[Deathpenalty] death penalty news----TEXAS, FLA., USA
January 1, 2018 TEXAS: Report: Bexar County juries don't like the death penalty Juries are becoming more and more reluctant to hand out death sentences throughout Texas, but especially in Bexar County, according to a new report by the Texas Coalition to Abolish the Death Penalty. In 2017, juries in Texas sentenced 4 people to death - the lowest level since the U.S. Supreme Court upheld the state's revised capital punishment statute in 1976. Bexar County juries sentenced no one to death last year, the report states, and have sentenced only 1 person to death in the past 8 years: Mark Anthony Gonzalez, who was convicted in the 2011 murder of a Bexar County sheriff's sergeant. Harris County, meanwhile, has sentenced 10 people to death in the past 8 years. "Texas continues to move away from the death penalty, even in the counties that have used it the most," Kristin Houle, executive director of the Texas Coalition to Abolish the Death Penalty, said in a news release. "Prosecutors, juries, judges, and the public are subjecting our state's death penalty practices to unprecedented scrutiny," she added. "In an increasing number of cases, they are accepting alternatives to this flawed and irreversible punishment." 6 counties - out of 254 counties in Texas - account for more than 1/2 of all new death sentences imposed in the past 5 years, the report found. Bexar County is not one of them. The Texas Coalition Against the Death Penalty, an advocacy organization based in Austin, said the decline can be credited to improvements in the quality of legal counsel and the exorbitant cost of death penalty trials. Other reasons cited: Prosecutorial discretion, concerns about wrongful convictions and the availability of life in prison without the possibility of parole - which became a sentencing option in Texas in 2005. Historically, Bexar County has been one of the counties to hand out the most death penalties. Since 1974, prosecutors in Bexar County have secured 76 death sentences, the 3rd-most sentences statewide. But in recent years, that trend has declined. Between 2009 and 2012, 4 juries that could have used capital punishment rejected the sentence. The defendants were sentenced to life in prison without parole instead. The report also shows the application of the death penalty remains near historic lows. Last year, Texas put 7 people to death, matching 2016 for the lowest number of executions in 2 decades. Still, Texas accounted for 30 % of all U.S. executions last year. 2 people from Bexar County were executed in 2017: Rolando Ruiz, a hit man who killed a woman on behalf of her husband and brother-in-law, and TaiChin Preyor, who killed a 24-year-old woman in a drug-related attack. Bexar County matched Tarrant County for the most executions in the state. Harris County, in comparison, had zero executions - the 1st time that's happened since 1985 - and Dallas County accounted for 1 execution. However, the report noted that application of the death penalty remains racially biased. Over the past 5 years, 70 % of death sentences have been imposed on people of color. More than 1/2 of those death sentences were handed to African-American defendants - even though African-Americans make up only 13 % of the population. 5 executions already are scheduled for the 1st quarter of 2018, though none of them are from Bexar County. On Nov. 28, the Texas Court of Criminal Appeals stayed the execution of Juan Castillo to review claims of false testimony. His execution has not yet been rescheduled. (source: San Antonio Express-News) FLORIDA: 2nd suspect in Super Bowl Sunday triple murder to face death penalty The state of Florida is seeking the death penalty against a man accused of killing 3 people at a Super Bowl party in February. Marcus Steward, 25, was arrested last month in Riviera Beach as the 2nd suspect in the Feb. 5 attacks on Mohawk Street, according to the incident report. Police DNA evidence linked Steward to the murders. There was DNA found on a glove, a hoodie, and part of a rifle. The evidence was found in the back of Sean Henry's stolen Honda Accord and in culvert along I-95 where police found Henry's stolen car abandoned. Steward is charged with 3 counts of 1st degree murder with a firearm, 1 county of attempted 1st degree murder with a firearm and 1 count of grand theft of a motor vehicle. Christopher Vasata, 24, is also facing the death penalty for the triple murder. He was arrested in late March for his alleged role in the killings and is in a wheelchair due to injuries sustained during the shooting. Steward is due back in court Jan. 12 at 8:30 a.m. (source: CBS News) USA: Abolish the death penalty I strongly believe that the death penalty should have been abolished long ago. The death penalty is not moral. It goes against our natural rights. I would not want to be killed. Would you? Prison is
[Deathpenalty] death penalty news----TEXAS, FLA., USA
June 3 TEXAS: Life after death-row case: Both sides search for justice as 22-year Cook saga ends Editor's note: This story originally appeared in The Dallas Morning News on Feb. 21, 1999. "You cannot put things back together when you inherit a case with material misconduct," said Smith Chief County Felony Prosecutor David Dobbs, after the 22-year-old saga ended with a plea bargain on Tuesday. After 20 years on death row - once coming within 11 days of execution - Mr. Cook walked free Tuesday. Mr. Cook, who had been out of prison on bond for 14 months, pleaded no-contest and was convicted on a lesser charge of murder in the death of Linda Jo Edwards, a result that left both sides unsatisfied. Mr. Cook and his lawyers question why a fourth jury was nearly asked to digest that so-called turnip - a case already tried three times, hobbled and scarred by investigative and prosecutorial misdeeds that occurred when Mr. Dobbs, the lead prosecutor, was in high school. "It was pride that kept them coming back," said Mr. Cook, who maintained his innocence after the deal. He said he took the deal despite his innocence to end his "nightmare." "This was about them trying to save face, not them going after a guilty man." Prosecutors cite a simple reason for pushing on: They say they believed they had the right guy, and only agreed to a deal because appeals courts ruled that prior prosecutors' conduct ruled out the use of key evidence. "They're are other district attorneys' offices that would have dropped the case," Mr. Dobbs. "But we felt Cook was guilty, Legal experts said that the decision to try, retry, retry and retry again is complex, even when a "turnip" is involved. Prosecutorial persistence does not automatically mean a defendant is being unfairly treated, they said. "The law provides that a prosecutor's duty is not to obtain a conviction, but to see that justice is done," said Robert Dawson, a professor of criminal law at The University of Texas Law School. "But, it doesn't define "justice.' "There are no really concrete legal guidelines, no set number of bites at the apple," he said, "assuming a person is found guilty and that conviction is thrown out." Mr. Cook was convicted and sentenced to death in 1978 and spent 13 years on death row until a state appeals court threw out the conviction, after a series of problems with the case were discovered by The Dallas Morning News and the New Jersey based Centurion Ministries, which investigates questionable death penalty convictions. Among the problems, a state's witness testified in the 1st trial fingerprint in the victim's apartment had been left by Mr. Cook about the time of the crime. Mr. Cook maintained that the print was left during an earlier visit to the apartment, and the expert later conceded that such dating of fingerprints is impossible. The court also found fault because a psychiatrist who interviewed Mr. Cook and later testified at his trial didn't tell him that their conversation could be used against him. A 1992 retrial ended with a hung jury. In 1994, Mr. Cook was again convicted and sentenced to death. An appeals court overturned that verdict in 1996, saying evidence used in that trial was tainted by prosecutorial misconduct in 1978. That included the failure to tell the defense that Robert Hoehn, a key prosecution witness, had given conflicting testimony to the grand jury and at 1978 trial. Because of that, the government was barred from using the testimony of Mr. Hoehn, who died between Mr. Cook's first 2 trials. Factors for retrial Experts described a number of factors that typically influence the decision whether to retry a case, though the sides in Mr. Cook's case disagreed on how relevant they were: * The stakes: "Had this been a burglary, the matter would have been resolved after the first verdict was thrown out," said Professor Dawson. "With a capital murder case, it's harder for both sides to back off." Indeed, to the end neither side budged from their stands on whether Mr. Cook killed Ms. Edwards. The way the brinkmanship ended in a deal was a no-contest plea, which allowed both sides continue maintaining their absolute declarations of Mr. Cook's guilt or innocence. * The state's willingness to accept conviction of an innocent person: "No matter how airtight a case appears, you can never be 100 % sure," Professor Dawson said. "The question is where the prosecution's threshold of risk is. Most will not accept a high risk of wrongful conviction." The reluctance to convict an innocent man was quantified by the 18th century British legal commentator William Blackstone - since echoed by thinkers from Voltaire to Benjamin Franklin:. "It is better that 10 guilty persons escape than 1 innocent suffer," Blackstone wrote, an attitude that defense lawyers complain has been turned upside down by the Cook prosecutors. "They'd rather see 1 innocent
[Deathpenalty] death penalty news----TEXAS, FLA., USA, KY., CALIF.
April 29 TEXAS: Democrat proposes repeal of death penalty; Measure faces uphill battle in GOP-run Legislature Texas lawmakers will hear testimony on a bill to repeal the death penalty. A Democratic lawmaker from Houston has introduced the measure, and the House Criminal Jurisprudence committee will consider it on Monday. Rep. Jessica Farrar and some other Democrats have repeatedly called for an end to the death penalty. But the ultimate punishment remains popular in Texas, and her measure is unlikely to gain traction. Activists say the risk of executing an innocent person is too high to continue executing people. Texas has one of the highest exoneration rates in the country and recently released innocent men from death row. Supporters say there are some crimes that are so heinous the death penalty is the best option. Both sides are expected to testify before lawmakers. (source: Associated Press) FLORIDA: Bill to accelerate death penalty passes Legislature Urged to fix a mockery to justice, the Florida Senate passed legislation Monday to accelerate the state's capital punishment process that was criticized for allowing some condemned inmates to languish for decades on death row. The Senate passed the bill 28-10, sending the measure to Gov. Rick Scott for his consideration. The House passed the Timely Justice Act of 2013 (HB 7083) by an 84-34 vote last week. The bill creates tighter timeframes for appeals, post-conviction motions and imposes reporting requirements on case progress. It also re-establishes a separate agency for north Florida to provide appellate-level legal representation to inmates sentenced to death, and requires them to pursue all possible remedies in state court. Supporters of the measure said Monday that numerous people have sat on Florida's death row for longer than 30 years. When someone sits on death row for 10, 20, 30 years, it really makes a mockery of our justice system, said Republican Sen. Rob Bradley. It's not fair to the victims' families not only to be traumatized by the loss of a loved one, but then have to sit and suffer while justice is not realized year after year after year. Florida has 405 inmates on its death row, more than any other state except California. It takes an average of 13 years for an inmate to move from sentencing to execution. The bill's critics worried that speeding up the process could condemn some innocent people to the ultimate punishment. Once the execution is over, there's no going back, said Demoocratic Sen. Maria Sachs. Opponents noted that DNA evidence might be introduced that proves a condemned prisoner's innocence. 24 men have been exonerated from Florida's death row since 1973, according to the Death Penalty Information Center. Another Democratic lawmaker, Sen. Geraldine Thompson, noted that one man spent the better part of his productive life on death row until someone else confessed to the crime. Without the many review steps, an innocent person would have been put to death in that case, she said. In an abundance of caution, we should make sure that every avenue that's available to them is provided before we take that final step, she said. Supporters countered that the bill does nothing to prevent the introduction of new evidence aimed at proving innocence in capital cases. This is not about a question of innocence, this is about making sure that timely justice is realized, Bradley said. Republican Rep. Matt Gaetz of Fort Walton Beach was the bill's lead sponsor. Republican Sen. Joe Negron shepherded the bill through the Senate. (source: Associated Press) * Death penalty bill speeds to Gov. Scott State lawmakers Monday gave final approval to a proposal aimed at reducing delays in carrying out the death penalty, with supporters saying they want justice for victims' families --- but critics warning about executing innocent people. Sen. Joe Negron, a Stuart Republican who sponsored the measure, said some inmates have been on death row for more than 30 years. That isn't justice, Negron said. That's a mockery of the court system. But other lawmakers pointed to scientific advances, such as DNA evidence, that have helped clear some inmates who have been imprisoned for long periods. I just think this swiftness does not necessarily equate to fairness, said Sen. Arthenia Joyner, D-Tampa. Senators voted 28-10 on Monday to approve the bill (HB 7083), which passed the House last week. It now goes to Gov. Rick Scott. The bill focuses, at least in part, on ending delays in what is known as the post-conviction legal process, which starts after the Florida Supreme Court upholds death sentences in initial appeals. The post-conviction process can involve appeals about issues such as whether defendants have received ineffective legal representation. Among other things, the bill seeks to ensure that attorneys have
[Deathpenalty] death penalty news----TEXAS, FLA., USA
July 31 TEXAS: Marcus Druery: Another questionable Texas execution Will Texas execute a man who thinks speakers broadcast his thoughts and Kim Kardashian was a witness to his crime? Marcus Druery, a 32-year-old Texas death row inmate, suffers from schizophrenia so severe that his lawyers argue he is not competent enough to be put to death. Early Friday evening, just days before his Aug. 1 execution, the Texas Court of Criminal Appeals granted a temporary stay of execution pending further review of his competence. Druery’s stay was granted the same week as that of a mentally disabled Georgia death row inmate, Warren Hill. Earlier this month, Hill was denied clemency despite a 2002 Supreme Court decision that ruled executions of the mentally disabled unconstitutional. In an unexpected turn, the Georgia Supreme Court halted the execution just 90 minutes before Hill was scheduled for lethal injection, not because of his intellectual disability, but due to a change in the state’s method of injection. Hill’s pending execution, which will be revisited in November, provoked nationwide outrage, and rightly so. In stark contrast, Druery’s pending execution has received little attention outside local and regional outlets. Druery was sentenced to death in 2003 for killing, robbing and then setting fire to Skyylar Browne, his classmate at Texas State Technical College. During his incarceration on death row, he has been diagnosed with schizophrenia by several mental health professionals, including prison psychiatrists. His symptoms include paranoid and delusional thoughts and auditory hallucinations, which have distorted his ability to comprehend the reality of his crime and punishment. His attorneys, Katherine C. Black and Gregory W. Wiercioch of the Texas Defender Service, argue that executing him would violate the Constitution as determined by the Supreme Court in Ford v. Wainwright (1986) and upheld in Panetti v. Quarterman (2007). Cruel and Unusual Under Ford v. Wainwright the Supreme Court banned the execution of the mentally ill, ruling that it violates the Eighth Amendment. Furthermore, it ruled that the mentally ill are entitled to a competency hearing, which includes a competency evaluation by two independent experts and an evidentiary hearing in court to determine if the inmate is sane enough to die. Nevertheless, last Tuesday, July 24, Brazos County District Court Judge J.D. Langley denied Druery’s motion for a competency hearing, saying the defense did not meet the legal threshold needed to qualify for a competency determination, though it’s unclear what the legal threshold is. Katherine Black told Salon, “Any decision on his case will be important in determining the threshold showing for mental competency.” Brazos County Assistant District Attorney Doug Howell applauded the decision, insisting that Druery is indeed competent enough for execution. According to the Houston Chronicle, Howell said the following: Based on letters he has written and his discussion of facts of the case, he’s aware … On June 29, there was a hearing in which defense counsel allowed the trial court judge to talk to Druery and ask him questions … He said he did not commit the crime. That shows that he is aware that his execution is imminent and that it’s for the murder of Skyyler Browne. But Black says Druery’s awareness of his upcoming death sentence is not the same as having a “rational understanding” of why the state wants to execute him. As evidence, she points to the Supreme Court decision in Panetti v. Quarterman, a case brought forward by another psychotic inmate who was nearly executed by the state of Texas. Panetti had schizoaffective disorder, causing delusions that led him to believe the state wanted to kill him to stop him from preaching. Though Panetti recognized the factual rationale behind his death sentence — that he was found guilty of murdering his ex-wife’s parents — the Supreme Court held that “[a] prisoner’s awareness of the State’s rationale for an execution is not the same as a rational understanding of it.” The court reasoned that executing a prisoner who “has no comprehension of why he has been singled out and stripped of his fundamental right to life” undermines the concept of retributive justice. “There’s no retribution for someone being executed when they think it’s for something that has nothing to do with the actual crime,” explained Black. Druery’s failure to understand his legal circumstances was verified by Diane Mosnik, a neuropsychologist specializing in schizophrenia who was hired by the defense with court funding to conduct a comprehensive psychological assessment of Druery in May. “Because of his inflexible, psychotic and delusional interpretation of his circumstances, Mr. Druery does not have the capacity to rationally understand the connection between his crime and his punishment,” concluded
[Deathpenalty] death penalty news-----TEXAS, FLA., USA
June 29 TEXAS: Locals react on death penalty ruling Barely a year after Texas Gov. Rick Perry signed into law this state's version of Jessica's Law last year's legislation that brought the death penalty into play for repeat child sexual predators a Supreme Court ruling on a Louisiana case has nullified the death penalty as punishment for crimes that do not cause the death of the victim. The Texas bill, House Bill 8, was supported by this county's legislative delegation and by local law enforcement officials, including Sheriff Arnold Zwicke and District Attorney Vicki Pattillo. It set a minimum 25 years to life sentence for a new category of crime continual sexual abuse of a child or children under age 14 and made the sexual assault of a child subsequent to a previous conviction for the same offense a capital crime punishable by death or by life in prison without parole. No one has been executed for sexual assault in the United States since 1964, and opponents questioned the constitutionality of the law because the federal laws that reimposed the death penalty did not include sexual assault as a death penalty offense. The Louisiana case decided Wednesday on a split 5-4 vote was widely anticipated to test such laws in several states. In his majority opinion which called the death penalty cruel and unusual punishment in child sex assault cases, Justice Anthony Kennedy wrote, ... the death penalty is not a proportional punishment for the rape of a child. But the decision does not totally overturn Jessica's Law in Texas. When House Bill 8 was passed last year, it included a fallback penalty of life without parole if capital punishment was outlawed for child sexual assault. In anticipation of an adverse decision, the legislature included as a safety valve that, should the Supreme Court invalidate the death penalty, then these people are just going to be sentenced to life without parole, said Shannon Edmonds, staff attorney with the Texas District and County Attorneys Association. It certainly invalidates the death penalty for any of these cases that does not result in a childs death, but 'Jessica's Law' was a 75-page bill, and this was just one part of it. There are still a lot of provisions in 'Jessica's Law that are useful to prosecutors and are not affected by this opinion. Edmonds said he was aware of no prosecutions in Texas where a district attorney had so far sought the death penalty in a sexual assault case since House Bill 8 took effect last September. I think everyone was waiting for this decision, Edmonds said. Pattillo expressed scant surprise at the Supreme Court outcome. I didn't expect the U.S. Supreme Court to expand the death penalty for sexual assault cases, Pattillo said. But I still think that our 'Jessica's Law' is a big step in the right direction to get repeat sex offenders locked up forever. The Texas Legislature passed a law that provides for life without parole as an option in certain cases even if the death penalty provision is overturned. I have long believed that Texas needed an option for life without parole in egregious cases. We must take strong measures to protect the children in our communities and to ensure that violent sex offenders do not have the opportunity to repeat their heinous crimes against our defenseless children. Sheriff Arnold Zwicke supported the death penalty for child sexual predators when the law passed, and he supports it today. I know I'll offend some people, Zwicke said. But I was very disappointed that they did not uphold the death penalty simply because the victim serves an automatic life sentence, and I get very frustrated to see sex offenders get off with probation or deferred adjudication probation. The sentence should be at least as severe for the perpetrator as it is for the victim. Life without parole would be more suitable to the offense, in Zwicke's mind and in terms of protecting the public. Many sex offenders offend again, Zwicke pointed out, and the public and especially children should be protected from repeat sex offenders. I'd rather see them stay in jail than have them out on the street where they could find their next victim, Zwicke said. For his part, Perry said Texas would continue to seek the toughest sanctions possible against repeat child predators whatever that punishment is. In my opinion, laws should be strong enough to deter these unspeakable offenses or, in the least, prevent these lowest of criminals from harming any child again, Perry said. I believe the vast majority of Texans agree that the death sentence is the appropriate punishment for someone convicted of raping a child. Even still, Perry said Texas would follow the law of the land. While today's opinion does not directly address Texas law, we recognize that our state is guided by the decisions of the U.S. Supreme Court, Perry said. That said, Texas will continue to seek the toughest punishment allowable for the predators who commit
[Deathpenalty] death penalty news----TEXAS, FLA., USA, S. DAK., TENN.
July 2 TEXAS: 10th Court chief justice must control anger Lady Justice is usually portrayed as blindfolded, a sword in one hand and a perfectly balanced scale in the other. The idea is that justice is meted out swiftly, fairly and without favor or prejudice. For our system of laws and justice to succeed, we have to believe in this concept, that each of us is equal in the eyes of the law. It doesn't always work that way, but for the most part it does. We have to believe that, should we have cause to go to court, that our case - civil or criminal - will be considered honestly and fairly at each step of the process. If we lose that belief, for whatever reason, then justice in America ceases to be just. The situation that has been brewing on the 10th Court of Appeals in Waco, in which one judge routinely takes increasingly personal and vitriolic potshots at the other 2 justices on the court, is calling into question the impartiality of justice. This affects us in Brazos County because all appeals from our 3 district courts and 2 courts-at-law - except for death penalty cases - go to the 10th Court. In Texas, any civil or criminal verdict rendered in a district court or court-at-law may be appealed. Cases in which the death penalty is assessed are automatically appealed to the Texas Court of Criminal Appeals, 1 of the 2 highest courts in Texas. All other cases are appealed to one of 14 courts of appeal located throughout the state. Until 2 years ago, Brazos County cases went to either of two Houston courts of appeal - the 1st or 14th - or the 10th in Waco. Because of consistent overcrowding in the 2 Houston courts, it was decided to put Brazos County entirely within the 10th District's jurisdiction. Appellate courts must take every case appealed to them. Most of the cases appealed to them go no further. Some, though, are appealed to either the Court of Criminal Appeals for criminal matters or the Supreme Court of Texas for civil matters, including all cases in which defendants are tried as juveniles. Both high courts accept only cases they choose, which may include cases in which the law is unclear or 2 or more of the 14 intermediate courts have decided similar issues differently. Because most cases go no further than the intermediate courts, it is imperative that decisions issued by those courts be clear, fair and impartially rendered. That isn't always the case with the 10th Court of Appeals. Chief Justice Tom Gray is often at odds with other two justices - a fancy name for judges - who sit on the court: Bill Vance, a former Brazos County judge, and Felipe Reyna. All three are elected by the voters and, with the exception of some clerical duties assigned to the chief justice, all have equal power and authority. Cases coming into the 10th Court from any of the 18 counties it serves are assigned on a rotating basis to one of the three justices. With the help of staff attorneys, the justice writes an opinion on the case and circulates it to the other two justices for review and comment. Issues raised by either of the other judges often are incorporated into the final opinion, which then has to be approved by at least two of the three justices on the court. Occasionally, a justice will write a concurring opinion, bringing up issues not included in the opinion itself. Sometimes, when a justice disagrees strongly, he will write a dissenting opinion, pointing out why he thinks the majority opinion is incorrect. Such dissenting opinions are not rare, but they aren't that common either - except in the 10th Court, where Chief Justice Gray writes dozens of dissenting opinions each year, far more than any other justice on any of the 14 courts of appeal. In 2004, for instance, Gray wrote 78 dissents, Vance wrote 10 and Reyna, in his first year on the court, wrote none. Not only is Justice Gray writing many dissents, he is using them more and more to criticize personally the other 2 justices on his court. A story by a Waco reporter said Gray uses terms such as schizophrenic, irrational and unlawful in his dissents. He has called opinions by Vance and Reyna similar to a mediocre law-review article and compared their work to that of a first-year law student. So much for collegiality. In a recent case from the 272nd District Court in Brazos County, Vance and Reyna originally joined with Gray in upholding the original verdict, but, as was his right, the defendant asked the court to take a second look at the issues raised in his appeal. At that point, after researching previous cases, Vance and Reyna agreed that one of the issues had merit and issued a final opinion overturning the verdict and sending it back to Brazos County for retrial. In his dissent, Gray criticized Vance and Reyna for frequently taking 2nd looks at cases before them when asked. Gray, in his dissent, noted the number of cases awaiting opinions from both Reyna and Vance but conveniently left out any mention of those awaiting his
[Deathpenalty] death penalty news----TEXAS, FLA., USA, S.C., N.J.
June 11 TEXAS: Prosecutors weighing death for man charged in slaying In Edinburg, Hidalgo County prosecutors are contemplating seeking the death penalty against an Alabama man charged with robbing a 60-year-old Donna resident and slashing his throat with a box cutter in April. Douglas Armstrong, 36, is facing capital murder charges in connection with the April 21 death of Rafael Castelan, who was found lying in the alley between South Seventh and South Eight Street. Witnesses said they saw Armstrong attack Castelan as Castelan walked home from the H.E.B. on Miller Street. Capital murder is the highest felony in the Texas Penal Code and is punishable by either life in prison or the death penalty. A grand jury indicted Armstrong on capital murder charges because the stabbing allegedly occurred in the course of another crime - a robbery. Armstrong is set for trial before Judge Noe Gonzalez in the 370th state District court. At Armstrong's formal arraignment Wednesday, Assistant District Attorney Joseph Orendain announced prosecutors were leaning toward seeking the death penalty. However, they will meet this week to finalize what penalty Armstrong will face in trial, which is set for Aug. 14. Orendain said prosecutors will announce their decision in a June 26 hearing, where Armstrong's attorneys, Nereyda Morales-Martinez and Keno Vasquez, will ask the judge to reduce the $1 million bond a Donna municipal judge set against Armstrong. We are still waiting for information from various states, said Orendain, explaining why prosecutors have not finalized which penalty they might seek against Armstong. Armstrong was born in Alabama but has lived in Georgia and Ohio. Records show he moved to Hidalgo County in January and worked as a forklift operator in Donna. Armstrong was arrested in Clayton County, Georgia in 1998 and charged with terroristic threats and acts. He was convicted of that charge and served about 6 months in prison. Morales-Martinez was appointed to his case Wednesday and said she had not had time to review her client's case because of another murder trial she was working in this week. Shortly after Castelan's slaying, Donna police found Armstrong changing out of bloodied clothing at the Sunshine Bar on Hooks Avenue. He told police he tried to help Castelan and denied stabbing or robbing him. Hidalgo County juries have only sent 15 people to death row, according to the Texas Department of Criminal Justice. Of those, two have been executed and 10 are awaiting execution. Three have had their sentences commuted to life. If given the death penalty, Armstrong would be the 1st African-American sent to death row in this county. The last person from Hidalgo County sent to death row was Rodolfo Kreeper Medrano in August 2005, in connection with the January 2003 murders of 6 men in Edinburg. 2 other alleged Tri-City Bomber gang members - Juan Raul Navarro Ramirez and Humberto Gallo Garza - are also on death row for that slaying, as well as a 3rd gang member, Robert Bones Gene Garza, who was sentenced to death for a separate multiple homicide in Donna in 2002. (source: The Monitor) * Wrongly convicted of murder, man moves on with lifeExperts say lawyer, system failed him. To survive in prison, Jim Tenny says, one must first abandon all expectation. You drive out the anger at your attorney, whose defense left you wrongly convicted of murder. You accept as false your hope that the system will recognize its terrible mistake. And when everything you've trained yourself to be is betrayed by the promise of freedom, you hold back until you hear the judge say, Mr. Tenny, you are free to go. Tenny heard those words from Llano County Judge Gil Jones on March 8, nearly seven years after another judge sentenced him to 65 years in prison for killing his girlfriend Joyce Mulvey. He never said he didn't kill her. He trusted an attorney to make a case that he had done it in self-defense. When the attorney and a jury failed him, Tenny resolved, above all, to survive. Tenny could not allow himself to expect, to hope, that a federal judge would eventually believe his story and assign to him a million-dollar defense that would win him a new trial and his freedom. Tenny, 53, wonders whether his case, one of a growing number of murder cases in Texas that have been retried or overturned, is evidence the system works, as his prosecutor believes. Or whether it suggests, as his defense lawyers suspect, that many more would be freed if only they could afford better representation. Or maybe Sam Newton Jr., the inmate who taught Tenny the law while he was in prison, is right: The system is simply and irretrievably corrupt. Tenny has now had months to wonder about it, living with old friends on a little ranch near Wimberley. There is work here for a man like Tenny, who is good with his hands. And there are hours to think, late evenings with a glass of wine, rocking on the hanging chair on
[Deathpenalty] death penalty news----TEXAS, FLA., USA, ILL.
March 30 TEXAS: Murder is out; trial goes onProsecutors can't prove fetus was viable for capital charge Prosecutors dropped capital murder charges Wednesday against a man accused of stabbing his girlfriend 17 times, resulting in the death of her fetus. Prosecutor Mark Skurka said he asked that the charge against Bruce Wayne Gerard be dropped because doctors would not be able to testify Stephanie Reyes, now 17, was carrying a viable fetus. She was 6 weeks pregnant when she was stabbed Sept. 1, 2005. Gerard, 24, still faces charges of burglary of a habitation with intent to commit aggravated assault, which carries a penalty of 5 to 99 years or life in prison. He also faces charges of violation of a protective order and retaliation. Prosecutors weren't seeking the death penalty on the capital murder charge. Skurka gave no further details about the decision to drop the charge, citing the ongoing trial. It was the 1st time the Nueces County District Attorney's Office had sought such a charge in the death of a fetus, which became an option in 2003. Defense attorney Kenneth Botary said he was glad he didn't have to fight the murder charge, but he doubted the prosecution could have proved its case. All along I didn't think they had enough, he said. Botary said he brought up the question of the fetus' age and its viability in his opening statement. He also asked Reyes whether she planned to abort the baby. She testified she had no such plans. During cross-examination Wednesday, Botary asked Reyes a question suggesting she had cheated on Reyes and had antagonized him. Reyes screamed at Gerard and broke down crying. District Judge Jose Longoria ordered the jury out of the room, and as Reyes stood up, she accused Gerard of having a relationship with a 14-year-old girl. I got stabbed and lost my baby because of you, she cried, as the judge ordered her out of the room and called the lawyers to the bench. As she walked past Gerard, she muttered, this sorry bastard. Her testimony continued after a brief recess. The prosecution also called the doctor who treated Reyes in the emergency room and one of the police officers who responded to the scene. Skurka said he plans to call more officers and a DNA expert when the trial resumes at 8:30 a.m. today in the 214th District Court. (source: Corpus Christi Caller-Times) FLORIDA: Appeals court judges mull federal death penalty request In Atlanta, lawyers for a man accused of killing a Florida deputy asked the 11th Circuit Court of Appeals Thursday to throw out the government's request for the death penalty, saying they were not given sufficient notice. Jeffrey Lamken, an attorney for Kenneth Wilk, asked a 3-judge panel to throw out the request because the government informed Wilk and his defense team it would seek the death penalty less than 2 months before Wilk's scheduled trial date last April. An indictment was released 6 months before the trial date, yet the Justice Department did not sign off on the death penalty, Lamken said. Wilk, 43, is charged with killing Broward County sheriff's Deputy Todd Fatta, 33, by using a high-powered hunting rifle with a bullet that pierced the officer's protective vest when deputies raided Wilk's home in August 2004. A 2nd deputy, Angel Cedeno, was shot in the hand and lost a finger. Federal law requires the government to inform defendants of its intent to seek the death penalty a reasonable time before trial. In previous cases, the government has provided notice about 11 months before trial, Lamken said. Assistant U.S. Attorney E.J. Yera told the panel the 58-day notice was sufficient. The government filed the request on Feb. 18, 2005. The trial had been set to open April 18, 2005. The trial is expected to be held after the panel issues its opinion. Federal death penalty cases are not common. There are 43 federal inmates now on death row, but more than 3,300 nonfederal inmates were on death row in the 50 states as of January, according to the Washington-based Death Penalty Information Center. Currently the government has 65 death penalty cases pending or in trial, said Kevin McNally of the Federal Death Penalty Resource Council in Frankfort, Ky. U.S. Attorney General Alberto Gonzales had to sign off on federal prosecutors' request for the death penalty in the Wilk case. Prosecutors previously listed 11 factors warranting Wilk's execution, including premeditation and his risk for causing future danger. The government has filed for the death penalty 10 times in Florida cases, has not won a death verdict from a jury. A unanimous jury is required for a federal death verdict; a majority vote is sufficient in Florida's state death penalty cases. Wilk could face a murder charge in state court regardless of what happens in the federal case. The anti-pornography task force of federal and local officers who raided Wilk's home didn't know of a Fort Lauderdale police computer notice warning officers to use
[Deathpenalty] death penalty news----TEXAS, FLA., USA, S.C.
March 22 TEXASexecution Lubbock man executed for death of toddler A Lubbock man was executed tonight for the April 1997 beating death of his girlfriend's 2-year-old daughter. To everybody on both sides of that wall, I want you to know that I love you both, Robert Salazar Jr., said in a final statement, acknowledging his family and Adriana Gomez's mother and other relatives who were there as witnesses. He looked toward his family during his remarks. I am sorry that the child had to lose her life, but I should not have to be here. Tell my family I love them all and I will see them in heaven. Come home when you can. Salazar, 27, was pronounced dead at 6:20 p.m., 7 minutes after the lethal dose began to flow. Salazar told police he just wanted Adriana, whom he was baby-sitting, to stop crying. So he pushed her with the back of his hand, causing her to fall down in a bathtub and hit her head. I did not mean to hurt Adriana, Salazar told police in a statement after his arrest for the girl's death in her Lubbock home. I don't want people to think I'm a bad person for what I did. But authorities said Salazar did more than push the toddler. In a violent rage, he inflicted injuries on Adriana that a pathologist who testified at his trial said were worse than those suffered by victims of auto accidents. The Texas Board of Pardons and Paroles on Monday rejected requests to commute Salazar's sentence to life or halt the execution. The Texas Court of Criminal Appeals and the 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals turned down requests by Salazar's attorney, Michael Charlton, to stop the execution based on claims the inmate is mentally retarded. There were no appeals to the U.S. Supreme Court. Authorities said Salazar delivered at least three life-threatening injuries to the girl: a blow to the head that left it feeling like gelatin, a blow to her chest that left her heart on the verge of rupturing and a blow to her abdomen that pushed internal organs against her backbone. Salazar destroyed that little girl's body, just destroyed it, said Rusty Ladd, who helped prosecute the case for the Lubbock County District Attorney's Office. Salazar began dating Adriana's mother, Raylene Blakeburn, in 1996. He took care of the toddler while her mother worked. Blakeburn told authorities Salazar had abused her daughter several other times. After beating her, Salazar left Adriana in the crib at her Lubbock home and went to his mother's house to drink beer with a friend. Adriana's mother found her when she got home from work and took her to a hospital, where she died a few hours later. Salazar, 18 at the time of his crime, refused a request from The Associated Press for an interview in the weeks before his scheduled execution. Philip Wischkaemper, Salazar's defense attorney during his 1999 trial, said the inmate's mental retardation is behind his lack of remorse. He also said Salazar was severely abused and neglected as a child by his father. The mental retardation issue was not brought up during Salazar's trial. We know mentally retarded people have difficulty showing emotion, said Wischkaemper, who added tests have shown that Salazar's IQ is probably under 75. The threshold for mental retardation is 70. In 2002, the Supreme Court barred executions of the mentally retarded, on grounds they violated the constitutional ban on cruel and unusual punishment. Wade Jackson, first assistant district attorney for Lubbock County, said other tests have shown that Salazar's IQ is as high as 102. Wischkaemper said Salazar was condemned partly because jurors at his trial were misinformed by someone on the panel that he could have been released on parole in 20 to 25 years instead of the actual 40 if sentenced to life in prison. Ladd, now a judge in Lubbock, said it was the brutal nature of the crime that ultimately determined the jury's decision. I've never shed tears over a victim the way I did over that little girl, Ladd said. Salazar becomes the 6th condemned inmate to be put to death this year in Texas and the 361st overall since the state resumed capital punishment on December 7, 1982. Salazar becomes the 122nd condemned inmate to be put to death in the state since Rick Perry became governor in 2001. Salazar becomes the 11th condemned inmate to be put to death this year in the USA and the 1015th overall since the nation resumed executions on January 17, 1977. Next on the execution schedule is Raymond Martinez, condemned for the 1983 shooting death of a Houston bar owner during a robbery. He is set to be executed Tuesday. Kevin Kincy is set to be executed the next night, and there are 8 more executions scheduled in the state before June 1. (sources: Associated Press Rick Halperin) FLORIDA: State will seek death penalty in Gateway murders State Attorney Steve Russell plans to seek the death penalty for double murder suspect Fred Cooper, he announced today. Cooper is accused of killing couple Steven and
[Deathpenalty]death penalty news----TEXAS, FLA., USA, GA., CALIF.
Feb. 2 TEXAS: Andrea Yates is Released From jailShe is heading to a state mental hospital on bond-AMOUNT SET: At $200,000; prosecutors sought $1 million Andrea Pia Yates was released from jail on a bond this morning and headed to a state mental hospital where she is to remain until the start of her 2nd capital murder trial in the drownings of her children. Yates left the jail shortly after 8 a.m. wearing jeans and a striped shirt and carrying a brown bag with her other belongings. Harris County prosecutors had expressed concern that Yates may be able to leave the hospital without supervision, but her attorney George Parnham assured state District Judge Belinda Hill on Wednesday that he will alert her so Yates can be jailed if she tries to leave. This morning, Parnham asked the crowd of media to not ask Yates or her escorts any questions. She will be driven Rusk State Hospital, a secure mental health facility in East Texas by a retired Houston Poolice Department detective and his daughter. The trip is expected to last around 3 1/2 hours with Parnham also driving to the facility in his own car. Yates, 41, is charged with capital murder in the deaths of 3 of her children. She admitted drowning them, and their 2 siblings, in the bathtub at the family's Clear Lake-area home in June 2001 and was convicted of capital murder in 2002. An appeals court overturned the conviction last year, however, and she is scheduled for retrial March 20 if a plea agreement is not worked out. Yates has pleaded not guilty by reason of insanity. Wednesday, Hill granted bail with the assurance that Yates would voluntarily commit herself to Rusk, until her trial begins. She then will be moved to the Harris County Jail psychiatric unit, where she was moved last month for court appearances related to her trial. Yates has been held at Skyview, a Texas Department of Criminal Justice psychiatric unit near the Rusk hospital, since her conviction. Hill told Yates that she could not order her to commit herself to Rusk, but was granting bail on the stipulation that she would. Parnham had asked for $50,000 bail, but said he was happy with Hill's decision and will try to raise the money from people and groups concerned with mental-health issues. Prosecutors had requested $1 million bail, expressing fear that since she is being allowed to commit herself, Yates will be able to leave the hospital, located about 3 1/2 hours from Houston. They say the heinous nature of the killings indicates that she is a danger to society. This is a case about 5 dead children, Assistant District Attorney Kaylynn Williford said after Hill's decision. But Parnham told Hill that Rusk officials have given assurances that if Yates attempts to leave, they will hold her and contact Parnham. He said he then would ask that bail be revoked and Yates be returned to the Harris County Jail. Yates' relatives said the Rusk hospital will offer the mental-health care she needs. She would like to be there instead of jail, said her mother, Karin Kennedy, who attended the hearing. Russell Yates, Yates' ex-husband and the children's father, also attended the hearing and said he was happy that bail was granted. What we wanted for Andrea all along, you know, is for her to be in a mental hospital, he said after the hearing. I'm all in favor of her being given a bond so she can at least be in a hospital awhile before trial. Wearing gold-colored, wire-rim glasses and dressed in an orange County Jail jumpsuit, Yates quietly sat at the defense table Wednesday and chatted with Parnham's wife, Mary, a paralegal. Her long, dark hair was in a braid. Yates smiled at her mother, who was seated in the courtroom gallery, but didn't appear to look at her ex-husband. Kennedy said she visited her daughter last weekend at the County Jail. She said Yates understood the importance of the hearing, but doesn't talk much about the case. She never complains, Kennedy said. Parnham said Yates is on a heavy dose of anti-psychotic and anti-depressive medication. Yates was not allowed bail before her 1st trial, as prosecutors sought the death penalty. Because she received a life sentence, the death penalty is not an option in the upcoming trial and she can be granted bail. The 1st Texas Court of Appeals ruled in January 2005 that Judge Hill erred in the 1st trial when she refused to declare a mistrial because of mistaken testimony from the state's expert witness, psychiatrist Park Dietz. The Court of Criminal Appeals let the 1st Court's decision stand in November. Dietz testified that an episode of the Law Order TV series depicted a mother who was prosecuted for drowning her children but was found not guilty by reason of insanity. A consultant to the series, Dietz said the episode aired shortly before Yates killed her children. Prosecutors told jurors that Yates watched the program regularly. After Yates was convicted, but before jurors decided her sentence, it was discovered
[Deathpenalty]death penalty news----TEXAS, FLA., USA
March 28 TEXAS: Testimony scheduled to start in Irving man's murder trial In Denton, a man accused of killing his pregnant wife and mother-in-law 2 years ago goes on trial for his life today. Christopher Jay Swift of Irving says he was insane when he killed Amy Sabeh-Swift, 27, and Sandra Stevens Sabeh, 61, in April 2003, according to his attorney, Derek Adame of Denton. We are using his demeanor at the time of his arrest and his behavior and statements he made to police to show he had a break with reality, Adame said. In a interview with KXAS/Channel 5 on May 2, 2003, Swift admitted killing the 2 women but said his young son had ordered him to do it. Swift was originally indicted on individual murder charges out of Dallas and Denton counties because Sabeh-Swift's body was found in Irving and Sabeh's in Lake Dallas. But the cases were combined, Swift was reindicted, and prosecutors are asking for the death penalty, said Lee Ann Breading, Denton County first assistant district attorney. Swift, now 30, remains in the Denton County Jail without bail, records show. Sabeh-Swift, who was eight months pregnant, was found dead in her home at Irving View RV Park in Irving on April 30, 2003. Her mother's body was found the same day at Kingswood Mobile Home Park in Lake Dallas. Sabeh-Swift, an aide at the Denton State School, had been strangled and stabbed in her Dallas County home. Swift's mother-in-law had been strangled. Police arrested Swift, on a warrant alleging murder, in Dallas hours after the bodies were found. Sabeh-Swift's unborn child also died, but charges are not being pursued in that death, police said. Swift's son Zachery, who was 5 years old at the time, is believed to have witnessed the slayings. After the 2 women were killed, Swift checked into a motel in Farmers Branch, where he abandoned Zachery after the youngster fell asleep, authorities said. Zachery called police after he woke up later that day. During his TV interview, Swift said his faith in God led him to believe that Zachery wanted him to commit the slayings. He also said he believed that his mother-in-law would approve of her daughter's death. Swift added that he had married out of convenience. 'Cause I was going to prison, and I need somebody to send me some money, and ... he said, then laughed, adding that he did not love his wife. Zachery is in the custody of his maternal grandfather, said Marissa Gonzales, a spokeswoman for Child Protective Services. At one point, Swift was listed with residences in both Irving and Lake Dallas, but jail records indicate his most recent home was in Irving. Testimony is scheduled to begin at 9 a.m. today in L. Dee Shipman's 211th Judicial District Court. (source: Fort Worth Star-Telegram) FLORIDA: Missing person, or cold killing? Miami-Dade prosecutors are seeking the death penalty for 50-year-old Jesus Rodriguez in his wife's murder. But investigators have not found the woman, missing since November 2001. On Oct. 29, 2001, Isabel Rodriguez went to Miami-Dade Family Court seeking protection from her estranged husband, Jesus. In court papers, she said her husband threatened to kill her if she got any money from him in their divorce. A judge scheduled a hearing a month later. Isabel wasn't there -- but a homicide detective was. Now, more than 3 years after her disappearance, investigators still have not found Isabel Rodriguez. Her husband has insisted that she abandoned their children and may have fled to Honduras. But prosecutors say they have compiled a string of clues -- plotting a trail from divorce court to a suspicious fire on an Everglades farm -- implicating Jesus in his wife's death. Jesus Rodriguez's trial on 1st-degree murder charges begins Monday in Miami-Dade Circuit Court. Prosecutors, who are seeking the death penalty, concede their case against him is entirely circumstantial: Investigators burrowed through concrete, dispatched cadaver dogs and flew helicopters with infrared cameras over Rodriguez's property without finding any hard evidence that Isabel is dead. It's not easy for prosecutors to prove a murder case without producing a murder victim -- but it has been done, legal experts say. Miami-Dade prosecutors will have to do it again soon in another high-profile case: This month, a grand jury indicted a caregiver with the murder of missing Kendall foster child Rilya Wilson, whose body has never been found. In the Rodriguez case, prosecutors say Jesus' actions before and after his wife's disappearance -- and his statements to police and other jail inmates -- are enough to prove he killed his wife. There is no reasonable hypothesis that the victim is alive, assistant state attorney Abbe Rifkin said in court papers. But Rodriguez's lawyer, Andrew Rier, said prosecutors will have a hard time proving his client -- the owner of a once-successful trucking company with no prior convictions -- murdered Isabel. Jurors want evidence, Rier said. It's
[Deathpenalty]death penalty news----TEXAS, FLA., USA
June 20 TEXAS: The Daily Texan's opinion piece Death penalty needs reprieve (6/14/05), finds that Texas should have a reprieve on executions because of Texas' many commutations, overturns and retrials in death penalty cases. Let's review The Daily Texans' evidence for a moratorium: 1) a 20 year old Dallas County case - Miller-El - just overturned because of prosecutorial misconduct. This case was handled by the appellate system without a moratorium. There appears no basis for a moratorium, today, for misconduct from 20 years ago. This appeal took way too long and should have been resolved in no more than 8 years. 2) In March, Roper v. Simmons banned the execution of juveniles in the United States and caused the commutation of the sentences of 29 underage Texas inmates. 29 17-year-old murderers were properly sentenced to death under Texas law and U.S. Supreme Court precedent. The Supreme Court changed the law after those sentences were given. It certainly isn't Texas' fault that the U.S. Supreme Court decided to change the rules that it had established another way, not long ago. This provides no reason for a moratorium. 3) Medellin v. Dretke, concerned a Mexican national who was denied legal assistance from his home country when he was convicted of murder in Texas. The Supreme Court passed on the case earlier this month, but only because President Bush ordered the retrial of all 51 cases that would have been affected by the verdict. Medellin was never denied legal assistance and President Bush never ordered retrials. This case involves a violation of the Vienna Convention, whereby Texas (and other states) failed to inform arrested foreign nationals that they had the right to contact their consulate, if they so chose. President Bush ordered new hearings - not retrials - for that issue in the 15 Texas cases. However, Texas already had conducted or would conduct hearings on that issue, on its own, if merited. Furthermore, it remains to be seen if the President has the legal authority to order such hearings in a state court. And, as The Daily Texan noted, the U.S. Supreme Court passed on this case, for now. The lack of notification can, overwhelmingly, be blamed on the U.S. State Department, not on the Texas (or other states') judicial or enforcement systems. This international treaty was absent from the knowledge of most local law enforcement until recent years. Texas never denied consular access to those detainees or the detainees lawyers. Obviously, no need for a moratorium on this issue. 4) In addition, the U.S. Supreme Court overturned the conviction of 3 other Texas death row inmates last year. Texas has one of the nations best records for cases being affirmed on appeal. That is a good thing and speaks against a moratorium. Yes, Texas can do better and should keep improving until it has the best record of affirming death penalty cases. 5) Other states have declared moratoriums to investigate serious flaws in their capital punishment systems and assure that no innocent life is lost. Texas should do the same. Untrue. 2 governors have, by executive fiat, declared moratoriums on executions. No state through the legislative process, has had a state moratorium put into law. The Illinois moratorium has been in place for some years. The Maryland governor declared a moratorium as a political favor. It only lasted a few months and didn't prevent any scheduled executions. 7 recent studies all find a strong deterrent effect of the death penalty. But, even without deterrence, the evidence is that innocents are more at risk without the death penalty - living murderers are infinitely more likely to harm and murder again, than are executed ones. Who would have known? Hardly a good case for a Texas moratorium, is it? For nearly a decade, there have been exhaustive efforts by death penalty opponents to have moratoriums established by law through the legislative process. None of those have been successful. There is a reason for that. The facts speak against it, as they do in Texas. (source: The Daily Texan (Dudley Sharp Founder of Justice Matters, Houston, Texas) *** Perry Signs New Law A new law signed by Governor Rick Perry might spare the life of future convicted murders. District Attorney Carlos Valdez says, Capital murder has only 2 punishments available. But not for long, Governor Perry signed a law that gives jurors 1 more option. Currently in a capital murder cases, jurors can sentence a person to death or give them life with the possibility of parole. This law lets jurors sentence criminals to life in prison. Valdez believes this is the 1st step to abolishing the death penalty, When there's 3 options instead of 2, there's more of a chance that the jury will not assess the death penalty, so I think this is good news for criminals. Texas death row statistics 1. Harris - 280 2. Dallas - 92 3. Bexar - 68 4. Tarrant - 59 5. Jefferson - 23 6. Nueces - 22
[Deathpenalty]death penalty news-----TEXAS, FLA., USA
July 2 TEXAS: Convict in Prosper killings spared deathDecision cites Supreme Court ruling against executing retarded A federal court ruled Friday that the state cannot execute a Collin County man now on death row, citing a 2002 Supreme Court ruling forbidding executions of mentally retarded inmates. The Texas attorney general has 30 days to file a notice of appeal. An attorney general's office spokesman said Friday that no decision has been made and that the office is reviewing the ruling. The U.S. District Court for the Eastern Division of Texas also said it will direct the Texas Department of Criminal Justice to either permanently stay Eric Lynn Moore's execution or change his sentence to life in prison. Mr. Moore's attorney, Scott Smith of Sherman, said Friday that he felt confident after a hearing before the judge in December that his client would be spared. The victims' family could not be reached for comment. Helen Elizabeth Ayers, 54, was shot and killed in a December 1990 robbery at her Prosper home. Her husband, Richard, also was shot and paralyzed from the waist down. The couple let 2 men into their home on a cold night after they told the Ayerses that their car needed a jump start. Moments later, 2 more men came in with guns and forced the Ayerses to lie face down on a mattress in their bedroom, then shot them both at close range. One of Mr. Moore's accomplices was executed in January 2004. Court records show that Mr. Moore, 38, had an IQ of 74 at age 7. Testing later showed his IQ to be 76. Borderline mental retardation is defined as an IQ of 71 to 84. Mild retardation is defined as an IQ of 50 to 70. A psychologist who examined Mr. Moore said the defendant might have suffered brain damage from being hit on the head with a baseball bat at age 20 and from a car accident about 10 years earlier. Mr. Moore had not been told about the court ruling Friday. Mr. Smith said he mailed him a letter. It's the best I can do for now, Mr. Smith said. He's been battling with some depression issues. I hope this helps with that. Mr. Moore came within 7 days of being executed in 2003, Mr. Smith said, but was given a stay so the court could examine his mental capacity. Without the U.S. Supreme Court ruling forbidding the execution of the mentally retarded, Mr. Moore would have been executed, Mr. Smith said. No doubt. (source: Dallas Morning News) *** Here On Death Rowby Eric Mpaka Cathey #999228 A dear and beloved friend asked of me to write an article that elucidated how one felt being on death row and to be honest, I didn't think I would be up to par to write on that particular subject. However, as I meditated on my friend's request, I came to understand that we the death row captives, have an obligation (our duty if you will) to not only express truthfully our experiences, but to also combat the falsehood, that each and everyone of us here are a future threat and menace to society. For I know without a doubt that I am not a future threat to anyone. Besides each of us, as human beings, are individually unique with a distinctive capability that enables us to offer something special through our life experiences. Now for one who has been wrongfully convicted of a crime, by those in power whose duty was to seek justice, I found it to be one of the worse form of mental molestation that a person can experience. Each of us in society, regardless of our class or creed, harbored some form of faith (one time or another) that our judicial system functions in a way to insure, that only the guilty would be prosecuted. Thus the reason why many of us have heard the familiar expression - Well you must have done something wrong, for them to have arrested you -- But the truth of the matter is one has no need to commit a wrongful act to be found 'guilty.' Sometimes race, financial insufficiency, greed, or even a bad reputation is all the motivation that is needed for a person in the law enforcement community to become blinded or blatantly ignore the reality they are pursuing the wrong individual. Therefore, an action of that nature will only cause whatever faith we may have had in the system to crumble. And I for one wasnt immune.. True I have not lived a life that anyone would consider perfect. I have done my share of things that were good as well as bad. But I never murdered anyone. So naturally I became resentful . I was a person filled with anger, frustration and despair, as I now faced the psychological and emotional torment that prison environment produced. I have been on my own taking care of personal responsibilities since I was 15 years old. So the sense of helplessness that one felt not being able to simply provide for ones own needs, was something that threatened to strip me of my dignity as a man, not to mention the fact that malevolent attitudes that some prison guards and ranking officials display, can easily plant seeds of insecurity,
[Deathpenalty]death penalty news----TEXAS, FLA., USA, N.J.
Jan. 1 TEXAS: Court shows scorn for civil rights Texas is 1st in the nation in executions, with 336 since 1976. But to keep the state's machinery of death humming at top speed, the courts that oversee the process have been short-changing justice. The state's Court of Criminal Appeals and the federal 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals have, at times, barely acknowledged the due process guarantees afforded capital defendants, leading an exasperated U.S. Supreme Court to take more appeals from Texas. The extremity of the problem was voiced recently by Justice Sandra Day O'Connor - not known as an opponent of the death penalty - who wrote in June that the 5th Circuit pays lip service to principles in death penalty rulings. Before the court now is the case of Thomas Miller-El, a black man convicted of murdering a clerk at a Holiday Inn in Dallas in 1985. The high court already has heard this case once. In 2003, in an 8-to-1 ruling, the court said that Miller-El appears to be the victim of the kind of racial bias in jury selection that was historically used as a regular tactic by Dallas prosecutors. It then returned the case to the 5th Circuit for a final judgment. But because the lower federal court ignored the findings of the Supreme Court and discounted the evidence of systematic exclusion, the Supreme Court has to wade into the case again. Dallas has a long, sorry history of excluding racial minorities from juries. At one time prosecutors were instructed in writing not to allow Jews, Negroes, Dagos, Mexicans or a member of any minority race on a jury, no matter how rich or well educated. While that particular manual was retired before Miller-El faced a jury in 1986, the biased practices persisted. Prosecutors in his case twice used a technique known as a jury shuffle to move potential black jurors down the list of prospects. And they used their peremptory challenges to remove 10 of 11 eligible black jurors. During oral arguments last month, Justice Stephen Breyer read essentially identical answers to prosecutors questions about the death penalty from 1 black and 1 white potential juror. Only the black juror was challenged. The 5th Circuit had dismissed these blatantly discriminatory acts, finding valid reasons for each peremptory strike. And in open defiance of the Supreme Court, the court virtually transcribed paragraphs from Justice Clarence Thomas' lone dissent without attribution and used them in its majority opinion to justify finding against Miller-El. The high court cannot allow this insubordination. It must forcefully respond. Perhaps most saddening is that there was a time when the 5th Circuit, headquartered in New Orleans, was considered a beacon of civil rights. Its judges ushered in a new era of legal equality and justice. Jurists such as Judge John Minor Wisdom and Judge Elbert Tuttle passionately enforced the rule of law, despite the deep institutional and public resistance to their desegregation rulings. They have been replaced with judges who display a hostility toward the due process rights in the Constitution. For the sake of justice, the Supreme Court will have to keep a careful eye on the 5th Circuit. (source: Editorial, St. Petersburg Times) Texas judge challenges death-penalty bid A judge hearing the case involving the nation's deadliest human-smuggling attempt said she will tell jurors that prosecutors ignored her order to show why they are seeking the death penalty for the man accused of driving and abandoning the tractor-trailer. In a ruling made public Thursday, U.S. District Judge Vanessa Gilmore said she will let Tyrone Williams' attorneys use the government's refusal of her order as evidence during the penalty phase if he is convicted on a death-penalty charge. The defense says Williams was singled out for the death penalty because he is black, a charge denied by the government. Prosecutors say information about why they want an execution is privileged. Williams, 33, is accused of driving the tractor-trailer that was abandoned in May 2003 at a truck stop near Victoria, about 100 miles southwest of Houston. Seventeen immigrants were found dead in the trailer, and two more died later. Jury selection is to begin Wednesday. (source: Seattle Times) * Lawsuit demands DA's removal 44 people in San Augustine and Sabine counties are asking a judge to remove the district attorney. The lawsuit against District Attorney John C. Fisher was filed Wednesday afternoon, according to county officials and court records. Fisher has been the district attorney since January 2001 for the First Judicial District of Texas, which covers both Sabine and San Augustine counties. He was re-elected in this year's March primary. Fisher could not be reached for comment Wednesday. The petition states Fisher should be removed on the grounds he is incompetent, or has engaged in incompetence or official misconduct and cites 10
[Deathpenalty]death penalty news----TEXAS, FLA., USA, IND.
March 22 TEXAS: CRIMINAL JUSTICE---Ex-prosecutors could defend capital cases Former prosecutors without experience as defense attorneys could find themselves appointed to help indigent defendants facing the death penalty. That was the thrust of legislation that received tentative approval in the Texas House on Thursday and will receive a final vote today. The bill by Rep. Terry Keel, R-Austin, would create a larger pool of lawyers who could be appointed to represent indigent defendants. Existing law requires a lawyer to have experience as a lead defense counsel in a significant number of felony cases, including murder trials, before appointment to a death penalty case. Supporters of House Bill 268 say former prosecutors have experience and skills that defense attorneys lack, including knowledge of what to expect from prosecutors. Critics, however, say the bill is a step backward in the effort to raise the quality of lawyers in death penalty cases. They support a separate bill, Senate Bill 1218, by Sen. Rodney Ellis, D-Houston, which would increase state funding for indigent defense to reduce the financial burden on counties, which pay 90 % of the legal fees. (source: Statesman) FLORIDA: Slain Girl's Father Seeks Death Penalty The father of 9-year-old Jessica Marie Lunsford, kidnapped and killed by a man identified as a convicted sex offender, wants the suspect to get the death penalty. John Evander Couey, 46, was charged with capital murder, battery, kidnapping and sexual battery on a child under the age of 12, according to the Citrus County Sheriff's Office. He was to be arraigned on Tuesday. I just want him to die, Jessica's father, Mark Lunsford, said of Couey on CNN's Larry King Live. If you commit a heinous crime against a child you should receive the death penalty, Lunsford said. Officials said Couey confessed to kidnapping and killing Jessica. Jessica, a 3rd grader, was last seen the night of Feb. 23 when she went to bed after attending church. Medical examiners said she was sexually assaulted and died of asphyxiation. Jessica's body was found early Saturday behind a house about 150 yards from her home, more than three weeks after she disappeared from her bedroom. Couey entered the Lunsford house through an unlocked door and later sexually assaulted her, police said. Detectives might never know how long Jessica was held before she was killed since Couey was under the influence of drugs, officials said. Lunsford, Jessica's father, said he felt guilty that he was not at home that night. We have to save our children from people like this, Lunsford said. It's time to change some of our laws. Lunsford said he will campaign to get stricter penalties and laws regarding registering sex offenders. Lunsford added that not everyone has a computer to look up list of offenders and the lists should be readily available for all to see. They should be tagged, they should be branded, Lunsford said of sex offenders. Gov. Jeb Bush said earlier that he was wary about such proposals. We should be cautious about doing something that would expand the net so wide as to not accomplish the desired effect and get into a problem, Bush said. (source: Associated Press) USA: Ban capital punishment A majority of states have rejected the imposition of the death penalty on juvenile offenders under 18, and we now hold this is required by the Eighth Amendment. So, the United States Supreme Court on March 1 ruled that capital punishment of those under 18 at the time of the crime is cruel and unusual punishment, which is prohibited by the Eighth Amendment. The lives of 72 young condemned have been saved. This ruling in the Rogers v. Simmons case reverses the high court's ruling in the case of Stanford v. Kentucky on June 26, 1949, when, in another 5-4 decision, the court ruled: We discern neither a historical nor a modern societal consensus forbidding the impositions of capital punishment on any person who murders at 16 or 17 years of age. Accordingly, we conclude that such punishment does not offend the Eighth Amendment's prohibition against cruel and unusual punishment. If our nation's highest court can so quickly and completely reverse itself on what is the meaning of, and the effect of, cruel and unusual punishment, why is it impossible to believe that someday the United States Supreme Court will rule that all capital punishment is cruel and unusual - as it surely is. California's San Quentin Prison is building a new death row to hold the state's 644 condemned prisoners. That there are so many condemned and so few executions - just 59 in 2004 in the entire U.S. - makes the death penalty surely unusual. And who will contend that keeping condemned prisoners in their cells for 23 out of every 24 hours - where they are very carefully deprived of any opportunity (such as pills) to take their own lives - who will contend that this and the spread-eagling ceremony are not cruel? Does
