmore County due to the amount of publicity surrounding the St. Clair County area where the shooting took place. During his trial, Centobie gave jurors a dramatic, play-by-play account of his crime including pointing his fingers to represent a gun and shouting "Bang." During his appeals proceedings, Centobie acted as his own attorney. He claimed he had to shoot Turner but did not intend to kill him. In 1994, four years before the crime, Centobie was recognized for his service with fire and rescue workers after an Amtrak train crashed in Mobile in 1994. He was abandoned by his father at the age of four after his parents divorced. His mother sought a divorce on the grounds of habitual cruel and inhuman treatment by Centobie's father. At the age of 20, Centobie shot himself in the stomach with a shotgun because he was distraught. He married but later divorced. His wife requested a restraining order citing habitual cruel and inhuman treatment. Centobie has dropped his appeals and is not seeking clemency. Please take a moment to write Gov. Riley protesting Alabama's collusion in this state-assisted suicide. (source: NCADP)
