[Deathpenalty] death penalty news----worldwide
January 9 CHINA: Chinese court gives revenge killer death penalty A man from Hanzhong, Shaanxi province, was sentenced to death on Tuesday for killing 3 neighbors in revenge for his mother’s death, a local court said. Zhang Koukou, 36, stabbed Wang Zixin and two of his sons, Wang Zhengjun and Wang Xiaojun, to death on Feb 15 and then set fire to Wang Xiaojun’s car, according to the Hanzhong Intermediate People’s Court. Zhang was detained two days later when he turned himself in to police. “The defendant committed the crimes of intentional homicide and property destruction,” the court said. “Although he surrendered, we still decided not to give him lenient punishment for his cruel behavior, which have had great negative effects on society.” Zhang said he was unhappy with the ruling and would appeal to a higher court. The case aroused public attention after it was reported in the media that Zhang acted in revenge for the death of his mother, who had been seriously injured with a stick by Wang Zhengjun, the 3rd son of Wang’s family, during a quarrel in August 1996. 4 months later, Wang Zhengjun, then 17, was sentenced to seven years in prison for intentional injury and was ordered to pay more than 9,600 yuan ($1,510) in compensation. Standing trial on Tuesday, Zhang confessed that for two decades he never gave up the idea of getting revenge for the attack on his mother. “If Wang Zhengjun hadn’t beaten my mother, I wouldn’t have lost her. I was dogged by her death over the years,” he said. “My mind went blank and I couldn’t control myself when I saw the brothers on Feb 15 last year. They reminded me of my mother’s death.” Prosecutors said during the public hearing that Zhang followed the brothers as they made their way home and used a knife to stab the two men several times. He later went to the Wangs’ residence and killed the father, Wang Zixin, 70, and set Wang Xiaojun’s car on fire with gasoline, prosecutors said. “The defendant was upset and angry with the Wang family,” the court said in the ruling, adding he committed the offenses with sufficient preparation. Members of Zhang’s family said they had not been satisfied with the sentence given to Wang Zhengjun more than 20 years ago. Zhang Furu, the defendant’s father, added that it was the Wang family that let the son, who was a minor, take the blame and get a lenient penalty because of his age. Zhang’s family had applied to the intermediate court and the provincial high court last year for a retrial of the 1996 assault, but the application was rejected. (source:newsinfo.inquirer.net) INDIA: Mane's death penalty to life term On January 25, 2012, Mane, a Maharashtra state transport driver, had hijacked a bus and mowed down 9 persons. The Supreme Court (SC) on Wednesday commuted to life imprisonment the death sentence awarded to bus driver Santosh Mane, convicted for killing 9 people in 2012, by mowing them down in Pune. On January 25, 2012, Mane, a Maharashtra state transport driver, had hijacked a bus and mowed down nine persons. He was awarded the death sentence in 2013 by a sessions court, which had termed Mane's crime “rarest of rare”. Mane appealed the verdict in the Bombay High Court but in September 2014, the Bombay HC upheld the death penalty. Mane's laywer had urged to court to acquit his client of the murder charges because he was “mentally unsound” when he committed the crime. Mane's lawyers then approached the SC against conviction and argued that his case be considered under provisions of Section 84 of the Indian Penal Code, which grants immunity to a person who “commits a crime while being in a state of unsound mind, thereby not knowing the nature of the act.” (source: india.com) * Bill in LS for death under POCSO20-yr jail for penetrative assault on below-16 victims The government today introduced a crucial Bill in the Lok Sabha to provide for death penalty in cases of aggravated sexual assault on children and a minimum of 20-year rigorous imprisonment for penetrative sexual assault on children below 16 years. The law defines aggravated sexual assault as assault by people in positions of authority and trust like police personnel, soldiers, principals, heads of child shelter homes, hospital staff, among others. The new Bill amends The Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act 2015 to enhance punishments for a range of sexual crimes against children and empower the Centre to make rules to check pornography, besides providing for higher prison sentences for convicts of pornography. The POCSO Amendment Bill 2019 for the first time talks about the need to provide for capital punishment to deal with the rarest of rare crimes (aggravated assault) against children, besides extending jail terms for all sections related to child sexual assault. The most important amendment has been proposed to Section 9
[Deathpenalty] death penalty news----TEXAS, VA., FLA., ALA., OHIO, KY., TENN., UTAH, CALIF., WASH.
January 9 TEXAS: Supreme Court rejects appeal from former Missouri City cop on death row The U.S. Supreme Court on Monday turned down an appeal from a former Missouri City police officer convicted of hiring a hitman to kill his wife, 1 of 2 Houston-area death row losses in the high court this week. Though he has consistently maintained his innocence, Robert Fratta was sentenced to death in 1996 after a Harris County jury found him guilty of masterminding a murder-for-hire plot designed to do away with his wife Farah. "I'm completely innocent of my wife Farah's death," Fratta wrote in an appeal he filed himself, alleging he was framed by his slain wife's father. "The evidence was also legally insufficient. Yet here I set on Texas Death Row awaiting execution unless this Court intervenes." Robert and Farah Fratta were embroiled in a heated divorce and custody battle when the 34-year-old mother was shot in the head while stepping out of her car at their home. The ex-officer and erstwhile firefighter was at church at the time, but investigators flagged him as a suspect in part because he'd reportedly asked around for a hitman before the crime. In the end, prosecutors said, he hired Joseph Prystash, who in turn hired a 3rd man to carry out the killing. All three men are now on death row. Written from a prison typewriter, the appeal the court declined to review on Monday raised a slew of questions including everything from claims about allegedly ineffective lawyers to insufficiency of the evidence used to convict him and problems with jury instructions during his trial. But at the heart of the claim are questions about whether Fratta was allowed to file his own appeals in tandem with attorneys' filings - something lower courts did not let him do, repeatedly ignoring some of the claims he filed himself. "The rule of law is taking another hit," said attorney James Rytting, who represents the condemned former officer. "Robert Fratta's trial was deeply flawed, (he) proved that himself and was penalized for figuring out serious problems with his trial on his own and for trying to bring them to the courts' attention." In addition to turning down Fratta's case, the court declined to review the conviction of Shelton Jones, who was convicted of the 1991 killing Houston police officer Bruno D. Soboleski. Neither Jones nor Fratta has an execution date set. (source: Houston Chronicle) VIRGINIA: Judge denies request for jury questionnaire in MS-13 case Attorneys won’t use questionnaires to vet jurors who might decide a trial for an alleged gang member and murder defendant who could face the death penalty, a judge determined Tuesday. Kevin Josue Soto Bonilla, 21, will be the 2nd co-defendant to face trial in the murder case of Lynchburg teen Raymond Wood. The 1st, 21-year-old Victor Arnoldo Rodas, was found guilty of first-degree murder and other charges in an October trial. The jury recommended he spend 55 years in prison. Bedford County Circuit Court Judge James Updike is scheduled to review Rodas’ sentencing on Feb. 15, and Soto Bonilla is set for a 10-day jury trial to start Feb. 26, according to Commonwealth’s Attorney Wes Nance. In recent months, Soto Bonilla’s attorneys have filed a number of motions to ensure he receives a fair trial. Since he is charged with capital murder, Virginia law requires the court to appoint him 2 certified attorneys. One of the lawyers, Anthony Anderson, said the capital nature of the case and the fact that Nance has filed a notice of intent to seek the death penalty warrants enhanced discretion in jury selection. A sample juror questionnaire filed by the attorneys asks 42 questions. Some of them include, “Do you believe that members of some racial or ethnic groups are more violent than others?” and, “Are you aware of holding any negative feelings or opinions towards people who illegally immigrated to the United States?” Others ask about knowledge of the case from news coverage, opinion on the death penalty and the MS-13 gang. Nance pointed out in court that the 10-day allowance for trial should provide enough time to talk with jurors, and many answers on the questionnaire might prompt further questions and discussions in court anyway. Updike referenced his experience as a prosecutor to say he hasn’t found jury questionnaires actually save time in the selection process and denied the motion. Soto Bonilla’s attorneys also sought to try the case in a jurisdiction other than Bedford County, citing potential pre-formed and “vehemently held” views on the case and topics like border security. Nance said publicity of the killing and Rodas’ trial alone isn’t enough to move the trial, and there were only quick references to Soto Bonilla during the trial. Updike took that motion under advisement, meaning he will rule on it at a later date. A number matters in the case will be argued on
