[Deathpenalty] death penalty news----MD., N.C., S.C., GA.
Feb. 27 MARYLAND: Death penalty repeal vote may not happen until next week Gov. Martin O'Malley's bill to repeal the death penalty could wait until next week for a vote by the full Senate. Senate President Thomas V. Mike Miller Jr., D-Calvert, said Senate Bill 276 won't be discussed by the chamber until Thursday afternoon, at the earliest. With debate continuing on O'Malley's gun-control proposal into Thursday morning, Miller said there most likely wouldn't be time for senators to propose amendments to the bill until Friday. The Senate had originally scheduled the start of debate on the death penalty repeal bill for Wednesday. The Senate Judicial Proceedings Committee last week voted 6-5 to approve the repeal bill, which would make Maryland the 18th state to outlaw capital punishment. 24 votes are needed to pass a bill in the Senate The bill has at least 25 supporters. The bill has 22 sponsors. Last week Sen. Bobby Zirkin, D-Baltimore County, came out in favor of the bill. On Monday, Anne Arundel County Sens. John Astle, D-Annapolis, and Ed Reilly, R-Crofton, confirmed they would vote for the measure as well. (source: Capital Gazette) NORTH CAROLINA: Life on death row: 'Am I going to be next?' More than 1,000 convicted killers have been sent to North Carolina's death row since 1910, when the state began executions. About 150 death row inmates currently sit behind the heavily guarded walls of Central Prison in Raleigh, at 1300 Western Blvd. North Carolina is a death penalty state, yet legal battles have put executions on hold for more than 6 years. Some believe a more conservative legislature and governor will push to see death sentences carried out again. WRAL News was given a chance to look behind the walls of Unit III at Central Prison and see a day in the life on death row. North Carolina's death row inmates live in 11x7-foot cells and have access to a community room with stainless steel tables for playing chess, writing, watching a small TV or listening to music on their see-through audio players. Outside each death row pod, prison guards sit behind dark-tinted glass, monitoring the inmates. 2 days a week, a few death row inmates at a time - all dressed in red jumpsuits - get to spend 1 hour in an exercise yard, where they can play basketball, walk or jog. Some work in the canteen or as a janitor, but no one can make more than a few cents a day. They can also receive one visit a week with a maximum of two visitors. In the visiting booths, visitors can see and talk with inmates, but physical contact is not possible. While they share many of the same privileges regular inmates have, death row inmates have no contact with the general prison population. "They have access to the dining room. They have access to books. They have access to writing. They walk to the dining hall - the same things, except they're segregated. It's their own little community," said Central Prison warden Kenneth Lassiter, who has worked for the state Department of Public Safety for 24 years. Lassiter works closely with the death row inmates and said he believes in fair treatment. "They're human. Our constitution tells us we must and will treat them as human," he said. "The minute that we let them rot, they're going to become more violent." Chaplain Randall Speer also works with the condemned and shares the warden's sentiment. "We need to always remember, they're people, they're human beings, they're human beings first," he said. One death row inmate, whom WRAL News was not allowed to name or show his face for legal reasons, said he is treated well. "Me personally, I would say above and beyond what we probably deserve," he said. Victim's daughter witnesses execution: 'I was glad that he died' Polls consistently show a majority of North Carolinians want the death penalty to be carried out. Teresa Murray is one of them. She watched as 1 of her father's killers, Ernest Basden, was executed in December 2002. "I was glad that he died," Murray said. "When I walked out of there, I felt a burden had been lifted from my shoulders. I really did." Her father, Billy White, was killed in a murder-for-hire plot 21 years ago. 3 people were convicted, including White's wife, but only Basden was sentenced to death. Murray said she plans to come to Raleigh to testify in parole hearings against the other 2. "I do not think they deserve to walk as a free person on this earth again," she said. Guilt is something never far from the minds of some who live on death row. "Every time I close my eyes, I see those victims. I said at my trial, 'Sorry is not enough,'" the death row inmate said. "The hardest part here, if you have a conscience, is to forgive yourself." High on drugs and looking for money to buy more, he was convicted of killing 2 people during a robbery 18 years ago. 22 executions later, he knows his time will be up one day. "I wash
[Deathpenalty] death penalty news----worldwide----GLOBAL, PAKIS., INDIA, YEMEN, CHINA
Feb. 27 GLOBAL: UN Head Calls For Worldwide Abolition Of Death Penalty; Ban Ki-moon said that, "the sentiment towards abolition finds echoes in every region and across legal systems, traditions, customs and religious backgrounds." Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon has repeated his call for the global abolition of capital punishment at a meeting of activists gathered this week in Geneva. In a statement read to a meeting of the International Commission Against the Death Penalty (ICDP), Ban described the death penalty as, "too absolute, too irreversible, for one human being to inflict on another, even when backed by legal process." The United Nations has held four General Assembly votes on a non-binding death penalty moratorium since 2007. Each vote has seen a gradual increase in the number of countries in favor of ending capital punishment. Ban Ki-moon said such progress "echoes in every region and across legal systems, traditions, customs and religious backgrounds." The latest proposed moratorium received a General Assembly vote in December 2012, with 111 countries backing the moratorium and 41 opposed. Among the notable parties voting against the motion were the United States, China, Japan, and India. 41 countries, including the United States, voted against the December 2012 U.N. resolution calling for a moratorium on the use of the death penalty. In Geneva, ICDP President Federico Mayo issued a strong condemnation of the countries still supportive of the death penalty, saying, "the isolation of the world's last executing nations is growing as more countries conclude that capital punishment is cruel, endorses violence and risks execution of the innocent, while failing to deter violent crime." While many American states have moved to eliminate the death penalty in recent decades - and Oregon and Colorado appear poised to begin debate on outlawing the practice this year - President Obama's support for the policy has not wavered. In his 2006 memoir, The Audacity of Hope, Obama provided a brief outline of his stance on the issue: "While the evidence tells me that the death penalty does little to deter crime, I believe there are some crimes - mass murder, the rape and murder of a child - so heinous, so beyond the pale, that the community is justified in expressing the full measure of its outrage by meting out the ultimate punishment." 100 nations have enacted laws banning the death penalty, with 4 - Latvia, Benin, Mongolia, and Madgascar - doing so in 2012 alone. Since 2000, 31 nations have abolished the death penalty. As of February 6, 2013, 27 prisoners are slated for execution in the United States, with the vast majority located in Ohio (13) and Texas (12). (source: Talk Radio News Service) PAKISTAN: 7,046 death row inmates awaiting execution, SC told -- Appeals of 5,378 pending in provincial high courts, 1,031 in apex court The Supreme Court was informed on Wednesday that 7,046 inmates on death row are awaiting execution across the country. The Interior Ministry, through the attorney general of Pakistan's office, on Wednesday submitted complete details of the prisoners on death row in different prisons of the country. Petitioner Barrister Zafarullah Khan of the Watan Party has drawn the Supreme Court's attention to the ordeal faced by such inmates. According to the details provided by the ministry, 5,378 appeals against the death sentence are pending in the provincial high courts and 1,031 in the Supreme Court. The province-wise breakdown of death row prisoners is: Punjab, 4,981; Sindh, 266; Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, 102; and Balochistan, 29. Meanwhile, 532 mercy applications are pending before the president. It has also been learnt that the president has stopped the implementation of 78 capital punishment sentences, whereas the GHQ has pending with it appeals of 6 military personnel, while the Federal Shariat Court has 21 appeals. It is noteworthy that the PPP government, which had announced a moratorium on executions in November 2008, carried out its first execution last year when Muhammed Hussain, a soldier who was convicted and sentenced to death in 2009 for murdering 1 of his colleagues, was hanged in November 2012. This is not the 1st time that the ordeal of inmates on death row has been highlighted before the Supreme Court. In 2008, the court had taken up a suo motu notice on a news report that 7,000 inmates on death row were waiting for their execution. The court had asked the government if it was serious about bringing out any legislation to commute death sentences into life term. On June 21, 2008, former prime minister Yousaf Raza Gilani had announced that his government would recommend to the president to commute death sentence of thousands of prisoners into life imprisonment as part of a birthday tribute to slain PPP leader Benazir Bhutto. According to reports, 62 countries in the world still maintain d
[Deathpenalty] death penalty news----MD., GA., OHIO, ARIZ.
Feb. 27 MARYLAND: Seek Justice, Not Vengeance Weeks ago, when I heard Governor Martin O'Malley announce his support for repealing the death penalty, his words brought me back to a murder that rocked my own central Baltimore neighborhood not long after my wife and I moved there 20 years ago. O'Malley, the former Baltimore mayor, said in support of abolishing capital punishment: "The way forward is always found through greater respect for human dignity." His words made me recall the reaction of our neighborhood to the murder of an employee of a local engineering firm two blocks from our Charles Village row-house neighborhood. Many of us were shocked, afraid, even angry. We wanted justice, certainly. But more importantly, we wanted to take a positive approach to make our neighborhood safer, and not focus on vengeance. Business owners and residents came together to help make our community a safer and more desirable place to live, work, and play. Our approach -- the creation in 1994 of a taxpayer-supported community-benefits district focused block by block on safety, greening, and stabilization -- has paid dividends, significantly reducing crime and attracting new residents and businesses. 20 years later, Baltimore still has too many murders -- one is too many -- but there is less fear. Charles Villagers know they are part of a diverse, special community that cares and is mobilized. In pursuit of dignity and human rights for all, Amnesty International has worked for decades to abolish the death penalty here in the United States and around the world (2/3 of countries are now without capital punishment). Our 3 million members and supporters worldwide have found that wherever capital punishment is practiced, including here in the United States, respect for human rights and human dignity only deteriorates. The death penalty -- the ultimate denial of human rights -- is not just dehumanizing to the prisoner being executed; it dehumanizes those who actually administer lethal injections, turning wardens, correctional officers, and medical professionals from society's protectors and healers into killers. Capital punishment dehumanizes us all; the state carries out executions in the name of the people -- all of us -- so in a broad sense, each execution chips away at the integrity and dignity of our country as a whole. Research shows the death penalty does not prevent crime. Rather, capital punishment perpetuates a spiral of violence in which we are all implicated, and it squanders resources that could be used to take constructive and uplifting measures that we know actually improve public safety and strengthen communities. The death penalty repeal bill, which is coming up for final approval in Maryland, originally allocated some of the funds saved from eliminating the death penalty to provide compensation, grief counseling and other needs for victims' families. Surely that is a better way forward than maintaining a dysfunctional system that rarely provides the closure or solace that victims' families deserve. Responding to violence with calls for more violence is not the answer, on either a practical or a moral level. It is important for lawmakers, in addition to repealing capital punishment, to also provide this funding for victims' families. Marylanders are now on course to eliminate the debasing practice of capital punishment. We have an opportunity to support victims' families and focus on public safety solutions that are proven to work. It will be a proud day and a major step forward for human rights when Maryland joins 17 states and 140 countries around the world in putting justice and dignity ahead of vengeance. (source: Frank Jannuzi, Deputy Executive Director, Amnesty International USA; Huffingtno Post) GEORGIA: Supreme Court upholds Georgia convict's stay of execution The U.S. Supreme Court on Thursday upheld a 30-day stay of execution for condemned Georgia murderer Warren Lee Hill, whose attorneys say he's mentally disabled. Georgia had asked the justices to lift the stay, which was granted minutes before Hill had been scheduled to die by lethal injection Tuesday night. A federal appeals court in Atlanta halted the execution to give lawyers a month for written arguments on whether Hill should be spared under the federal ban on executions of the mentally disabled. Georgia law requires inmates to prove mental retardation "beyond a reasonable doubt" to avoid the death penalty - the highest standard of any state. State prosecutors say Hill has repeatedly failed to meet that standard in years of appeals. But 3 doctors who examined Hill for the state have reversed their conclusions and now say he should be spared, giving fresh ammunition to Hill's attorneys. That reversal "establishes consensus among every doctor who has evaluated Mr. Hill that he is mentally retarded," his lawyer, Brian Kammer, said Thursday.
[Deathpenalty] death penalty news----worldwide
Feb. 27 RUSSIA: Head of Russia's MIA Sees Nothing Wrong in Death Penalty According to the minister, in certain cases the death penalty is a natural reaction of the public to a fait accompli. Kolokoltsev has noted that it is his position as a citizen, and not as a minister. Kolokoltsev has expressed his opinion regarding the murders of 2 schoolgirls (in Naberezhnye Chelny and in Shelekhov, Irkutsk region). In the developed countries of the modern world the death penalty is a means to deprive a person of life as a punishment in contrast to imprisonment which is regarded as a method of correctional rehabilitation. Long-lasting trial proceedings at different levels always precede death sentence imposition; a defendant is given an opportunity to lodge appeals. The death penalty can be executed only by an authorized state representative; otherwise such an act is regarded as homicide and is punished by law. Death penalty opponents consider that judicial errors inevitably lead to executions of those not guilty. According to the statistics, the abolition or the introduction of the death penalty as such do not change the number of grave crimes in the country. An execution does not punish a criminal; it only satisfies the public that demands a sacrifice. After the adoption of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights in 1948 it has become generally accepted that everyone has the right to life and no one shall be tortured or suffer cruel, inhuman, degrading or humiliating treatment or punishment. As the death penalty is universally defined as cruel and inhuman punishment, there has arisen a world tendency to ban it. The abolition of the death penalty has been recommended by the Resolutions of the UN General Assembly of December 8, 1977 and December 15, 1980, and also by the Second Optional Protocol to the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights adopted by the UN General Assembly on December 15, 1989. By the middle of 2007 89 countries had abolished the death penalty for all crimes. 10 more countries have preserved it only for some of the gravest crimes committed during wartime. 30 more countries have abolished the death penalty in practice, i.e. they have not performed executions for the last 10 years. Only 68 countries preserve and continue to apply the death penalty. China ranks 1st in the number of people executed; in this country criminals are executed for bribery, trading in prostitution, money counterfeiting, tax evasion, assaulting foreigners and other similar offences. Iran with its Sharia Law ranks 2nd. (source: rubabr.com) PAKISTAN: In conservative Pakistan, everybody must get stonedThe garbage man doubles as a dealer, and you can light up in a prominent Sufi shrine - never mind the death penalty. The imposing 1,400-year-old Abdullah Shah Gazi Mausoleum occupies a prominent spot, built on a hilltop where this bustling city of 21 million meets the Arabian Sea. On Thursday nights, bearded men and "niqab"-wearing women - always segregated - throng the shrine. After waiting in long lines, they drape garlands and scatter flower pedals over the tomb of the city's patron saint - laid to rest amid the intricate blue and white tilework, at the top of a long staircase. Abdullah Shah Gazi, the Sufi mystic interred here, is a direct descendent of the Prophet Muhammad, and is known for his healing powers. His shrine attracts pilgrims from afar, as well as locals who worship regularly. Religious leaders stand beside the marble sarcophagus, reciting prayers from the Quran. Street musicians jam on tablas and accordions; eyes closed, lips pursed, they sway to the beat as singers chant the fervent, soulful hymns of Sufi Islam. Amid this deeply religious scene, the bittersweet scent of hash smoke wafts through the air. In the shrine's recesses, men in flowing "shalwar khameez" robes share joints and pipes, taking long drags and passing them to strangers. Everyone is welcome in this communal smoke-fest. They exhale long grey clouds that dissipate into the humid air, while tapping feet and fingers to the music. Devotees converge here to feel closer to God - many with the aid of hash. It's a Karachi ritual that dates back to Abdullah Shah Gazi's death in 773. And it persists in contemporary culture. In the 1970s, Ahmed Parvez, one of the country's most revered artists, was a frequent visitor, a lit blunt in hand. The shrine, a cornerstone of Pakistan's ancient Sufi tradition, is no libertine outpost. Women are discouraged from entering without a male escort. Most wear "burqas," with only their eyes visible. Men and women aren't permitted to touch in public. At the first sign of misconduct, policemen wave their wooden batons menacingly. Even by the standards of the Muslim world, Pakistan is deeply conservative. Alcohol is forbidden. Women generally wear the veil outside of the house. Television networks censor
[Deathpenalty] death penalty news----worldwide
Feb. 27 MALAYSIA: 7 Somali pirates plead not guilty at High Court 7 Somali pirates, who had reportedly opened fire at the Malaysian navy in an attempt to hijack a tanker in international waters more than a year ago, pleaded not guilty at the High Court today to a charge of firing at commandos with the intention of causing death or harm in an attempted robbery. The charge, under Section 3 of the Firearms (Increased Penalty) Act 1971, carries the death penalty, if found guilty. The accused - Ahmed Othman Jamal, 26, Abdil Eid Hasan, 21, and 5 juveniles - were said to have committed the offence on board the Bunga Laurel vessel, 250 nautical miles from Oman territorial waters, on Jan 20, 2011. When they were first brought to court in February 2011, weeks after the alleged incident, they were charged under Section 3 of the Firearms (Increased Penalty) Act 1971. In October last year, however, the prosecution offered the seven an alternative charge of discharging their firearms on Royal Malaysian Navy commandos to prevent lawful detention. The penalty for this offence, under Section 32(1)(a) Arms Act 1960, was life imprisonment, or for a term not exceeding 14 years, upon conviction. The 7 had pleaded guilty to the charge before High Court judge Kamardin Hashim. Kamardin, however, eventually rejected the guilty plea, after the defence team had brought up the discrepancy in the facts of the case over the exact location the offence was alleged to have taken place. Kamardin then ordered the case to be heard before another judge. Yesterday, deputy public prosecutor Mohamad Abazafree Mohd Abas informed High Court judge Datuk Mohamad Azman Husin that they were withdrawing the offer of the alternative charge, and tendered an amended charge similar to the original one, with a slight adjustment to the coordinates on the location of the offence. At this juncture, counsel Chan Yen Hui, for one of the accused, said the prosecution could not withdraw the alternative charge as the plea had already been recorded on that charge before judge Kamardin. However, lawyer A.Saha Deva, representing another juvenile, told the court that the guilty plea to the alternative charge was rejected by Kamardin and added that the prosecutor had the power to withdraw the alternative charge. Chan then informed the court that she would bring up this issue in submissions at the end of the prosecution's case. Azman then set Sept 2 to 13 for hearing. It was reported earlier that that the 7 had allegedly boarded the MT Bunga Laurel armed with guns with the intention to hijack the tanker. On board were 23 Filipino crew members. The siege of the tanker was brought to an end when commandos from Malaysian Navy auxiliary ship stormed the vessel where a shoot-out between the hostage takers and the commandos occurred. The commandos overpowered the pirates and brought them here to face trial. (source: New Straits Times) TAIWAN: Taiwan to Continue Enforcing Death Penalty Taiwan says it will continue to enforce the death penalty, despite international appeals to end capital punishment on the island. Taiwan has executed 15 people since 2010, when it ended a 5-year informal moratorium on the death penalty. 6 people were put to death in the latest round of executions in December 2012. The firing-squad executions have generated outcries from European Union members and human rights groups. Last week, Amnesty International gave Taiwan a petition calling for a suspension of the death penalty with more than 100,000 signatures from French citizens. Taiwan Deputy Justice Minister Chen Shou-huang tells VOA only murderers who kill more than 1 person or use brutality face the death penalty. He says the government is seeking understanding from its critics. He says Taiwan has reached out to diplomats in European Union countries and diplomatic missions throughout the world to explain, in specific terms, the reasons why Taiwan must enforce the death penalty. Opinion polls in Taiwan indicate 77 % of the public supports capital punishment. Cases such as the murder of a 10-year-old boy in December particularly stimulate popular support. Space is also harder to find for convicts sentenced to the alternative life in prison. But, despite the logistical and political merits, questions still remain. 2 years ago, Taiwan President Ma Ying-jeou apologized for the wrongful execution of a soldier accused of murdering a child in 1996. And, some observers say international criticism of Taiwan's decision could diminish efforts to distinguish, itself, diplomatically from China, which claims sovereignty of the self-ruled island and also administers the death penalty. Since Ma took office in 2008, he has tried to use so-called "soft power" to highlight Taiwanese cultural and humanitarian achievements that China cannot match. Lin Hsin-yi, executive director with the Taiwan Alliance to E
[Deathpenalty] death penalty news----ORE., COLO., MONT., ARIZ., CALIF.
Feb. 27 OREGON: Oregon death penalty 'indefensible,' says man who last carried it out The man who oversaw Oregon's last 2 executions at the Oregon State Penitentiary said the death penalty fails to deter crime, does not make the public any safer and forces prison officials into an untenable position. "Asking decent men and women to participate in the name of a failed public policy that takes human life is indefensible and rises to a level of immorality," said Frank Thompson, who was superintendent of the penitentiary from 1994 to 1998. Thompson was one of more than a dozen people to testify in front of the House Judiciary Committee Tuesday. All but one, the widow of an Oregon State Police trooper who was killed in the 2008 Woodburn bank bombing, urged the committee to move forward a resolution asking voters to repeal the death penalty and replace it with a sentence of life in prison without the possibility of parole. But the bill, sponsored by Rep. Mitch Greenlick, D-Portland, faces long odds. "I don't know if it will progress past this point," said Rep. Jeff Barker, D-Aloha, who chairs the House Judiciary Committee. He conceded that he is "not a big supporter of changing" the law, which allows for capital punishment in aggravated murder cases. Bills to alter the death penalty have not made it out of committee in recent years. Greenlick made his case to the panel, arguing that the death penalty is not moral nor equitable. "You don't have many millionaires" on death row, said Greenlick, noting the prevalence of poor inmates who receive death sentences. Greenlick, a longtime opponent of capital punishment, said he has wanted to bring forth a bill since he was first elected in 2002. The bill comes more than a year after Kitzhaber issued a reprieve in the pending execution of death-row inmate Gary Haugen. At that time, Kitzhaber urged the public to debate alternatives to Oregon's capital punishment system which, he said, was arbitrary and flawed. In a letter submitted Tuesday, Kitzhaber reiterated many of those same points. "It is time for Oregon to consider a different approach," he wrote. The death penalty is far more costly than a life prison sentence, due primarily to the legal costs of prosecuting and reviewing death-sentence cases, said Sen. Chip Shields, D-Portland. At a press conference earlier in the day, Shields estimated costs exceed $6 million over the 2-year budget cycle. Some speakers said that a death sentence doesn't bring peace to those who have lost loved ones to crime. Aba Gayle, a Silverton woman whose 19-year-old daughter was murdered in1980 in California, said she felt intense anger toward her daughter's killer for a number of years. "I absolutely lusted for revenge," she said. Gayle said the district attorney told her she would feel better when the man responsible was executed, but Gayle said she realized "there will never be closure" and that executing the killer would not honor her daughter's life. "Do not tarnish the memory of my beautiful child with another senseless killing," Gayle said. But Terri Hakim, whose police officer husband, William Hakim, was killed in 2008 in Woodburn, said repealing the death penalty "is only enabling prisoners with more rights" than their victims, she said. The death sentence given to Bruce and Joshua Turnidge in the bombing that killed her husband and Woodburn Police Capt. Tom Tennant was "a fair and just punishment." She was in disbelief, she said, when Kitzhaber announced his reprieve in November 2011, vowing there would be no executions as long as he was governor. She said after the hearing she worries the Turnidges could somehow be released someday if the death penalty were repealed. "I'm just standing up for what I think," she said. *** Gary Haugen's arguments against Kitzhaber's execution reprieve outlined in legal brief An attorney for death-row inmate Gary Haugen contends that the Oregon Supreme Court established long ago that an inmate can reject an "act of clemency," such as the 2011 reprieve granted by Gov. John Kitzhaber that halted Haugen's execution. In a brief filed Tuesday, attorney Harrison Latto also said that Kitzhaber's reprieve is a "ruse" in which the governor is unlawfully suspending Oregon's capital punishment laws, which he morally opposes. It should be the legislature, not the governor, who amends or repeals laws, Latto wrote. The brief comes less than a month before Latto and Kitzhaber's lawyers are to argue their cases before the Oregon Supreme Court. In his 76-page brief, Latto argues that the state's highest court has repeatedly ruled that an inmate can reject an act of clemency. The court clung to that interpretation, even after the U.S. Supreme Court established a different standard that found the "public welfare" could trump an inmate's refusal of an act of clemency, Latto wrote. Kitzhaber has not pr
[Deathpenalty] death penalty news----FLA., MISS., LA., S. DAK.
Feb. 27 FLORIDA: Brothers reject plea in police killing Almost 25 years after 2 brothers allegedly shot a Miami police officer, they rejected a plea that would have spared them the death penalty. Dennis Escobar, 52, agreed to the plea Friday, The Miami Herald reported. But the judge postponed a final hearing on the case to give his brother, Douglas, more time to understand the agreement, and on Monday Dennis rejected the plea. The brothers allegedly shot Officer Victor Estefan during a traffic stop in March 1988. Prosecutors say Dennis was the shooter but that Douglas told him to kill Estefan. Both Douglas and Dennis were tried, convicted and sentenced to death in 1991. Six years later, the Florida Supreme Court ruled they should have received separate trials. Angel Estefan, the slain police officer's son, cursed at the brothers and walked out of the courtroom. "Playing games is what he's doing," Estefan said. Dennis is currently on trial. The prosecution suffered a blow last week when an audiotape was discovered showing he asked for a lawyer during questioning in 1991 before telling a police officer about the crime, contradicting the officer's story that he confessed voluntarily. Douglas Escobar, who was brought to court Friday after his brother agreed to the plea, appeared confused, telling Miami-Dade Circuit Judge Leon Firtel he "didn't shoot nobody." The brothers had not seen each other for 6 years until their courtroom reunion Friday. If they are ever released in Florida, they face lengthy prison terms in California for the attempted killing of state troopers 2 months after Estefan was killed. (source: United Press International) MISSISSIPPI: Greene County man previously on death row will now serve life Jeffrey Keller Davis, the man who has spent 20 years on death row for his role in the 1991 slaying of a Greene County woman, was re-sentenced today to life without the possibility of parole. In May 1992, Davis was found guilty in the July 11, 1991, shooting and stabbing death of his friend Linda Hillman. Davis, now 52 years old, was convicted of capital murder while engaged in robbery, and he was given a death sentence. After an appeal, however, his death penalty sentence was overturned in 2012, and he went before the court again on Monday for re-sentencing. A jury was selected, but Davis agreed to plea to life without parole after consulting with his attorneys and his family, according to District Attorney Tony Lawrence's office. "The sentence of life without parole provided the victim's family with a sense of justice today," Lawrence said. "They are satisfied with the sentence of life without parole," he said, though "20 years has not erased the pain they experience every day because of the loss of their loved one." Lawrence said the 1991 crime "was a senseless and unnecessary taking of a life that has had a tragic affect on all the families involved." Court records show that on July 12, 1991, Davis called now deceased Greene County Sheriff Tommy Miller at home and confessed to killing Hillman 30 hours earlier. Davis told Miller that he had gone to Hillman's trailer before 6 a.m. on July 11 to get money to buy drugs. When she refused him, Davis shot and stabbed her to death and then went to Pascagoula to buy drugs. Records show Davis had a history of cocaine, alcohol, Valium, Xanax and marijuana abuse. After conviction, Davis filed multiple appeals as he spent more than 2 decades in prison. The state Supreme Court agreed in 2012 to vacate his death sentence and ordered a second sentencing trial after agreeing that he was denied effective counsel at the sentencing phase of his original trial. The Supreme Court found that his attorney failed to conduct an independent investigation, did not present readily-available evidence of Davis being abused as a child by his father and did not call witnesses to testify about Davis' good behavior while incarcerated. (source: The Mississippi Press) LOUISIANA: Judge refuses to block evidence in BR murder trial A state judge has ruled that evidence recovered from the Baton Rouge home of a man now accused of fatally shooting 2 employees of the CarQuest Auto Parts store in March 2011 can be used at trial. The evidence - money, Regions Bank bags and CarQuest deposit slips - was seized from the home of Lee Turner Jr. on March 28, 2011, the day after Edward Gurtner III, 43, of Denham Springs, and Randy Chaney, 55, of Greenwell Springs, were gunned down inside the store that Gurtner managed. Scott Collier, one of Turner's attorneys, told The Advocate (http://bit.ly/XDdiid ) he will ask the state 1st Circuit of Appeal to review state District Judge Richard Anderson's ruling. The judge's ruling came 9 months after he also rejected a defense request to suppress Turner's videotaped statement in which he confessed to detectives that he shot and killed
[Deathpenalty] death penalty news----TEXAS, CONN., PENN., USA, N.C.
Feb. 27 TEXAS: Decision Day? Murder Trial Jury Spends 3rd Day on Punishment Is the 3rd day the charm? Convicted College Station murderer Stanley Robertson, his legal team, his victim's family, prosecutors and many others are asking that question as 7 men and 5 women work Wednesday to decide the 45-year-old's punishment. After spending 4 1/2 hours deliberating Monday, the Brazos County jury entered their room Tuesday at 8:40 a.m., leaving at 9:00 p.m. the same day without a consensus on whether Robertson should get life in prison or the death penalty. They were sequestered for a second night at a local hotel. Robertson was found guilty on February 7 of the kidnapping and stabbing death of Annie Toliver, his ex-girlfriend's mother, in August 2010. Robertson told that ex and authorities he killed Toliver because the ex wasn't there for him, including after a July 2010 arrest for allegedly putting a knife to the ex's throat in front of her kids and holding her hostage. Toliver's body was dumped in Fort Worth, and Robertson ended up intentionally crashing his SUV into a Fort Worth police officer's car during a chase. The jury knows that they must unanimously answer three questions in favor of the State of Texas in order for a death sentence to be handed down. Jurors know 10 or more of them agreeing on any of the questions in favor of the defense ends the process and results in a life sentence. What they may not know is that if they are unable to reach those 10- or 12-vote thresholds, Judge J.D. Langley would have to sentence Robertson to life in prison by default. At around 2:30 p.m. Tuesday, the jury sent a note telling the court that they were "deadlocked" on the 2nd question before them: whether Robertson is mentally retarded. That means the dozen decided the first question on their charge, one asking if Robertson is a future danger. It would be a unanimous "yes", an answer the group undoubtedly came to Monday night based on requests for testimony from that night. Having moved to the 2nd question, the group began asking for testimony from psychologists and Robertson's wife. They wanted details on bankruptcy filings and suicide attempts by the defendant. Then, they noted their deadlock. Despite defense requests to end the process and go with the default life sentence, Judge Langley said after 15 days of testimony and arguments, 11 hours wasn't enough time for them to have ruled out reaching a decision. He sent a note telling them to keep working. At around 8:30 p.m., the jury hadn't sent another note asking for anything. Then, a knock came from their jury room door. A note was passed out. They didn't ask for testimony or evidence, but for either a whiteboard or 2 poster boards, a sign that they have continued to work despite their deadlock from 6 hours earlier. They were sent to a hotel shortly after, many looking exhausted and frustrated. The jury must unanimously believe Robertson is not mentally retarded to continue to the 3rd and final question on their charge, which asks if there are mitigating circumstances. If 10 or more jurors say Robertson doesn't have the mental disorder, the life sentence would be imposed. Via a U.S. Supreme Court ruling, the mentally retarded cannot be executed in Texas. (source: KBTX) Falk case awaits hearing date The next step in the capital murder case of an inmate accused of killing a correctional officer during a 2007 escape attempt in Huntsville is still up in the air a month after a district judge declared a mistrial following a lengthy layoff in the proceedings at the Brazos County Courthouse. Senior Judge John M. Delaney has been appointed as the new trial judge for John Ray Falk's case by Judge Olen Underwood, who presides over the Second Administrative Judicial Region of Texas. District Judge Ken Keeling was recused from the trial after he declared a mistrial on Jan. 29, saying he believed the jury could not come up with an impartial verdict because of a 55-day delay during the trial, which began in November. Delaney said Tuesday that he has not set a date for the next hearing, but that he had talked to Walker County District Attorney David Weeks and defense attorneys Michelle Esparza and Kyle Hawthorne on a conference call. "I told them that it would probably be about 90 days before we meet back in court," Delaney said. Keeling ordered all trial records sealed and since there is a standing gag order preventing attorneys and court officials from commenting on the case, The Huntsville Item has not been able to attain any information concerning possible motions that have been filed since the mistrial. Falk and Jerry Duane Martin escaped from a work detail at the Wynne Unit in September 2007. Martin stole a city of Huntsville truck, which he used to hit a horse correctional officer Susan Canfield was riding while trying to prevent the
