March 31 FLORIDA: Killer of Miami-Dade anti-drug crusader loses death row appeal In Tallahassee, a death row inmate condemned for gunning down a Miami-Dade County grocer who waged a war against drugs in his neighborhood lost appeals Thursday in the state Supreme Court. Ronnie Johnson was sentenced to death for the 1989 murder of Lee Arthur Lawrence, who was killed in a fusillade of up to 30 bullets fired from a semiautomatic weapon when he went out to pick up garbage from his parking lot. Johnson, 44, was also condemned for the fatal shooting of Tequila Larkins, who was fatally shot in her laundromat a week before Lawrence was killed. Police said that Larkins was a reputed drug dealer. Florida's high court rejected appeals from Johnson in both cases Thursday. The unsigned opinions were unanimous with the exception of Justice R. Fred Lewis who concurred in the result only. Lawrence's parking lot was the scene of frequent drug transactions and the market was the target of a failed firebombing attempt in 1987. Lawrence, 51, was widely known in his community for his anti-drug stance, visiting schools and organizing residents to fight against dealers. Three days before he was fatally shot, Miami-Dade County's top law enforcement official met with Lawrence, ministers and concerned people about how to fight drugs. Several hundred people attended Lawrence's funeral, including Jeb Bush, who was a private citizen running for governor at the time. (source: South Florida Sun-Sentinel) CONNECTICUT: House keeps death penalty on books The state House of Representatives upheld Connecticut's death-penalty statute Wednesday, rejecting a measure that would have replaced capital punishment with life imprisonment without parole. In an 89-60 vote following more than 5 hours of debate, the House also effectively ended any chance of legislative intervention before the scheduled May 11 execution of serial killer and rapist Michael Ross. Advocates of capital punishment argued the ultimate penalty is necessary to provide justice for those who have lost loved ones in the most heinous of crimes. But opponents countered that state-sanctioned executions debase society as a whole and that killing anyone cannot provide true healing. "Government must be just. It must exact justice," Deputy House Minority Leader Lawrence F. Cafero Jr., R-Norwalk, said. "I believe it is society's retribution." "Only the worst of the worst get the death penalty," said Rep. Steven Mikutel, D-Griswold, whose constituents include families of some of Ross' victims. Ross, 45, a Brooklyn native, has admitted to killing eight teenage girls and young women in eastern Connecticut and New York in the 1980s, most of whom he also raped. He is one of just seven people on death row in this state. Connecticut has not executed an inmate since 1960. The Cornell University graduate came within hours of being put to death by lethal injection on Jan. 29. But the execution was postponed so his mental competency could be examined. Mikutel and Cafero argued that capital punishment here is unlike the systems in most other states, demanding an extremely high level of proof and limited to a small category of murders. Such crimes include killing a victim who first was raped or kidnapped, multiple slayings in the same incident, murder for hire, or the murder of a police officer. "I do believe there are some people in this world that we can truly say are evil," added Rep. Pamela Z. Sawyer, R-Bolton. But Rep. John C. Geragosian, D-New Britain, said that while government should do all it can to comfort those who have lost loved ones to heinous acts, killing the guilty won't provide real peace. "It's about what we value as a society," he said, adding that "Connecticut can do better than that." Rep. William Dyson, D-New Haven, who has regularly worn a placard protesting the death penalty at the state Legislative Office Building for months, said he can empathize with victims' families who want to see their loved ones' murderers executed. However, he said the state sends the wrong message when it kills the killers. "If it's symbolic, so be it," Dyson said of Wednesday's debate. "Give it your vote. Give it your vote. It says something about who we are and who we want to be." Rep. Michael Lawlor, D-East Haven, co-chairman of the Judiciary Committee, argued that the years of appeals associated with such cases simply give the condemned killers huge amounts of media attention and force victims' families to relive the pain again and again. Lawlor, a former prosecutor, also argued that an inordinate number of Connecticut's death-penalty cases were tried in the Waterbury judicial district, adding that the system is flawed because it gives state's attorneys great discretion in whether to pursue the death sentence in any case. Death-penalty opponents have conceded for weeks that their chances of overturning the statute this spring were slim. Gov. M. Jodi Rell declared in December that she would veto any effort to repeal or weaken the capital punishment system, adding she also believes the death penalty is appropriate for the most heinous of crimes. That meant any repeal bill would need 2/3 approval in both the House and Senate to overcome a gubernatorial veto. Still, Rell said Wednesday that given the importance of this issue, she understood the legislature's need to debate the bill. Robert Nave, executive director of the Connecticut Network to Abolish the Death Penalty, said regardless of the House vote and Rell's support of capital punishment, the debate over the death penalty in Connecticut is just beginning. "It is clear to see that the death penalty will be a thing of the past before long, and we are excited that today we had the first of many real debates on the death penalty," he said. (source: Journal Inquirer) MARYLAND: Prosecutors to seek death penalty in rape, slaying County prosecutors said yesterday they will seek the death penalty for a man charged last year in the long-unsolved slayings of 2 women in 1986 and 1988 and a 14-year-old girl in 1993. State's Attorney Frank R. Weathersbee said his office will seek to execute Alexander Wayne Watson Jr., 35, for the May 23, 1988, rape and murder of Elaine Buchanan Shereika. Ms. Shereika, 37, was stabbed, sexually assaulted and strangled while out for a morning jog near her Gambrills home. Two miles away from the body, county police found a bread knife with a 9-inch blade and a towel detectives believe the killer used to wipe blood off himself. Ms. Shereika's daughter, Jennifer Shereika, said last night she's generally against the death penalty but thinks Watson deserves it. She said she was on the fence until talking to her mother's oldest friend, who reminded her that Watson can work and receive visitors in prison and could one day get to see his grandchildren. "These are things my mother didn't get a chance to do," said Jennifer Shereika, who was 16 when her mother was killed. "She never got a chance to meet her grandkids. I can't wrap my head around that being justifiable." Mr. Weathersbee said the family's wishes were a key factor in his decision to seek the death penalty. He also noted that Watson was sentenced to life without parole in 1994 for murdering a woman in Prince George's County. "What more can you do to him?" Jennifer Shereika said. "There's nothing else you can do to him except the death penalty." A trial could be late this year or early next year. Watson is eligible for the death penalty in Ms. Shereika's slaying because she also was sexually assaulted, one of the aggravating factors required for execution. When Boontem Anderson, 33, of Gambrills was killed in Oct. 8, 1986, Watson was only 17. And there was no aggravating factor in the Jan. 15, 1993, death of Lisa Haenel. Ms. Anderson, who died of a stab wound to the neck, was found partially clothed in her fiance's home. Her body, with her hands tied behind her back, was found by the fiance's teenage son. Lisa, an Old Mill High School freshman, was walking to school when she was attacked. She died of a stab wound to the chest. Her stepfather found her nude body near a wooded path the next morning while out jogging and looking for her. Police said Watson knew the family with whom Ms. Anderson was staying, but the killings of Ms. Shereika and Lisa were apparently random. Detectives long suspected the killings were linked, but they had few hard leads. The break in the case came in October 2003, when DNA from 2 of the crime scenes matched Watson's profile in a state database. Detectives said they reinvestigated the case to tie up every possible loose end before charging Watson last July. When prosecutors asked Jennifer Shereika what she thought of the death penalty, she agonized - unlike her younger brother, who supported it from the beginning. In the end, despite her misgivings, she came down in favor of it, mainly because of Watson's character. "The reason that Maryland has this law on the books is to deal with people like him," she said. "This is a man who has killed four women. If the law is there, it needs to be put to use." (source: The Capital News) MISSISSIPPI: Miss. Supreme Court upholds death sentence in Lee County case The Mississippi Supreme Court has upheld the death sentence given Derrick Walker for the 2001 killing of a Tupelo man, rejecting his claims that the incident did not rise to the level of a capital crime. Walker was sentenced to death in Lee County in 2003 for the stabbing death of former Tupelo personnel director Charles Richardson. Walker was convicted of capital murder and arson. Police said Richardson's body was found by firefighters answering a report of smoke coming from his house on July 17, 2001. Authorities said Richardson had been repeatedly stabbed and slashed. Walker was arrested in Arkansas. He was driving Richardson's car, authorities said. Walker did not deny the crime. During arguments before the Supreme Court in February, Walker's attorney said Walker killed Richardson but never intended to steal the man's car and without such intent, robbery could not be used to support a conviction of capital murder. Justice Mike Randolph, writing Thursday for the court, said Walker's argument failed because he confessed to investigators that he planned to kill Richardson, take his car and go to Chicago. "Aside from Walker's confession of intent, the element of intent is clearly evidenced through the actions of Walker prior to Richardson's murder," Randolph said. "Walker packed his belongings and hid them outside his house; by doing so, Walker would have easy access to retrieve them and place them in Richardson's car, to escape town following the murder of Richardson." The Supreme Court also rejected Walker's claim that the traffic stop in Forrest City, Ark., was illegal because he was never issued a ticket. Walker said any statements he then gave lawmen should have not have been used against him at trial. Prosecutors said Walker was stopped for speeding in a construction zone. They said Walker admitted the car was not his and was found to be driving with a suspended license, for which he could be arrested in Arkansas. Prosecutors said Arkansas officers became suspicious when Walker changed his story, saying that he had bought the car from somebody. Randolph said the trial judge conducted a thorough hearing and ruled the confession was voluntarily given and that there was nothing wrong with the traffic stop. Randolph said other courts have ruled that there is no requirement that an officer issue a citation for a traffic violation to have a valid to stop or search. He said Walker could not claim a constitutional protection from a search "because he has no reasonable expectation of privacy in a car he stole and did not own." (source: Associated Press)
