Jan. 28
FLORIDA----new execution date
'It was the unthinkable': What happens to Eric Branch now an execution date is
set
Eric Branch sexually assaulted a victim in Panama City before fleeing to
Pensacola, where he would come across student Susan Morris walking to a parking
lot alone after class on Jan. 11, 1993.
Branch abducted Morris and went on to rape and beat her before ultimately
killing the student, leaving her naked body in a wooded area on campus. She was
21 years old and majoring in television production, with hopes of a exciting
future ahead.
Without a suspect in custody immediately, the UWF campus was shrouded in
concern, fear and mourning as police searched first for Morris and then her
killer. Morris' body would be found Jan. 13, and Branch would be apprehended in
Indiana soon after.
Morris' murder was the most violent and most tragic incident that had ever - or
would ever to this day - occur on the UWF campus, said current UWF President
Martha Saunders.
Saunders, a public relations faculty member at the time, was one of Morris'
professors. She still vividly remembers not only the gruesome discovery of the
missing girl's body that January day, but also the panic and unfathomable worry
that consumed the campus until Branch was found and arrested.
"It was the unthinkable, the 1 in a bazillion chance of anything happening,"
Saunders said. She remembers Morris was reported missing after she didn't
return home following the 1st lesson of night classes that semester.
Being the first night, the students are staggered in the times they're released
from class. They don't rush out in a group like they often do during a peak
school period, which allowed for Morris to be walking alone to a deserted
parking lot.
Branch himself was young and looked like a college student. Nobody would've
thought twice seeing him walking around campus, Saunders said.
"It was just the perfect storm that made him able to get her away from the herd
and take advantage of that," she said. "It was the unthinkable, and now we know
the unthinkable isn't the unthinkable."
Branch has been on death row since his conviction in 1994, going back and forth
to a series of courtrooms filing motions, requesting hearings and arguing
reasons he shouldn't be executed.
Having had multiple appeals rejected on both the Circuit and Supreme Court
levels, Branch is entitled to several more expedited court dates between now
and Feb. 22, when he is scheduled to be executed.
Things move fast, and a whole team of people has shifted its focus to meet what
is a steadfast deadline. Branch himself will now be under a status called Death
Watch, according to the Florida Department of Corrections. He moves from a
death row cell to a death watch cell, a 12-by-7 foot room. He gets 3 meals a
day, can shower every other day and is escorted everywhere he goes except when
in his cell, in the shower and the exercise yard. Guards will account for his
presence at least once an hour.
The defense, Capital Collateral Regional Counsel, has until 9 a.m. Monday to
file documents in Escambia County court bringing forward any legal matters they
believe are pursuant to Branch's case. Generally, those can't be any issues
that have already been denied on appeal, Molchan said, but the state then must
file its official response to each within 24 hours.
Later that same day Tuesday, there will be what's known as a Huff Hearing,
where the content of both the state and defense's legal arguments will come
before the judge to decide whether there should or should not be further court
dates set to go into detail about the argument against execution.
Should the judge decide there's merit to the defense's argument, those hearings
will start Thursday.
They're all on a tight deadline, because all local court hearings need to be
concluded by Feb. 5, when the case moves to the Florida Supreme Court for
review, as per state mandate in execution cases, Molchan said.
A representative from the CCRC said Friday the office is not available for
comment on Branch's case.
Days before Scott signed the death warrant last week, Morris' parents, David
and Marcia Morris, wrote a piece for UWF's student newspaper, The Voyager, to
mark the 25th anniversary of their daughter's death. It referred to Branch as
"a young parole violator" though does not mention him by name. The column
serves as both a thank you to faculty and student groups who honor Morris every
year, and as a reminder for vigilance to current students.
"Unfortunately, recent events worldwide continue to remind us that there are,
and will always be, evil people who seem to enjoy killing others," the column
reads. "We urge the faculty and students to remember to be alert to your
surroundings when on campus, especially at night."
The campus launched a situational awareness campaign shortly after Morris' body
was found, according to Saunders, called the "Just Two It" campaign.
It urged students never to walk around campus alone, and especially at night.
Most laughed off the catchy obvious derivation of Nike's "Just Do It" campaign
that was popular at the time, but when it came down to it, the students started
walking each other to their vehicles, Saunders said.
"Nothing like that had ever happened, nothing like that has ever happened again
and I don't think we should forget," Saunders said. "It's easy to become
complacent, we're human and when things are nice and quiet and calm you don't
think there could be danger... . it was a terrible thing none of us will ever
get over, but don't ever forget, either."
(source: Pensacola News Journal)
ALABAMA:
Reconsidering the death penalty
In April of 1985, Mobile police corporal Julius Schulte was on duty performing
protection detail for a young woman while her former boyfriend was to be moving
out of the home they shared. The former boyfriend, 34-year-old Vernon Madison,
pretended to leave the house, then crept up on the officer's vehicle and shot
Schulte twice in the head, then proceeded to shoot his ex-girlfriend.
Madison was convicted of murder and sentenced to death.
His execution was to have been carried out on Thursday, more than 32 years
after he was first sentenced to the death chamber. But a half-hour before he
was to receive the lethal injection, the U.S. Supreme Court gave Madison a
temporary reprieve so the case could be revisited.
That should give Alabama lawmakers pause; a condemned man languished so long on
Alabama's death row that his inability to remember his crime may have rendered
him ineligible to be executed.
There are multiple arguments to be made here.
Death penalty proponents might say that the time between sentencing and
execution is far too long, that the appeals process should be expedited so that
justice is not delayed for victims and their families.
Opponents might argue that when the end is execution, every effort must be made
to ensure that no innocent person goes to a death chamber, that every legal
avenue must be afforded to the condemned, and that the sentence must be carried
out in a merciful way, if it must be carried out. Of course, their underlying
position is that the death penalty is inhumane and should be abolished.
There's little to no doubt that Madison killed Schulte. He has twice gotten new
trials, and convicted 3 times. He has been sentenced to death 3 times, the last
of which was a judicial override of a jury's recommendation for life
imprisonment. Last year, Gov. Kay Ivey signed a law ending the lengthy practice
allowing judges to override a jury recommendation in death penalty cases.
Madison has lived almost 1/2 his life on death row, and is now a
dementia-ridden, incontinent man whose series of strokes have left him with
impaired speech and no recollection of committing the crime that has had him
awaiting the death chamber for 1/3 of a century.
Prosecutors are ready to carry out the sentence. Human rights advocates find
that unconscionable. The U.S. Supreme Court believes we should take time to
reconsider the case.
Perhaps our state officials should use that time to reconsider every aspect of
the death penalty process - including the process itself.
(source: Dothan Eagle)
INDIANA:
'Unprepared' defense attorney removed from death penalty case in Ft. Wayne
The attorney for a man facing the death penalty was removed from the case after
a judge said he was unprepared and inexperienced.
Nikos Nakos, the defense attorney in the state of Indiana's murder case against
Marcus Dansby, was removed as counsel by Allen Superior Court Judge Fran Gull
Friday morning during a hearing.
Dansby faces 4 counts of murder related to the Sept. 11, 2016, deaths of
37-year-old Consuela Arrington; 18-year-old Traeven Harris; 18-year-old
Dajahiona Arrington and her full-term baby named A.J., and another for
attempted murder related in the shooting and stabbing of 14-year-old Trinity
Hairston, all of Fort Wayne.
Since those charges were filed, though, Gull said there have been no
depositions taken and no mitigation investigation has taken place, including
acquiring a mitigation expert (though Gull signed the appointment for a
mitigation investigator in June 2017).
What's more, Gull argued that Nakos did not meet the expectations of a defense
attorney in a capital case as laid out by the American Bar Association. Gull
said Nakos has 22 open felony cases and lacks special training to represent a
client in a death penalty case. The judge also said Nakos has been generally
unprepared and has treated the case like any other case.
Prosecutors said they, too, have been concerned with the issues brought up by
Gull.
Gull enforced Dansby's 6th amendment right of high quality representation and
removed Nakos. The public defenders office will appoint Bob Gevers and Michelle
Krause to represent Dansby.
Nakos, who has twice filed motions to have Gull recuse herself from the case
for violating the code of judicial conduct, said he plans to appeal the ruling.
Dansby is next scheduled to appear in court Feb. 2. He's not expected to stand
trial until 2019.
The charges against Dansby stem from an incident that unfolded around 4 a.m.
that Sept. 11 morning inside a home at 3006 Holton Ave. There, police arrive to
find the victims bodies stabbed and shot, and Dansby covered in blood, leaning
over the couch, crying and asking for help, according to an affidavit. On him,
police found a large blood-soaked knife with a broken handle, the affidavit
said.
Police said that Dansby and Dajahiona Arrington had been in a relationship, but
the pair had separated after the woman became pregnant with another man's
child. Nakos had said Allen County Prosecutors will argue that Dansby killed
the family because the baby wasn't his but a DNA test confirmed with
near-certainty that Dansby was the father of the unborn child. Nakos said
previously that it was illogical Dansby would have killed the family armed with
the knowledge that he was the father of the child.
The Allen County Prosecutor is seeking the death penalty against Dansby.
(source: WISH TV news)
IOWA:
Capital punishment doesn't make sense for Iowa
For 19 years, I directed the masters in public policy program at University of
Northern Iowa. Our goal was to give students the skills to analyze complex
public policy issues. However, there are some issues that don't require
advanced analytical skills to evaluate - just a good dose of common sense. One
of these is the death penalty.
First, decades of research has shown the death penalty is not an effective
deterrent to murder. People who commit murder usually do so in the (often
mistaken) belief they won't get caught. Therefore, the difference between life
behind bars and the death penalty does not enter into their thinking about
whether or not to commit the crime. Thus, it is not surprising U.S. Department
of Justice data show states with the death penalty actually have higher murder
rates than states without it, and there was no spike in murders in states that
recently abolished it.
Second, while most people who get the sentence are probably guilty, the rate of
error is unacceptably high, as indicated by over 160 exonerations in the last
20 years or so. Low income people, particularly those of color, are often
railroaded through the system without adequate legal representation. The death
penalty allows the criminal justice system to bury its mistakes. To those who
think such biases couldn't occur in Iowa, I invite them to look at the strong
racial and class biases that already exist in our system.
Third, the death penalty is incredibly expensive. Estimates by the American Bar
Association show states save millions of dollars in legal and incarceration
costs by not having the death penalty in place. Part of the high cost is due to
the lengthy appeals process for those on death row, but given the high error
rate with such appeals in place, one can only imagine what it might be without
them.
Finally, since the death penalty is not a deterrent, the only argument left in
its favor is retribution. Do those conservatives who believe in limited
government really want to give government the power of life and death, not for
the purpose of enhancing public safety but simply for revenge? To those who
say, "but what about the victims?" I would point out victims' families have
been leaders of anti-death penalty movements in many states.
In sum, if the death penalty is ineffective, expensive and inherently unfair in
its application, then why are we even considering it for Iowa?
(source: Guest Column; Al Hays is UNI emeritus professor of political science
and public policy and co-chair of the Iowa Justice Action Network. The opinions
expressed in this article are those of the author, and do not reflect those of
the University of Northern Iowa----The Courier)
MISSOURI----female faces death penalty
Pamela Hupp appears in court Friday as lawyers prepare for September trial
ed in a bizarre murder plot in St. Charles County appeared in court Friday as
attorneys prepare for her day in court.
Pamela Hupp is accused in the August 2016 death of Louis Gumpenberger, inside
her O'Fallon home. Prosecutors say it was all a plot to frame someone in a
separate murder case.
Hupp's trial is set to start September 11 and for now, is on track for that
date.
Friday, the judge and attorneys made preparations for what they think will be a
3-week long trial.
To avoid a tainted jury pool, all sides have already agreed that the jurors
will be picked in Clay County and then sequestered in hotel rooms for the
trial, which will take place in St. Charles County.
Hupp appeared in an orange jumpsuit, with her wrists and ankles shackled.
She faces the death penalty if she is convicted.
(source: KMOV news)
******************
Wood death penalty ruling is unconstitutional
Missouri law allowing Judge Mountjoy to impose the death penalty on Craig Wood
without a unanimous jury sentence of death violates the U.S. Constitution. The
Sixth Amendment provides that in all criminal trials, the accused has the right
to trial by an impartial jury.
This law has been interpreted to mean that the jury of the accused's peers is
responsible for determining the facts upon which to decide not only the
defendant's guilt or innocence, but on the punishment to be imposed as well.
Missouri Rev. Statutes 565.030.4 provides that if the defendant is found guilty
of murder in the 1st degree, the trial moves to its penalty phase, and the jury
"shall assess and declare the punishment at life imprisonment without
eligibility for probation, parole or release ... [if it] concludes that there
is evidence in mitigation of punishment ... which is sufficient to outweigh the
evidence in aggravation of punishment; or ... decides under all of the
circumstances not to assess and declare the punishment at death..."
In the penalty phase of Craig Wood's case, the jury found that aggravating
factors predominated, but some of the jurors felt that under all of the
circumstances, the punishment of death should not be imposed.
Under Missouri law, when the prosecution seeks the death penalty, the jury's
sentence of death must be unanimous. In the case of a deadlock, the law
provides for the presiding judge to decide the matter. (MO Rev. Statutes
565.030.4(4)) This provision of Missouri???s sentencing process is
constitutionally flawed.
The U.S Supreme Court has on numerous occasions held that for 1st degree murder
cases, all facts that are relied on in deciding upon the defendant's punishment
must be determined by a jury. (See, e.g., Apprendi v. New Jersey, 530 U.S. 466
(2000); Ring v. Arizona, 536 U.S. 584 (2002); and Hurst v. Florida, 136 S. Ct.
616 (2016)).
Missouri law allowing a judge to impose the death sentence on Mr. Wood when a
jury of his peers could not agree that "under all the circumstances" the
appropriate sentence is death is contrary to the purpose of requiring a jury
trial to begin with - that the jury, not the judge, represents the "community's
moral sensibility" in determining whether a person lives or dies. See Ring, 536
U.S. at 615-16 (Breyer, J., concurring).
Mr. Wood's sentence is therefore unconstitutional and should be rescinded.
(source: news-leader.com)
COLORADO:
Man accused of shooting Adams County deputy makes 1st court appearance
The man accused of gunning down an Adams County deputy made his 1st court
appearance Friday afternoon.
Dreion Martise Dearing, 22, sat silently in the heavily-secured Adams County
courtroom as a judge advised him of his rights. Some of his family members were
present in the courtroom.
No bond was set during the arraignment.
"There is never a rush to justice. Everyone has expectations. They prepare for
a sprint to justice. But as these attorneys know, it's never a sprint. It's a
marathon," Chief Judge Patrick Murphy told the courtroom.
The suspect has yet to be formally charged for the shooting death of Adams
County Deputy Heath Gumm, 31. He faces investigation on 2 counts of 1st-degree
murder of a peace officer, 1 count of 1st-degree murder after deliberation, and
2nd-degree burglary of a dwelling.
Dearing was taken into custody shortly after the shooting in the Thornton
neighborhood Wednesday night. Gumm and other deputies were responding to an
assault in progress near 88th and Dawson when the shooting occurred.
Judge Murphy told the defendant during Friday's hearing that if convicted on
the 1st-degree murder charge he could face life in prison or the death penalty.
After the hearing, District Attorney Dave Young said he still wasn't sure if he
would seek the death penalty in this case.
Dearing had a public defender appointed at the hearing.
"You have excellent attorneys. They do a very professional job here, a very
difficult job. You should follow their advice and listen to them," Judge Murphy
told Dearing.
Dearing will be advised of the formal charges against him at a hearing
scheduled for 10 a.m. next Wednesday.
The affidavit in the case remains sealed.
"The court is concerned the release of information, at this time, may
jeopardize an ongoing criminal investigation. The court will unseal the
affidavit when it deems appropriate," Judge Murphy said.
Sheriff McIntosh thanked the community for their support at a Friday afternoon
news conference and reiterated what his office had said earlier Friday. He said
there still were not funeral plans that had been made, and said his office
would not be speaking further about the case over the weekend because three
other retired deputies had upcoming funerals in the next few days.
The Gumm family released the following statement shortly after Friday's
briefing:
Our family would like to express our sincere gratitude for the incredible
support and empathy expressed during this difficult time. We have truly been
amazed by the generous nature of the community. Our hearts are warmed by the
display of compassion from complete strangers who stood, and continue stand
alongside our family. As we passed behind the tinted windows of a brightly lit
motorcade, your heartfelt wishes for our husband, son and brother has given his
life a beautiful purpose.
We have no words that appropriately say thank you for the donations sent and
offers to help to our extended law enforcement family as they continue to watch
over our family and community.
We would also like to express our gratitude for all law enforcement officers
who served by Heath's side, and all those who now work to honor his life and
service. This family support means more to us than we will ever be able to
effectively describe. Please stay safe as you continue to watch over those you
made a commitment to serve. You are all deeply appreciated. Finally, we
respectfully ask for your continued assistance respecting our privacy as we
move through this time of healing and much needed rest.
(source: thedenverchannel.com)
WASHINGTON:
Exonerated man urges end to death penalty in Bremerton speech
Kirk Bloodsworth, the 1st person to be exonerated from a death sentence by DNA
testing in the United States, spoke to an audience at the Emmanuel Apolistic
Church in Bremerton on Saturday about his experiences being imprisoned as an
innocent man.
In 1984, Bloodsworth was arrested for the rape and murder of 9-year-old Dawn
Hamilton in Baltimore County, Maryland. He was sentenced to death in 1985.
Bloodsworth spent a significant portion of his time incarcerated reading and
studying, and detailed to the audience the breakthrough in his quest for
innocence, which came while reading "The Blooding" by Joseph Wambaugh, a
chronicle of the 1st use of DNA testing in a criminal case to convict a serial
killer in England.
"DNA - deoxyribonucleic acid. Took me almost 10 years to learn how to pronounce
that," Bloodsworth said. "I didn't know at the time that those 3 letters were
my get-out-of-jail and freedom card."
The event was hosted by Witness to Innocence, a national organization comprised
and led by exonerated death row inmates and their family members.
"I think innocence is one of the most compelling reasons to abolish the death
penalty, and I think even people who theoretically believe in the death penalty
don't think we should kill innocent people," said Stefanie Anderson, the
director of communications of Witness to Innocence and the board president of
the Washington Coalition to Abolish the Death Penalty.
Bloodsworth was in Olympia on Thursday and Friday lobbying for the repeal of
the death penalty. On Thursday, Senate Bill 6052, which proposes to replace
capital punishment with life imprisonment without parole, advanced out of the
Senate committee on a 4-3 party-line vote.
Antoinette DeWalt of Bremerton attended the Saturday talk as an ardent
supporter of abolishing the death penalty. But she said Bloodsworth's speech
and his fight for his innocence was inspiring.
Steve Belknap, who drove from Olympia to hear Bloodsworth speech, was similarly
impressed.
"It just makes it so shockingly apparent that this system fails so many," he
said. "I think that's why it's so important to share this message with so many
people for the sake of justice."
Repealing the death penalty has been a polarizing conversation for state
legislators in recent years. Past bills on the issue have been stalled.
The chairmen of the of the Law and Justice Committee, state Sen. Jamie
Pedersen, D-Seattle, along with 3 others voted yes on Thursday to advance the
bill. 3 Republicans, including Sen. Jan Angel, R-Port Orchard, voted no.
Kitsap County Sheriff Gary Simpson was one of the many who testified before the
committee in opposition to the bill. Simpson spoke about his personal
experience as a family member of a murder victim. His stepdaughter, Georgia
Gunzer, was murdered in her Tacoma home in 2011. Alphonso Albert Bell is
serving a 38-year sentence for Gunzer's death.
He cited other examples of murder cases in Kitsap County where he thought the
death penalty may have deterred the crimes.
"I hope that my examples give you some insights into what the families and the
victims have to go through as survivors," Simpson said in his testimony.
"Without the death penalty, the plea for life without the possibility of parole
is almost impossible. It's not all about economics. It is about public safety,
it is about deterrent and it is about fair justice."
A study by Seattle University in 2015 determined that death penalty cases cost
on average $1 million more to prosecute because of the lengthy appeal process.
Critics of the death penalty, such as King County prosecutor Dan Satterberg,
argue that it's not only costly, but ineffective as a deterrent.
"It's not about what the killers deserve; it's about what we deserve,"
Satterberg said during his testimony on Jan. 22. "If you look at it carefully
and take away the politics and the emotion, by any measure this doesn't work.
Our criminal justice system would be stronger without the death penalty."
Washington Gov. Jay Inslee instituted a moratorium on the death penalty across
the state in 2014.
32 people have been sentenced to death since Washington state reinstated the
death penalty in 1981. But only 5 have been executed.
Since 1973, 161 death row inmates have been exonerated nationwide.
As Senate Bill 6052 makes its way through the Legislature, Bloodsworth urged
those in the audience to voice their opinions to district representatives.
"I know it's a heavy issue, but we've got to talk about the heavy stuff and
tell them to pass the bill so it doesn't happen to their neighbor," he said.
(source: Kitsap Sun)
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