April 25
NORTH CAROLINA:
State will test Adams' mental capacity
The state is permitted to have accused killer Andrew Bernard Adams tested for
mental retardation after a defense expert concluded he is mentally retarded, a
New Hanover County judge determined Wednesday.
The convicted serial rapist is facing the death penalty in the January 2012
killing of Latricia Ann Scott, 24, of Wilmington. Family reported Scott missing
Jan. 10. 3 days later, the young mother's battered body was found buried in a
shallow grave in Adams' Cowen Street backyard. She'd been bludgeoned to death
with a hammer, according to officials.
If Adams is found mentally retarded, which generally encompasses everyone with
an IQ score of 70 or below, the death penalty is off the table, his attorney W.
James Payne said.
"If he's mentally retarded, as we believe that he is, the state will not be
able to execute a proceeding against him for the death penalty," Payne said.
Payne said one requirement to the judge's ultimate ruling of mental
retardation, is that the defendant had an assessment of mental retardation
before the age of 18. Adams has, Payne said.
After his arrest in Wilmington, the prosecutor in New Bern filed murder and
rape charges against him in the 1977 killing there of Gwendolyn Antoinette
Nelson, 17. Nelson's body was found outside a school in New Bern. Officials
there said Adams' DNA was partially matched to the evidence in that case.
N.C. Department of Correction records indicate the 56-year-old Adams has spent
a majority of his life in a cell.
"He's had quite a difficult past," Payne said.
He got his 1st taste of prison in 1973, when he was admitted to Polk
Correctional Institution on a conviction for assault with intent to commit rape
in a case that originated out of New Hanover County, according to the N.C.
Department of Correction.
The state paroled him in April 1977. 2 years later, he returned to prison for
several rape and attempted rape charges, as well as a count of escaping jail.
The crimes kept him locked away for the next 3 decades, until the state set him
free in January 2007.
(source: Wilmington Star)
GEORGIA:
Warren Lee Hill's Stay Of Execution LIfted By Federal Cout; Lawyers for Warren
Hill says that he should not be executed because he has mental retardation.
A federal appeals court that had blocked the scheduled February execution of a
Georgia man whose lawyers say is mentally disabled has lifted its stay,
clearing the way for a new execution date.
A 3-judge panel of the 11th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals said in an opinion
published Monday that inmate Warren Lee Hill cannot submit his case to a
federal court for reconsideration for procedural reasons, including the fact
that his claim of mental disability was presented in an earlier petition and
can't be presented again.
In the 2-1 ruling, the circuit judges also said Hill's claim only challenges
his eligibility for the death sentence, not his underlying guilt, making him
ineligible for reconsideration.
Hill was sentenced to die for the 1990 beating death of fellow inmate Joseph
Handspike. Hill bludgeoned Handspike with a nail-studded board while his victim
slept, authorities said. At the time, Hill was already serving a life sentence
for the 1986 slaying of his girlfriend, Myra Wright, who was shot 11 times.
Brian Kammer, a lawyer for Hill, said he is pondering his next move following
Monday's opinion.
"We are deeply disappointed," Kammer said of the decision, adding it would bar
consideration of what he called compelling new evidence in Hill's case.
"The new evidence shows that every mental health expert ever to examine him
finds that Mr. Hill has mental retardation and he is thus ineligible for
execution" under the U.S. constitution, Kammer said in a statement.
The Georgia attorney general's office declined comment on the development.
The 11th Circuit decision means a new execution date could be set at any time.
But the state's supply of execution drug pentobarbital expired last month, and
the drug has become increasingly difficult to obtain since its manufacturer has
barred its use for executions.
The Department of Corrections will try to get more at the appropriate time,
said spokeswoman Gwendolyn Hogan. No executions are currently scheduled in
Georgia.
In 1988, Georgia became the 1st state to pass a law prohibiting the execution
of mentally disabled death row inmates, and the U.S. Supreme Court ruled in
2002 that the execution of mentally disabled offenders was unconstitutional.
But Georgia also has the strictest-in-the-nation standard for death-row inmates
seeking to avoid execution. It requires them to prove their mental disability
beyond a reasonable doubt. The state of Georgia has long argued that Hill's
lawyers have failed to do that.
Since the Supreme Court ruling, many prosecutors have chosen not to pursue the
death penalty if there's even a hint of evidence that mental disability is a
possibility owing to the challenges that could be raised, said Richard Dieter,
executive director of the Death Penalty Information Center.
What is unusual about Hill's case, he said, is that the experts who examined
the inmate now seem to be in agreement that Hill is mentally disabled, but the
courts are refusing to stop his execution based on legal technicalities, Dieter
said.
The 11th Circuit panel granted a stay in February after Hill's lawyers argued
he was eligible for reconsideration in federal court because three doctors who
had testified in 2000 that Hill was not mentally disabled provided statements
in February saying they had changed their opinions and now believe he is.
In filings with the 11th Circuit, the state said the doctors' new statements
were not credible and also argued Hill was procedurally barred from asking a
federal court to reconsider his case.
In the majority opinion, Circuit Judge Frank Hull writes that the court
recognizes Hill has submitted new evidence to support his claims but says the
core argument - that Hill is mentally disabled and therefore shouldn't be
executed - remain the same. The 11th Circuit and other courts have repeatedly
held that new evidence and new legal arguments in support of a prior claim
aren't enough to overcome the statutory bar on repeat petitions, Hull writes.
In the dissenting opinion, Circuit Judge Rosemary Barkett, writes that Hill has
offered "uncontroverted evidence" of his mental disability and said she doesn't
believe there is no choice but to allow the execution to go forward simply
because his claim doesn't meet narrow procedural standards.
(source: Huffington Post)
****************
Heinze hearing moves to May
A 2nd day of motion hearings in the death penalty case against accused
mass-murderer Guy Heinze Jr. planned for Wednesday was tentatively rescheduled
for May.
Glynn County Superior Court Judge Stephen G. Scarlett Sr. said both parties
gave their consent Tuesday to complete the hearings in May after arguing their
points on motions that focused primarily on several pieces of evidence in the
case.
During the hearings Tuesday, Newell Hamilton, lead defense attorney for Heinze,
told Scarlett he had planned to hear from Albert Roland, a fingerprint expert
with the Georgia Bureau of Investigation, who had been subpoenaed to appear.
Roland, who is from Atlanta, was not present at the hearings, which Hamilton
said prevented him from being able to properly argue his points about motions
pertaining to fingerprint and DNA evidence.
Heinze, 25, faces the death penalty for allegedly killing his father and 7
other people in a trailer at the New Hope Plantation mobile home park on U.S.
17 Aug. 29, 2009.
Attorneys argued Tuesday about a missing audio recording made 6 days after the
murder that purportedly contains a police interview that defense attorneys say
may implicate an alternative suspect in the case.
Glynn County Police Sgt. Ricky Evans testified in court that he considered the
recording to be misplaced.
Hamilton contended that the digital recording could be a potentially critical
piece of evidence in the defense of his client.
Assistant District Attorney John B. Johnson said the defense has known the
recording does not exist since March 2011.
If defense attorneys want to talk to Joseph Bryant "Big Joe" Anderson, the man
police interviewed in the recording, they can go find him themselves, Johnson
added.
Scarlett said Tuesday he wants to set a trial date for some time in August or
September.
Hamilton told Scarlett that because the defense was given a large amount of
evidence by prosecutors on Monday, his team may need more time to prepare and
asked for a trial date for January 2014.
Heinze has been incarcerated and awaiting trial since being arrested on Sept.
5, 2009.
He faces 8 counts of murder for allegedly killing his father, Guy Heinze Sr.,
46; his father's friend, Russell Toler Sr., 44; and Toler's children - Michael
Toler, 19; Chrissy Toler, 22; Russell Toler Jr., 20; and Michelle Toler, 15. He
is also charged with the deaths of family friends Brenda Falagan, 48, and
Joseph West, and attempting to kill Chrissy Toler's son, Byron Jimmerson, who
was a preschooler.
(source: The Brunswick News)
FLORIDA:
Jury tampering allegations surface in Jacksonville murder trial; Allegations
come out after the courtroom is closed for part of Wednesday.
The death penalty murder trial of Kevin Marshun Rushing ground to a halt
Wednesday following allegations he had tampered with the jury.
Circuit Judge Virginia Norton closed the courtroom to the public after learning
of the allegation. But after the Times-Union objected, she reopened court
Wednesday afternoon and explained what had happened.
Norton also said there was a 2nd allegation that a juror had an outstanding
warrant.
She did not specify what the warrant was for or how the tampering occurred. But
she did say she was signing a court order limiting Rushing's phone use from the
Duval County jail.
Assistant State Attorney London Kite and defense attorneys Richard Kuritz and
James Hernandez all declined comment.
Before recessing, Norton said she was leaning toward questioning the jurors
Thursday morning about both issues. The case is scheduled to resume at 9 a.m.
Norton said she closed court due to concerns about public safety, but chose to
reopen the case to the public because of Rushing's due process rights.
Attorney George Gabel, who represents the Times-Union, said Norton should have
given media organizations a chance to object before she closed the court.
Rushing, 24, is charged with the 1st-degree murder of Jervey A. Crocker in
November 2009.
Crocker, who was 21, had his mouth, hands and feet duct taped before he was
shot in the head 3 times. Police found Crocker in the front yard of an
abandoned house in the 7000 block of Red Robin Drive after getting a report
about gunshots in the area.
Lt. Larry Schmitt said in 2009 that police think Rushing and Christopher D.
Holmes, 24, shot Crocker after he was able to free himself partially and
attempted to escape.
The killing was motivated by robbery of drugs or money, Schmitt said at the
time.
Holmes pleaded guilty to 2nd-degree murder and is awaiting his sentence. He
faces up to life in prison but cannot get the death penalty.
If Rushing is convicted, he will face either life in prison or death.
(source: Florida Times-Union)
LOUISIANA:
Continuance granted in DeSoto capital murder trial; State may appeal the
judge's ruling in Horn case
With 2 months to go before the scheduled trial date of murder suspect Brian
Horn, District Judge Robert Burgess has decided the case was not going to be
ready to be put before a jury.
Burgess issued a 3-page order Wednesday, citing several reasons for granting a
defense motion for a continuance. He made the decision with an eye toward May
1, which is the deadline he set to determine the case's readiness.
It also is the date the DeSoto Parish Police Jury was to have deposited $25,000
into an account in the 15th Judicial District in Lafayette to cover costs
related to jury selection for the June 24 trial. The actual trial proceeding
would be moved to DeSoto District Court.
Horn, 37, of Keachi, faces charges of first-degree murder and aggravated
kidnapping in the March 30, 2010 asphyxiation death of Justin M. Bloxom, 12, of
Stonewall. Horn, a twice-convicted sex offender, faces the death penalty if
convicted.
The state is considering an appeal of Burgess' ruling. Special prosecutor Brady
O'Callaghan said he'll meet today with District Attorney Richard Johnson and
his staff to review the judge's order.
"At this point, we are contemplating supervisory writs to the 2nd Circuit Court
of Appeal," O'Callaghan said. "We believe the judge's ruling is erroneous."
Defense attorney Daryl Gold termed the ruling as "well thought-out, appropriate
and well-reasoned. And I think that his ruling is correct. I have never heard
of anyone taking a writ on a judge's ruling when a motion for continuance has
been granted. When one is denied, that's one thing, but when a continuance is
granted, I've never heard of that."
He continued: "Maybe the DA should read the American Bar Association
supplemental guidelines for mitigation in capital cases which I have filed in
the record, and I handed a copy to Mr. O'Callaghan."
Burgess states in his ruling that he recognizes the "disappointment,
frustration and even anger that a further delay in trial may cause. However, in
a case of this magnitude and complexity, prudence dictates, and justice
demands, that it proceed only when there is a reasonable certainty that it does
so with proper regard to all of the various interests."
Contributing to Burgess' decision are 2 outstanding issues, discussed during a
status conference last week, that he believes would not be resolved within the
available time frame.
During that hearing, it was revealed that a long-pending analysis of suspected
DNA on a piece of barbed wire removed from the crime scene on the side of U.S.
Highway 171 in Stonewall has not been performed.
A date for testing has been yet. However, Burgess said there is no evidence to
say when the results will be produced.
"Further, there is no way to know what, if anything, the analysis will reveal -
nothing, inculpatory evidence, exculpatory evidence, etc. This uncertainty is a
grave concern to the court."
Another worry is the time factor in getting some of the prosecution's witnesses
qualified as experts prior to trial. The process is referred to by attorneys as
"Daubert," and it requires a separate court hearing.
Prosecutors made it known last week of their intent to use FBI agents and
employees who had a part in examining some of the evidence against Horn.
Several agents from the FBI's Washington, D.C., office testified in a pretrial
hearing last year, and arranging their court appearances took 6 months or more.
Burgess cites that "complicated" process and notes it could be problematic
again "in light of the recent tragedies in Boston and across the country
drawing on the FBI's expertise and resources."
The defense last week based its request for a trial delay on the inability of
its newly hired mitigation expert, Heather Canfield, to prepare. Canfield told
the court only 5 of what she estimated could be 400 people who had contact with
Horn during his life had been interviewed prior to her employment in March by
the Capital Assistance Project of Louisiana.
Canfield's job is to use information about Horn's life to sway jurors from
imposing the death penalty.
She estimated it would take her until early next year to complete the work.
(source: Shreveport Times)
OHIO:
Lawyer: Insanity plea to come in Ohio killings
An 18-year-old man charged with killing a prominent Ohio attorney and his wife
in their home with a sledgehammer will plead not guilty by reason of insanity,
his attorney said in court on Wednesday.
Shawn Ford Jr. of Akron appeared by video from jail but did not speak at a
hearing in the Summit County Court of Common Pleas.
Ford is charged with aggravated murder in the killing of 56-year-old Jeffrey
Schobert and his wife, 59-year-old Margaret.
The couple were found dead in their home in New Franklin on April 2; they had
been beaten to death with a sledgehammer.
The Akron Beacon Journal reported that Ford's attorney, Don Hicks, said at
Wednesday's hearing that Ford was declining to enter a plea in the case, but
that at some point, would plead not guilty by reason of insanity.
Magistrate Kandi O'Connor entered a plea of not guilty on Ford's behalf as a
formality in such a proceeding.
Ford remains jailed on a $1 million bond. If convicted, he could face the death
penalty.
Ford also is charged with felonious assault in a nonfatal attack on the
couple's teenage daughter, who was stabbed at a party on March 23 and suffered
a skull fracture. Police have said Ford dated the girl, and the parents may
have objected.
(source: Associated Press)
**************************
Jury search under way for trial of New Albany triple-murder suspect William
Gibson
Floyd Superior Judge Susan Orth and lawyers preparing for the 1st trial of
triple-murder suspect William Gibson have begun the tedious process of combing
through questionnaires to find jurors.
Because of extensive pretrial publicity, Orth and the parties agreed to draw
the jurors from Dearborn County, which is in southeast Indiana near Cincinnati,
and transport them to New Albany for the July 15 trial.
Gibson, 55, of New Albany, was arrested a year ago and charged with the
slayings of three women.
He faces the possibility of the death penalty in 2 of the murders - of
Christine Whitis, a family friend from Clarksville, and of Stephanie Kirk of
Charlestown.
Whitis' mutilated body was found in Gibson's garage, while police dug up Kirk's
remains in his backyard, according to court records.
Gibson is also accused of stabbing to death Karen Hodella, 44, of Port Orange,
Fla., whose body was found in January 2003 near the Ohio River in Clarksville.
Floyd Prosecutor Keith Henderson has decided to hold 3 consecutive trials,
starting with the death of Whitis. Because the 1st trial involves a capital
murder case, the questionnaires include 200 questions, some dealing with a
person's views about the death penalty, Henderson said recently.
Orth waded into a 5-inch stack of questionnaires returned to the court during
Wednesday's pretrial hearing. Gibson looked on with 3 public defenders at his
side, but he was not called to speak.
The parties agreed to have Orth excuse several dozen potential jurors who had
moved from Dearborn or had health problems.
Floyd County Clerk Linda Moeller told Orth that her office staff had scanned
questionnaires returned by about 400 people deemed eligible.
Compact discs will be passed to prosecutors and defense lawyers, Moeller said,
by early next week to use to pick out people for questioning during jury
selection later this spring.
The next hearing is scheduled for May 24.
(source: Courier-Journal)
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