Dec. 13
NORTH CAROLINA:
Moore and Berger play politics with the NC death penalty
The fact that North Carolina House Speaker Tim Moore and Senate President
pro-tem Phil Berger are lawyers makes their latest political gambit against
Gov. Roy Cooper and Attorney General Josh Stein all the more shameless.
The 2 legislative leaders have called on Cooper and Stein to restart the death
penalty in the wake of deaths of prison workers in Pasquotank Correctional
Institution. 4 inmates are charged in the deaths, and prosecutors in Pasquotank
say they'll seek the death penalty.
But for Moore and Berger to act as if Cooper and Stein, both of whom support
the death penalty, are standing between criminals and the death penalty is
absurd. Neither the governor nor the AG can restart the death penalty, which is
under legal challenge on a multitude of grounds, as it is in many states.
That's why no one has been put to death by the state in more than 10 years.
Some of the challenges have to do with the method of execution. Then there are
the objections of doctors who don't want to participate in the taking of a
life.
The best decision on the death penalty would be to end it. Life without parole
is a punishment of supreme consequence and suffering. And should someone
convicted of a capital crime be found to be innocent - something that has
happened - a punishment can be corrected if that punishment is something short
of death.
The point here, though, is that the legislative leaders are so eager to knock
on Cooper and Stein, 2 popular, extremely competent Democrats, that they'll
demagogue the death penalty when they know that as long as legal challenges are
pending, the death penalty can't be restarted as if the task were just like
turning on a light switch.
Legislative leaders could do something constructive to boost prison safety,
however. Instead of cutting virtually all agencies in state government (again,
done in part to hurt the Cooper administration???s ability to serve the people
who toppled a Republican to put Cooper into office), they could introduce
legislation to boost salaries for prison guards and other personnel and thus
make it possible to draw more people into that line of work.
More guards, better paid, would translate directly - directly - into safer
prisons. Some of the problems in that state's prisons have had to do with
inmates getting the drop on guards at a time when additional guards would have
prevented that situation.
The crisis in prisons certainly could be interpreted as an emergency, one that
could be addressed by the state's rainy day fund, now at an astounding $1.8
billion. Lawmakers who complain they can't go to the fund for something like
prisons are insulting the intelligence of the people. Lawmakers could pass
needed legislation to approve that money quickly - if they took some time off
from attacking Cooper and Stein and instead decided to work with them.
(source: Editorial, The News & Observer)
FLORIDA:
Ayala's office to seek death penalty for man accused of killing Winter Park
nanny
State Attorney Aramis Ayala's death penalty review panel recommended the
harshest sentence for a man accused of kidnapping and killing a Winter Park
nanny.
Ayala's spokeswoman announced the panel's decision Tuesday, the same day an
Orange County grand jury indicted Scott Edward Nelson on a 1st-degree murder
charge.
Nelson, 53, is accused of killing Jennifer Fulford, who lived in Altamonte
Springs and worked in Winter Park.
Last week, Winter Park police announced they were charging Nelson with
1st-degree murder, kidnapping with a weapon, burglary of a home with an
assault, carjacking, robbery and tampering with a witness to hinder
communication with law enforcement.
Fulford's body was found in a wooded area in southwest Orange County. Her
wrists and ankles were bound, court records show, and her face was wrapped in
duct tape.
Fulford, 56, went missing on Sept. 27 in Winter Park. She was stabbed and
suffocated before being dumped in the woods, according to court documents.
Nelson has been in federal custody since his arrest Oct. 1 for violating
conditions of his probation. His defense lawyer in the federal case questioned
his mental competency. He is scheduled to have a hearing in an Orlando federal
courtroom Dec. 18.
Court records show Nelson previously served a 5-year prison sentence for a 2010
bank robbery in Daytona Beach. He has a history of mental illness and substance
abuse.
This marks the 3rd case in which Ayala's panel will seek the death penalty
since the Florida Supreme Court ruled that she must consider the punishment.
Ayala announced in March that she would not pursue it in any case, sparking a
battle with Gov. Rick Scott.
(source: Orlando Sentinel)
***************
State Attorney's office recommends death penalty in Jennifer Fulford homicide
State Attorney Aramis Ayala's Death Penalty Review Panel unanimously
recommended the death penalty for the man accused of killing Winter Park
personal assistant Jennifer Fulford.
The Orange County Grand Jury issued a 1st-degree murder indictment against
Scott Edward Nelson Tuesday morning, and a death notice was filed, according to
the State Attorney's office. Nelson is also charged with the kidnapping of
Fulford.
Nelson confessed to killing and kidnapping Fulford, according to court
documents. Fulford disappeared in September from a Winter Park home on Webster
Avenue, where she worked.
Investigators say Nelson entered the home with a cutting instrument and
kidnapped Fulford on Sept. 27. He later killed the woman.
Fulford's body was found 3 days later in a wooded area off Apopka-Vineland Road
in Orange County. The medical examiner determined the cause of death was stab
wounds and asphyxia.
Nelson confessed to the crimes in mid-November, said authorities.
The Berman family, who employed Fulford, released a statement Tuesday afternoon
in regards to the death penalty recommendation.
"While there is little comfort to be found in this terrible ordeal, we are
grateful that the grand jury has seen this matter for what it is - an
inexcusable and unexplainable act of violence," wrote the Bermans. "Our hope is
that this matter will continue to move forward through the justice system with
a proper conclusion and allow us to focus on Jennifer Fulford's memory rather
than on the man who took her life."
(source: mynews13.com)
********************
Prosecutors likely to decide by Jan. 25 on death penalty in Seminole Heights
murders
Prosecutors will likely know before the end of January whether they will seek
the death penalty for the man accused in the four Seminole Heights murders.
A judge set the next court appearance for Howell Emanuel Donaldson as Jan. 25
and asked prosecutors Tuesday morning if they would know their intentions
regarding capital punishment by then.
"Most likely," said Assistant State Attorney Scott Harmon.
Donaldson, 24, was not present for his arraignment on 4 1st-degree murder
charges. His attorneys waived his appearance and entered 4 pleas of not guilty.
But seated in a packed courtroom gallery were families of 2 people Donaldson is
accused of killing.
"If he did it, he's got to pay for it," said Gloria Felton, sister-in-law to
Ronald Felton. She said she wasn't sure about the death penalty.
"I think there's consequences for actions and that's all I'm going to say,"
said Yury Gutierrez, cousin to Monica Hoffa.
Florida court rules give prosecutors 45 days from the date of a defendant's
arraignment to decide whether to seek capital punishment. The decision rests
with State Attorney Andrew Warren.
Though he has taken a reserved approach to the death penalty in other cases,
Warren has left it as a possibility for Donaldson. The wishes of the victims'
families will be one factor he considers in making the decision, he said.
A grand jury indicted Donaldson last week on 4 counts of 1st-degree murder in
the deaths of Felton, Hoffa, Benjamin Mitchell and Anthony Naiboa. The 4 were
all shot in the southeast Seminole Heights neighborhood in Tampa throughout
October and November.
The murders terrorized the neighborhood and spurred the Tampa Police Department
into a massive search for a killer.
Donaldson was arrested Nov. 28 after he gave a food bag with a gun inside to a
fellow employee of an Ybor City McDonald's, according to an arrest report. The
employee notified police, who tested the weapon and determined it was the same
one used in all 4 homicides.
Donaldson remains jailed without bail.
(source: Tampa Bay Times)
******************
FR. PHIL EGITTO: Bearing witness makes a statement about Florida's death
penalty
Florida's death penalty system is broken and unjust.
I go to every Florida execution and I bring dozens of people with me. I've been
doing this for nearly 20 years because I believe our presence outside the
execution chamber is contributing to a changing tide in our state and in our
country. Death sentences are down, and support for the death penalty keeps
dropping. I believe if we don't go we are basically agreeing with the death
penalty. So we go because we want to tell the governor, lawmakers and all of
humanity that the state is killing "not in my name."
It all started for me in 1976 when Florida reinstated the death penalty. I was
a student in Gainesville at the University of Florida. I was outraged that the
state was going to go backward. Within a few years I began attending vigils
outside the Florida State Prison.
Today, I am a Catholic priest in Daytona Beach. I believe all life is sacred
and a gift. My faith says life is given by God and it is taken by God, and that
the death penalty goes against the basic dignity of human life. Pope Francis
has made it very clear: Catholics should be opposed to the death penalty. He
recently shared how doctrine continues to grow and adapt to the times in which
we live. Francis acknowledged the Catechism previously allowed for capital
punishment when society could not be kept safe, but that with modern prisons
the situation no longer exists.
I believe if we had thousands of people gathered together outside of the
Florida State Prison during future executions that the governor and legislators
would listen. The fact is, Florida's death penalty system is broken and unjust.
Studies show racial bias in how it is applied and statistics show Florida leads
the nation in death row exonerations. Money wasted on a death penalty that does
nothing to make us safer could be much better spent on victim advocacy, crime
prevention or even programs to reduce recidivism rates. Restorative justice
programs could be instituted.
I find it to be interesting, and of no coincidence, that most of the times when
we are holding vigils during executions there is a bizarre and unexplainable
weather event or strange phenomenon. One time there was torrential rain and
lightning, but above the exact location of the execution there were beams of
bright sun streaming through an opening in the dark sky. It was as if the
person who had just been executed was being transported to heaven.
Another time, the boyfriend of the victim of the man being executed was
standing with us. He did not support the execution and felt strongly that
killing begets more killing. As he was standing there waiting for the execution
to take place a bird flew out of the sky and landed on one of his hands. I had
never seen anything like it before or since. I remember another time we were
suddenly in a swarm of bees, like one would only see in a movie, yet none of us
were stung. I take these experiences as signals from the heavens that God is
watching and calling upon us to seek peace and reconciliation in instead of
seeking revenge.
When people are willing to voice that the death penalty is wrong and that it
isn???t solving anything, others start to recognize that the state of Florida
does not need to execute people. The next time an execution is scheduled I hope
you will join us and add your voice to the chorus, "not in my name."
(source: Egitto is pastor of Our Lady of Lourdes Catholic Church in Daytona
Beach----Letter to the Editor, The Daily Commercial)
LOUISIANA:
State announces plan to seek death penalty for Matthew Sonnier
Matthew Sonnier, the man accused of murdering 3 people with the help of his
sister back in October, was back in Rapides Parish court on Tuesday.
Sonnier was indicted in November for the murders of Jeremy Norris, Kendrick
Horn, and Latish White. Sonnier was back in court on Monday for a few things;
first was his arraignment.
Sonnier pleaded not guilty to 3 counts of 1st degree murder, obstruction of
justice, criminal conspiracy, and carrying of a firearm by a convicted felon.
Prosecutor Hugo Holland also announced that the State plans to seek the death
penalty. Also, there was a motion filed to determine Sonnier's source of funds.
Sonnier's next court appearance is set for February 1. He is being represented
by Thomas Alonzo, an attorney who handles capital cases out of Lafayette.
(source: KALB news)
OREGON:
State hasn't decided whether murder suspect will face the death penalty
The Douglas County District Attorney has not yet decided if it will pursue the
death penalty against a Myrtle Creek man arrested in May for the alleged murder
of another Myrtle Creek man, and kidnapping his girlfriend and her daughter.
Troy Russell Phelps, 34, was in a Douglas County Circuit Courtroom Monday
morning as attorneys presented their cases on a motion to dismiss some of the
kidnapping counts against him.
Phelps is accused of killing 26-year-old Brandon Michael on May 31 near Lawson
Bar between Riddle and Canyonville, and the state has yet to determine if it
will pursue the ultimate penalty in the aggravated murder case.
Police said Michael, who had recently moved to Douglas County from the La Pine
area before the shooting, died from multiple gunshot wounds from a small
caliber handgun.
On Monday, Circuit Court Judge Ann Marie Simmons refused to dismiss counts 1
and 2 of 2nd degree kidnapping, but a 3rd count was dismissed.
"She made it very clear that the state can't pursue multiple theories in either
of those 2 counts,"said defense attorney Mark Sabitt. "One which alleges both
the commission and the attempted commission of sex abuse. The state agreed that
their theory was that it was by forcible compulsion, and not that the alleged
victim was incapable of consenting," Sabitt said.
"1 count is going to go away but the other 2 are fine," said Steve Hoddle, the
prosecutor with the district attorney's office. They were simply looking at the
indictment and saying whether or not it sufficiently stated the charge against
Phelps."
Phelps was charged with 2 counts of 2nd degree kidnapping in addition to the
aggravated murder charge.
Police said he abducted Michael's girlfriend and her baby and took them to a
residence in Myrtle Creek, after Michael was killed.
Judge Simmons said she is the judge who signed the search warrant affidavits
that law enforcement submitted in their investigation, and, if either side
challenged the searches, she would assign that to another judge to make the
decision. But neither side has indicated that it would be an issue in their
case.
A date for the trial has not yet been set, but another status check is set for
Jan. 18 in Judge Simmons courtroom, and the prosecution could decide at that
time whether it will seek the death penalty.
(source: The News-Review)
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