[Deathpenalty] death penalty news----TEXAS, FLA., ALA., OHIO, TENN.
Oct. 11 TEXAS: The fight to save Rodney Reed from execution in Texas In 1998, Rodney Reed, who is African-American, was sentenced to death by an all-white jury in Bastrop, Texas, for the rape and murder of Stacey Stites, a 19-year-old white woman. He's scheduled to be executed on Nov. 20. Reed, now 53, maintains his innocence. The only evidence used to convict him was DNA that Reed says was present because he and Stites were having a secret affair — a claim Stites's cousin corroborates. Reed's defense attorneys believe that further DNA tests of the crime scene could prove his innocence, but their requests have been denied, leading them to file a lawsuit in federal court. They also recently petitioned the U.S. Supreme Court to halt the execution, citing "new and comprehensive evidence for innocence." Among the new pieces of evidence Reed's lawyers cite are statements from two witnesses who claim they have information that links Stites's then-fiancé, Jimmy Fennell, to the crime. Fennell, a former police officer in Giddings, Texas, was recently released from prison after serving 10 years for the kidnapping and assault of a woman. There were critical inconsistencies in Fennell's accounts of where he was and what he was doing the night of the murder. One of the new witnesses who's come forward is a life insurance salesperson who said that while Fennell was applying for a policy he threatened to kill Stites if she ever cheated on him. The other witness, a sheriff's deputy in Texas's Lee County, said he overheard Fennell say to Stites' body at her funeral, "You got what you deserved." In addition, forensic experts who implicated Reed at trial have recanted, while forensic pathologists have said the prosecution's theory of Reed's guilt is medically and scientifically impossible. That Reed is still on death row despite all the evidence casting doubt on his guilt is indicative of the larger issues around the death penalty — particularly as it pertains to race. In the U.S., race is the single greatest predictor of who gets the death penalty, not the severity of the crime. Even though whites account for just 55 % of murder victims nationwide, they account for 80 percent of murder victims in cases resulting in an execution. Those convicted of killing white victims are three times more likely to be sentenced to death than those convicted of killing non-white victims. The disparities in who is executed are especially stark in Texas, which has the nation's third-largest death row population and accounted for more than 1/2 of all the executions in the U.S. last year. Of the states with more than 10 people currently facing execution, Texas has the highest number of minorities on death row. While African Americans make up only 12.6 % of Texas's population, 43.9 % of its death row inmates are Black. These statistics are particularly alarming when one considers that 166 people have been exonerated from death row. Of these, nearly 1/2 are Black, and nearly 50 are Black men from the South. Reed's family has organized a grassroots effort called the Reed Justice Initiative that is working to save Reed's life while also supporting families who are dealing with similar situations. Reed's cause also has help from the nationally recognized anti-death penalty activist Sister Helen Prejean and the Innocence Project, which has launched a petition seeking to halt his execution. "The evidence supporting Reed's innocence is uncontradicted and undeniable, and without the Supreme Court's intervention, I fear the State of Texas may execute an innocent man," said Bryce Benjet, Reed's lawyer and senior staff attorney at the Innocence Project. (source: Facing South) ** New Podcast: Texas Lawyer James Rytting on Junk Science and the Execution of Larry Swearingen In the latest episode of Discussions with DPIC, Texas capital defense lawyer James Rytting discusses the case of his client, Larry Swearingen, and the junk science that led to the execution of a man legitimate science strongly suggests was innocent. Rytting describes the false forensic analysis presented under the guise of science in Swearingen’s case, the appellate process that makes it “almost impossible” to obtain review of new evidence, and the persistent problem of wrongful convictions. Larry Swearingen was executed on August 21, 2019 after multiple courts declined to review evidence supporting his innocence claim. In the interview, Rytting explains the problems with the prosecution’s “smoking gun,” a piece of pantyhose used to strangle the victim, Melissa Trotter. The prosecution told the jury that a matching piece of pantyhose had been found in Swearingen’s home. In reality, that supposedly matching piece of the pantyhose had not been discovered in 2 initial searches of Swearingen’s house. It was only “found” in a 3rd search of the residence after Trotter’s body was fou
[Deathpenalty] death penalty news----TEXAS, FLA., ALA., LA., OHIO
Oct. 10 TEXAS: With a wide variety of headlines dominating both global and domestic news, it is easy to overlook that today is World Day to Abolish the Death Penalty. It is clear that since the early 1980s, the majority of the world's nations have become better educated about the inherent flaws of every death penalty system in the world, and have committed themselves to the defense, protection and advocacy of human rights and human dignity. Sadly, the US is not one of these nations. We continue to embrace an archaic, barbaric, racist and mistake-prone system in which we justify hanging, gassing, electrocuting, shooting and chemically poisoning some convicted felons in the perverted notion of "justice". Texas itself leads the entire free world in executions since we resumed the practice in 1982. As we go to the polls next year, we would do well to hold our politicians accountable to all human rights issues, and ideally support someone who at the very least is willing to help make America a death penalty-free nation. Rick Halperin, Amnesty International (source: Dallas Morning News) *** Journalist talks about reconciling faith and career of covering executions Michael Graczyk, a parishioner at a Catholic church in Montgomery County, Texas, has personally witnessed more than 400 executions of Texas inmates in death penalty cases in his career as a journalist. An Associated Press reporter since 1983, Graczyk retired last year and still freelances for AP, continuing to witness executions, including 9 scheduled through the end of this year. "When you walk into the death chamber, you check your emotions at the door. I usually check my emotions at the prison gate," he said. "I've gotten to know many of the inmates through interviews. I also have sentiments for the families of the victims, who have to wait 10 or 20 years for the punishment to be carried out." Since Catholic teaching is pro-life, from conception to natural death, Graczyk reconciles the two parts of himself with a Scripture passage. "I look to the biblical passage 'render unto Caesar what is Caesar's.' Since this is the government doing these, I can remain faithful to the teachings of the church," Graczyk told the Texas Catholic Herald, newspaper of the Archdiocese of Galveston-Houston. "The Catholic Church many times has been alone in its protection of life from conception to natural death. Liberals opposed to capital punishment are often times in favor of abortion. Conservatives are against abortion, but then favor the death penalty," he said. Executions used to be front-page news and network TV news regularly covered them, but now they are relegated to inside pages or a few seconds of a sound bite. "Back in the 1980s, it used to be a really big deal and significant media event. Executions should never be considered routine, but there does seem to be a public acceptance of it," he said. Hundreds of protesters would show up, many times for midnight candlelight vigils that included both pro-death penalty and anti-penalty protesters. "Some of those were Sam Houston University students who came from down the road in Huntsville. Now maybe there is a core group of protesters ranging from 1 to 2 dozen who show up in the heat, rain or cold," he said. But studies have not been able to conclude whether capital punishment is a deterrent for others not to commit crime. "I've interviewed hundreds of inmates and none of them said that capital punishment would have prevented them from crime," he said. 2 of the 9 scheduled for execution by the end of the year are part of the group of prisoners who escaped in 2000 and were convicted of fatally shooting a 31-year-old police officer on Christmas Eve in Irving. One of the toughest cases Graczyk remembers covering is the dragging death of an African American man, James Byrd Jr., killed 21 years ago in a hate crime on a secluded road outside Jasper. 2 white men were executed in the case, John William King, executed this past spring, and Lawrence Russell Brewer was put to death in 2011. A 3rd participant, Shawn Allen Berry, was sentenced to life in prison. "Emotionally, the Jasper cases were real tough. We went to Jasper, saw the 3 guys arrested, went to the asphalt road where it happened and there was still blood," he said. He also recalled covering the execution of the 1st woman on death row since the Civil War. Karla Faye Tucker was given a lethal injection in 1998 for killing 2 people with a pickax during a burglary. But Graczyk said he doesn't see any strong enough movement to stop executions in Texas. "It remains a hot topic, but there is no appetite in the Texas Legislature to stop it. The U.S. Supreme Court may shut it down again like they did in the 1960s until executions were resumed a decade later," he said. In 1964, judicial challenges to capital punishment resulted in a de facto
[Deathpenalty] death penalty news----TEXAS, FLA., ALA., NEV., USA
Oct. 5 TEXASstay of 2 impending executions Texas Courts Halt 2 Imminent Executions Texas state courts have halted the executions of 2 condemned prisoners who had been facing imminent execution dates. On October 4, 2019, the Texas Court of Criminal Appeals stayed the October 10 execution of Randy Halprin and directed a Dallas trial court to consider his claim that the religious bigotry of the judge who presided over his case denied him a fair trial before an impartial tribunal. The previous day, a Henderson County District Court judge withdrew the death warrant that had scheduled Randall Mays to die on October 16, amid concerns that Mays may be mentally incompetent. The twin rulings were a dramatic development in the continuing saga involving the Lone Star State’s efforts to execute 13 prisoners in the last 5 months of 2019. A DPIC analysis of those cases found that they raised troubling questions of innocence, significantly flawed legal proceedings, junk science, and diminished culpability arising from one or more of mental illness, intellectual disability, youthfulness, and chronic exposure to trauma. Supported by a coalition of national and local Jewish organizations, Halprin, who is Jewish, filed petitions in the state and federal courts seeking a stay of execution and a new trial based upon recently discovered evidence of his trial judge’s virulently anti-Semitic statements and beliefs. He supported his claim with affidavits from court personnel who said that his trial judge, Vickers Cunningham, disparaged Halprin as “a f***in’ Jew” and “g**damn k**e,” and made racist comments about his Latino co-defendants. One court employee said Cunningham had bragged that, during their trial, “[f]rom the w**back to the Jew, they knew they were going to die.” Halprin’s defense team began investigating Cunningham’s possible anti-Semitic bias after learning from a report in The Dallas Morning News in 2018 that Cunningham had put provisions in his will that conditioned his children’s inheritance upon marrying a straight, white Christian. Halprin’s current counsel, assistant federal defender Tivon Schardl, praised the state court’s decision, as “a signal that bigotry and bias are unacceptable in the criminal justice system.” “A fair trial requires an impartial judge, and Mr. Halprin did not have a fair and neutral judge when his life was at stake,” Schardl said. Mays’ death warrant was withdrawn by Henderson County District Judge Joe Clayton after defense lawyers moved to have May declared incompetent to be executed. The defense motion said that prison mental health personnel had recently diagnosed Mays with schizophrenia and prescribed him anti-psychotic medication. A forensic psychiatrist reported that Mays’ mental health condition has deteriorated, that he is increasingly delusional and incoherent, and that he claims the prison guards are poisoning the air vents in his cell. Mays was convicted and sentenced to death for killing 2 county sheriff’s deputies. The competency pleading says he believes he is to be executed because he has designed a process for creating renewable energy that threatens the interests of the oil companies. Judge Clayton wrote that he withdrew the execution date so the court could have time to “properly review all medical records submitted.” (source: Death Penalty Information Center) *** "Texas 7" member Randy Halprin wins stay of execution amid claim of anti-Semitic judgeHalprin's lawyers had requested the stay amid allegations that the judge who handled his case made racist and anti-Semitic comments during his time on the bench. Editor's note: This story contains explicit language and has been updated throughout. The Texas Court of Criminal Appeals halted the execution of Randy Halprin on Friday, less than a week before he was to be put to death. Halprin, one of the infamous "Texas Seven" — who were convicted in the 2000 murder of a police officer during a more than month-long prison escape — had recently argued that his trial was biased because his judge was "a racist and anti-Semitic bigot." Halprin, who is Jewish, said in his latest appeal that former Judge Vickers Cunningham had described Halprin as “a fuckin’ Jew” and “goddamn kike” shortly after the trial. Cunningham also admitted to putting stipulations in his will that his children could only receive inheritance by marrying a straight, white Christian, as was first reported by The Dallas Morning News in 2018. The Court of Criminal Appeals, Texas’ highest criminal court, stopped Halprin’s execution, set for next Thursday, and sent the case back to the Dallas County trial court for further review of the claims. "A fair trial requires an impartial judge – and Mr. Halprin did not have a fair and neutral judge when his life was at stake," one of Halprin's attorneys, Tivon Schardl, said in a statement afte
[Deathpenalty] death penalty news----TEXAS, FLA., MISS., KY., MO.
Oct. 2 TEXAS: UT Amnesty International chaper holds rally for death row inmate Rodney Reed The UT Amnesty International chapter held a protest Tuesday at West Mall in support of Rodney Reed, who was convicted of murder in 1998 and has been on death row in Texas for 23 years. Amnesty International is the largest human rights organization in the world, and UT’s chapter works to spread awareness about human rights abuses, according to the organization’s websites. A couple dozen protestors encouraged bystanders and nearby students to take flyers and sign clemency letters on Reed’s behalf. Zoe Marshall, a UT Amnesty International officer, said chapter members have been closely following Reed’s case, and they believe the evidence shows he is innocent. She said the chapter’s top priority is engaging with and lobbying for this issue in state government. “This case really matters, not just because it involves the death penalty but because Rodney Reed is an innocent man, and he was not given a fair trial,” history senior Marshall said. “Amnesty International stands for fairness and justice for everyone, especially in an instance where this man could be facing death. It’s a case that has lots of urgency for us right now.” Members of Rodney Reed’s family were also present at the protest, including his brother Rodrick and stepsister Wana. “I have been in support of my brother from day one, and I will continue to support him as long a I have a breath in my body,” Rodrick said. “It’s very important that my family and these students get involved because it affects everybody. It is injustice, and when you do it to one person, you’ve done it to us all.” Public relations sophomore Tavia Zepeda said she believes it was “pretty clear” that Reed’s race and socioeconomic status has to do with him being convicted. “It’s almost a never ending story of white police officers taking advantage of black lives,” Zepeda said. Government senior Jenny Matthews said the fight for justice ultimately rests in the hands of the current generation of college students. “The prelaw students here are going to be the ones trying cases like this in the future,” Matthews said. “We’re the future leaders of America … The people in power seem to have no interest in this. Their only interest is in holding up the status quo. They’re not interested in getting people like Rodney Reed out, and we need to change that.” (source: The (Univ. of Texas) Daily Texan) FLORIDA: Jury questioning begins for Michael Jones' death penalty trial in murder of Diana Duve Michael Jones sat passively in court Tuesday as a few people called for jury duty described in detail what they knew about how he’s accused of killing Diana Duve in 2014 after the couple met for drinks at a local bar. Most of the pool of 33 potential jurors called to court for Jones' death penalty trial said they didn’t know anything about the former wealth management advisor, or Duve’s homicide, which police said happened in the early hours of June 20, 2014. Jones, 36, who arrived in court wearing a suit jacket, white dress shirt and blue tie, is charged with 1st-degree murder and faces the death penalty if convicted. He's pleaded not guilty and is being held at the Indian River County Jail. By midday, 6 prospective jurors had been released from serving on his jury. Michael Jones murder trial: “Could you vote for death?” Some recited facts they’d read in recent media reports and during the past 5 years. A few recalled that Jones and Duve had dated and that he’s accused of strangling her then putting her body in the trunk of her car and driving it to another county. Duve was discovered in the trunk of her Nissan Altima in a Melbourne parking lot. Jones was charged with murder days later. One woman who was cut from the jury said she worked as a medical biller and knew Duve, who was a nurse at Sebastian Medical Center. The woman said one of her nurse friends was close to Duve. Duve's parents, Lena and Bill Andrews and other family members silently watched the proceedings in court. One man dismissed from the jury pool said it didn’t matter if state prosecutors proved Jones was guilty, he’d still find him innocent out of fear of retribution if there was a conviction. A couple of people said they’d already decided he was guilty and it would be difficult to set aside their strong opinions about the case. As 15 jurors were quizzed one at a time, Jones sat at the defense table with his public defender legal team, taking notes on a legal pad. He showed no emotion but seemed to be listening to each person as they spoke. After a lunch break, prosecutors and Jones’ lawyers continued speaking to a group of 25 people covering a range of questions about their beliefs related to the death penalty and their experience with or exposure to domestic violence. "I'm interested in your personal feelings about the death
[Deathpenalty] death penalty news----TEXAS, FLA., TENN., KY., ILL.
Sept. 27 TEXAS: Texas Recently Murdered a Man for a Crime Experts Say He Did Not CommitLarry Swearingen was put to death for a murder and a rape that the science says he did not do. His last words were those of Jesus Christ. Pious Catholic barbarians say things like, “Oh well! La di dah! If he’s innocent then he’ll to heaven! No harm done! Let’s kill some more because of something something retributive justice! Ignore the teaching of Holy Church calling for the abolition of the death penalty. I have a book here by Ed Feser that says killing prisoners is fine so that makes it okay to fight the Church. And besides, abortion is worse and so it’s okay if I wink at the murder of an innocent man. It’s just one guy. God won’t notice if I cheer for just one murder.” What they don’t seem to grasp is that pious barbarians could have said the same thing when they murdered Jesus. The thing is, the fact he went to heaven did not do his murderers any good. That’s the thing: the death penalty doesn’t just kill the victim. It kills the soul of the person who cheers for the death of innocents in the lust for the blood of the guilty. The problem with the death penalty is, then, basically tripartite: 1.It kills people who do not need to be killed. 2.It kills completely innocent people in order to kill people who do not need to be killed. 3.It makes the people who kill them into people who are eager to kill completely innocent people in order to kill people who do not need to be killed. In addition to this, it makes Catholic death penalty defenders into people willing to make war on the Church in order to become people who are eager to kill completely innocent people in order to kill people who do not need to be killed. (source: patheos.com) DNA Testing Could Save This Texas Man’s Life. But Prosecutors Are Opposing It.Rodney Reed, set to be executed on Nov. 20, is innocent of a rape and murder, his lawyers say, and untested evidence will prove it. But prosecutors have pushed back, arguing the evidence is contaminated. For the last 2 decades, Rodney Reed has said he can prove he is innocent of the crimes that landed him on Texas’s death row. The key to his freedom, he has argued, lies in a box in the Bastrop County clerk’s office. The box contains items—including a belt, name tag, shirt, and two beer cans—found in 1996 near the dead body of 19-year-old Stacey Stites. On these items, Reed has maintained, is biological material from Stites’s killer, and testing will show that material does not belong to him. Prosecutors, however, have said that Reed, who in 1998 was convicted of raping and murdering Stites, could not be innocent. They have opposed testing the evidence, which includes the murder weapon, as the case has wound its way through state and federal courts. In August, Reed’s attorneys filed a federal civil rights lawsuit, arguing that executing him without first conducting DNA testing is a violation of his constitutional rights. And on Tuesday, they asked the U.S. Supreme Court to consider his innocence claims. In that filing, Reed’s attorneys asked whether convicting or executing a person who is innocent violates the U.S. constitution. Reed is scheduled to die by lethal injection on Nov. 20. As DNA testing has become more advanced, so has its ability to provide crucial information that can reconstruct who was present at a crime scene. Test results, as part of a larger case, can carry enormous weight: They can help prove that someone is innocent and in some cases, identify the person who committed the crime. Or they can do the opposite and confirm a person’s guilt. In death penalty cases, testing has saved lives. Of the 166 people exonerated from death row since 1973, 21 of those were freed using DNA testing. Still, some prosecutors continue to oppose this testing to re-examine convictions in capital cases. Vanessa Potkin, director of post-conviction litigation at the Innocence Project, told The Appeal that during her time there, at least 6 people have been executed, despite the availability of DNA testing that could prove their innocence. Prosecutors fought against the testing in all of those cases. “We have a human system we know it doesn’t always get it right,” she said. “It’s pretty shocking when you get to a capital case, where the stakes couldn’t be higher, to encounter prosecutorial resistance to simple tests that could get to the truth.” There were no eyewitnesses to support the state’s theory that Reed abducted Stites on her way to work; raped and murdered her; and abandoned her body. Instead, the state’s case hinged on three sperm cells found inside Stites. Prosecutors argued at trial that the cells, which a 1996 DNA test confirmed were Reed’s, proved that he had raped Stites just before killing her. Reed’s attorneys have not disputed that the sperm belongs to their client. Sin
[Deathpenalty] death penalty news-----TEXAS, FLA.
Sept. 22 TEXAS: Rodney Reed's family holds rally, asks for re-trialTexas convicted prisoner Rodney Reed's execution date is two months away, but his family continues to protest, hoping to stop the execution scheduled for November. Rodney Reed's family held a rally in Bastrop on Saturday afternoon with supporters, protesting his execution set for Nov. 20. "It's about truth and justice, not just for Rodney, but for all," said Roderick Reed, Rodney Reed's brother. Reed was found guilty of the rape and murder of Stacey Stites in 1996, after DNA tests linked him to her death. Supporters of Reed claim Stites' killer was actually her fiance at the time; they believe Reed is innocent. "It's been hard," said Roderick Reed. "It's been really hard. It's been trying, but at the end of the day we put our faith in God. We trust in God. Sometimes bad things have to happen to bring in the greater good." Reed's family said they won't stop until Reed is out free. It's been decades of supporting him, with a lot of controversy surrounding the case, but they're sure it'll be worth it. "I just thought it was crazy that Texas was trying to execute someone who had a strong claim of innocence, and there wasn't DNA testing and they weren't willing to exhaust that option before," said Wana Akpan, Reed's sister-in-law. (source: KVUE news) FLORIDA: One last court appearance for suspects charged with FSU professor's murder before trial A man and woman charged in the murder for hire of an FSU professor appeared in a Tallahassee court Friday for the last time in jail blues. On Monday, Katherine Magbanua and Sigfredo Garcia faced jurors in their street clothes. The state is seeking the Death Penalty against the alleged triggerman, Garcia. Professor Dan Markel and Wendi Adelson divorced a year before the murder. Prosecutors consider her family un-indicted co-conspirators and believe they paid Garcia through Magbanua for the hit. On Friday, lawyers squared off over whether pages of divorce filings could be admitted. Prosecutor Georgia Cappleman calling them 500 pages of “bad blood”. “He said there may be some limited exceptions to that if they make a more specific objection, but in general they can come in. Not for particular truth of each pleading, but in general to prove the motive for the crime,” said Cappleman. The trial, which begins Monday, could last as long as 3 weeks. It is a case that is being covered by several major news magazines including 20/20 and Dateline NBC. (source: WJHG TV news) ___ A service courtesy of Washburn University School of Law www.washburnlaw.edu DeathPenalty mailing list DeathPenalty@lists.washlaw.edu http://lists.washlaw.edu/mailman/listinfo/deathpenalty Unsubscribe: http://lists.washlaw.edu/mailman/options/deathpenalty
[Deathpenalty] death penalty news----TEXAS, FLA., OHIO, CALIF.
Sept. 8 TEXAS: County may renew membership in death penalty defender program The Hunt County Commissioners Court is scheduled this week to renew the county’s membership in a program which helps pay for defense attorneys in death penalty capital murder cases. A vote to approve the renewal of the interlocal agreement with Lubbock County through the Regional Public Defender for Capital Cases program is included under the consent calendar for the regular session, starting at 10 a.m. Tuesday inside the Auxiliary Courtroom, 2700 Johnson Street, in Greenville. Hunt County has been a part of the program since first enrolling in August 2012. The West Texas Regional Public Defender Office was established in 2007 through interlocal agreements between the counties in the 7th and 9th judicial regions, with Lubbock County serving as the administrative county. Each participating county agrees to pay a yearly fee, based on its population and the number of capital murder cases it has filed within the last 10 years. The cost of the program to Hunt County is on a sliding scale, with the costs rising each year. There are some limitations to the program. In the event 2 people are charged with capital murder and are facing the death penalty in the same case, the office could only defend 1 of them. The office also doesn’t handle the appeals of any convictions, nor does it pay for “second chair” defense attorneys, both of which would be still be paid for through the county. The office also does not handle capital murder cases where the death penalty is not being sought. Hunt County currently has 4 potential death penalty capital murder cases pending trial, two of which at last report are being represented by the West Texas Regional Public Defender Office. (source: Greenville Herald-Banner) ** Lawyers say the Texas judge who presided over this Jewish death row inmate’s trial later called him anti-Semitic slursLawyers for Randy Halprin, a member of the "Texas Seven," are requesting a stay of his execution amid allegations that the judge who handled his case made racist and anti-Semitic comments during his time on the bench. “Lawyers say the Texas judge who presided over this Jewish death row inmate’s trial later called him anti-Semitic slurs” was first published by The Texas Tribune, a nonprofit, nonpartisan media organization that informs Texans — and engages with them — about public policy, politics, government and statewide issues. Lawyers for “Texas Seven” gang member Randy Halprin, who is Jewish, requested a stay of his execution set for Oct. 10 amid allegations that the judge who handled his case in 2003 made racist and anti-Semitic comments during his time on the bench. In a filing Thursday, Halprin’s lawyers accused former criminal court Judge Vickers Cunningham of describing Halprin using expletive-laden anti-Semitic comments after the trial ended. The Dallas Morning News also reported during Cunningham’s 2018 Republican primary race for Dallas County commissioner that each of his children could only receive an inheritance by marrying a straight, white Christian. During the election, Cunningham acknowledged putting such stipulations in his will. He lost the race by 25 votes. Halprin is on death row for capital murder in connection to a high-profile 2000 prison escape during which seven inmates went on the run. The group robbed a North Texas sporting goods store on Christmas Eve, and Irving police Officer Aubrey Hawkins was shot and killed as he responded to that crime. The escaped inmates fled to Colorado, where most of them were arrested in January 2001. Four of the gang members have already been executed, and a fifth shot himself before police could arrest him. The seventh member is also scheduled to be executed this fall. Halprin’s attorneys wrote in the Texas Court of Criminal Appeals filing that Cunningham could have biased the case in areas ranging from jury selection to evidence submission. Cunningham also prevented the jury from knowing that state officials labeled Halprin as the “weakest” of defendants, according to court documents, which his attorneys said might have caused jurors to consider alternative sentences to the death penalty. Cunningham has denied the allegations of bias in Halprin’s case, and of being racist and anti-Semitic, according to various news reports. The 69-page filing calls Cunningham a “racist and anti-Semitic bigot” in the first sentence and accuses him of believing Jews “needed to be shut down because they controlled all the money and all the power.” Halprin’s lawyers also wrote that minorities who walked into his courtroom knew they were “going to go down” regardless of the evidence or what happened at the trial. Halprin’s federal public defender, Tivon Schardl, said they began looking into Cunningham following the Morning News’ investigation last year. Prior to that,
[Deathpenalty] death penalty news----TEXAS, FLA., ALA.
Sept. 7 TEXASimpending executions Convicted killer of 2 set for execution Fort Worth attorney Greg Westfall labeled Mark Anthony Soliz the “poster child for how stupid the death penalty is.” Former Johnson County Sheriff Bob Alford called Soliz one of the most dangerous men he ever dealt with. Barring an unlikely reprieve, Soliz will almost certainly draw his last breath sometime between 6 p.m. and midnight on Tuesday. Soliz, 37, who has spent the last 7 years on death row at the Polunsky Unit in Livingston, will be transported to Huntsville about 30 miles away where he will be put to death by lethal injection. Johnson County jurors in the 413th District Court sentenced Soliz to death on March 23, 2012, for the June 29, 2010, shooting death of Nancy Hatch Weatherly, 61, in her home near Godley. Soliz earlier that same day shot Ruben Martinez, a delivery man, in the parking lot of a Fort Worth convenience store. Rushed to John Peter Smith Hospital, Martinez died 13 days later. Soliz, at the conclusion of his trial, displayed no emotion as Judge Bill Bosworth read the jury’s verdict. Soliz’ accomplice, Jose Clemente Ramos, pleaded guilty to capital murder on Aug. 10, 2012, and received life in prison without parole. Should his date hold firm, Soliz will become the 6th person executed in Texas this year. Life on death row Robert Hurst, communications officer for the Texas Department of Criminal Justice, points left toward 3 gray buildings. “That’s death row,” Hurst said. “There’s about 210 men there now. The women, they’re kept at Gatesville.” The inmates get about six hours per week outside recreation time should they choose to take advantage of it, but always alone. Otherwise they remain in their single cells even during meals. “No TV,” Hurst said. “Some have a radio but most don’t. They can get newspapers or magazines as long as they’re approved.” TDCJ did away with the last meal request about a decade ago. “One guy requested a huge smorgasbord of food then didn’t eat any of it,” Hurst said. “After that they decided to stop doing that. So that one guy screwed it up for everyone else. Now they get a variety to choose from, usually a choice of a meat, chicken or fish dish.” 2 death row inmates are already in the small booths in the visitor’s section. One looks around occasionally but otherwise stares into space. The second ignores his chair choosing instead to poise himself in a crouched position on a small shelf beneath the phone in his booth. He alternates between looking around and reaching up to touch the ceiling. Both, Hurst explains, are either waiting for their visitors or have already had their visit and are sitting tight until someone comes to take them back to their cells. Soliz, scheduled to arrive any moment, never shows. Although he agreed several days earlier to an interview he pulls a last minute change of mind. Subsequent requests from jailers fall on deaf ears and he refuses to budge. Unfortunately, Hurst says, such is his choice. The jailers can’t force him to talk if he doesn’t want to. Hurst and his fellow workers come off surprisingly courteous and upbeat given the nature of their jobs. Attempts to contact family members of Weatherly and Martinez were also unsuccessful. The cost of justice “It was our most expensive and longest trial in the county’s history,” Johnson County District Attorney Dale Hanna said. “The expense of these type trials is just staggering.” Soliz’ trial cost the county $903,544.13, County Auditor Kirk Kirkpatrick said. Of that total, defense costs ate up $782,517.17 and prosecution expenses $120,891.13. That amount covers only Soliz’ original trial in the 413th District Court. The state footed the bill for the many appeals that followed pushing the total cost to well above $1 million. The trial involved costs that can’t be measured in dollars as well. “It took a year just to prepare for that trial,” Johnson County Assistant District Attorney Martin Strahan said. “I’ve worked on seven capital murder cases since I’ve been here but Soliz was the only death penalty case I’ve had. Fortunately, they’re pretty rare. It takes a lot out of you working a case like that, but in those situations you want to make sure you’re 100 % right. We thought, based on his record, he was a very dangerous person who would hurt other people if there was ever any chance he might be let loose, which is why we decided to go with the death penalty option.” Former Tarrant County Assistant District Attorney Christy Jack assisted the Johnson County District Attorney’s Office in the case against Soliz. This because the chain of events constituting Soliz’ crimes stretched from Tarrant to Johnson County. Jack said she’s worked several capital murder cases both as prosecuting and defense attorney. “Every one you try changes and takes a little bit out of you,” Jack said. “Because you’re askin
[Deathpenalty] death penalty news----TEXAS, FLA., TENN., WYO., CALIF., ORE., USA
August 23 TEXASnew execution date Patrick Murphy has been given an execution date of November 13; the date should be considered serious. (sources: TDCJ & Rick Halperin) * Executions under Greg Abbott, Jan. 21, 2015-present44 Executions in Texas: Dec. 7, 1982present-562 Abbott#scheduled execution date-nameTx. # 45-Sept. 4Billy Crutsinger563 46-Sept. 10---Mark Anthony Soliz--564 47-Sept. 25---Robert Sparks---565 48-Oct. 2-Stephen Barbee--566 49-Oct. 10Randy Halprin---567 50-Oct. 16Randall Mays568 51-Oct. 30Ruben Gutierrez-569 52-Nov. 6-Justen Hall-570 53-Nov. 13Patrick Murphy--571 54-Nov. 20Rodney Reed-572 55-Dec. 11Travis Runnels--573 (sources: TDCJ & Rick Halperin) FLORIDAexecution After late appeals are denied, Florida executes serial killer who targeted gay men across Southeast Florida has put to death the man known as the "I-95 killer," who was convicted of killing 3 people and admitted to killing several more in a 1994 spree targeting gay men. The Supreme Court decided late Thursday not to stay the execution. Gary Ray Bowles, 57, was pronounced dead at 10:58 p.m. ET, Michelle Glady, communications director for the Florida Department of Corrections, said. Bowles' attorneys had appealed to the Supreme Court for a stay, arguing that Bowles is intellectually disabled and that was something no court had considered. The state argued in its response filed with the court that Bowles' attorneys didn't file a proper claim until this week. The matter should be, and was, decided by a lower court of appeals, the state said. Justice Sonia Sotomayor wrote that she believes there were important questions in the case. However, "because I do not believe that the questions as presented merit this Court's review at this time, I do not disagree with the denial of certiorari," she wrote. It could be different in other cases, she said. Inmate wanted cheeseburgers for last meal On Thursday, Bowles woke up at 4 a.m. and was calm and in good spirits, Glady said. The FBI began a national search for Bowles in 1994 after they determined he was killing gay men at locations near the highway from Florida to Maryland, according to the Daytona Beach News-Journal. Once on the FBI's most wanted list, he was arrested in November 1994 in Jacksonville Beach going under an alias. He also was later featured in an episode of A&E's show "The Killer Speaks" as the "I-95 Killer." Bowles pleaded guilty to first-degree murder in 1996 for killing Walter Hinton in Jacksonville Beach, Florida by dropping a 40-pound cement stepping stone onto his sleeping head. Bowles then strangled him and stuffed toilet paper and a rag in his mouth, court documents show. His body was found inside his locked home wrapped in sheets and bedspreads, the documents say. A jury sentenced him to death in 1996 for killing Hinton, but the Florida Supreme Court later reversed the death sentence and remanded the case for a new penalty phase. Another jury unanimously sentenced him to death in 1999, and since then, a series of appeals have been denied by courts leading up to Thursday's expected execution. In addition, he was convicted of first-degree murder in 1997 for robbing and killing John Roberts by strangling him and stuffing a rag in his mouth, according to court documents. He also was convicted in 1996 of murder for killing Albert Morris in a case in which he struck Morris in the head, beat him, shot him, strangled him and tied a towel over his mouth. He was sentenced to life in prison for both of those cases. Convicted killer is 99th person executed in Florida Bowles had several previous charges and was sentenced to prison for beating and raping his girlfriend in 1982. Bowles is the 99th person to be put to death in Florida since capital punishment resumed in 1976. Bobby Joe Long, who was convicted for killing 8 women in the Tampa Bay area in 1984, was executed by the state in May. The executive director of the Florida Conference of Catholic Bishops sent a letter to Gov. Ron DeSantis last week urging him to stop the execution. The organization said Bowles had survived many years of childhood abuse, years of homelessness and child prostitution. "Intentionally ending Mr. Bowles' life is unnecessary," Michael B. Sheedy wrote in the letter. "Society can remain safe from any future violent actions of his through life-long incarceration without parole." (source: CNN) *** Man accused of stabbing Tampa bus driver to death in court as s
[Deathpenalty] death penalty news----TEXAS, FLA., N.MEX., COLO., UTAH, ORE.
August 21 TEXASimpending execution Texas Inmate Larry Swearingen To Be Executed Wednesday For Rape, Murder Of College Student Melissa Trotter A Texas death row inmate is set to be executed Wednesday for the abduction, rape and murder of a Houston area college student more than 20 years ago. Larry Swearingen has continued to maintain his innocence and contends his conviction was based on junk science. The 48-year-old is scheduled to receive a lethal injection in the evening for the December 1998 killing of Melissa Trotter. The 19-year-old was last seen leaving her community college in Conroe, and her body was found nearly a month later in a forest near Huntsville, about 70 miles north of Houston. Prosecutors said they stand behind the “mountain of evidence” used to convict Swearingen in 2000. They described him as a sociopath with a criminal history of violence against women and said he tried to get a fellow death row inmate to take credit for his crime. Swearingen’s longtime appellate attorney, James Rytting, said he would ask the U.S. Supreme Court to halt the execution, arguing that lower courts “have failed to take into account the considerable amount of evidence of innocence.” Swearingen, who is also represented by the Innocence Project, has previously received five stays of execution. Appeals courts and the Texas Board of Pardons and Paroles declined to stop the execution. If it happens, Swearingen would be the 12th inmate put to death this year in the U.S. and the 4th in Texas. Kelly Blackburn, the trial bureau chief for the Montgomery County District Attorney’s Office, which prosecuted Swearingen, said Swearingen’s efforts to discredit the evidence have been unsuccessful because “his experts’ opinions don’t hold water.” “I have absolutely zero doubt that anybody but Larry Swearingen killed … Melissa Trotter,” Blackburn said. During a 2011 interview, Swearingen told The Associated Press that he was tired of being “demonized” for a crime he didn’t commit. “We’d all like to know who done it,” he said. Blackburn said Swearingen killed Trotter because he was angry that she had stood him up for a date. At the time of Trotter’s killing, Swearingen was under indictment for kidnapping a former fiancée. Swearingen has long tried to cast doubt on the evidence used to convict him, particularly claims by prosecution experts that Trotter’s body had been in the woods for 25 days. Rytting said at least 5 defense experts concluded that her body was there for no more than 14 days, and because Swearingen had already been arrested by then, he couldn’t have left her body there. Rytting maintains that a piece of pantyhose used to strangle Trotter was not a match to a piece found in Swearingen’s trailer. He also disputes prosecution experts’ claims dismissing blood found in Trotter’s fingernail shavings, saying the blood, which was determined to not be Swearingen’s, supports the defense theory that someone else killed her. In letters sent to Swearingen’s attorneys in July and August, the Texas Department of Public Safety said its technicians should not have been as definitive in their testimony about the blood found in the fingernails and the pantyhose match. The 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals last week turned down Swearingen’s challenge to the blood evidence and pantyhose match, citing the “mountain of evidence” that “seals Swearingen’s guilt for Trotter’s murder.” Blackburn said Swearingen has tried to get people to lie in order to give him an alibi. After his arrest, Swearingen got another inmate to write a letter Swearingen composed in Spanish that professed to be from the real killer and had it sent to his attorney. In 2017, Swearingen and another death row inmate, Anthony Shore, concocted a plan to get Shore to take responsibility for Trotter’s killing. Shore was executed last year. Rytting said Swearingen is guilty of doing “some very stupid things,” but prosecutors don’t have proof he killed Trotter. “Hopefully we are one step closer to giving (Trotter’s family) that justice that they’ve so long waited for,” Blackburn said. KHOU reports that Trotter’s parents are expected to witness Swearingen’s execution in Huntsville. (source: CBS News) * Larry Swearingen is set for execution for a 1998 Texas slaying. His lawyer says bad science got him on death row.Swearingen has maintained his innocence in the strangling death of 19-year-old Melissa Trotter. Texas prosecutors, however, have no doubt he is her killer. A staunch claim of innocence and doubts over forensic science have long engulfed the Texas death penalty case of Larry Swearingen. On Wednesday, for the 6th time, he is set for execution. The now 48-year-old man has lived on death row for nearly two decades, consistently expressing his innocence in the 1998 strangling death of Melissa Trotter, a 19-year-old community college studen
[Deathpenalty] death penalty news----TEXAS, FLA., OHIO, ILL., MO., UTAH, ORE., USA
August 20 TEXASimpending execution Death row inmate Larry Swearingen denied clemency before Wednesday execution Montgomery County’s only death row prisoner lost a long-shot bid for clemency Monday, just over 48 hours before he is scheduled for execution. For convicted killer Larry Ray Swearingen, these final days and last-minute legal filings must feel familiar. The Wednesday execution date marks the 6th time he’s been scheduled for death in the past 2 decades. The 48-year-old Willis man was sent to death row in July 2000, after he was convicted of slaughtering Montgomery County college student Melissa Trotter and dumping her body in the Sam Houston National Forest. (source: Houston Chronicle) How 'Body Ranch' Research Impacts The Appeal Of A Texas Death Row Inmate In a murder investigation, establishing a time of death help can lead to arresting and convicting the perpetrator — or exonerating someone wrongfully accused. That's why getting it right can mean life or death for someone like Texas death row inmate Larry Swearingen. He is facing execution Wednesday for a murder he says he didn’t commit. The science of “time of death” is something studied every day at the Forensic Anthropology Center in San Marcos, also known as “The Body Ranch.” Scattered around an open field under the hot Texas sun there are a dozen human bodies. Their skin is blackened, their flesh is half eaten by bugs and varmints. They are in varying states of decay. This isn’t the scene from a horror movie or a mass murder — this is science. “What we're interested in doing is getting some kind of idea of the rate of composition and then the pattern of decomposition,” said Daniel Wescott, the center’s director and professor of Anthropology at Texas State University. “We typically have about 60 to 70 bodies out at at any given time that might be involved in various different experiments.” This is 1 of the 7 outdoor body composition laboratories in the United States and the largest such forensics research facility in the world. “So what you want to try to do is have some kind of baseline information about what's going on and then alter a single thing to look at how that affects it,” Wescott said. Here, human cadavers are left out in the open and carefully monitored for patterns of human body decomposition. That data is used to train forensic experts so when they look at a murder victim they can read the body and the crime scene to gain an understanding of the time of death. “It's not guesswork,” Wescott said. “We do lots of bodies, so we have a good idea of the normal variation.” In the murder of Melissa Trotter, establishing when she died is central to the conviction and the pending execution of Larry Swearingen. Trotter went missing in Willis Texas on Dec. 8, 1998. Her body was found 25 days later on Jan. 2 in the Sam Houston National Forest. She had been sexually assaulted and strangled. Her body was tossed onto a pile of bushes. Swearingen had been arrested and jailed on Dec. 11 — three days after Trotter was last seen alive. Swearingen maintains he didn’t kill her and based on the condition of Trotter’s body, forensic experts have said there are questions about his guilt. “The climate, weather, temperature, the data where the body was found, the environment where it was found,” Swearingen said. “[The forensic doctors] looked at all the weights, the organs — [they] looked at everything and they said Melissa died within 10 to 12 days of her body being discovered.” There is a lot of circumstantial evidence in this case that the prosecution says points directly at Swearingen but there is no DNA that ties Swearingen to the death of Trotter. The prosecution’s case depends on establishing that Trotter died before Swearingen was jailed. The forensic evidence for that narrative is weak at best. “Every doctor has said from Texas and beyond that Melissa was dead no more 10 to 12 days before discovery, which would have put it at about the 18th [of December] and I had been locked up over a week by that time,” Swearingen said. Kelly Blackburn is with the Montgomery County District Attorney’s Office, which prosecuted Swearingen. He said one piece of evidence isn’t what this case is about. “Science can only tell you so much,” said Blackburn. “You have to look at the whole story because no matter how good the scientist is, no matter how unbiased they claim to be, there is still interpretation.” And what the conditions were in the Sam Houston National Forest for those 25 days is also undetermined. “If you're looking at what the weather was like at Intercontinental Airport and basing the way the body would decompose on those weather patterns versus what's actually happening 20 miles north of here in the national forest, and how cold the temperature could have gotten during that period of time, and how cold it stayed for that period of time, all of th
[Deathpenalty] death penalty news----TEXAS, FLA., OHIO, TENN., IND. WYO., ARIZ., WASH.
August 18 TEXASimpending execution Texas death row inmate maintains innocence as latest execution date looms "On December 8, 1998, Swearingen kidnapped and strangled a 19-year-old white female." This short statement is what you'll find under Larry Swearingen's death row record for his summary of the incident. However, he's arguing that the details of his case, and the murder of Melissa Trotter, are much more complex. Larry Swearingen met Melissa Trotter, a 19-year-old Montgomery College student, on December 6, 1998, where they had a conversation and exchanged numbers. They planned on meeting up the next day, but Swearingen grew irritated when she didn't arrive, according to co-workers. They were spotted together on December 8 at the college library at 1:30 p.m., and were seen leaving together at 2:00 p.m. Melissa's car remained parked at the school. This was the last time she was seen alive. At 2:05 p.m., Swearingen returned a page and said he would have to call back later because he was at lunch with a friend. Swearingen returned to his trailer and left again sometime before 3:30 p.m., then returned again to the trailer sometime before 5:30 p.m., asked his landlord some questions, then left again to pick up his wife, Terry Swearingen, from his mother's house. On December 11, Swearingen was arrested pursuant to unrelated outstanding warrants. On January 2, 1999, Melissa's body was found in Sam Houston National Forest with a ligature made from pantyhose still tied around her neck. The police had searched the area three times before her body was found by hunters. Swearingen knew the area well. Based on the state of decomposition, it was estimated that her body had been in the woods for around 25 days, supporting the possible date of her death to be December 8. A supposed match to the other half of the pantyhose was found at the Swearingen home, along with a pack of Malboro Lights and a lighter resembling one belonging to Melissa. Neither Larry nor his wife smoked. Fibers were found on Melissa's body matching Swearingen's jacket, car seat, and carpet at his house. There were also hair strands in his car that looked to be pulled from Melissa's head, showing definitively that she had been in Swearingen's car at some point before her death. Further incriminating evidence includes a letter that was written by Larry and sent to his mother with the help of another inmate and a Spanish-English dictionary from a woman named "Robin", claiming to know who Melissa's real killer was. The letter gave insight into investigators' suspicions that Melissa's death resulted from violence sparked by sexual rejection. These are the undeniable facts of the case. Swearingen, however, clings to DNA evidence and forensic science to maintain his innocence. He has been assigned several execution dates, pushing back his death based on many of what he and his attorneys perceive to be discrepancies. They cite discrepancies in witness testimonies as well as cell phone records to place Swearingen at different locations at key dates and times in the case, according to his website. The main focus of the defense, however, has been on the state of Melissa's remains and DNA testing and evidence. Statements from two other medical examiners have reevaluated Melissa's autopsy report and estimated that based on lack of insect and bacteria colonies and general state of her body and tissues upon discovery, the remains could have only been in the forest for just under a week at most, even with the near-freezing low winter temperatures. A statement such as this implies that Swearingen is innocent since he was in jail three days after Melissa went missing, and much longer before her estimated death according to this analysis. One examiner allows for the exception of post-mortem refrigeration before her body was deposited at the location, but says the absence of certain signs of this on the body, this is not likely. Additionally, Swearingen's attorneys have claimed that none of the DNA evidence has definitively placed Larry at the scene of Melissa's body. Their appeals have consisted of requests for DNA testing on Melissa's fingernail scrapings, the ligature used for strangulation as well as the alleged other half found at Larry's home, cigarette butts found near her body not offered at trial, various items of her clothing, the rape kit, and hairs and hairbrush collected from the scene. After several appeals and a debacle involving another inmate rumored to be taking the fall for Melissa's murder, DNA samples were finally tested, with no conclusive evidence. Authorities were hesitant to test due to the "mountain of evidence" already stacked against Swearingen. Due to this process, DNA testing laws have changed in death penalty cases. Previously, if it was unknown if there was biological evidence, it didn't need to be tested, even if invisible to the n
[Deathpenalty] death penalty news----TEXAS, FLA., TENN., COLO., ARIZ., WYO., CALIF., ORE., USA
August 16 TEXAS: Texas to seek death penalty for MMA fighter accused of double homicide Cedric Marks was indicted on 2 counts of capital murder earlier this year. He has plead not guilty to those charges. According to USA Today prosecutors in Bell County, TX are planning to seek the death penalty for Cedric Marks, 45. A long-time MMA fighter, Marks was indicted in the killings of Jenna Scott, 28, and Michael Swearingin, 32, in March. Marks has plead not guilty to all charges. The remains of Scott, Marks’ former girlfriend, and Swearingin, her friend, were discovered in shallow graves in Clearview, OK on January 3rd. Marks’ current girlfriend Maya Maxwell, who recently gave birth while incarcerated, is also facing charges in this case. She has told authorities that Scott and Swearingin died after being alone in rooms with Marks. Maxwell has also confessed to moving Swearingin’s vehicle in an attempt to sidetrack the investigation into the killings. Scott and Swearingin were declared missing in December. Around this time Marks was arrested in Grand Rapids, MI. He was arrested on a burglary charge after he was accused of robbing Scott’s Temple, TX home back in late 2018. The reported break-in happened shortly after Scott had a request for a 2-year protective order against Marks turned down by Judge Paul LePak. During court proceedings Scott claimed that Marks had previously choked her unconscious and had threatened to kill her and her family. Scott also claimed that Marks had told her he had gotten away with murder in the past and he knew how to cover it up. Police in Bloomington, MN consider Marks a person of interest in the disappearance of April Pease. Marks and Pease were involved in a reportedly bitter child custody battle in 2008. Pease was granted custody of her and Marks’ child, but she went missing a year later. Custody then reverted to Marks. However, the state took custody of the child soon after. Marks has spent the last 20-years competing in professional mixed martial arts. His most notable career appearance came in 2010, in a loss to Andrew Chappelle at Bellator Fighting Championships 20. (source: bloodyelbow.com) FLORIDAimpending execution Florida Supreme Court refuses to block death row inmate Gary Ray Bowles' execution The Florida Supreme Court on Tuesday rejected appeals by death row inmate Gary Ray Bowles, who is scheduled to be executed next week for the 1994 murder of a Jacksonville man who was hit in the head with a concrete block and strangled. Justices unanimously denied a request by Bowles’ attorneys for a stay of the Aug. 22 execution. The attorneys argued in a brief last month that the Supreme Court should order a hearing about whether Bowles is intellectually disabled and, as a result, should be shielded from execution. But the Supreme Court said Bowles had failed to make a “timely” intellectual disability claim because he did not raise the issue until 2017. “Bowles waited until October 19, 2017 to raise an intellectual disability claim for the first time,” the court’s 10-page main opinion said. “Therefore, the record conclusively shows that Bowles’ intellectual disability claim is untimely under our precedent.” (source: news-press.com) TENNESSEEexecution Tennessee executes a double murderer by electric chair A double murderer who chose to die by electrocution was executed Thursday night, the Tennessee Department of Correction said. Stephen West was convicted in 1986 of fatally stabbing a mother and her 15-year-old daughter, CNN affiliate WKRN reported. He had several times escaped being put to death, including a scheduled execution in 2001 that was delayed when he began appealing his death sentence, according to several media reports. Jack Campbell, whose uncle was the husband and father of the victims, lamented the legal system. "Our family has suffered very deeply over the past 33 years through all the appeals that we think is very unfair for anyone to have to go through when all of the proof in the world was there for the case to be over within 24 hours, let alone 33 years," he said in a statement. Witnesses to West's death in the electric chair said he sobbed before he died. Reporters in the viewing area said his last words were, "In the beginning God created man." He then began to weep. And then said, "Jesus wept. That's all." He was pronounced dead at 7:27 p.m. CT (8:27 p.m. ET). West had denied he killed the mother and daughter. He blamed their deaths on an accomplice, according to CNN affiliates WKRN and WSMV. A statement from his legal team said: "We are deeply disappointed that the state of Tennessee has gone forward with the execution of a man whom the state had diagnosed with severe mental illness. A man of deep faith who has made a positive impact on those around him for decades and a man who by overwhelming evidence did not commit these
[Deathpenalty] death penalty news----TEXAS, FLA., OHIO, TENN.
August 14 TEXAS: Prosecutors seek death penalty against man accused in murder of Temple friends Prosecutors will seek the death penalty for a man accused in the brutal murder of 2 Temple friends in January, KXAN’s sister station KWKT confirmed Tuesday. Cedric Marks, 45, faces 2 capital murder charges in the deaths of 28-year-old Jenna Scott and 32-year-old Michael Swearingen. The friends disappeared Jan. 4 and their bodies were found a week later in shallow graves in Oklahoma. Both victims’ families met with District Attorney Henry Garza on July 10 to suggest he seek the death penalty. He filed a notice to the district clerk Aug. 9 doing just that. "There is such a thing as righteous anger and we feel that this is a case for righteous anger," Deborah Harrison, Michael’s mother, told KWKT. Marks pleaded "absolutely not guilty" of capital murder in January. He also faces tampering with evidence and burglary charges. Two other people, Maya Maxwell and Ginell McDonough, were also charged in connection with the complex case. Maxwell told police she was in the house when the pair were murdered, though she didn’t see it herself, according to an arrest affidavit. She also told them where to find the bodies. Officials have not said what penalty will be sought if Maxwell is found guilty. "We believe she needs to be punished because she did assist in everything and we feel like she could have stopped it," Harrison said. "But she did help and we would not have recovered the bodies, we would still be wondering where they were had she not cooperated." In February, Marks was being extradited from Michigan where he was arrested to Bell County when he escaped custody, prompting a widespread manhunt in Conroe, Texas. After he was caught, he spoke out from behind bars to say he had nothing to do with the murders. Marks faces other charges besides the capital murder charges and his bond was set at $1.75 million. (source: KXAN news) FLORIAimpending execution Florida Supreme Court Rejects Death Row Appeal, Next Execution Scheduled For Aug. 22 The Florida Supreme Court on Tuesday rejected appeals by death row inmate Gary Ray Bowles, who is scheduled to be executed next week for the 1994 murder of a Jacksonville man who was hit in the head with a concrete block and strangled. Justices unanimously denied a request by Bowles’ attorneys for a stay of the Aug. 22 execution. The attorneys argued in a brief last month that the Supreme Court should order a hearing about whether Bowles is intellectually disabled and, as a result, should be shielded from execution. But the Supreme Court said Bowles had failed to make a “timely” intellectual disability claim because he did not raise the issue until 2017. "Bowles waited until October 19, 2017 to raise an intellectual disability claim for the first time," the court’s 10-page main opinion said. "Therefore, the record conclusively shows that Bowles’ intellectual disability claim is untimely under our precedent." Gov. Ron DeSantis signed a death warrant in June for Bowles, who would be the 2nd inmate executed since the Republican governor took office in January. Tampa-area serial killer Bobby Joe Long was put to death by lethal injection on May 23 at Florida State Prison. Bowles, now 57, was sentenced to death in the November 1994 murder of Walter Hinton, who was found dead in his Jacksonville mobile home. Bowles also is serving life sentences for the 1994 murders of John Roberts in Volusia County and Albert Morris in Nassau County. In addition, Bowles confessed to murdering men in Georgia and Maryland, with evidence suggesting he targeted gay men, according to information released in June by the governor’s office. Tuesday’s Supreme Court opinion gave a brief description of the grisly murder of Hinton. "Bowles confessed and pleaded guilty to the 1994 murder of Walter Hinton, who had allowed Bowles to move into his home in exchange for Bowles’ help in moving personal items. Specifically, Bowles dropped a concrete block on Hinton’s head while Hinton was sleeping, then manually strangled a conscious Hinton, and subsequently ‘stuffed toilet paper into Hinton’s throat and placed a rag into his mouth,’" the opinion said, partially quoting an earlier court ruling. In addition to raising the intellectual-disability issue, Bowles’ attorneys also contended that Florida’s death penalty violates the constitutional ban on cruel and unusual punishment. In a document filed last month, they wrote that "capital punishment as administered in Florida, and as applied in this case, is contrary to the evolving standards of decency that mark the progress of a maturing society." But the justices turned down the argument, writing that "because the United States Supreme Court has made clear that capital punishment does not constitute cruel and unusual punishment under the Eighth Amendment of the federal cons
[Deathpenalty] death penalty news----TEXAS, FLA., TENN., ILL., MO.
August 13 TEXAS: DA to seek death penalty for Cedric Marks The Bell County District Attorney’s office will seek the death penalty for Cedric Marks if he is convicted. "We have filed with the district clerk our notice that we will seek the death penalty in the Cedric Marks case, in connection with the murders of Michael Swearingin and Jenna Scott," Bell County District Attorney Henry Garza confirmed Monday. (source: The Temple Daily Telegram) FLORIDA: State seeks death for man accused in Tampa bus driver's slaying The Hillsborough State Attorney's Office filed a notice in the case of Justin Ryan McGriff, accused of slashing the throat of HART bus driver Thomas Dunn Prosecutors will seek a death sentence for a man accused of stabbing to death a Tampa bus driver. The office of Hillsborough State Attorney Andrew Warren filed a notice of intent to seek the death penalty late last month in the case of Justin Ryan McGriff, who is charged with 1st-degree murder in the May 18 killing of Thomas Dunn. Surveillance videos captured the attack on Dunn, 46, whose throat was cut as he steered a Hillsborough Area Regional Transit bus along N Nebraska Avenue. Photographs from the recording, which were used as evidence in a pretrial detetion hearing in May, show a man, whom police identified as McGriff sitting in the rear of the bus. He removes something from his pants pocket, according to court testimony, then walks forward and stands behind the driver. "God bless you," McGriff said, according to court testimony. "What was that?" Dunn asked. "God bless you," he repeated. "Thank you," Dunn said. "God bless you, too." After that, McGriff lunged forward, slitting Dunn’s throat, according to police. Dunn steered the bus to the right and hit the brakes as he collapsed. As passengers panicked, McGriff forced his way out the bus door, police said. Officers later spotted him nearby and arrested him. In June, McGriff’s public defenders suggested that he may be mentally ill. One of McGriff’s roommates told police that his behavior in the days before his arrest was erratic, according to a court document. A judge appointed 2 doctors to determine whether he is competent to proceed toward trial. If he is declared incompetent, he would likely spend time in a state hospital before the case against him could continue. Warren, who became the county's top prosecutor in 2017, has been reluctant to seek death sentences in cases where a defendant’s mental health is in question. If McGriff is ultimately convicted of murder, prosecutors will have to prove the existence of at least one "aggravating circumstance” before a jury weighs whether a death sentence is justified. Prosecutors cited 4 such circumstances in Dunn’s slaying, among them that the crime was "especially heinous, atrocious, or cruel" and that it was done in a “cold, calculated, and premeditated manner." The law requires that a unanimous jury recommendation to impose a death sentence. Otherwise, the penalty is life in prison. (source: tampabay.com) TENNESSEEimpending execution Lawyers, Advocates Seek Halt to Execution of Stephen West in Tennessee Advocates from a variety of backgrounds are urging Tennessee Governor Bill Lee to stop the August 15, 2019 execution of Stephen West (pictured), saying that West did not commit the murder and urging the governor not to execute a man who is severely mentally ill. In a July clemency petition that is pending before the governor, West’s lawyers argue for mercy based upon his innocence of murder and his debilitating psychological vulnerabilities. Though they concede that West was present at the murders of Wanda Romines and her daughter, Sheila Romines, and that he raped Sheila, West’s lawyers maintain that his co-defendant, Ronnie Martin, fatally stabbed the victims. The petition says that because of the chronic extreme abuse and trauma he experienced as a child, "Steve was not psychologically equipped to deal with the terrible situation he found himself in" and disassociated when he saw Martin killing the women. The clemency petition asks what it calls "[a]n important question"--if Steve did not intend for either victim to be killed, how could he just stand by and watch while Martin did? The answer to this question," the petition suggests, "lies in Steve’s own tragic background." The petition describes the relentless abuse and neglect West endured, which included his mother beating him so hard with a broom that it snapped, his parents denying him food, and ongoing beatings that resulted in his ankles being broken at least seven times. The extreme trauma, the petition says, caused or exacerbated West’s severe mental illnesses, including schizophrenia and post-traumatic stress disorder. West’s parents retained a lawyer to defend him at trial, but instructed counsel not to discuss or present evidence relating to his famil
[Deathpenalty] death penalty news----TEXAS, FLA., AL., LA., TENN., CALIF.
August 10 TEXAS: County Commissioner Proposes Moratorium on Capital Prosecutions in Dallas, Texas A Dallas, Texas, county commissioner has called for a two-year halt on death-penalty trials, saying it would give the county time to study the financial and ethical costs of capital punishment. On August 6, 2019, Commissioner J.J. Koch (pictured) proposed a county moratorium on capital prosecutions, with cost savings from not pursuing the death penalty redirected toward investigating and prosecuting human trafficking cases. The proposal was notable coming in a county that has executed more prisoners since capital punishment resumed in the U.S. in the 1970s than any other county except Harris, Texas. Several county commissioners expressed support for Koch’s proposal, although they acknowledged that the plan was aspirational and that they could not direct the district attorney, who has exclusive charging authority, to enforce it. District Attorney John Creuzot commended Koch "for having the courage to bring up" the issue. Creuzot said he supported discussing the proposal but could not commit himself to a moratorium on prosecutions "because I don’t know what’s around the corner." Creuzot recently announced that Dallas prosecutors will seek the death penalty against Billy Chemirmir, accused in the deaths of more than a dozen elderly women in North Texas senior living complexes. The trial and potential appeals are expected to be extremely costly for the county. Creuzot told the Dallas Morning News that he supports pursuing the death penalty in circumstances in which a defendant poses a "continuing threat in the penal society." In other cases, he said, a sentence of life without parole can equally and less expensively protect public safety. Citing the Dallas County case of Kenneth Thomas, Creuzot said "[i]t’s becoming more and more difficult to sustain a death penalty conviction." Thomas has been sentenced to death twice, with his first death sentence imposed in 1987. However, his death sentences were overturned both times as a result of prejudicial constitutional violations in each trial. Most recently, the Texas Court of Criminal Appeals directed that he be provided a new sentencing hearing on his claim of intellectual disability. A prior sentencing jury had rejected that claim, but had applied a scientifically invalid and unconstitutional standard for evaluating intellectual disability. Commissioners John Wiley Price and Elba Garcia agreed with Koch’s proposed moratorium on prosecutions, and Commissioner Theresa Daniel said she looked forward to discussing the issue, with prosecutors and judges included in the discussion. Dallas County Judge Clay Jenkins also voiced support for a moratorium, but reiterated that it would be under the district attorney’s discretion. Koch agreed, saying, "We can’t do anything unilaterally. It’s his department." Nevertheless, he said, the commissioners could adopt a moratorium resolution to express their views on capital prosecutions, noting that they also control the budget of the district attorney’s office. Dallas has executed 60 prisoners since the U.S. Supreme Court upheld its capital sentencing statute in Jurek v. Texas in 1976, more than 28 current or formed death-penalty states and the federal government. Only Harris County (Houston), with 129, has carried out more executions. Dallas’s 31-person death-row on January 1, 2013 was the 14th largest of any county in the U.S., and juries in the county imposed 3 more death sentences that year. Since 2013, however, only 1 person has been sentenced to death in the county. (source: Death Penalty Information Center) FLORIDA: Deadly carjacking victim's family face suspect in court The family of an innocent man killed this week says the accused killer, James Hanson should face the maximum penalty. In this case, Hanson is eligible for the death penalty. A wake was held for 68-year-old Mathew Korratiyil on the same day his family went to court to face Hanson at his bond hearing. "He was innocent," said son Melvin Korattiyil. "There was no reason for him to suffer like this." The wake was at the Sacred Heart Catholic Community Center in Valrico, which is where Mathew was both member and where his body was found Tuesday. Hanson told detectives he strangled him with a belt after carjacking him and robbing a bank only a mile away. It's still unclear as to why Hanson took him to the community center. "He was taken away by an animal who never should have been let out," said Melvin Korattiyil. Hanson was denied bail, as a court heard Tuesday's grim details. Melvin's brother, Nelson confirmed it was his father's belongings who detectives found in Hanson's home. Family is furious Hanson was let out of jail barely a month ago, his life sentence for another armed robbery shortened by a judge who agreed his previous lawyer was not up to snuff.
[Deathpenalty] death penalty news----TEXAS, FLA., TENN., COLO., ARIZ., ORE.
July 27 TEXAS: Like with Dallas' serial murder suspect, DAs seek death penalty when crimes are 'heinous enough' After Dallas County District Attorney John Creuzot's decision this week to seek the death penalty for serial murder suspect Billy Chemirmir, current and former top prosecutors said Friday they know the emotional toll that came with that choice. Take former Dallas County District Attorney Craig Watkins, who said Friday he has struggled with the death penalty even though as district attorney he sought it time and time again. His qualms about the ultimate punishment aren't just political. They're personal. His great-grandfather was executed by the state in 1932 for the murder of a Fort Worth man. But despite his personal ties, which he revealed the same week he witnessed an execution while in office, Watkins sent more defendants to death row than any other DA in the state during his tenure. Over two years, prosecutors say, Chemirmir charmed his way into the homes of elderly North Texans before smothering them, stealing their jewelry and selling it online and in pawn shops. He's suspected in 19 deaths in Dallas and Collin counties and has been indicted on capital murder charges in a dozen of those cases. Now, prosecutors say, he deserves to die. Choosing when to seek the death penalty is never easy, say other district attorneys who've had to weigh the evidence and make the call. It's a decision they don't take lightly. "That's the hard part of the job. Obviously, I was against the death penalty," Watkins said Friday. "But when something like that happens, you pretty much have to set your personal feelings aside." All about punishment Watkins said that dating back at least to his predecessor, Republican Bill Hill, there has been no doubt about guilt when Dallas County has sought the death penalty. The evidence, he said, has always been strong. While juries in Dallas County death penalty cases decide guilt, the true trial is all about punishment, he said. The question then, Watkins said, becomes whether a defendant deserves the ultimate punishment. Watkins said he always considered the actual crime and his personal beliefs when considering the appropriate punishment. “Those are the things you lose sleep over,” he said. "When you get there [in office] and you see it, you have to change.” DA Watkins questioned victim in death penalty trial Watkins, who earned a national reputation for freeing the innocent from prison while in office, said he was always concerned about unfairly seeking a death sentence against people of color. Watkins’ prosecutors sent at least 12 men to death row, including one whose case was retried, during his eight years in office. All but one were either black or Hispanic. Their victims were a baby and a toddler, an elderly store clerk, and a Southern Methodist University student raped and stabbed by a stranger. Fewer death penalty cases Nationally, use of the death penalty has dropped. 21 states have abolished capital punishment. During the 1st half of this year, 12 defendants in the United States were sentenced to death; none were in Texas. The Death Penalty Information Center, a Washington, D.C.-based nonprofit that disseminates information about the death penalty, estimates that 2019 will be the 5th consecutive year with fewer than 50 new death sentences and fewer than 30 executions. Senior-living communities were Dallas serial killer's hunting grounds, families' lawsuits say Texas has executed more prisoners — 561 — than any other state since the death penalty was reinstated in the United States in 1976. So far this year, Texas has carried out 3 executions. 10 more are scheduled through early November, although appeals could cause delays. One reason for the drop in Texas executions is a September 2005 law that made defendants convicted of capital murder ineligible for parole if they didn’t receive a death sentence or if prosecutors didn’t seek one. The Dallas County district attorney's office filed a motion Tuesday to seek the death penalty against Billy Chemimir in the death of Lu Thi Harris, an 81-year-old woman whose body was found in her Dallas home after Chemirmir was arrested on an outstanding warrant. Watkins, who is now in private practice, has followed the Chemirmir case and said Creuzot is right to seek the death penalty. Watkins, like Creuzot, is a Democrat. “You have to make the hard decisions, and it looks like he did,” Watkins said. Attorney Trey Crawford represents many of the families who say their loved ones were killed by Chemirmir at The Tradition-Prestonwood, a posh North Dallas senior living complex. “If there is such a case deserving of the death penalty, this is certainly it,” Crawford said. “We are clearly dealing with an individual who has no regard for human life. Each of his victims and their families deserve justice.” Crawford said he
[Deathpenalty] death penalty news----TEXAS, FLA., ALA., OHIO, UTAH, WYO.
July 25 TEXAS: Prosecutors to seek death penalty against accused serial killer of elderly peopleBilly Chemirmir is linked to the deaths of 19 people, according to criminal court records and civil lawsuits. Dallas County prosecutors plan to seek the death penalty for a 46-year-old man charged with 12 murders of elderly women and linked to 7 other deaths of elderly people. Billy Chemirmir, 46, is charged with 7 counts of capital murder in Dallas County and 5 counts of capital murder in Collin County, where he also faces 2 counts of attempted capital murder. Chemirmir is also accused of killing 7 other elderly people, according to lawsuits filed against an upscale senior living center. The lawsuits allege Chemirmir posed as a maintenance worker at The Tradition-Prestonwood, where he killed and robbed 8 elderly women and one elderly man. The suits say the senior living center failed to provide adequate security and hid Chemirmir's connection to the string of deaths. In each death, excluding the death of 89-year-old Solomon Spring, the elderly women were found smothered in their homes. In most of the cases, the deaths were initially deemed natural. Chemirmir was arrested March 21, 2018, on a murder charge in the smothering death of 81-year-old Lu Thi Harris. After his arrest, Chemirmir was also charged in Collin County with 2 counts of attempted capital murder in an attack of a 92-year-old woman the day before Harris was killed and the attack of a 93-year-old woman in October 2017. Chemirmir has been indicted in the deaths of: Phyllis Payne, 91, on May 14, 2016 Phoebe Perry, 94, on June 5, 2016 Norma French, 85, on Oct. 8, 2016 Doris Gleason, 92, on Oct. 29, 2016 Minnie Campbell, 83, on Oct. 31, 2017 Carolyn MacPhee, 81, on Dec. 31, 2017 Rosemary Curtis, 76, on Jan. 17, 2018 Mary Brooks on Jan. 31, 2018 Martha Williams, 80, on March 4, 2018 Miriam Nelson, 81, on March 9, 2018 Ann Conklin, 82, on March 18, 2018 Lu Thi Harris, 81, on March 20, 2018 He is linked through lawsuits to the deaths of: Joyce Abramowitz, 82, on July 20, 2016 Juanita Purdy, 83, on July 31, 2016 Leah Corken, 83, on Aug. 19, 2016 Margaret White, 87, on Aug. 28, 2016 Solomon Spring, 89, on Oct. 2, 2016 Glenna Day, 87, on Oct. 15, 2016 Doris Wasserman, 90, on Dec. 23, 2017 (source: WFAA news) FLORIDA: Here’s Why Juries in Death Penalty Trials Might Not Be So Fair, Impartial After All You have the right to a fair trial by a jury of your peers, but researchers argue your “peers” typically end up being mostly white. Alisa Smith, Chair of the Department of Legal Studies at UCF, told Spectrum News that findings from the University of California in recent decades show African Americans are more likely to be disproportionately excluded from death penalty trials. “You can’t exclude a juror based upon race, but you can exclude a juror based upon a belief or a perception that they can’t be fair and impartial,” Smith explained. The findings show that as African Americans become more anti-death penalty, the likelihood of them being excluded in these trials as a juror increase. The research is reflected in the triple-murder trial of Central Florida man Grant Amato, who is accused of killing his parents and brother. 10 people out of the 12 person jury are white, and the alternates are 3 white men. The point of death qualification is to identify jurors who can be fair and impartial in deciding the ultimate punishment. But Smith says it doesn’t always work that way. “That question alone tends to bias a jury toward a group of individuals who are more likely to impose the death penalty,” she explained. While there is no cookie-cutter solution, Smith argues that a potential solution is to have 2 separate juries — 1 for the trial and 1 for the penalty phase. (source: baynews9.com) ALABAMA: Judge will decide Thursday if Lionel Francis should get death penalty for killing young daughter A Madison County Circuit Judge will decide Thursday if Lionel Francis will get the death penalty for killing his 20-month-old daughter. Francis, 37, was convicted in May of capital murder in the death of Alexandria Francis. The child was shot in May 2016 at the family’s home on Lockwood Court. Francis didn’t testify at this trial, but he told police the shooting was an accident. The prosecution’s case included testimony from a state medical examiner who said the nature of the child’s wound indicated the gun was pressed tightly to her forehead before he pulled the trigger. The child’s mother, Ashley Ross testified she was changing her clothes, with her back to Francis and her daughter when she heard the shot fired. Ross’s testimony shook the courtroom at Francis’ trial, as prosecutors played her anguished 911 call pleading for medical attention. The jury also heard her one phone conversation with Francis’ where she angrily dismissed his
[Deathpenalty] death penalty news----TEXAS, FLA., OHIO, ILL., KY., MO., WYO., ORE., USA
July 24 TEXASdeath row inmate, foreign national, dies Mexican national on Texas death row dies of cardiac arrest After more than 2 decades on Texas death row, a Mexican national convicted of killing 3 teens in El Paso died in bed early Sunday of cardiac arrest, a prison spokesman confirmed. Officials found 49-year-old Ignacio “Nacho” Gomez in his cell on the Polunsky Unit around 5:37 a.m. and took him to a Livingston hospital, where he was pronounced dead just over an hour later. The 49-year-old had long suffered from mental illness, and spent much of his time behind bars in the prison psychiatric ward. According to his lawyer, he wasn’t competent to be executed. (source: Houston Chronicle) Exonerated death row inmate fulfills mission 14 years ago, I reviewed the innocence claim of Texas death row inmate Anthony Graves for the Judicial Process Commission in Rochester. I concluded that Graves’ claim was meritorious. I wrote about his case in “Justicia,” JPC’s newsletter. Graves also asked me to help get his case more national attention. “I want this case of injustice exposed on a national stage to bring attention to the serious flaws with the death penalty,” he said. “I feel very strongly that this is why I’ve been chosen to experience such injustice.” On March 8, 2006, Graves wrote to me again: “I don’t know if you’ve heard, but the courts have overturned my conviction, and ordered the state to retry me or turn me loose. I’m totally speechless for the past several days. I’ve never prepared myself for a favorable ruling because I’ve been so used to receiving negative news. But they have finally gotten it right. And the opinion they’ve written speaks volumes about the prosecution’s conduct. I can’t believe it. My attorney said that the opinion is pretty much air tight and there’s no way the courts would ever accept an appeal from the state to review it. This is so mind boggling! It’s like a dream that I’m afraid to wake up to.” On an August night in 1992, in Somerville, Texas, six people including 5 children were beaten, stabbed, shot and left to die in a burning house. One of the children was the son of Robert Earl Carter. Four days earlier, Carter learned the child’s mother had filed a patrimony suit against him. The police investigation focused on Carter after he attended the victims’ funerals with bandages on his ears, face and hand, all concealing burns. After failing a polygraph test, Carter admitted guilt. Not wanting to implicate his wife — who had a burn on her neck immediately after the fire — and pressed by police who doubted Carter committed the crime alone, Carter said Anthony Graves, his wife’s cousin, had helped him. Carter, his wife and Graves all were indicted. Shortly before Graves’ trial, police had Carter undergo another polygraph test. Afterward, Carter told the district attorney that his wife was his accomplice and Graves was not involved. Nevertheless, Carter was warned that if he refused to testify against Graves, Carter’s wife would be tried for murder. The withholding of this information by prosecutors prompted the 5th U.S. Court of Appeals to overturn Graves’ conviction and to conclude that Graves would likely have been acquitted had the jury been given this information. Although at trial Carter testified that Graves was his accomplice, Carter told many people before and after Graves’ trial that Graves was innocent. He said he testified against Graves to protect his wife. In his final statement before he was executed, Carter said, “Anthony Graves had nothing to do with it. I lied on him in court.” Carter’s wife was not put on trial. Graves was convicted and given a death penalty. It was later shown that wounds prosecutors claimed were inflicted by a knife like one owned by Graves could have come from any single-edged knife. Also, investigation by Graves’ appellate lawyers cast doubt on the credibility of jailhouse informants and guards who testified they overheard Graves make inculpatory statements to Carter. Charles Sebesta, the Burleson County district attorney who prosecuted Graves, offered no plausible motive for Graves’ participation in the murders. An alibi witness for Graves didn’t testify because she received a threat she would be prosecuted as an accomplice if she testified on Graves’ behalf. My own review of his case also revealed that Graves consented to a polygraph test. Sebesta claimed Graves failed it. But authorities refused to give the polygraph charts of Graves or Carter to Graves’ attorneys. Warren Holmes, a highly respected criminologist and polygraph expert, offered to evaluate these charts after I appraised Holmes of Graves’ case. I concluded that the most plausible explanation for the unwillingness of Texas officials to relinquish the polygraph charts was their concern the charts would support Graves’ claim of actual innocence. In his
[Deathpenalty] death penalty news----TEXAS, FLA., COLO., UTAH, AIZ., USA
July 6 TEXAS: Mexican man charged in crash that left 6 dead A 23-year-old Mexican man has been arrested and charged with smuggling migrants in a run that ended death for 6 migrants. A statement Friday from the U.S. Attorney’s Office in Corpus Christi says Ivan Dario Puga-Moreno of Montemorelos, Nuevo Leon, Mexico was arrested Thursday in Houston. If convicted, he could face the death penalty. Police in Robstown, about 17 miles west of Corpus Christi, say its officers tried to stop a sport utility vehicle on suspicion of speeding late Tuesday, but the SUV got away. Hours later, Nueces County sheriff’s deputies found the SUV’s wreckage in a ditch, 6 of its occupants dead and 9 others injured severely. The federal complaint says Puga-Moreno had been the driver of the vehicle containing 18 migrants and had fled the scene. (source: Associated Press) FLORIDA: The murder was caught on stunning surveillance video. The accused now faces executionDavid Paneque, 29, is accused of murdering Leandro Lopez, 31, at a West Miami-Dade strip mall on March 4, 2019. The reputed Miami gang member accused of murdering an associate on stunningly clear surveillance video now faces the death penalty. Prosecutors on Friday announced they would be seeking to execute David Paneque, 29, who is charged with the killing of 31-year-old Leandro Lopez. A grand jury on Wednesday indicted Paneque for first-degree murder, armed robbery and possession of a firearm by a convicted felon. Lopez was gunned down in March atop a parking garage in West Miami-Dade; surveillance footage showed that Lopez begged for his life before Paneque gunned him down, took something off of his body and drove off in a truck. Paneque did not appear for Friday’s court appearance. He pleaded not guilty, through his defense attorney. Lopez’s family and supporters were in the gallery wearing shirts with the slain man’s photo. Detectives are unsure of a motive, but the 2 men had spent the night drinking at strip clubs. At the time of the killing, Paneque was on probation after he served 10 years in prison for stabbing a man during an armed robbery. Born in Cuba, Paneque had been ordered deported because of his criminal conviction. Even under renewed diplomatic relations established under former President Barack Obama, the island accepts back relatively few of its criminal citizens. Deportations to Cuba have risen under the aggressive policies pursued by President Donald Trump but still number only in the hundreds. More than 37,000 Cubans in the United States are facing orders of removal for convictions of crimes or immigration violations. Most of those are living freely under orders of supervision, which require them to check in at least once a year. Cubans were rarely ever deported in the years before diplomatic relations resumed in 2015 under Obama. Even now, the country is considered “recalcitrant” and will not accept back most of its nationals. *** Ex-assistant principal likely faces death penalty in case of murdered Norland High teacherErnest Joseph Roberts appeared in a Miami-Dade court Friday for arraignment as prosecutors announced they will go to a grand jury to get an indictment for 1st-degree murder. Prosecutors plan to seek an indictment against the ex-Norland High assistant principal accused of murdering a teacher — which means he’ll likely face the death penalty. Ernest Joseph Roberts appeared in a Miami-Dade court Friday for arraignment as prosecutors announced they will go to a grand jury to get an indictment for 1st-degree murder. In Miami-Dade, prosecutors automatically seek the death penalty on all 1st-degree murder cases when they are filed. For now, Roberts is charged with 2nd-degree murder. Roberts pleaded not guilty, through court documents filed by lawyer Rod Vereen. “There shouldn’t be a rush to judgment. My client is being convicted in the court of public opinion, and they don’t know the facts of the case,” Vereen told the Herald on Friday. “Let justice run its court. My client is innocent until proven guilty.” Roberts, 39, is accused of murdering Kameela Russell, a teacher and test proctor at Norland High in North Miami-Dade. The popular educator disappeared on May 15, failing to pick up her daughter at a relatives’ home in Miami Gardens. Her body was found days later in a canal near Roberts’ home. From the beginning, he was the chief suspect — Russell was last seen alive pulling her car into the front his home that evening. Court documents paint a compelling circumstantial case against Roberts, who had been friends with Russell since childhood and was even the godfather of her children. Miami Gardens police detectives say Russell’s blood was found on an Amazon box inside his bedroom, which had been thoroughly cleaned with bleach. Surveillance video from a neighbor showed her pulling in
[Deathpenalty] death penalty news----TEXAS, FLA., LA.
July 2 TEXAS: Death row inmate Rodney Reed’s family goes to Supreme Court after Texas appeal denied Anti-death penalty activists will join family and friends of Texas death row inmate Rodney Reed in protest on the steps of the U.S. Supreme Court in Washington, D.C. Tuesday after the Texas high court denied Reed’s latest appeal. The family intends to plead with the Supreme Court to overturn what they say was a wrongful conviction. “Tonight, Rodrick and others in Rodney’s family are pleading with SCOTUS to ensure Texas does not continue to violate Rodney’s constitutional rights by denying him access to DNA testing of the crime scene evidence which can prove his innocence and a new, fair trial,” the group wrote in a news release. Stacey Stites was murdered in 1996 and her body was dumped on a rural Bastrop County road. DNA from the Stites case matched Reed, but Reed said he had a consensual and secret intimate relationship with her. Stites was engaged at the time. Reed was convicted a year later in her death. Reed has sought to overturn his conviction for years and the Court of Criminal Appeals most recently dismissed his application for relief last week. Reed’s lawyers argue that the scientific expert opinions used at trial more than 20 years ago have since changed. In 2017, the appeals court denied Reed’s appeal after a hearing in Bastrop County that included new testimony and evidence presented by the defense. Reed’s case has garnered national attention as his defense team, led by Innocence Project attorney Bryce Benjet, has uncovered new evidence, found new witnesses and cast doubt on the state’s case and critical forensic evidence used at trial. Stites was set to marry Jimmy Fennell, a Georgetown police officer, at the time of her murder. Fennell was later sentenced to 10 years in prison for an unrelated crime. He was accused of raping a woman in his custody but pleaded guilty to lesser charges. He was recently released from prison. Reed’s attorney said a wealth of new evidence shows Fennell was the actual killer. (source: KXAN news) FLORIDA: Court hearing pace quickens for man facing death penalty in 2017 murder A judge put Christopher Eugene Smith’s murder case on the fast track, telling the attorney for the Dunnellon man facing the death penalty there’s enough time to prepare. Circuit Judge Richard “Ric” Howard on Monday set Smith’s next court appearance for Sept. 25, when Howard ruled for 34-year-old Smith to either schedule a trial or change his not-guilty plea. “I’ve got nothing but time for trials,” Howard said. Smith’s public defender, Ed Spaight, told the judge that pace is too fast for him to line up witnesses and evidence for not just Smith’s trial but also for his sentencing phase, if it comes to that. “I just don’t see it being ready…60 days from now,” Spaight said. Assistant State Attorney Pete Magrino, who filed Smith’s death penalty notice last October, said he’s fine with Howard’s decision. A Citrus County grand jury indicted Smith and Sara Jane Atwood in September 2018 for the April 2017 premeditated murder of James Thomas Roman and the armed burglary of his home on West Cardamon Place in Lecanto. Atwood, 25, of Inverness, has a court hearing on July 15 and a trial scheduled for the week of July 22. Atwood, a beneficiary of Roman’s will is accused of conspiring with Smith to burglarize the 73-year-old’s house, where Smith allegedly strangled Roman to death during the break-in, reports show. Smith then stole Roman’s Nissan pickup truck and led sheriff’s deputies and Florida Highway Patrol troopers on a pursuit that ended with his apprehension in Marion County. A Judge sentenced Smith in September 2017 to a year and six months for charges connected with the pursuit. Authorities later extradited Smith to Citrus County last September to face his pending charges. Smith is also facing charges connected to May allegations he attacked a jail inmate and held a dozen others hostage with a homemade knife. (source: Citrus County Chronicle) LOUISIANA: Jury selection underway in Kevin Daigle capital murder trial Nearly 4 years since the fatal shooting of State Trooper Steven Vincent, jury selection is scheduled to get underway in the trial of the man accused in his death. Kevin Daigle, 57, is charged with 1st-degree murder and could face the death penalty if convicted. Jury selection is expected to take about a week. The trial is expected to last 2 to 3 weeks. Vincent, a 13-year veteran of the Louisiana State Police, was shot on the side of La. 14 near Bell City on Aug. 23, 2015. He died the next day. Daigle is also accused of killing another man, 54-year-old Blake Brewer, in Moss Bluff the same day. Daigle is charged with 2nd-degree murder in Brewer’s death, but that charge will be tried separately. The trial is being held in Lafayette after Judge Clayton Davis granted
[Deathpenalty] death penalty news----TEXAS, FLA., ARIZ., USA
June 11 TEXAS: Complaint Alleges that Prosecutor in Alfred Dewayne Brown’s Case Knowingly Hid Evidence of Innocence A special prosecutor in Harris County, Texas, has filed a complaint with the Texas State Bar Office of Chief Disciplinary Counsel against former Assistant District Attorney Daniel Rizzo, alleging that Rizzo intentionally concealed exculpatory evidence crucial to the exoneration of former death-row prisoner Alfred Dewayne Brown (pictured). Brown was wrongfully convicted and sentenced to death in 2005 for a robbery murder in which a store clerk and responding police officer were shot to death. Brown claimed that phone records would show he was at his girlfriend’s apartment at the time of the murder. Rizzo withheld the records from the defense, then abused grand jury proceedings to jail Brown’s girlfriend until she agreed to implicate Brown. Brown was exonerated in 2015 after the phone records came to light. An investigation by Special Prosecutor John Raley later led to an official declaration that Brown is “actually innocent.” In early June 2019, Raley filed what the Houston Chronicle described as a “scathing grievance” with the Texas state bar alleging that “Rizzo was aware of exculpatory evidence and chose not to produce it to the defense and the court.“ He accused Rizzo of engaging in “significant misconduct” by “withhold[ing] from the court and defense counsel evidence likely to acquit Brown and then press[ing] forward in seeking the death penalty.” Raley said “Mr. Rizzo’s misconduct in the Brown case raises substantial questions regarding his honesty, trustworthiness, and fitness to be a lawyer. ... Mr. Brown, an innocent man, spent nearly 12 years on death row because of the misconduct of Daniel Rizzo.” As Special Prosecutor, Raley issued a report — commissioned by the Harris County District Attorney’s Office —advocating for Brown’s exoneration. The report, issued in March 2019 after more than 1,000 hours of investigation into Brown’s case, found “[b]y clear and convincing evidence, [that] no reasonable juror would fail to have a reasonable doubt about whether Brown is guilty of murder. Therefore his case meets the legal definition of ‘actual innocence.’” Harris County District Attorney Kim Ogg and Harris County District Court Judge George Powell subsequently made official declarations of Brown’s “actual innocence,” paving the way for Brown to receive state compensation for the years in which he was wrongfully imprisoned. Raley’s report documented that Rizzo concealed “crucial evidence” of phone records that supported Brown’s alibi that he had been at his girlfriend’s apartment at the time of his alleged crime. A copy of the records were discovered by police officer Breck McDaniel in his garage during Brown’s appeals. In 2003, in preparation for Brown’s trial, Officer McDaniel obtained the phone records for Brown’s girlfriend’s apartment in an effort to disprove Brown’s alibi. Instead, the records showed that Brown had, as he claimed, called his girlfriend at work at a time that made it impossible for him to have been involved in the murder of Houston Police Officer Charles Clark. McDaniel sent an email to Rizzo informing him of the phone records. When that email was uncovered in 2018, District Attorney Kim Ogg filed a Bar complaint against Rizzo. Rizzo claimed he never read the email and had not been aware of the records. Raley’s complaint rejected Rizzo’s version of events, explaining that, while Rizzo had not replied to the email, he made a change to a subpoena that McDaniel had requested, demonstrating that he in fact read the email. Rizzo has denied concealing the evidence. His lawyer, Chris Tritico, wrote, “There is more credible evidence that supports that Breck McDaniel suppressed what he clearly thought was exculpatory evidence, but did not understand was inculpatory evidence, after all it was in HIS GARAGE. If the District Attorney wants to set a cop killer free they can do so without laying it on the back of a 27-year public servant.” “For Rizzo to call Brown a ‘cop killer’ at this stage reveals both his desperation and his bias,” Raley replied. “Rizzo was fully aware of the existence of the exculpatory evidence, decided not to produce it, and pretended that it did not exist.” In the complaint, Raley wrote that he “cannot imagine anything in the practice of law more horrible than executing an innocent man.” “Rizzo’s unethical and illegal actions resulted in an innocent man being sent to death row,” he said. “Fortunately, an extra copy of the records was found and produced before Brown was executed. If our justice system is to work properly, the State Bar of Texas must hold prosecutors who hide evidence of innocence accountable for their conduct.” (source: Death Penalty Information Center) FLORIDA: Injustice of Central Park Five should give Florida pauseM There are 340 people on Flo
[Deathpenalty] death penalty news----TEXAS, FLA., LA., N.MEX., ARIZ., NEV., WASH.
April 19 TEXAS: Rare estate sale find shows how capital punishment was once carried out in Harris County A striking piece of Houston history sold earlier this week on eBay, a reminder of how criminal justice was once meted out in Harris County. The medal, about the size of a quarter, depicts a hooded, suit-wearing figure hanging from the gallows. Inscribed on the front is the name Henry McGee, his ethnicity is described as "colored" and the date of his execution is provided: Aug. 12, 1892. Also inscribed is the name of McGee's victim, Houston police officer James Fenn. We then learn the time it took for McGee to die on the gallows, 2 minutes, 30 seconds. The back of the medal reads, "Presented to R.E. Sutton by J. Warfel." A city directory from that period lists a Robert E. Sutton as deputy sheriff and assistant jailer. There are 2 Warfels listed in the directory, one of whom was a watchmaker. The medal, which came from a Houston-area estate sale, baffled some Texas historians. "I never came across anything like that," said Mitchel P. Roth, professor of criminal justice and criminology at Sam Houston State University and co-author of "Houston Blue: The Story of the Houston Police Department." At the time of McGee's execution, the Houston Daily Post looked back on the case and noted "there was strong talk of lynching" after he was jailed. 4 men are known to have been lynched in the county in the 1800s and early 20th century. No doubt that when McGee was arrested, the mob-fueled slaying of John Walton, suspected in a burglary and attempted rape the previous year, was on many Houstonians' minds. A brother-in-law of the burglarized homeowner, also a Houston cop, took part in the lynching. McGee's arrest came at time when the South was experiencing a rising number of lynchings that continued for decades. Patricia Bernstein, author of "The First Waco Horror: the Lynching of Jesse Washington and the Rise of the NAACP" said it was amazing that McGee was not lynched and that he was tried twice for Fenn's death. "It was almost like there were 2 separate systems of justice, for blacks and whites," she said, noting that wealthy, well-placed whites tended to fare better in the criminal justice system than poor whites. The system, though, was always going to be worse for African Americans, she said. Cary Wintz, distinguished professor of history at Texas Southern University saw the medal as a personal item, given its rarity. "To me, the issue is how many did he make?" he said, speculating that there could have been some personal connection between Sutton and Fenn that led Warfel to create it. He and other historians also wondered what was it about the case that prompted this. "This one is just off the wall," Wintz said. Bernstein found the medal appalling, even if it depicts a lawful execution. "It's a medal that celebrates the murder of somebody," she said. Roth said badges, and even ball-and-chains, will appear in police and criminal justice collections, but he had never seen anything like this object. Here's what is known about the crime: On March 14, 1891, Fenn was at a gathering spot known as the Broom Factory where alcohol and music mixed in the Second Ward. Fenn was sent there by the chief of police to maintain order, according to a decision by the Texas Court of Criminal Appeals. This was not his first time there as he was considered popular in the African-American community. McGee, who once worked as a waiter at the Capitol and Grand Central hotels, apparently held a grudge against Fenn over an earlier arrest for shooting a pistol and threatened to kill the officer if he "was ever sent to the poor farm in consequence of an arrest." "Very soon afterwards a pistol was fired, and Fenn and another officer, Frank Michael, went in the direction of the pistol shot, where a man stood flourishing a pistol in his right hand," according to the appeals court. "As they got close to him, he deliberately lowered the pistol in front of him, and holding it (in) both hands, fired upon Fenn and killed him." McGee fled but was captured a few days later at a home occupied by 2 women in the First Ward. McGee soon went on trial and was convicted and sentenced to death. That conviction was reversed on appeal and sent back to the trial court because of the admission of improper testimony. The following year, McGee was tried and sentenced to death again. *** At 7 a.m. on Aug. 12, 1892, a crowd of Houstonians gathered outside the Harris County Jail for McGee's execution. "Men, women and children of all conditions congregated about the jail and gazed with renewed interest at the iron-girded pile of brick and mortar which barred their morbid curiosity by shutting out sight of the condemned man," the Houston Daily Post noted. "As time worn on the [motley] crew increased, until the sidewalks could no longer hold them." About four hour
[Deathpenalty] death penalty news----TEXAS, FLA., ALA., LA., MO., OKLA., NEV., USA
January 30 TEXASimpending execution 30 years after killing a Houston police officer, Robert Jennings is set for executionJennings is expected to be put to death on Wednesday for the 1988 murder of Elston Howard. His sentence has been complicated by constantly evolving death penalty law — changes his lawyers are citing in a last-ditch attempt to stay his execution. Robert Jennings has been on Texas’ death row for nearly 30 years. On Wednesday, the 61-year-old is set to die in the nation’s 1st execution of 2019. Jennings was sentenced to death in the 1988 murder of Houston police officer Elston Howard. According to court records, Jennings walked into an adult book store to rob it, and Howard was there arresting the store clerk for a municipal violation. The clerk testified that Howard had no time to even reach for his gun before Jennings shot him multiple times, killing him. The lengthy stretch of time between Jennings' 1989 sentencing and his scheduled execution shines a light on the complications that can arise during the appeals process in the face of constantly evolving death penalty law. In their current attempt to halt Jennings' execution, his lawyers are zeroing in on changes in how death penalty juries weigh "mitigating evidence"— factors that can lessen the severity of the punishment that are largely based on the defendant's background, like an abusive childhood or intellectual disability. An appeal to the U.S. Supreme Court points out that, at the time of Jennings' trial, Texas juries were not told they could opt for a sentence of life in prison rather than death if they believed the defendant’s background or character warranted mercy — a key aspect of death penalty trials now. Rather, the so-called "special issue" questions Texas juries were required to answer after finding someone guilty of capital murder asked them to determine whether the murder was deliberate or provoked — and whether the defendant was a potential future danger. At the punishment portion of Jennings 1989 murder trial, where the jury was supposed to answer those questions, the prosecution brought up Jennings’ long rap sheet — he had been to prison multiple times for aggravated robbery, and had been released on parole only 2 months before Howard’s murder, according to court records. In his confession to police after his arrest, he also confessed to several other robberies in the 2-month span. Meanwhile, Jennings’ lawyers only brought forth a Harris County jail chaplain, who said Jennings wasn’t “incorrigible,” in reference to potential danger posed. The jury also heard Jennings’ recorded confession, where he admitted he had been drinking and using drugs and expressed remorse for the shooting. But days before the trial, the U.S. Supreme Court had ruled in an unrelated case that a death penalty jury must be specifically directed to determine whether mitigating evidence warrants sparing the defendant from execution. In an attempt to address the ruling at the last minute, Jennings’ jurors were told after closing arguments to consider any mitigating evidence already introduced and, if they found it appropriate, to answer against the death penalty in one of the already-existing questions. The jury was unconvinced, and Jennings was sentenced to death. It wasn’t until more than a decade later that the Supreme Court again took up the issue and determined that telling a jury to weigh mitigating evidence by overwriting an existing special issue is not constitutional. Jennings’ lawyers have argued that the jury’s inability to properly weigh his drug use and how remorseful he was for Howard’s death warrants him a new trial with the new special issue questions, which now include a question on mitigating evidence. They’ve also said if the trial counsel had known to raise other mitigating evidence, including mental deficits and a troubling childhood, the jury would have reached a different conclusion. “It gets extremely complicated because the law evolves and then the question is: Do new decisions get applied retroactively?” Randy Schaffer, one of Jennings’ lawyers, told The Texas Tribune. But not every death sentence handed down before juries were instructed to consider mitigating factors was tossed after the Supreme Court ruling. Rather, the nation's highest court said it depended on the nature of the evidence presented at trial. So far, the courts have ultimately said Jennings’ remorse doesn’t make the cut — though he did get one execution date taken off the calendar as a Texas court took up the issue in 2016. Jennings’ lawyers have argued against the court decisions by pointing to dozens of other capital murder cases that got new sentencing trials after the Supreme Court rulings. Specifically, they point to the case of Arthur Williams, another man who was sentenced to death for the murder of a Houston police officer under the old punishment s
[Deathpenalty] death penalty news----TEXAS, FLA., ALA., MISS., ARIZ., ORE., USA, US MIL.
December 14 TEXAS: DA will seek death penalty in murder of 20-month-old Central Texas girl Milam County prosecutors will seek the death penalty in the trial of a man indicted Thursday for capital murder in the death of a 20-month-old Rockdale girl. Shawn Vincent Boniello, who’s also known as Shayla Angeline Boniello, 30, remains in the Milam County Jail. The Milam County Grand Jury handed up a capital murder indictment against him Wednesday morning in the death of Patricia Ann Rader, who died on the evening of Dec. 3 at her home in Rockdale. “Upon receipt of the draft of an offense report…from the Rockdale Police Department…the Milam County District Attorney’s office will seek the penalty of death for the defendant,” County/District Attorney Bill Torrey said in a press release early Thursday afternoon. "District Judge John W. Youngblood has requested the Texas Capital Defender’s Service in Austin, to represent the defendant," Torrey said. Officers, firefighters and paramedics responded to the girl’s home at around 5:45 p.m. Dec. 3 after receiving a report of an unresponsive child. Paramedics performed CPR at the scene, but were unable to revive the girl. Boniello was arrested that night and was initially charged with child abandonment/endangerment, but on Dec. 4 was also named in a complaint charging capital murder. (source: KWTX news) ** Death sentences remained near historic low levels in Texas in 2018, yet state’s capital punishment system still plagued by racial bias, geographical disparities, and fundamental unfairnessAll 7 death sentences in 2018 imposed on people of color The number of death sentences and executions in 2018 was consistent with lower use of the death penalty in Texas over the last 10 years, according to a new report from the Texas Coalition to Abolish the Death Penalty (TCADP). New death sentences remained in the single digits for the 9th time in 10 years, with Texas juries condemning seven individuals to death. All 7 men sentenced to death in Texas in 2018 are people of color. Juries rejected the death penalty in two capital murder trials, while two other capital cases were declared mistrials. For the third year in a row, no one was resentenced to death in Texas. "The death penalty landscape in Texas has changed significantly over the last 20 years,” said Kristin Houlé, TCADP Executive Director and author of Texas Death Penalty Developments in 2018: The Year in Review. “Not only have the number of death sentences and executions declined by staggering percentages, but the chorus of voices raising concerns about the application of the death penalty grows louder and more diverse every day.” As use of the death penalty declines, its application remains geographically isolated. Only 4 counties in Texas have imposed more than one death sentence in the last 5 years. The 2 counties that have imposed the most death sentences since 1974 – Harris and Dallas – together account for just 2 new sentences since 2015. The death penalty also continues to be disproportionately imposed on people of color. Over the last 5 years, more than 70% of death sentences have been imposed on people of color. The State of Texas put 13 people to death in 2018, matching the number of executions carried out in 2015. It was 1 of just 8 states nationwide to carry out executions in 2018 and accounted for more than 1/2 of all U.S. executions this year. The cases of those put to death in Texas in 2018 involved claims of innocence, ineffective assistance of counsel, religious discrimination, and false testimony, among other serious issues. In 2018, the Texas Court of Criminal Appeals (CCA) stayed half as many executions as it did in 2017, granting reprieves to 3 individuals with claims related to intellectual disability or incompetency to be executed. 3 other people with execution dates received reprieves, including a rare clemency grant. On February 22, 2018, less than an hour before the execution of Thomas “Bart” Whitaker was set to begin, Texas Governor Greg Abbott issued a proclamation sparing his life and commuting his death sentence to life in prison without the possibility of parole in accordance with a unanimous recommendation from the Texas Board of Pardons and Paroles. It was the 1st clemency grant in Texas in more than a decade and only the 3rd since the resumption of executions in 1982. Since 2014, a total of 24 individuals – including 3 this year – have been removed from death row in Texas for reasons other than execution. During this same time period, 50 people have been put to death. The U.S. Supreme Court’s 2017 ruling in Moore v. Texas continued to impact Texas death penalty cases. That decision found the state of Texas must use current medical standards for determining whether a person is intellectually disabled and therefore exempt from execution. In 2018, the CCA grante
[Deathpenalty] death penalty news----TEXAS, FLA., OHIO, TENN., OKLA., USA
December 4 TEXASimpending execution 'Texas 7' Member Set To Die Under Controversial Law A San Antonio man is set to die by lethal injection on Tuesday for a murder he didn’t actually commit. As part of the notorious “Texas 7” escape, Joseph Garcia was convicted and sentenced to die under a controversial law some say is unconstitutional. “Why am I here? Why am I on death row? You know, I don't get it," said Garcia from death row Wednesday. "... Why are you trying to kill me for the actions of somebody else?” Garcia was sentenced to death under the “Law of Parties,” which holds a non-shooter accomplice just as criminally liable as the person pulling the trigger. Stephanie Stevens, law professor, and supervising attorney for the St. Mary's University Center for Legal and Social Justice, said the law is broader in Texas than in other states. “If you and another person were going to go rob a convenience store. If during the course of that robbery, your friend inside the store shot and killed the convenience store clerk, you would be guilty for capital murder as well, even though you sat in the car the whole time,” she said. On Dec. 13, 2000, the group of inmates, known as the Texas 7, broke out of the Connally Prison Unit in Karnes County. The escape triggered the largest manhunt in the state’s history. 11 days later, on Christmas Eve, members of the crew fatally shot and ran over Irving Police Officer Aubrey Hawkins during a robbery of a sporting goods store. “He was very nice and easy to get along with — very unassuming,” said Jeff Spivey, chief of the Irving Police Department, of Hawkins. But Garcia said he shouldn’t be executed because he didn’t actively take part in the fatal shootout Hawkins. "You have the testimony of these people who did actually kill," Garcia said. "... They did it. And so, I mean, I think what it all boils down to ... is that I'm one of the Texas 7.” Garcia said his version of events is supported by the testimony of others — he was inside the store and never fired a gun. “I don't know. I don't know what caused them to start firing at the officer," he said. "By the time I got out there on the back dock, it was over.” But Chief Spivey says that makes no difference. Garcia directly participated in the murder of Hawkins in other ways. “Joseph Garcia, due to his accomplice testimony is either credited with pulling Officer Hawkins’ dead body out of the car and moving the car so that they could then escape in the Ford Explorer," he said. "So I think it's a little self-serving for Joseph to say that.” Nevertheless, some anti-death penalty activists say using the Law of Parties in death penalty cases might be a violation of the Constitution’s 8th Amendment, prohibiting cruel and unusual punishment. And with last-minute appeals filed the courts could intervene. Garcia is scheduled to be executed Tuesday at 6 p.m. (source: tpr.org) * Texas’s Death-Penalty System Is a Travesty. Joseph Garcia Is Proof. Texas’s death-penalty system is a travesty. It is racist; kills people who are probably innocent at an alarming rate; and has used drugs sourced from a pharmacy that, according to BuzzFeed News, was “cited for scores of safety violations,” forged quality control documents, and sent at least 1 child to the emergency room because it had improperly compounded their medication. 5 of the 11 Texas inmates executed in 2018 said the drugs used to kill them felt like they were “burning” them internally, even though they were supposed to be pain-free — reflecting a nationwide pattern of excruciating deaths by lethal injection. Perhaps even worse is that Texas is not unique. These issues illustrate an ethical and logistical crisis facing the American death-penalty system as a whole, from Tennessee to South Dakota to Oklahoma. Yet barring a miracle, December 4 will be business as usual. Joseph Garcia is set to be executed in Texas for his role in the Christmas Eve 2000 murder of Irving Police Officer Aubrey Hawkins, which occurred during a shoot-out after Garcia and 6 other men broke out of a maximum-security prison in Kenedy and robbed a sporting goods store. There is no proof that Garcia pulled the trigger. In fact, he was inside the store while the shooting unfolded outside, making his guilt unlikely. But Texas’s Law of Parties holds that he could be convicted of a crime his associates had committed simply because he was present. Details from Garcia’s tragic personal story cast doubt on whether he should have been in the prison he escaped from in the first place. Sister Helen Prejean, a Catholic nun and prominent death-penalty abolitionist, outlined it in a Twitter thread on Sunday: The thread is worth reading in its entirety, but includes accounts of Garcia’s trauma-filled childhood, including several instances of sexual abuse and his first criminal conviction, for which he received a
[Deathpenalty] death penalty news----TEXAS, FLA., ALA., OHIO
December 1 TEXASimpending execution Clemency denied for 'Texas 7' prisoner scheduled for execution A day after suing the Board of Pardons and Paroles, Texas death row prisoner Joseph Garcia lost his long-shot bid for clemency when the 7-member board denied him a favorable recommendation to the governor. He is currently scheduled for execution Tuesday in Huntsville. The 47-year-old was sentenced to die nearly 2 decades ago for his role in the state's biggest prison break, a carefully plotted scheme followed by a crime spree and the slaying of a suburban Dallas police officer. Even though the 7-member parole board unanimously rebuffed his request for a lenient recommendation, Garcia has a number of other claims pending in the courts as well as a request for reprieve in front of the governor. "We are obviously disappointed," said defense lawyer Mridula Raman. "Justice could be served by having Joseph spend the rest of his life in prison. It is unfortunate that the board puts politics over fairness and mercy." In December 2000, Garcia was serving time for a Bexar County slaying when he teamed up with 6 fellow prisoners to break out of a maximum-security prison south of San Antonio. Fleeing canines and helicopters, the men drove to Houston where they pulled off 2 store robberies to stock up on supplies and money before heading north toward Dallas. There, on Christmas Eve, the crew of escapees robbed an Oshman's sporting goods - and on their way out, killed Irving police Officer Aubrey Hawkins. The men drove through a blizzard and headed to Colorado, where they were caught a month later posing as Christian missionaries and living in a trailer park. Though 5 gunmen fired shots and 1 of them - ringleader George Rivas - confessed to shooting the cop, Garcia has long maintained he never opened fire. Still, he was found guilty and sentenced to die under the law of parties, a controversial statute that can hold non-shooters as responsible as triggermen. Challenging the use of that statute has become the center of one of Garcia's last-ditch legal battles. The Texas Court of Criminal Appeals ruled against him in that appeal on Friday, but in a 17-page dissent Judge Elsa Alcala wrote that "evolving standards of decency" might mean it's no longer permissible to execute someone who never intended to kill, and that it might not serve a penological purpose. Late Friday, Garcia's attorneys appealed up to the U.S. Supreme Court. The same day, his legal team filed a federal lawsuit over the state's lethal injection supplier. Echoing a letter sent to the governor earlier in the week, the suit focuses on concerns stemming from a BuzzFeed News report on Wednesday that identified the Houston compounding pharmacy believed to be 1 of 2 responsible for making up the batches of pentobarbital used in the Huntsville death chamber. Since the Braeswood-area business had a track record of safety violations documented by the state, Garcia's attorney's asked the federal court to ban the state from using drugs compounded there or to simply call off Garcia's execution. In addition to the new filings on Friday, Garcia has an appeal challenging the Bexar County conviction that originally put him behind bars; a lawsuit alleging the state's parole board has too many ex-law enforcement members; and a request for reprieve in front of the governor. (source: Houston Chronicle) ** State-Sanctioned Secrecy Shields Texas’ Death Penalty Machine from ScrutinyNew revelations about the source of Texas’ execution drugs underscore the risks of capital punishment shrouded in secrecy. Shortly before he died by lethal injection earlier this year, Anthony Shore, Houston’s infamous “tourniquet killer,” exclaimed that he felt a burning sensation. Later that month, condemned killer William Rayford reportedly grimaced and writhed on the gurney during his final moments. Chris Young, executed this summer over the objections of his victim’s surviving son, was one of several death row inmates who said he could feel the drugs burning in his throat before he died. On Wednesday, Buzzfeed News reported that Texas buys execution drugs from Greenpark Compounding Pharmacy in Houston, which state health officials have repeatedly cited for dangerous practices in recent years, including for giving kids the wrong medicine and forging quality control documents. After the Buzzfeed report, lawyers for Joseph Garcia — set to die Tuesday for his role in a deadly 1999 prison escape — urged Governor Greg Abbott to give Garcia a 30-day reprieve, saying the revelation raises questions about the quality of Texas’ death drugs. Killing Garcia next week, his attorneys argue, subjects him to the “unreasonable risk of a cruel execution." Secrecy has always been a part of the American death penalty machine. Executioners donned hoods when the condemned were hanged in the pu
[Deathpenalty] death penalty news----TEXAS, FLA., NEB., NEV.
Nov. 30 TEXASimpending executionDeath row inmate sues Texas parole board for having too many ex-law enforcement members A 'Texas 7' escapee scheduled for execution filed a lawsuit this week alleging that there are too many men and too many former law enforcement officials on the Texas Board of Pardons and Paroles. Joseph Garcia, who is slated to die Tuesday, currently has a plea for clemency in front of the 7-member board, asking them to recommend a commutation nearly 2 decades after he was sentenced to die for a prison break-out and crime spree that left a police officer dead. The board would normally be expected to issue a recommendation Friday - 2 business days before the planned execution. But mid-day Thursday, Garcia's attorneys filed a federal lawsuit seeking to prevent the board from making a decision until a more representative set of members can be appointed. Currently, the suit notes, the board is "stacked with individuals whose background places them firmly on the side of the State and law enforcement." A spokesman for the Texas Board of Pardons and Paroles did not respond to a request for comment. By law, the there's a limit on the number of former prison employees who can be on the parole board, though it hasn't always been that way. When the legislature first began regulating the board's membership in 1997, the only requirements were that members had to be representative of the "general public" and that they had to have lived in Texas for 2 years. In the late 1990s, a number of inmates sued the parole board, including notorious Houston ax killer Karla Faye Tucker, who alleged that the whole clemency process was so "inadequate" as to violate her due process rights. She lost, but in another lawsuit that same year a federal court found that "a flip of the coin would be more merciful than [the Board's] votes." On the heels of public criticism and media scrutiny, the legislature added a new requirement in 2003, limiting the number of former Texas Department of Criminal Justice employees who could be on the board at any time to 3. Even though the current board includes only two former TDCJ employees, attorneys allege, all but one of the seven voting members has a law enforcement background, including past jobs as police officers and county sheriffs. "Eighty-five percent of the Board members, then, are either former employees of TDCJ, law-enforcement officers, or both," Garcia's lawyers wrote. "The failure of this Board to be 'representative of the general public' is highlighted by the fact that approximately 0.4% of the Texas population are law-enforcement officers and 0.15% are TDCJ employees." The 7th board member is a former adviser to Gov. Greg Abbott. On top of that, 6 of the board's members are men, a distribution that's also not representative of the general population. Given all that, the lawsuit asks for an injunction to bar the parole board from making a decision on clemency until the governor appoints a more representative board. The newly filed lawsuit came hours after Garcia's attorneys sent the governor a letter begging for a 30-day reprieve in light of media reporting regarding the source of the state's execution drugs. Citing unidentified documents, a BuzzFeed News report on Wednesday identified the Houston compounding pharmacy believed to be one of two that mixes up the batches of pentobarbital used in the Huntsville death chamber. Since the Braeswood-area business had a track record of safety violations documented by the state, Garcia's attorney's asked the governor for a reprieve to give them time to investigate. The governor's office did not respond Thursday to the Chronicle's request for comment on the letter. At the time of the notorious escape that eventually landed Garcia on death row, he was already in prison for a crime out of Bexar County, where he stabbed a man at least a dozen times. Since then, he's repeatedly framed the slaying as self-defense and not murder. In December 2000, he was serving time at the Connally Unit when he teamed up with six fellow prisoners to plot the biggest break-out in Texas prison history. In a carefully orchestrated plot months in the making, the 7 inmates took hostages, busted into the prison armory, stole weapons and stormed out of the unit in a prison truck. After a crime spree across the state, on Christmas Eve the men held up an Oshman's sporting goods store and ended up killing Irving police officer Aubrey Hawkins. Afterward, the crew fled and were captured a month later in Colorado, living in a trailer park and posing as Christian missionaries. Though one of the men killed himself rather than surrender, the other 6 were captured and sent to death row. 3 have since been executed. Though Garcia said he never fired a shot, he was convicted under the law of parties and sentenced to die. If his appeals, request for reprieve, and cl
[Deathpenalty] death penalty news----TEXAS, FLA., KY., NEB., USA
Nov. 22 TEXAS: Texas Court of Criminal Appeals rules against death row inmate Jeff Wood The Texas Court of Criminal Appeals has rejected a bid by death row inmate Jeff Wood to reconsider his death sentence, granting the state the opportunity to set another execution date for Wood, whose case gained national attention because of his role as the getaway driver in a robbery that resulted in the death of a man. Wood's original execution was set for Aug. 24, 2016. But 6 days before he was scheduled to die, the Court of Criminal Appeals halted his execution and sent the case back to the original trial court in Kerr County to re-examine whether Dr. James P. Grigson, a psychiatrist who testified in Wood's 1998 murder trial, gave false or misleading statements. After Wood's case was sent back to Kerr County in 2016 following the stay of execution, the state filed a response saying that relief should be denied. The trial court originally determined that there were "no existing controverted, previously unresolved factual issues material to the legality of applicant's confinement." After a continuing back and forth with the parole board, the trial court and the Court of Criminal Appeals through 2017 and into 2018, the trial court eventually recommended execution relief be granted to Wood, 45. The Court of Criminal Appeals disagreed on Wednesday. On Jan. 2, 1996, Wood and Daniel Reneau robbed a Texaco station in Kerrville. Wood was waiting in a truck while Reneau went into the gas station and stole a packed safe, surveillance VCR and other items, according to court documents. Reneau fatally shot 31-year-old store clerk Kris Keeran after he refused to comply with Reneau's threats. Both men were convicted and sentenced to death, and Reneau was executed in 2002. Although the court recognized the controversy of Grigson's testimony in court documents, the judges argued that the state had collected enough evidence to determine that Wood would still pose a future threat, referencing a previous armed robbery he Wood and Reneau were involved in, and that the two had plotted more crimes while in jail awaiting trial. "Now that this application is no longer pending, the conviction court can set an execution date, and the Board can properly consider a possible joint request for commutation," Judge David Newell wrote in a concurring opinion. Wood's case has long been controversial because of his minimal role in the crime and because Grigson - nicknamed "Dr. Death" for how he predicted future dangerousness - had not disclosed that he had been expelled from the American Psychiatric Association and the Texas Society of Psychiatric Physicians. Grigson testified that Wood would present a future danger to society if not granted the harshest sentencing. Wood was sentenced to death under Texas' law of parties, a statute that holds a person criminally responsible for a death even if the individual is not directly involved in the killing. In an August 2017 letter to the Texas Board of Pardons and Parole, Lucy Wilke, the prosecutor in Wood's original trial who sought the death penalty against him, wrote to ask that the board recommend to Gov. Greg Abbott that Wood's sentence be reduced to life in prison. She wrote that she was an early-career attorney at the time of the trial and would not have asked Grigson to testify had she known about his expulsion from the two psychiatric organizations. "I'm not aware of another case in which a person has been executed with as minimal participation and culpability as Jeff," Wood's Houston-based lawyer, Jared Tyler told the Tribune in a previous statement. "It's a national first in that regard if the state does actually execute him." (source: easttexasmatters.com) FLORIDA: Man accused of setting girlfriend on fire appears to want death penaltyDarryl Whipple to judge: 'Willing to pay the ultimate price ... why can't I?' A man accused of setting his girlfriend on fire at a Westside restaurant two years ago wrote a rambling, eight-page letter to the judge about to hear his murder trial in which he appears to ask to be put to death. Darryl Whipple, 60, is accused of dousing 56-year-old Carol Renee Demmons with flammable liquid and lighting her on fire Oct. 12, 2016, while she was working at a Golden Corral on Memorial Park Road, just off Normandy Boulevard. She died about 3 weeks later. Whipple, who is due back in court next month, is facing the death penalty if found guilty, but this letter could delay the process. Surveillance video from the restaurant appears to show Whipple walk up to Demmons, pour a liquid on her and use a lighter to set her on fire. Shortly after his arrest, Whipple pleaded not guilty. Nearly two years later, Whipple appears to be asking for the death penalty. Whipple letterIn the meticulously hand-printed letter to Circuit Judge Aho filed Nov. 9, Whipple takes full ownership
[Deathpenalty] death penalty news----TEXAS, FLA., MISS., KY., ARK., USA
November 9 TEXAS: Texas AG fights Harris County prosecutors to keep Bobby Moore on death row Prosecutors and defense lawyers agree that Bobby Moore is too intellectually disabled to execute - but the state of Texas wants him put to death anyway. A day after Harris County prosecutors made the rare move of siding with a death row inmate in a Supreme Court filing, the Texas Office of the Attorney General took the possibly unprecedented step of asking to take on the case and keep pushing for the death chamber. "The DA, who represents just 1 of Texas's 254 counties, does not represent the Attorney General's interest," the state's top prosecutor wrote, claiming that the district attorney offered "no analysis" beyond "2 conclusory sentences" in her filing a day earlier. The state's 17-page brief represents yet another twist in a groundbreaking case that's already shaken up how Texas determines whether a prisoner is too intellectually disabled to be put to death. Lawyers for Moore, an attorney general spokesperson and the district attorney's office all did not weigh in on Wednesday's filing. A day earlier, Harris County District Attorney Kim Ogg offered a short statement pointing to an earlier Supreme Court decision in the case. "We agree with the Supreme Court that the intellectually disabled should not be executed," she said. The convicted killer was 1 of 3 men involved in a botched robbery at the Birdsall Super Market, a 1980 slaying in which he fired the shot that killed elderly store clerk James McCarble. That same year, the former carpenter was sentenced to death during his 1980 trial. For more than 3 decades, Moore fought his appeals, once coming within hours of execution. Then, in 2017, the Supreme Court handed down a groundbreaking decision, in a 5-3 ruling determining that Texas had been, for years, not properly measuring intellectual disability in cases like Moore's. The ruling booted Moore's claims back to a lower court, where prosecutors switched course and asked for a life sentence. But - even though the district attorney's office agreed to the more lenient outcome - the Texas Court of Criminal Appeals didn't, handing down a split decision Moore's lawyers condemned as an "outlier" and "inconsistent" with the higher court. Last month, Moore's legal team appealed that ruling up to the Supreme Court again, asking the justices to yet again examine the state's standards for intellectual disability, but also asking the high court to consider whether an execution should count as unconstitutional if both sides agree that it is. "As far as counsel is aware, this Court never has permitted an execution when both the prosecutor and the defendant agree that the defendant is intellectually disabled and ineligible for execution," defense attorney Cliff Sloan and Pat McCann wrote in their Supreme Court filing. "For good reason." Although the Supreme Court banned states from executing intellectually disabled prisoners more than a decade ago, for years Texas skirted that by relying on an out-dated, nonclinical test to evaluate mental capacity. Named after plaintiff Jose Briseno, the test used seven questions to determine intellectual disability, as outlined in a 2004 ruling that famously referenced "Of Mice and Men" character Lennie as someone most Texans would agree should be exempt from the death penalty. But even though he failed every single grade, did not understand the days of the week by age 13, and fell below the standard for being able to live independently as an adult, under the old standard Moore still didn't qualify as intellectually disabled. The Court of Criminal Appeals twice decided that despite his apparent deficits, he was still fit to execute. Then last year the Supreme Court reversed the first of those two decisions with its groundbreaking 5-3 ruling. The high court's 2017 ruling didn't just impact Moore's case, it also ordered Texas to come up with new standards - something other than the Briseno factors - for determining intellectual disability. The ruling sparked a stream of requests from inmates hoping to get off death row, and 2 condemned killers won stays this year because of the decision. But even the Supreme Court's decision hasn't been enough to spare Moore - at least not yet. After the high court's decision last year, prosecutors in November 2017 agreed with the defense that a life sentence was appropriate. And still, the Texas Court of Criminal Appeals said no. Even though the appeals court came up with a new, clinical standard for measuring intellectual disability, they still found that Moore didn't meet it. So in October, Moore's lawyers filed another appeal in the Supreme Court. On Tuesday, the district attorney's office agreed. "The respondent parts company with the TCCA in its determination that the applicant is not intellectually disabled," the district attorney's office wrote.
[Deathpenalty] death penalty news----TEXAS, FLA., OHIO, TENN., S.DAK., USA
October 30 TEXAS: Jurors deciding fate of hitman who killed Uptown dentist shown his 'Life or Death,' '1 Man Army' tattoos The pediatric dentist who was gunned down in 2015 in the parking garage of her Uptown apartment loved children, built houses for people in need and served on mission trips in third-world countries, her family and friends testified Monday. In contrast, the hitman who killed Kendra Hatcher has a lengthy criminal history, according to testimony during the punishment phase of the trial for 34-year-old Kristopher Love. Prosecutors are seeking the death penalty against Love, who was convicted last week of capital murder in Hatcher's death. Her loved ones said she was universally loved, which made her murder-for-hire so shocking to them. "Nobody disliked her," Hatcher's sister, Ashley Turner, testified. Prosecutors showed jurors pictures of Hatcher through the phases of her life: a 3-year-old girl grinning at the camera, a high school honor student, a dental school graduate, a pediatric dentist treating children abroad. Prosecutors also showed jurors photos of Love covered in tattoos that read "Life Or Death" and "1 MAN ARMY." Love was allegedly hired by Brenda Delgado, the ex-girlfriend of Hatcher's boyfriend. Delgado, 36, is also charged with capital murder in Hatcher's death. Her trial has not been scheduled. After Hatcher's death, Delgado fled to Mexico. She was extradited from Mexico in 2016 and is not eligible for the death penalty as part of the extradition agreement. Delgado, 36, is accused of being the mastermind behind a murder plot allegedly fueled by jealousy over her ex-boyfriend's relationship with Hatcher. A third person, 26-year-old Crystal Cortes, was also charged with capital murder for her role as the getaway driver. She pleaded guilty to a reduced charge of murder. She expects to receive a 35-year sentence in exchange for her testimony in Love's trial and later Delgado's trial. Cortes testified she was paid $500 for her role as the getaway driver. She said Love was paid in "drugs and money" but didn't know the exact amount. Although Cortes originally told police she didn't know there was a plan to kill Hatcher, she testified during Love's trial that she knew Delgado wanted Hatcher dead. She said the trio took turns following Hatcher during the 1 weeks before her death. She also admitted she tried to buy a silencer for the handgun that was used to kill Hatcher. Telephone records show that Love was texting about selling marijuana before and after Hatcher was killed, and his text messages included conversations about working as a pimp. His cellphone was near Hatcher's apartment at least twice before the murder, the records showed. Hatcher was found dead from a gunshot wound to the head Sept. 2, 2015. Her family said they were stunned to learn how she died. Hatcher grew up in a small town in Illinois with 4 siblings. "This doesn't happen in central Illinois," Turner said. "We didn't know evil like this existed." After Hatcher was killed, Turner searched for a video that captured her sister's laugh. "I wish she could just walk through the room and do it for you," Turner testified Monday. "She was full of life and full of love." Hatcher was excited about her relationship with Ricardo Paniagua, whom she started dating in May 2015. Paniagua testified that he had remained friends with Delgado after their breakup and said the woman knew he was in a serious relationship. Hatcher and Paniagua were scheduled to go to Mexico on vacation Sept. 3, 2015, the day after Hatcher was killed. They were also planning to go to Hatcher's hometown the following weekend. Tami Patano met Hatcher while they were in dental school. She said she struggled to find the words to describe her best friend. "Her laugh was contagious. It was just so high-pitched and full of joy," she said. "Last time I talked to Kendra was a week before she passed," Patano said, pausing to look at Love, "before she was murdered." Like Hatcher's family, Patano said she hasn't recovered from her grief. She said she is plagued by anxiety and fear. She regularly looks over her shoulder and even struggles to perform surgeries because the sight of blood makes her think of how her friend died. She also said she couldn't understand why Hatcher was killed. "Kendra did not participate with drugs or crime," Patano said. "She did not associate with questionable people." Prosecutors also presented jurors Love's criminal history Monday, which includes aggravated assault charges and a burglary of a habitation in Tennessee, where Love is from. The sentencing phase of the trial continues Tuesday. (source: Dallas Morning News) FLORIDA: Florida man on death row for 42 years fighting for his life; Private investigator says he didn't kill anyoneFlorida inmate fights for his life It was a gruesome crime. 5 people were g
[Deathpenalty] death penalty news----TEXAS, FLA., TENN., S.DAK., CALIF., ORE.
October 27 TEXASimpending execution Human Rights Watch Letter in Support of Clemency for Roberto Ramos Moreno Governor Greg Abbott Office of the Governor P.O. Box 12428 Austin, Texas 78711-2428 David G. Gutierrez, Presiding Officer Executive Clemency Section Texas Board of Pardons and Paroles 8610 Shoal Creek Blvd. Austin, Texas 78757 Re: Letter in Support of Clemency for Roberto Ramos Moreno, TDCJ # 999062 Dear Governor Abbott and Presiding Officer Gutierrez, We write to urge you to commute the sentence of Roberto Ramos Moreno, whose execution is now scheduled for November 14. International human rights law is predicated on recognition of the inherent dignity and the equal and inalienable rights of all people, including those who have committed terrible crimes.[1] Human Rights Watch believes the inherent dignity of the person cannot be squared with the death penalty, a form of punishment that is unique in its barbarity and finality, and, as practiced in the United States, a punishment inevitably plagued by arbitrariness, prejudice and error. We therefore oppose the death penalty in all circumstances and in all countries around the world. In 2005, the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights concluded that Mr. Ramos Moreno received inadequate legal defense from his court-appointed trial lawyer, which violated his fundamental right to due process and a fair trial.[2] In addition, the Mexican government maintains that Mr. Ramos Moreno's consular notification and visitation rights under Article 36 of the Vienna Convention on Consular Relations were not respected.[3] In addition to all of this, there is unique mitigating information in Mr. Ramos Moreno's case. A mental health expert determined that Mr. Ramos Moreno suffers from severe organic brain damage and has been afflicted with Bipolar Mood Disorder for most of his life including at the time of the offense. Human Rights Watch has called for the commutation of death sentences in other cases involving individuals with serious mental health conditions.[4] The United States stands increasingly alone in its pervasive use of the death penalty. By retaining capital punishment in a world that has largely turned its back on this practice, the US damages its reputation, causes friction with its closest neighbors and allies, and undermines its own efforts to promote human rights at home and abroad. For all these reasons we urge you to commute the sentence of Roberto Ramos Moreno. Sincerely, Alison Leal Parker Managing Director, US Program Human Rights Watch (source: Human Rights Watch) FLORIDA: Death row: 17 inmates from Northwest Florida face the death penalty Out of the most heinous murder cases in Northwest Florida history, just 17 of them have ended with the convicted killer going to death row. They've included Edward Zakrzewski, a former Eglin Air Force Base airman who hacked his wife and 2 young children to death with a machete inside their Mary Esther home; Norman Grimm, a Milton man who raped and killed his neighbor, then dumped her body off the Pensacola Bay Bridge only to have the body hooked by a fisherman the next day; and Steven Cozzie, a homeless Walton County man who sexually assaulted and strangled a teenage girl on vacation in Seagrove Beach with her family. Their high-profile cases mostly transpired before the public eye and their death sentences were met with satisfaction that justice had been served. But although each case was different, one thing they all had in common was that their shocking crimes gripped the region and left a lasting impression on many in the Panhandle. The Daily News looks back at some of the most shocking death penalty cases in Northwest Florida's history, and where their cases are now. Death row inmates from Northwest Florida There are 17 inmates on death row from Okaloosa, Santa Rosa and Walton counties, and none of them is currently scheduled for execution. They're winding their way through the rigorous appeals process at the state and federal level, and some are seeking to have their convictions thrown out entirely. The last person to be executed from Okaloosa County was Dan Hauser, who was put to death via lethal injection in 2000 for the 1995 murder of an Okaloosa Island exotic dancer. Forty-year-old Anthony Bryan of Santa Rosa County was also executed in 2000 for the 1983 slaying of a night watchman, and Arthur Rutherford, another Santa Rosa County man, was put to death in 2006 for the 1985 robbery and killing of a woman for whom he had worked. No inmate from Walton County has been put to death in Florida. Florida has the second highest number of death row inmates in the country, with 354 as of April 1, according to the Death Penalty Information Center. California leads the country with 740 death row inmates. The 17 Panhandle inmates on death row have served a combined 294 years in prison, and most of
[Deathpenalty] death penalty news----TEXAS, FLA., TENN., ARK., MO., , NEB., COLO., CALIF.
August 30 TEXASstay of impending execution Stay of Execution A senior federal judge granted a stay of execution for a man condemned to death for killing an elderly woman during a burglary 2 decades ago. Ruben Gutierrez, 41, had been scheduled to die on Sept. 12 at 6 p.m. for murdering 85-year-old Escolastica Harrison at the Harrison Mobile Home Park on Morningside Road in Brownsville in 1998. A Cameron County jury in the 107th state District Court convicted Gutierrez based on evidence that he befriended Harrison so he could rob her of some of the $600,000 in cash that she had hidden in her home. According to police, Harrison didn't like banks and kept her money in a suitcase in her trailer home. An autopsy showed she had been stabbed 13 times with 2 different screwdrivers and was also beaten. Senior U.S. District Judge Hilda Tagle granted the stay of execution on Aug. 22. "Allowing the execution to proceed, however, would deny Gutierrez any meaningful opportunity to conduct an investigation into the factual and legal basis of potential claims," Tagle wrote in her order. New lawyers appointed to represent Gutierrez early this month made the request on Aug. 10, and argue they need more time to learn about Gutierrez and go through the massive case record. "Through no fault of his own, Mr. Gutierrez is before this Court less than a month before his scheduled execution with counsel who were appointed to his case within the past 10 days," the motion for a stay of execution states. Gutierrez's previous attorney said in court documents that she didn???t believe she had the expertise to represent the man at this stage of his litigation, and Tagle's order notes that the attorney is no longer allowed to practice in the 5th Circuit Court of Appeals because of rude behavior toward court staff. The motion for stay of execution notes that Gutierrez's former attorney never disclosed that to him. The condemned man's new attorneys mention in their motion for stay of execution that they may prepare civil rights litigation, need time to apply for clemency in an attempt to commute Gutierrez's death sentence to life without parole, and also need to investigate what kind of efforts Gutierrez's trial attorneys put into DNA testing crime scene forensic evidence. Cameron County District Attorney Luis V. Saenz said the stay of execution is regrettable. "We're terribly disappointed there was a stay granted," Saenz said. However, on Monday, the Texas Solicitor General's Office filed a motion to vacate the stay of execution, Saenz said. "We're hoping to hear something as early as this week," he said. ???We're hoping the execution will go forward." If the stay of execution is not lifted, Saenz expects Gutierrez's attorneys will file a request to DNA test crime scene forensic evidence, to which the DA's Office will object. During a brief interview Wednesday afternoon, Saenz contended that Gutierrez had previously conducted DNA testing on the forensic evidence in the case, which the man's new attorneys contend in the motion to stay the execution has never happened in the case. Gutierrez claims he organized the burglary, but did not take part in it and that DNA testing would corroborate his claim. "Mr. Gutierrez has fought for nearly a decade to have the forensic evidence in his case DNA tested - including fingernail scrapings, blood stains, and hair evidence. To date, none of it has been tested," the motion for stay of execution states. Saenz has called the DNA claim hogwash, and in a previous interview said Gutierrez confessed to the crime and that his co-defendant testified Gutierrez was an active member in the crime. Harrison's family was disappointed in the news, Saenz said. "The disappointment is much more compounded by the fact that it???s this close. They've been waiting for years to get to this point, which is doubly disappointing," Saenz said. Every time the execution gets set back, the family has to relive the crime and anguish, he said. Harrison's surviving sister, who is up in age, wants to see the man executed, Saenz said. "She's holding on because she wants to see this come about," he said. (source: Brownsville Herald) * Executions under Greg Abbott, Jan. 21, 2015-present35 Executions in Texas: Dec. 7, 1982present-553 Abbott#scheduled execution date-nameTx. # 36-Sept. 26---Troy Clark--554 37-Sept. 27---Daniel Acker555 38-Oct. 10Juan Segundo556 39-Oct. 24Kwame Rockwell--557 40-Nov. 7-Emanuel Kemp, Jr.-558 41-Dec. 4-Joseph Garcia---559 42-Jan. 30Robert Jennings-560 (sources: TDCJ & Rick Halperin) * Paxton: Leth
[Deathpenalty] death penalty news----TEXAS, FLA., OHIO, MO., ARK., NEB., COLO., USA
August 21
TEXAS:
Death row is not for mistakes
A "mistake."
This is how murder ("the crime of unlawfully killing a person especially with
malice aforethought") is defined in a recent column titled "U.S. Should Follow
Pope's Leadership on the Death Penalty" by Anna Arceneaux, a senior staff
attorney for the ACLU Capital Punishment Project. (The column was penned for
InsideSources.com.)
Arceneaux, referencing the thoughts of a corrections officer, wrote "For the
most part, he said, death row is made up of people who made one horrible,
tragic mistake."
What is a "mistake" is the use of such political spin on the horrific and evil
crimes that land a person on death row in Texas.
There are 2 individuals from Lubbock County on death row in Texas.
1 of them has been on death row since 1998.
This individual, who had previously violated parole for burglary, was sentenced
to the ultimate form of punishment for choking a person to death with a rope
and dumping the victim's body on the street as he fled the scene. (This is
according to the Texas Department of Criminal Justice.)
To categorize this crime as a "mistake" is an insult to the memory of the
victim.
Such a flippant description of a horrible and violent crime makes it sound as
if a person was killed as the result of someone driving drunk - as if a tragic
accident occurred.
In the case of the aforementioned individual on death row, this was a willful
act of evil that showed zero regard for human life - and it should be noted
that if the individual was not aware that the crime he committed was wrong, why
did he callously dump the victim's body on the street and run?
Those who want to oppose the death penalty are certainly entitled to their
opinions.
However, to gloss over the crimes people commit that result in the ultimate
form of punishment by describing such crimes as simply a "mistake" detract from
the seriousness of such crimes.
Capital punishment is reserved for those who commit the most heinous and
despicable crimes. And with the advent of science (namely DNA evidence - when
available) there is no doubt as to guilt or innocence.
The wilful act of brutally killing another human being should be regarded as
something more than a "mistake" - especially when justice is involved.
(source: Editorial, Lubbock Avalanche-Journal)
FLORIDA:
Santa Rosa County man on death row may get new sentence
A Santa Rosa County man on death row had a resentencing hearing Monday. The
murder happened 20 years ago. Jonathan Lawrence was convicted of killing and
mutilating 18-year-old Jennifer Robinson in Santa Rosa County in May of 1998.
In the original sentencing, a jury voted in favor of the death penalty 11-1.
Lawrence was back in court because in 2016, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled death
penalty recommendations that are not unanimous are unconstitutional. Since
then, several death penalty cases have returned to court for re-sentencing.
The guilty convictions remain, but a jury or judge has to decide whether that
person should remain on death row or serve a life sentence. The State
Attorney's Office said Lawrence wrote a letter in 2017 to a judge asking for
the death penalty to remain. Assistant State Attorney John Molchan said despite
what a defendant wants, the Supreme Court requires the case be resentenced.
Molchan says the defendant's special counsel provided testimony from a doctor
and some of his relatives stating he had problems in the past and didn't
deserve to be executed. The state is asking for the judge to uphold the death
penalty. The judge will announce his decision on September 12th.
A co-defendant was also convicted in the case. Jeremiah Rodgers had his
original case before a judge, so he did not qualify for a re-sentencing.
(source: WEAR TV news)
OHIOstay of execution
Stay of execution issued for James Worley
The execution process of convicted killer James Worley has hit its 1st speed
bump.
The man found guilty of kidnapping and killing Sierah Joughin filed an appeal
of that conviction back in May.
The Ohio Supreme Court issued a stay of the execution on Monday while that
appeal runs its course.
This is not unusual for death penalty cases.
Worley remains on death row.
(source: WTOL news)
**
Execution for Sierah Joughin's killer put on hold temporarily
The execution of the man convicted of killing Sierah Joughin has been
temporarily put on hold. This ruling comes as the case of James Worley makes
its way through the appeals process.
Every death penalty conviction case gets several appeals, which includes an
automatic one in the Ohio Supreme Court.
Those justices are the ones that granted what's called a stay of execution for
Worley. That puts the execution on hold for now.
Justices said in their ruling that no execution date is to be set while the
appeal is pending.
Worley was convicted in the 2016 kidnapping and murde
[Deathpenalty] death penalty news----TEXAS, FLA., LA., NEB., NEV.
July 29 TEXASinmate seeks to drop appeals and speed executuion Travis Mullis, On Death Row For Stomping Infant To Death, Files Request To Fast-Track His ExecutionMullis has waived all his appeals and fired his attorneys. Travis Mullis, a 31-year-old Texas man who stomped his 3-year-old baby to death, has filed a request to fast-track his path to the death chamber, according to the Houston Chronicle. Mullis made headlines when he was sentenced to death row in 2011 after he stomped his little baby to death by the Galveston seawall in a ghastly culmination of what his attorneys said was a series of "stupid decisions." His attorneys had previously pointed out that Mullis was an "emotional mental health quadriplegic," detailing his horrific upbringing and the result of his childhood scars on his mental being. According to the documents, Mullis' mother died when he was a toddler, and between the ages of 3 and 6, he was sexually abused repeatedly. He spent years in and out of institutions, and when he was 18, Mullis' adoptive mother kicked him out to live on his own. This is when he moved to Texas and settled with a woman he had met online on the outskirts of Houston. But by 2008, Mullis and his girlfriend found themselves without any money and without a home, at which point a couple which had been living in a trailer invited them to come live with them. At one point during his stay, Mullis took the couple's 8-year-old daughter to a schoolyard where he tried molesting her. When the child began crying, Mullis panicked, later ruing the fact that he had "screwed" himself by "stepping over the line." Partly to avoid eviction, and partly to introspect his next course of action, Mullis drove to Galveston with his 3-month-old sleeping in the back seat. Court documents showed that the child started crying, making Mullis angry. In his impulsive rage, the Texas man tried to first molest his toddler boy, but when he wouldn't keep quiet, stomped his head till it gave away. "I make stupid decisions, what can I say. I did it on impulse and killed him right after," he told the Chronicle. He fled to Pennsylvania but four days after the incident and surrendered to Philadelphia police with a detailed confession about the crimes he had committed. He was sentenced to death despite protestations by his attorneys that Mullis had been subject to emotional and sexual abuse himself while growing up. Mullis has waived appeals and won't seek the counsel of his attorneys, having fired them. He says he doesn't want to be excused because he committed serious crimes which should lead to death. All he wants, Mullis says, is that his suffering be reduced by fast-tracking his path to death. "I'm 100 % guilty of my crime nobody contests that," Mullis said. "The fight is over my sentence. I'm accepting of my death sentence. My lawyers are against the death penalty for anyone." (source: inquisitr.com) ** Bail reduced for woman accused in son's death A district judge in Bowie County reduced bail from $100,000 to $20,000 at a hearing Friday for a woman accused in the death of her 4-year-old son earlier this year. Khadijah Wright, 26, appeared before 5th District Judge Bill Miller for a bond reduction hearing Friday morning with Dallas lawyer Jasmine Crockett in a 2nd-floor courtroom of the Bowie County courthouse. Wright is charged with injury to a child by omission in the March death of young D'Money Lewis. D'Money's father, Benearl Lewis, is charged with capital murder in the death. Wright is accused of allowing Benearl Lewis to be alone with the couple's children despite a care plan with Child Protective Services prohibiting D'Money's father to have unsupervised contact or spend the night at the rent house where Wright and the children were living in Wake Village, Texas, on Redwater Road. Crockett called Wright's mother to testify on her behalf at Friday's hearing. Marisha Hamilton testified that Wright graduated from Arkansas High School in Texarkana, Ark., and that Wright has some type of online degree. Hamilton said Wright was working at Mayo Manufacturing in Texarkana at the time of Wright's arrest 128 days ago. Hamilton said she lives on a disability payment of less than $1,000 monthly and denied Wright has any assets or felony convictions. Hamilton told the court she can only afford to post $2,000 for her daughter's release. Assistant District Attorney Lauren Richards called Wake Village Police Department Detective Todd Aultman, the lead investigator into D'Money's murder. Aultman said the case was brought to his department's attention March 6 by members of the Texarkana, Texas, Police Department. Aultman said Texarkana, Texas, police were working a traffic accident at West Seventh Street and Bishop Lane when the couple approached them about getting a police escort to the hospital for their child. Aultman said an officer
[Deathpenalty] death penalty news----TEXAS, FLA., LA., OHIO, TENN.
July 27 TEXASdeath row inmate seeks to drop appeals Death row inmate who stomped baby's head in Galveston asks to be executedTravis Mullis was sentenced to death row in 2011 A Brazoria County man on death row for stomping his 3-month-old baby to death by the Galveston seawall filed a motion this week asking to waive his appeals and fire his attorneys, hoping to fast-track his path to the death chamber. Travis Mullis, the 31-year-old Alvin transplant sent to death row in 2011, previously sought to forfeit his appeals and in recent months repeatedly raised the possibility of doing so again. "I support my death sentence and want it carried out ASAP," he told the Chronicle in a letter earlier this year. "I was sentenced to death not indefinite detention." So-called "volunteers" - inmates seeking to cut off appeals and offer themselves up to die - account for only about 10 % of executions, according to the nongovernmental Death Penalty Information Center. But earlier this week, another Texas prisoner fought to waive appeals, and in recent months the high-profile case of Scott Dozier has garnered national media attention as Nevada struggles to find the drugs to help the condemned man carry out his death wish. The crime that landed Mullis on death row was an impulsive outburst that capped a string of what he called "stupid decisions" and an unequivocally wretched life. His mother died when he was still a baby and, growing up, he was sexually abused from ages 3 to 6, according to court records. He spent years in and out of institutions and when he turned 18, his adoptive mother kicked him out of the house. He moved to Texas, settling outside Houston with a woman he'd met online. By 2008, he and his girlfriend found themselves broke and without a place to stay, so they started crashing in a trailer with a couple who agreed to take them in. But early one morning that January, Mullis took the couple's 8-year-old daughter to a schoolyard and tried to pull her pants down. The girl started crying and Mullis brought her home but decided that he was "screwed" because he'd "stepped over the line," he told the Chronicle. Worried that the girl would tell her parents and he'd would be evicted, on Jan. 29 Mullis drove to Galveston to ponder his predicament with his 3-month-old sleeping in the backseat. But the child started crying, and Mullis wanted him to be quiet. So, first, he molested the boy, then stomped his skull until it gave way. "I make stupid decisions, what can I say," he told the Chronicle. "I did it on impulse and killed him right after." He fled to Pennsylvania but turned himself in to Philadelphia police four days later, offering up a detailed confession. During trial, his attorneys outlined his rough life, describing their client as an "emotional mental health quadriplegic" who was "unable to feel emotions." After he was sent to death row, Mullis waived his direct appeal as well as the later state post-conviction appeal, according to court records. But in federal court, he revived his claims again - until recently. He told the Chronicle he didn't like what his lawyers were saying about him and disagreed with their claims regarding his mental health. "I'm 100 % guilty of my crime nobody contests that," he said. "The fight is over my sentence. I'm accepting of my death sentence. My lawyers are against the death penalty for anyone." His legal team did not respond to a request for comment. In some ways, said Robert Dunham of the Death Penalty Information Center, Mullis fits the profile of those most apt to waive their appeals and volunteer for execution. "Almost all the volunteers are white males, they almost all have had horrific upbringings, frequently involving serious sexual abuse," he said. "And for most of them it is more painful for them to see the mitigating evidence presented than it is to terminate the proceedings and be killed." Texas has had more volunteers than any other state, Dunham said, which isn't surprising given the sheer volume of executions in the state. According to the Death Penalty Information Center, the most recent volunteer was Barney Fuller, a Houston County man who shot up his neighbors' home with an AR-15 then went inside and shot them both in the head. He was executed in 2016. More commonly, prisoners volunteer at some point in the process and change their minds later. Roughly 146 of more than 1,470 executed prisoners volunteered to die, according to DPIC data. 31 of those were in the Lone Star State. But over the past year, it's not a death case in Texas but one in Nevada - which hasn't executed anyone in more than a decade - that's garnered attention. Dozier has repeatedly, in several interviews, voiced his desire for death. The 47-year-old was sentenced to die for the 2002 murder and dismemberment of Jeremiah Miller. But his case has generated national press because o
[Deathpenalty] death penalty news----TEXAS, FLA., LA., TENN., NEB.
July 26 TEXASdeath row inmate seeks to drop appeals Texas court seeks to clear up whether inmate in CO's slaying wants to dieAn appeals court asked a trial court to determine whether an inmate sentenced to die for a CO's death really is volunteering for execution The Texas Court of Criminal Appeals asked a trial court Wednesday to determine whether a 51-year-old prisoner sentenced to die for a corrections officer's death during a 2007 escape attempt in Huntsville really is volunteering for execution. Condemned inmate John Ray Falk Jr. filed his own document last month seeking to get rid of his lawyers and "expedite this process with as much swiftness as this court might allow," the state's highest criminal court said in its 4-page ruling. The filing came after Falk initially sought to represent him in the appeals process, then said he wanted his appeals waived, and later decided to retain attorneys. The court gave Falk's trial court 30 days to resolve any questions, then gave parties in the case another 30 days to submit legal briefs. Falk last year pleaded guilty and received the death penalty for the death of Texas Department of Criminal Justice corrections officer Susan Canfield. Canfield was killed in September 2007 trying to block the escape of Falk and another inmate, Jerry Duane Martin, from a work detail at the Wynne Unit prison in Huntsville. A truck stolen by Martin hit her horse. Falk already was a convicted murderer serving a life prison term, and Martin was serving 50 years for attempted capital murder. They were among about 75 inmates working in a vegetable patch outside the Wynne Unit prison at the northern edge of Huntsville. Authorities said the escape began when Martin used the ruse of a broken watch to get close to an officer and snatch a weapon. He tossed it to Falk and ran to steal the truck. Canfield was hit as they sped off while shots were being fired. Her head struck the truck, killing her. The prisoners abandoned the pickup about a mile away and carjacked a woman at a bank drive-thru. Huntsville police pursuing them shot out a tire in that car. The inmates fled on foot. Falk was apprehended within an hour. Martin was caught a few hours later, hiding in a tree. Martin was executed in 2013 after requesting no additional appeals be filed in his case. (source: Associated Press) FLORIDA: Jury recommends death penalty in case of St. Johns Co. double murder A St. Johns County jury chose unanimously the death penalty in the case of James Colley, Jr. Last week, the same jury spent 2 hours deliberating before returning a verdict of guilty on all counts, including 2 counts of 1st-degree premeditated murder of Amanda Colley and Lindy Dobbins. The sentence comes after the defense team spent 2 days asking jurors to consider the prescription and illicit drugs in Colley's system, the domestic violence he witnessed as a child, and his caring family values. In closing arguments, defense attorney Garry Wood asked the jurors have mercy on the 38-year-old defendant. "This is a human being we're talking about," Wood said. "According to the state's own testimony, Mr. Colley was upset, he was enraged. He's an impulsive person, but that doesn't aggravate this into a case where the death penalty is warranted." Assistant prosecutor Mark Johnson replayed a frantic 911 call made by Amanda Colley during the shootingsand detailed the gunshot wounds during the state's closing arguments. Johnson told jurors the murders deserved a punishment of death because of aggravating factors that made the crime "atrocious and heinous." "There was no justification for what happened," Johnson said. "The choices he made [were] for his own selfish desires because he couldn't let go, because he was losing control and this was the only way he could regain control." (source: firstcoastnews.com) Jurors spare life of gang member. He didn't pull trigger, but will spend life in prison Frantzy Jean-Marie, a suspected gang member convicted last month of killing a confidential informant and his girlfriend 15 years ago, had his life spared Tuesday, but will spend the rest of it prison. The same jury that convicted Jean-Marie, 35, of 2 counts of 1st-degree murder, 4 counts of attempted murder and conspiracy and racketeering last month, spent just over an hour deliberating life or death for the 35-year-old who prosecutors say belonged to a violent and murderous street gang known as the Terrorist Boyz. The 12-member jury spared Jean-Marie's life after reaching the conclusion after his four-month trial that ended in June, that he did not pull the trigger - but was guilty of the murder of Armstrong Riviere and his girlfriend Stephanie Adams at a Northwest Miami-Dade apartment complex in March of 2003. During the same trial, Jean-Marie was acquitted of the murders of 2 men who were shot to death as they le
[Deathpenalty] death penalty news----TEXAS, FLA., ALA., OHIO, TENN.
July 20 TEXAS: In Houston death penalty cases, many judges carry a 'rubber stamp,' lawyers find Harris County judges routinely "rubber stamp' the prosecution's proposed version of events at a key point of death penalty appeals, pushing condemned prisoners closer to execution with little regard for defense claims, a new study finds. Some legal experts say the study reveals a "rigged" system where the state is effectively ghostwriting appeals decisions that judges sign off on, often without allowing hearings and sometimes within just a few days. "This is the heart of the reason the Texas death penalty system is so broken," said Robert Dunham of the Death Penalty Information Center. The year-long study of roughly 200 proceedings was first published in a federal appeal filed earlier this year by defense lawyer Jim Marcus. It says that in the vast majority of death penalty cases - more than 9 times out of every 10 - judges are simply accepting prosecutors' arguments, sometimes adopting their language, spelling errors and all. But judges and prosecutors rebuffed the study's claims, pointing out that if courts are consistently siding with the state, it doesn't mean they're wrong. These are, after all, men and woman already tried and convicted in front of a jury. Each case is unique, they emphasize, and while defense lawyers are supposed to be zealous advocates for their clients, prosecutors are supposed to be neutral defenders of justice. Among the skeptics: Judge Elsa Alcala, a former Harris County jurist now known as the most outspoken death penalty critic on the state's Court of Criminal Appeals. "I'm not totally convinced that because you have some percentage that says something that that really tells you a lot," Alcala said. "We're judges because we're required to use our judgment." Yet the vast majority of the time, that means agreeing only with the state. 'State's proposed findings' After a jury doles out a death sentence, the years-long "post-conviction" appeals process delves into a "finding of facts." Each side gets to lay out their version of what's happened and present new evidence that could merit a new trial - or at least a hearing to figure out whether that's necessary. The proposed findings might be a dozen pages or a hundred, and the attached exhibits can occasionally be far more voluminous than that. Once they're submitted, the judge reviews each set, a process that can require sifting through stacks of trial transcripts and years of court or medical records. Jurists might write their own set of findings, or they might pick and choose pieces from each. But, according to the law review analysis, Harris County judges typically sign off verbatim on what the prosecution submits, sometimes in just a day or 2 and sometimes without bothering to correct repeated spelling errors, duplications, typos or change the title - "state's proposed findings" - at the top. Those sorts of errors, defense lawyers say, suggest that the judges aren't reading the paperwork in front of them. The findings are just one step of a lengthy appeals process, but it's a critical one because later on down the road, judges defer to those findings and technical rules give them a lot of weight. Unfavorable findings can torpedo a defendant's odds of success in federal appeals. That's why some said the data might go a long way toward explaining how the Lone Star State - and Harris County in particular - became ground zero for capital punishment. "Texas executes death-row prisoners at more than 3 times the rate of the nation as a whole," Dunham said. "But that doesn't mean the system works." Instead, he said, it might mean that death row prisoners aren't getting hearings or "meaningful review" of their appeals, making it easier to push through executions despite claims of innocence or intellectual disability. Local defense lawyer Randy Schaffer accused "lazy" judges of not reading the paperwork in front of them, while attorney Pat McCann described the phenomenon of "rubber stamping" as "so common it's become a joke" among defense lawyers. The Chronicle attempted to contact all of the 47 jurists whose decisions were referenced in the study. Of those who were still alive and reachable, most did not respond or declined to comment. A few - such as Alcala - offered detailed explanations. "I don't think there's anything per se wrong with it," she said, "if it is in fact what the judge believes." One-sided numbers The decision to review roughly 200 sets of findings all stemmed from 1 case: that of death row inmate Tony Medina. The 43-year-old former gang member has long proclaimed his innocence in the 1996 Harris County drive-by that sent him to death row. His case includes a number of troubling claims, including witness coercion, withheld evidence and bad lawyering on the part of a famously overworked trial attorney who never won a death-p
[Deathpenalty] death penalty news----TEXAS, FLA., LA., OHIO, KY.
July 17 TEXASnew execution date 'Very psychotic' Fort Worth killer who murdered bus rider gets November death date A Fort Worth killer once deemed too insane to execute now has a date with death. Emanuel Kemp of Tarrant County is slated for execution on Nov. 7 in the Huntsville death chamber, according to prison spokesman Jeremy Desel. The high-school dropout had been out of prison for just 5 days when he hijacked a public transit bus at knifepoint in 1987, forcing the driver to drive around town while he raped and murdered the only passenger, Johnnie Mae Gray. The 34-year-old died from 9 stab wounds to the chest and throat according to Texas prison records. The driver was stabbed in the neck but lived. Kemp was arrested 3 days later, and sent to death row the following year after a whirlwind 6-day trial. In the years after his conviction, Kemp was diagnosed with paranoid schizophrenia, according to his attorney, Greg Westfall. "He has been very psychotic to entirely utterly out there since about 1990," Westfall said. By the mid-90s, a court deemed Kemp incompetent for execution. After years of medication, a higher court reversed that decision and he was given a death date in 1999. But with days to go, a federal court intervened and spared his life. In the years that followed, Kemp's attorneys raised claims of bad lawyering, violations of due process, questions about jury selection and denial of funds to get mental health experts. The courts rejected some of the arguments on technical grounds, and decided his mental health claims weren't "ripe." That is, he couldn't argue he was too insane to execute unless he had an execution scheduled. But, according to Westfall, even after he lost in federal court in the early 2000s, the Tarrant County District Attorney's Office under another administration agreed not to seek another death date. "It was agreed that he was too insane to execute," Westfall said. "But since then, the leadership there has changed and now they have sought an execution date. It was really out of the blue." The district attorney's did not address any prior agreements or considerations regarding an execution date, but did offer a statement late Monday. "The defendant has a court-appointed attorney, and there has not been an objection to the setting of this date by the defense," said spokeswoman Samantha Jordan. "Should a potential issue of mental illness be raised, we'll consider the evidence presented at that time." Currently there are no pending appeals, but Westfall said he plans to file claims questioning his client's competency for execution. The Lone Star State has executed 7 men this year. Including Kemp, there are 8 more death dates on the calendar. The next, Christopher Young, is slated to die Tuesday. (source: Houston Chronicle) Before his scheduled execution, Chris Young fights the Texas parole boardThe death row inmate claims that the parole board likely rejected his clemency petition because he is black. The argument highlights a long-standing criticism of clemency in Texas. In a final fight before his execution, set for Tuesday evening, Chris Young is targeting Texas' secretive clemency process. On Friday, the Texas Board of Pardons and Paroles unanimously rejected Young's clemency petition - often the final check in the death penalty process before an inmate is sent to the death chamber. Hours later, Young's lawyers filed suit against the board members, claiming that they likely voted against a recommendation to reduce his sentence or halt his execution because he is black. The filing highlights a long-established criticism of Texas clemency - the reasoning for the board's decision is unknown to the public, usually with individual members casting their votes remotely without comment or a hearing. Though members must certify that they do not cast their votes because of the inmate's race, they also don't have to give any reason for their decision. "Their procedures and everything else are internal; you don't get to see it," said Keith Hampton, a defense lawyer who worked on 2 of the 3 successful capital clemency petitions in Texas in the last 20 years. "They've got lawyers back there ... they all go over it, but I have no idea why they reject it, and they don't have to say why." Young's case is a long shot. A Texas appellate court previously upheld the boards' ability to explain rejections of clemency solely by vote counts. And the state noted in its response that the appeal doesn't point to any specific evidence of racial discrimination. Young was 21 when he entered Hasmukh Patel's San Antonio store in 2004 and fatally shot Patel during an attempted robbery, according to court records. He was convicted of capital murder and sentenced to death in 2006. In his recent petition to the parole board asking for a
[Deathpenalty] death penalty news----TEXAS, FLA., ALA., OHIO, TENN., ARK., UTAH, ARIZ., NEV.
July 12
TEXASimpending execution
Death Watch: Faith in ExecutionsReligious beliefs barred a potential juror
from Christopher Young's trial. Did that cause his sentencing?
Possible religious discrimination might grant a Texas death row inmate another
trial. Christopher Young filed an application for relief with the Texas Court
of Criminal Appeals on July 2, arguing that the discrimination against a
potential juror, based on her church affiliation, tainted his original trial.
Young was 21 when he shot and killed Hasmukh Patel during an attempted robbery
of a gas station. Before his trial, a woman was struck from the jury based
"solely" on her affiliation with a Baptist church where "some members"
ministered to prisoners, because the prosecution believed this could imply that
she favored the defendant. Today, Young's counsel claims the potential juror's
personal beliefs were never questioned, which was allowed under Casarez v.
State, where the CCA held that peremptory challenges made on the basis of a
potential juror's religious affiliation do not violate the 14th Amendment's
Equal Protection Clause.
The latest appeal, however, was granted in light of 2011's Devoe v. State, when
the CCA ruled that Casarez should be read as only "challenges made on the basis
of personal religious belief are permissible." Young's lawyer Jeff Newberry
said "the whole case hinges on the 2011 decision being the new law." The
Alliance Defending Freedom, a public interest organization that protects First
Amendment rights, along with a group of 23 "Faith Leaders," have filed amicus
briefs in support of Young's request for a new trial. According to one, if the
court upholds its original decision, it will "essentially create a rule that
says it is permissible for the citizens of Texas to be discriminated against in
the courtroom for freely exercising their right to affiliate with a particular
church."
Young's attorneys also filed a clemency petition with the Texas Board of
Pardons and Paroles on June 25, referencing Thomas Whitaker, who received
clemency in February ("Justice for Whom?" Feb. 16). That outcome has inspired
more Texas lawyers to seek clemency for their death row clients, but Newberry
believes the similarities between his client's case and Whitaker's set Young's
apart. As Whitaker's father asked the state to spare his son's life, Patel's
son Mitesh has asked the state to spare Young's.
The petition states Mitesh told Young's counsel that "boys who lose their
fathers traumatically have a 50-50 shot of being successful despite that
trauma. Mitesh was; Chris was not." (Young was a child when his own father was
murdered.) Now, Mitesh wants Young's sentence commuted so that Young can be a
"father to his daughters." The petition asks the board to focus on the
"important facts." Aside from Mitesh's plea, it states Young "is truly
remorseful," and that his life has "positive value, both as a father and as a
former gang member who can counsel other inmates." Newberry expects the board
to vote on Young's case on Friday, July 13.
The U.S. Supreme Court denied Young's last appeal in January. If rulings
continue in the state's favor, Young will be executed on Tuesday, July 17.
Already, Texas has executed 7 inmates this year, with another 6 scheduled
before November.
(source: Austin Chronicle)
FLORIDA:
Man, 66, could still face death penalty if convicted in cold case
murderJames Leon Jackson charged in 1984 rape and murder of 10-year-old
Tammy Welch
Despite his age and infirmity, a 66-year-old man could still face the death
penalty in the cold case murder of a 10-year-old girl -- if he is convicted.
James Leon Jackson is charged in the 1984 rape and murder of Tammy Welch.
Jackson was considered a suspect all along but wasn't charged until 2013.
In 2016, Jackson's lawyers filed a motion to block the state attorney's office
from seeking the death penalty, per the U.S. Supreme Court's Hurst ruling.
At a hearing Tuesday, the judge denied that motion.
Other motions to preclude the death penalty are pending, and Jackson???s
lawyers now want a psychiatric evaluation done.
Jackson's trial is set for the end of the month.
(source: WJXT news)
*
After 20 years on death row, wrongly imprisoned man starts new life in Tampa
An Ohio man found not guilty after spending 20 years on death row is relocating
to Tampa through an organization that helps the recently exonerated rejoin
society.
When he was exonerated and released after 20 years in prison, he struggled to
rejoin society. Now, thanks to the Sunny Center, he will get the fresh start he
was dreaming of.
Derek Jamison's life was stolen at just 23-years-old. He was sentenced to death
for a murder he didn't commit.
"It was hell," Jamison said. "On earth."
Jamison was sentenced to death in 1985, charged with the robbery and murder of
a bartender at a restaurant in C
[Deathpenalty] death penalty news----TEXAS, FLA., ALA., LA., TENN., S.DAK., CALIF., USA
June 20 TEXASimpending execution Texas assures court it can carry out aging death row inmate's execution The Lone Star State is confident it can kill Danny Bible. Earlier this month, the aging Houston serial killer filed a last-minute lawsuit arguing that his veins are so bad and his health problems so severe that he can't be put to death - or it'll turn into a painfully botched procedure. But the state of Texas begged to differ, touting its long history of successful executions. "Texas is the most prolific death-penalty state in the nation," the state wrote in a Friday afternoon court filing. "Bible provides no example of a Texas execution, performed under the current protocol, gone horribly awry because of vein failure." Officials say that a Florida killer's screams of "murderers!" during his execution were not caused by the drugs used for the lethal injection. The 66-year-old 4-time killer, who is set for execution on June 27, pointed to bloody botched procedures in other states. In February, a lethal injection team in Alabama spent hours poking Doyle Hamm before calling off his execution. The year before that, Ohio found itself in a similar place with condemned killer Alva Campbell. But that hasn't happened here, the state pointed out in its response. "Texas is not Ohio or Alabama, and the court should give little consideration to isolated examples of problematic executions in other states when it has numerous uneventful Texas executions upon which to base its opinions," state attorneys wrote. "Bible has not managed to present even a single instance of defendants failing to successfully access a vein during an execution." The state raised a number of other points, alleging that the condemned killer should have raised the issue sooner and pointing out that prison medical staffers have managed to draw blood for medical testing over the past year. But Bible's lawyers fired back in a Monday court filing, calling out the state's "inflammatory rhetoric" they deemed "devoid of any viable argument." "Defendants' response is most notable for the things absent from it," attorneys Jeremy Schepers, Nadia Wood and Margaret Schmucker wrote, noting that the state doesn't dispute Bible's host of medical conditions ranging from edema to obesity to Parkinson's disease. The state also "attempts to obfuscate" the "real issue" as to whether its execution procedures represent a substantial risk of harm to a man in Bible's medical condition. That particular claim, defense lawyers argue, the state didn't really refute. This isn't the first time a Texas death row prisoner has fought his sentence by questioning the lethal injection process. But other recent cases focused on the possibility that the drugs themselves would cause suffering, a claim that could more generally apply to any death row prisoner. Bible's argument focuses more narrowly on the possibility that he, specifically, is unfit to execute. Instead, his lawyers have suggested alternative methods such as a firing squad or nitrogen gas in order to decrease the risk of suffering. Bible was initially sent to death row in 2003, more than 2 decades after the crime that landed him there. A former drifter, Bible's lengthy string of violence dates back to at least 1979. That May, a passerby found the bloodied, half-naked body of Inez Deaton along the slope of a Houston bayou. She'd been stabbed 11 times with an ice pick before her killer posed her corpse by the water. For nearly 2 decades, Deaton's slaying went unsolved - but Bible's violent streak continued. In the years that followed, Bible terrorized women in the Midwest, once setting his girlfriend's car on fire because he didn't like her haircut. After he returned to Texas and settled west of Fort Worth, he murdered his sister-in-law Tracy Powers and her infant son Justin. Then, he killed Powers' roommate, Pam Hudgins, and left her body hanging from a roadside fence. Following those killings, he fled to Montana, where he kidnapped a woman and raped an 11-year-old girl, according to court records. Eventually, he was caught and in 1984 he pleaded guilty to Hudgins' murder. He was sentenced to 25 years for the killing and 20 years for a Harris County robbery. He was released on parole 8 years later, under a since-repealed mandatory supervision law. While still on parole, he raped and molested multiple young relatives, including a 5-year-old. Then in 1998, he raped Tera Robinson in a Louisiana motel room before stuffing her into a duffel bag when he became enraged that he couldn't maintain an erection. The woman broke free and called for help. Bible was eventually caught in Florida, and freely admitted to his crimes under questioning. Weeks after he was sentenced, Bible narrowly escaped death during a head-on-collision on the way to death row. The officer behind the wheel of the prison transport vehicle, 40-year-old J
[Deathpenalty] death penalty news----TEXAS, FLA., OHIO, KAN., NEV., USA
June 16 TEXAS: Lubbock judge denies pre-trial motion to remove death penalty for James Holland case A Lubbock judge has denied a pre-trial motion to remove the death penalty in the case of James Holland. Holland is accused of the murder of his stepdaughter, 18-year-old Holly Jeffcoat, back in 2016. Jeffcoat, a special needs student, was pregnant at the time. The teen was found in her home, stabbed multiple times with her uterus cut out. The motion, filed last week, asked 137th District Court Judge Trey McClendon to remove the death penalty as an option due to consideration of all evidence. Holland's wife Deborah will also stand trial in Jeffcoat's murder. (source: KCBD news) *** Inmate who killed TCU prof loses appeal A federal appeals court has rejected an appeal from a man on death row for the 2004 suffocation of a retired TCU professor whose body was found in Oklahoma after she was abducted in Fort Worth. Attorneys for Edward Lee Busby, argued unsuccessfully to the 5th u.S. Circuit Court of Appeals that Busby was mentally impaired, meaning he would be ineligible for execution, and had deficient legal help at his trial and in earlier appeals. Busby was convited of the slaying of 77-year-old Laura Lee Crane, awho was abducted from a Fort Worth grocery story parking lot. He was arrested in Oklahoma City driving Crane's car and led authorities to her body in Oklahoma. (source: Associated Press) ** Brutal Killer's Capital Murder Trial Set for November in San Angelo November 5, 2018. The 1st Monday in November. A man accused of participating in a brutal killing now has a court date after District Judge Barbara Walther instructed attorneys for 28-year-old Eric Martinez to share information they have gathered and begin preparing for a jury trial. The unique part of Martinez' trial is that he is charged with Capital Murder, but the death penalty has been waived. If a jury finds Martinez guilty of Capital Murder, he will have an automatic sentence of life in prison without the possibility of parole. Attorneys for Martinez were ordered by District Judge Walther to be prepared for a jury trial on Monday, November 5, 2018. Martinez is accused of conspiring with 3 others in the murder of an eldery San Angelo Man in a home invasion. The 4 defendants are accused of killing 69-year-old William Valdez while invading his home on August 31, 2015. The crime took place in the 500 block of N. Sellers St. Those charged in the crime are Elisa Losoya, 28, Eric Martinez, 26, Fernando Lavaris, and Jonathan Marin, 26. According to court documents, Losoya approached Guillermo Valdez, who lived with the victim at the house, telling him they needed to talk. As Guillermo went back to the house and locked the door, the 4 broke into a glass door and threatened Valdez asking for money and not to call the police. Valdez was shot in his left arm and taken to Shannon Medical Center, where he later died. Late Thursday afternoon, Judge Walther set the final pretrial hearing for Martinez on October 9, 2018 with a pretrial on August 16 to work around defense and prosecution attorneys' court schedules. (source: sanangelolive.com) FLORIDAfemale faces death penalty State seeks death penalty for Miami mom whose baby died from scalding bath A Homestead mother accused of killing her toddler in a burning-hot bath could face the death penalty after a grand jury indicted her for 1st-degree murder and aggravated child abuse. Christina Hurt, shackled and in a jail jumpsuit, appeared in court Friday to plead not guilty as prosecutors announced the upgraded criminal charge in the January death of 1-year-old Ethan Cooley. Hurt, who had a long and troubling history of abusing her children, is accused of refusing to take Ethan to a hospital after he suffered burns in the bath tub. She claimed to police that her 10-year-old daughter put Ethan in the hot bath, causing him "severe burns" and "peeling skin. But Hurt did not seek medical help for the baby, instead calling friends to ask "about remedies on treating burn injuries," according to an arrest report. The child suffered overnight, throwing up, and became "lethargic" the next day as she took her other children to school ??? even bypassing Homestead Hospital, police said. Neighbors and friends urged Hurt to call 911, but she "adamantly refused" for fear that child welfare authorities would take the boy from her. That morning, a neighbor called 911 after seeing the child had "become unresponsive," the report said. Hurt was initially charged with aggravated child abuse and manslaughter. The latter charge was upgraded to 2nd-degree murder before prosecutors took the case to the grand jury on Wednesday. Medical experts believe Ethan's injuries "were not consistent" with Hurt's story to police, leading a judge to approve a search warrant. In May, exper
[Deathpenalty] death penalty news----TEXAS, FLA., OHIO, TENN., MO.
June 14 TEXAS: Death Watch: Intellectually Disabled or Mentally Ill?3 cases raise the question The Court of Criminal Appeals granted its first stay of execution of the year, and now Smith County man Clifton Williams will face a new hearing instead of lethal injection, which was scheduled for June 21. Williams was sentenced to death in 2006 for killing a 93-year-old woman in a home robbery gone wrong. He's spent the last decade fighting his sentence to little reward, but on May 23, his attorneys filed an appeal contending Williams is "intellectually disabled" and therefore not subject to execution. Atkins v. Virginia, a 2002 Supreme Court case, determined that executing people with intellectual disabilities qualifies as cruel punishment and violates the Eighth Amendment, but the CCA decision on Williams is the result of a more recent Supreme Court ruling on Texas death row inmate Bobby Moore, who SCOTUS concluded was sentenced in part on outdated medical research on intellectual functioning. Indeed, Texas had been using material from 1992, as well as guidelines based in part on Lennie from John Steinbeck's Of Mice and Men - factors that advanced "lay stereotypes" and made Texas an "outlier" in comparison to other states' handling of similar cases. Williams now awaits examination. His Atkins hearing won't take place until that occurs. He has a hearing in Smith County District Court on June 21, to appoint substitute counsel. Meanwhile, Moore's case appears to be headed down a different path. On June 6, the CCA upheld its ruling that he is competent enough for execution, and agreed to adopt current medical standards going forward (the same ones that moved the needle the other way in Williams' case), but the judges believe even under the new framework, Moore "failed to demonstrate adaptive deficits sufficient to support a diagnosis of intellectual disability." And a similar conversation continued last week in the 5th Circuit Court of Appeals, where Andre Thomas was granted, in part, a certificate of appealability to file a brief and have his recently denied appeal reviewed. In 2005, Thomas was sentenced for killing his ex-wife, her baby, and their young son. He spent the months leading up to the murders claiming to hear voices from God and cutting himself, and in the course of the murders cut out the hearts of the 2 children and stored the organs in his pocket, before trying to kill himself. Later, in jail, he gouged out his right eye. Unsurprisingly, 3 psychologists concluded Thomas suffered from paranoid schizophrenia. Though his trial attorney argued he was too ill to be given the death penalty, an all-white jury disagreed. (Thomas is black; his ex-wife was white.) 3 years later, he pulled out his other eye and ate it. Unlike Williams and Moore, who used Atkins to further their appeals, Thomas is mentally ill - meaning he suffers from a disorder, as opposed to intellectual functioning and adaptive behavior limitations (i.e., intellectual disability). The 5th Circuit denied only 1 of Thomas' 5 COA issues: whether execution of the severely mentally ill violates the Eighth Amendment, stating "this issue is foreclosed under our precedent." Though the U.S. still allows mentally ill inmates to be executed, the 5th Circuit's approval might just force a Supreme Court decision. (source: Austin Chronicle) ** "Blood Will Tell" investigation, death row with disabilities On this week's TribCast, Emily talks to Evan, Jolie and the New York Times Magazine and ProPublica's Pamela Colloff on Pam's 2-part "Blood Will Tell" series on blood spatter analysis and the state's consideration of intellectual disabilities in death row cases. On this week's TribCast, Emily talks to Evan, Jolie and the New York Times Magazine and ProPublica's Pamela Colloff on Pam's 2-part "Blood Will Tell" series on blood spatter analysis and the state's consideration of intellectual disabilities in death row cases: In Blood Will Tell, Pam told the harrowing story of Joe Bryan, a small-town Texas school principal who's been imprisoned for decades for the murder of his schoolteacher wife - based on blood spatter analysis that remains in question as a forensic science. Pam made some pretty big news on the TribCast: Bryan has just been denied parole again. He's 77 and has congestive heart failure and is on his 3rd pacemaker. In 2002, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that people with intellectual disabilities aren't eligible for the death penalty, and just over a year ago, the court knocked down Texas' method of determining whether death row inmates qualified as intellectually disabled. Jolie talks about 2 recent cases where the Texas Court of Criminal Appeals used new standards to uphold one death sentence and delay another. Thanks for joining us! We'll see you next week. (source: Texas Tribune) FLORIDA: Convicted killer asks for new sentence
[Deathpenalty] death penalty news----TEXAS, FLA., ALA., COLO., CALIF.
June 8 JUNE 8, 2018: TEXAS: The Legacy Of James Byrd, Jr. 20 Year After His Lynching20 years later, Houston Matters discusses the hate crimes legislation Byrd's vicious murder inspired. 20 years ago today, on June 7, 1998 in Jasper, Texas, about 130 miles northeast of Houston, James Byrd, Jr. was heading home. The 49-year-old black man accepted a ride from Shawn Berry and his friends, Lawrence Russell Brewer and John King. Byrd new Berry from around town. He wasn't a stranger. But instead of driving Byrd home, Berry drove to a remote country road, where the 3 white men severely beat Byrd, chained him to their pickup truck, and then dragged him to death, for nearly 3 miles. The 3 men were white supremacists and were tried and convicted of murder. Brewer and King received the death penalty. Berry received a life sentence. The vicious killing shocked the nation and helped prompt passage of state and federal hate crimes legislation. To look back at the legacy of Byrd and the laws his death inspired, Houston Matters talks with Dena Marks, of the Anti-Defamation League in Houston and Harris County Commissioner Rodney Ellis. (source: houstonpublicmedia.org) *** He Pocketed His Victims' Organs. Was His Death Penalty Trial Fair?As Andre Thomas faces execution for three gory murders, a court questions jury bias and his competency. Warning: This story contains graphic content that could be disturbing to some readers. It's been 13 years since a floridly psychotic black man named Andre Thomas was sentenced to die. He killed his estranged white wife, their young biracial son and the wife's other biracial child. He then stabbed himself 3 times and laid down next to his victims, expecting to die. When he didn't, he walked 5 miles to his father's house in Sherman, Texas, carrying his victims' organs in his pockets, and tried to call Laura, the woman he'd just killed. 5 days after his confession to police, he decided he would heed Matthew's Biblical advice: "If thy right eye offends thee, pluck it out." And so he did. Then, after being sentenced to death row 4 years later, he decided to gouge out his other eye. Then he ate it. Texas has always argued that Thomas deserved the death sentence, but the 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals Thursday ordered both state attorneys and defense lawyers to submit more evidence and legal arguments on the merits of 2 timely issues in capital punishment law: jury bias and the competency of defendants when they kill. Was Thomas competent to stand trial? At first all sides agreed he wasn't and Thomas was sent to a state psychiatric hospital. Then, just 7 weeks later, after state doctors gave him heavy doses of the anti-psychotic drug Zypreza, those same doctors said that he now could be tried. They said his psychosis, which had presented itself for a decade before the murders, was not organic, but had been "exaggerated" by drugs and alcohol in his system. Thomas's case was well told by Brandi Grissom in a piece titled "Trouble in Mind" in Texas Monthly in March 2013. Thomas was a smart, likeable kid, who loved to study the Bible, growing up poor in Sherman. But his slide into madness began around age 9, when he started complaining about the angels and the demons arguing with one another in his mind. He was in and out of trouble with the law, and repeatedly tried to kill himself, and through it all he had no adequate medical care that might have allowed him and his victims to avoid the horror that happened in March 2004. The competency question in the Thomas case falls neatly into recent Supreme Court precedent. In 2002 the court outlawed the execution of intellectually disabled capital defendants, a decision they reinforced in 2014. In 2005 the court outlawed the execution of juvenile murders. In each instance the court's majority focused on levels of culpability and the capacity of the defendant to understand either the nature of the crime they had committed or what capital punishment would mean as a retributive response to it. The 5th Circuit ruled that it does not want to explore the question of mental illness and the death penalty but that does not mean the justices will be so constrained. Thomas was convicted by an all-white jury that contained at least three members who spoke openly about their opposition to interracial marriage. One juror told lawyers and the judge during jury selection that "the bloodlines shouldn't be mixed." Another juror who sentenced Thomas to death said that the children from an interracial couple would "not have a specific race to belong to." Yet another juror said that interracial relationships were "contrary to God's intent." Thomas' trial attorney never aggressively challenged these statements. During the oral argument Tuesday at the 5th Circuit (listen here), Thomas' current lawyer Catherine Carroll argued that jury selection
[Deathpenalty] death penalty news----TEXAS, FLA., ALA., OHIO, TENN., ILL.
June 1 TEXAS: 3rd East Texas inmate gets 2018 execution date An East Texas man has been given an execution date for 2018. After the United States Supreme Court denied his appeal, an East Texas judge signed off on an execution date for Daniel Acker, 46, of Sulphur Springs. Acker is scheduled to die by lethal injection on September 27. In 2001, Acker was sentenced to death for March 2000 murder of 32-year-old Marquetta George. In February 2000, Acker and George moved into a rented trailer home, shortly after they met. On the evening of Saturday, March 11, 2000, the pair went to a rode before heading to the nightclub, "bustin' Loose," according to documents presented in court. The couple got into an argument at the club and witnessess, who testified at Acker's trial, said he threatened to kill George that night. Documents state Acker was kicked out of the club, but returned several times looking for George. "Around 9:15 a.m. on March 12, Acker went to the home of George's mother, Lila Seawright, still searching for George," court documents state. "Seawright testified at trial that Acker told her that if he found out George had spent the night with another man, he was going to kill them. Seawright replied that no one was worth going to the penitentiary for murder. Seawright testified that Acker shrugged and replied, 'Pen life ain't nothing. Ain't nothing to it.'" Later that morning, after Acker returned to the trailer he shared with George, a bouncer, identified as Robert "calico" McKee, at "bustin' Loose," brought George to the trailer. McKee told Acker he had taken George to her father's house to spend the night. Acker testified in court he did not believe McKee was telling the truth because he drove by George's father's house the previous night when he was looking for her. According to Acker, George admitted she spent the night with Calico. Acker then asked George where Calico lived and she said she would show him, but instead, she ran out of the trailer. Neighbors testified George darted from the trailer, screaming for them to call law enforcement. Acker followed her, grabbed her, threw her over his shoulder, forced her into his truck and sped away. Sedill Ferrell, who owned a dairy farm in Hopkins County, found George's body and contacted the sheriff's office. Acker turned himself in to a law enforcement officer and was arrested. George's body was found less than 3 miles from the trailer where she lived with Acker. Acker was convicted of kidnapping, then murdering George. An autopsy revealed she died from strangulation and blunt force trauma. Acker is the 3rd East Texas inmate to be dealt an execution date for 2018. TROY CLARK On May 7, Troy James Clark, 50, of Smith County, received his execution date in the 7th District Court. The State of Texas will put Clark to death by lethal injection on September 26, the day before Acker. On May 1, 1998, Clark was condemned for the torture and drowning murder of his former roommate, Christina Muse, 20, of Tyler. According to evidence presented in court, Clark and a co-defendant, identified as Tory Gene Bush, hit Muse with stun gun, beat, bound and kept her in a closet before drowning her in a bathtub. Prosecutors said Clark and Bush then stuffed Muse's body into a barrel with cement mix and lime before dumping in a ravine. Her body was discovered 5 months later by Tyler police. According to the Associated Press, the motive behind the crime was Clark and Bush feared Muse would snitch on them for using and selling methamphetamine. Bush pleaded guilty to the charge of murder intentionally causing death on August 7, 2000, and was sentenced to 20 years in prison. In October 2017, the Supreme Court of the United States refused Clark's appeal claiming he had insufficient legal counsel during his 2000 trial in Smith County. Clark's prior convictions include: June 24, 1987 - Possession of a controlled substance - Cocaine (Released August 27, 1987 on parole) January 8, 1993 - Possession of a controlled substance X2 (Released February 23, 1996) According to the Texas Department of Criminal Justice, Clifton Williams will be put to death on June 21, 2018, for the murder of Cecilia Schneider, of Tyler. On July 9, 2005, Williams, then 21, entered Schneider's home before stabbing, beating and strangling her to death. He then burned her body. Williams stole Schneider's purse and car and left the scene. Officials arrested Williams a week later. In 2006, he was found guilty in the court of former judge Cynthia Kent and sentenced to death. He was originally set to be executed on Thursday, July 16, 2015. However, he received an 11th hour stay of execution from the Texas Court of Criminal Appeals until questions about some "incorrect testimony" at his 2006 trial could be resolved. In a brief order, the court agreed to return the case to the 114th District Court in Tyler to re
[Deathpenalty] death penalty news----TEXAS, FLA., LA., MO., NEB., UTAH, IDAHO, USA
April 3 TEXASfemale to face death penalty Jury trial set for capital-murder defendant A jury trial has been scheduled for Jan. 28 for the woman accused of shooting to death her 2 young daughters, Henderson County District Attorney Mark Hall said. Just over 3 months ago, Sarah Henderson, 30, pleaded not guilty after being indicted in January 2018 on 2 counts of capital murder, attempted murder and assault on a public servant. She remains in the Henderson County jail on $1 million bond each on the capital cases and a combined $100,000 bond on the other counts. Henderson was arrested on Nov. 2 at her Mabank home. Sheriff Botie Hillhouse has said that she had planned the murders of Kaylee and Kenlie for a couple of weeks and that she tried to kill her husband, Jacob Henderson, before the gun malfunctioned. The girls, 5 and 7, attended Southside Elementary School in Mabank. In a 911 call, Jacob Henderson asked for help for his wife before asking a dispatcher to "disregard" the call. About 3 hours later, he made another 911 call to report that his wife had shot the girls in their heads. "The assault on a public servant arose 2 days later while Henderson was being held in the Henderson County jail, where she is accused of striking a detention officer while he was attempting to release her from restraint," according to reports. Judge Scott McKee of the 392nd Judicial District Court provided prosecutors and defense attorneys Steve Green and John Youngblood a restricted and protective order - that is, a gag order. Hall said he has until June 1 to determine whether the death penalty should be sought in the case. If convicted of capital murder, Sarah Henderson could spend life in prison without the possibility of parole or receive the death penalty. A pretrial hearing is set for Aug. 23 in the 392nd. (source: Athens Daily Review) * Prosecutor will seek death penalty in murder The Texas County prosecutor will seek the death penalty for 1 of 4 persons accused in the brutal death of a teenager last year north of Cabool that drew national attention. Parke Stevens Jr. announced his intention to seek the sentence against Andrew Vrba in a court filing Monday in Crawford County Circuit Court, where the case is expected to be heard on a change of venue. A trial date could be set as early as Tuesday, when it appears on a docket. Vrba, 18, is charged with 1st-degree murder, armed criminal action and abandonment of a corpse in the September death of Joseph M. Steinfeld, who went by "Ally" and planned to transition to a female, according to family members. Authorities allege the victim was stabbed and the remains burned. Stevens' decision also will likely trigger the involvement of a special prosecutor from the Missouri attorney general???s death penalty case team. Vrba is defended by the Missouri public defender system. 3 other defendants are charged in the stabbing death of Steinfeld: --Isis Schauer, 18, entered a guilty plea to 2nd-degree murder and abandonment of a corpse. She was sentenced to 20 years on the murder count and 4 years on the 2nd charge in December. The terms are to run concurrently in the Missouri Department of Corrections. --Briana Calderas, 24, also is charged with 1st-degree murder, armed criminal action and abandonment of a corpse. A pre-trial conference is June 19 in Pulaski County, where her case will be heard. The trial is Oct. 9-12. --A 4th person, James Grigsby, of Thayer, 25, is accused of abandonment of a corpse and tampering with evidence. (source: Houston Herald) 'Express lane to death': Texas seeks approval to speed up death penalty appeals, execute more quickly Texas is seeking to speed up executions with a renewed request to opt-in to a federal law that would shorten the legal process and limit appeals options for death-sentenced prisoners. Defense attorneys worry it would lead to the execution of innocent people and - if it's applied retroactively, as Texas is requesting - it could potentially end ongoing appeals for a number of death row prisoners and make them eligible for execution dates. "Opt-in would speed up the death penalty treadmill exponentially," said Kathryn Kase, an longtime defense attorney and former executive director of Texas Defender Services. But a state attorney general spokeswoman framed the request to the Justice Department as a necessary way to avoid "stressful delays" and cut down on the "excessive costs" of lengthy federal court proceedings. Robbie Kaplan, co-founder of the #TimesUp movement, says sweeping changes to laws in recent years have dissuaded attorneys from taking on harassment cases on behalf of women. The legal defense fund aims to change that. The controversial request - which comes after years of declining executions - has sparked a federal lawsuit and hundreds of pages of comments from a broad coalit
[Deathpenalty] death penalty news----TEXAS, FLA., ALA., OHIO, KY., OKLA., CALIF., WASH.
March 28 TEXASexecution Lubbock group protests death penalty on night of Rodriguez's execution "God of compassion," read the vigil program. "You let rain fall on the just and the unjust. Expand and deepen our hearts so that we may love as you love, even those among us who have caused the greatest pain by taking life." The rain stopped just long enough for the Friends of People of Faith Against the Death Penalty group to hold signs with messages against execution in front of St. John's United Methodist Church Tuesday night on University Avenue as 38-year-old Rosendo Rodriguez was set to by executed in Huntsville. Minutes before he died, Rodriguez espoused the same message as the vigil group, calling for the end of the death penalty. Rodriguez was sentenced to death for the 2005 rape and killing of 29-year-old Summer Baldwin. He also admitted to killing 16-year-old Joanna Rogers. Both women were from Lubbock. The 4 solemn participants said they had different reasons for attending the vigil. Beth Pressley, organizer of the group, said they meet for prayer and sign holding from 5:45-6:15 p.m. each time there is an execution in Texas. Pressley wore a T-shirt that read "pro life," and said that is the message of the group. "We don't like the state killing people in our name. We don't think it's necessary," Pressley said. "There was a time that you maybe had to worry about violent criminals getting out (of prison), but that's not really the case anymore. People have the chance to repent." Pressley said because this was a local case, she has followed the crime since the beginning. "It was frightening. It was sad. I remember being very glad that they finally caught the guy and got him off the street," Pressley said. "But now we have 3 families who are hurting. Killing somebody isn't going to make those daughters come back." Participants prayed for peace for all involved people: the victims' families, Rodriguez's family, the court system, prison employees and all others on death row. Phoenix Lundstrom had a more personal connection with Rodriguez. During the prayer portion of the vigil, Lundstrom read a letter she recently received from Rodriguez that indicated faith was on his mind in his last few weeks. Lundstrom said her son Mitchell Wachholtz met Rodriguez around 10 years ago when they were in neighboring prison cells. Wachholtz is serving a 99-year sentence at the Darrington Unit in Rosharon. He was convicted of murder in the 2007 death of Chase Pendleton. Lundstrom said her son has found his calling in life, in part because of Rodriguez. "Rosendo started talking to my son about Jesus. Now my son is in his 3rd year of seminary school at Darrington," Lundstrom said. "Rosendo was one of the key people in bringing my son from a street-wise punk to a real man of God." The group dispersed around 6:20 p.m. Rodriguez was pronounced dead at 6:46 p.m. (source: Lubbock Avalanche-Journal) * 'Suitcase killer' at execution: 'I'm ready to join my father' A San Antonio man who became known as the "suitcase killer" was executed Tuesday evening in Texas for the slaying of a 29-year-old Lubbock woman whose battered, naked body was stuffed into a new piece of luggage and tossed in the trash. Rosendo Rodriguez III had also confessed to killing a 16-year-old Lubbock girl and similarly disposing of her body in the trash in a suitcase. Asked by the warden if he had a final statement, Rodriguez spoke defiantly for 7 minutes and never apologized to relatives of his victims watching through a window. "The state may have my body but they never had my soul," Rodriguez said. He also urged people to boycott Texas businesses to pressure the state into ending the death penalty and reiterated issues raised in late appeals that were rejected by the courts. "I've fought the good fight, I have run the good race," he said. "Warden, I'm ready to join my father." Rodriguez, who turned 38 Monday, received a lethal dose of the powerful sedative pentobarbital, injected by Texas prison officials. 22 minutes later, at 6:46 p.m. CT, he was pronounced dead. The execution was the 4th this year in Texas and 7th nationally. The U.S. Supreme Court, less than 30 minutes before Rodriguez was taken to the death chamber, rejected an appeal to block his punishment. Rodriguez's lawyers told the justices lower courts improperly turned down appeals that focused on the medical examiner's testimony at Rodriguez's trial for the September 2005 slaying of Summer Baldwin. State lawyers said the high court appeal was improper, untimely and meritless, and "nothing more than a last-ditch effort," according to Texas Assistant Attorney General Tomee Heining. Workers at the Lubbock city landfill spotted a new suitcase in the trash, opened it and discovered the body of Baldwin, who was 10 weeks pregnant. Detectives used a barcode label sewn to t
[Deathpenalty] death penalty news----TEXAS, FLA., GA., OHIO, TENN., MO., ARIZ., CALIF., USA
March 20 TEXAS2 new execution dates Clifton Williams has been given an execution date for June 21, and Danny Bible has been given an execution date for June 27both should be considered serious. ** An execution date has been set for a 66-year-old man who used an ice pick to stab a Houston woman to death after she asked to use the telephone at his house in 1979. Danny Paul Bible is scheduled to be executed June 27, according to NBC5 (KXAS-TV). The brutal murder of 20-year-old Inez Deaton went unsolved for nearly 2 decades. The woman had been raped, stabbed 11 times and dumped on the bank of a bayou. Bible confessed to Deaton's killing after he was arrested in 1998 for a Louisiana rape. He also confessed to 3 other killings in North Texas, as well as numerous rapes. 4 years after killing Deaton, Bible killed his sister-in-law Tracy Powers, her 4-month-old son and her roommate, Pamela Hudgins. Their bodies were found near Weatherford. He pleaded guilty to Hudgins' murder in 1984 and was paroled after 9 years in prison. Bible has been linked to rapes in Montana, Louisiana and Texas. He was arrested in 1998 after he forced his way into a woman's motel room in Louisiana and raped her. He bound and gagged the woman before stuffing her into a duffel bag, but she was able to break free and call police, according to the San Antonio Express-News. His attorneys argued in federal appeals that Bible is no longer a threat to society because he is confined to a wheelchair. A prison van taking him to death row in 2003 crashed, disabling him, killing a corrections officer and killing the driver of another vehicle. "He can't get out of a wheelchair by himself. He can't lift his arms. He can't do anything," attorney Margaret Schmucker said after the U.S. Supreme Court refused an appeal from the death row inmate in 2016. 3 Texas death row inmates are scheduled for execution before Bible, including Erick Davila of Fort Worth. (source: Dallas Morning News) * Executions under Greg Abbott, Jan. 21, 2015-present30 Executions in Texas: Dec. 7, 1982present-548 Abbott#scheduled execution date-nameTx. # 31--Mar. 27Rosendo Rodriguez III--549 32--Apr. 25Erick Davila---550 33--May 16-Juan Castillo--551 34-June 21Clifton Williams552 35-June 27Danny Bible-553 (sources: TDCJ & Rick Halperin) FLORIDA: Florida to seek the death penalty against Conway killer The state of Florida is reported seeking the death penalty against Michael Lawrence Woodbury, the 42-year-old former Mainer who shot and killed three people at the Army Barracks store in Conway in 2007. Woodbury, who is serving a life sentence for those killings, was indicted by a Florida grand jury on March 13 on a 1st-degree premeditated murder charge following a homicide that took place last September in the Okeechobee Correctional Institution. On Sunday, Matteo Tullio of the Okeechobee News reported that the indictment referenced the Sept. 22, 2017, killing of a fellow inmate named Antoneeze Haynes. Haynes had been serving 5 life sentences since 1993 for the crimes of attempted murder, robbery, burglary and 2 counts of kidnapping committed during a 1990 home invasion. The News' Tullio reported that "according to an investigative summary conducted by the Florida Department of Law Enforcement, Woodbury had barricaded the cell door and began to attack Haynes" with a combination lock tied to a sock. "Woodbury also placed the lock around his middle finger and punched Haynes, targeted his head, hands and ankles," the story said, adding, "Woodbury also reportedly told correctional officers he had a large knife and would kill Haynes along with the first correctional officer that tried to enter the cell." Woodbury remained barricaded in the cell for hours until Maj. Frank Gatto arrived and began to negotiate with him. After several more hours, he gave up and allowed officers to handcuff him through the cell door. "Woodbury was taken to confinement and Haynes was taken to the infirmary and then transported to Raulerson Hospital, where he was pronounced dead," Tullio wrote. According to the Okeechobee News, Judge Jerald Bryant of Florida's 19th Judicial Circuit, said Florida would seek the death penalty for Woodbury's latest crime. Longtime Conway residents will remember July 2, 2007, as the day when Woodbury, then 31 and from Windham, Maine, walked into the Army Barracks at 347 White Mountain Highway and shot store manager James Walker, 34, and 2 customers from Massachusetts, William Jones, 25, and Gary Jones, 23. Walker and William Jones died at the scene, and Gary Jones died later at Maine Medical Center. The two Joneses were not relate
[Deathpenalty] death penalty news----TEXAS, FLA., ALA., UTAH, WHO., WASH.
Feb. 23 TEXAS: Governor Abbott commutes death sentence of Thomas Bartlett Whitaker Texas Gov. Greg Abbott announced on Thursday that he has commuted the death sentence of Thomas Bartlett Whitaker. Whitaker was set to be executed Thursday night for the 2003 murders of his mother and brother in their Sugar Land home. He admitted to running a murder-for-hire plot to have them killed in order to collect inheritance money. A gunman also shot Whitaker as an attempt to cover up his involvement. His father, Kent Whitaker, was also shot but survived. Thomas "Bart" Whitaker attended Baylor University for several semesters. Baylor's Assistant Vice President for Media Communications Lori Fogleman said Whitaker was a Baylor student from the fall semester of 1998 to the spring of 2001. He did not graduate. Kent Whitaker was instrumental in getting his son's case before the Texas Board of Pardons and Paroles which on Wednesday unanimously recommended that Governor Abbott commute Whitaker's sentence from death to life in prison. Gov. Greg Abbott released the following statement: "As a former trial court judge, Texas Supreme Court Justice and Attorney General involved in prosecuting some of the most notorious criminals in Texas, I have the utmost regard for the role that juries and judges play in our legal system. The role of the Governor is not to second-guess the court process or re-evaluate the law and evidence. Instead, the Governor's role under the Constitution is distinct from the judicial function. The Governor's role is to consider recommendations by the Texas Board of Pardons and Paroles, and view matters through a lens broader than the facts and law applied to a single case. That is particularly important in death penalty cases. "In just over three years as Governor, I have allowed 30 executions. I have not granted a commutation of a death sentence until now, for reasons I here explain. "The murders of Mr. Whitaker's mother and brother are reprehensible. The crime deserves severe punishment for the criminals who killed them. The recommendation of the Texas Board of Pardons and Paroles, and my action on it, ensures Mr. Whitaker will never be released from prison. "The decision of the Texas Board of Pardons and Paroles is supported by the totality of circumstances in this case. The person who fired the gun that killed the victims did not receive the death penalty, but Mr. Whitaker, who did not fire the gun, did get the death penalty. That factor alone may not warrant commutation for someone like Mr. Whitaker who recruited others to commit murder. Additional factors make the decision more complex. "Mr. Whitaker's father, who survived the attempt on his life, passionately opposes the execution of his son. Mr. Whitaker's father insists that he would be victimized again if the state put to death his last remaining immediate family member. Also, Mr. Whitaker voluntarily and forever waived any and all claims to parole in exchange for a commutation of his sentence from death to life without the possibility of parole. Moreover, the Texas Board of Pardons and Paroles unanimously voted for commutation. The totality of these factors warrants a commutation of Mr. Whitaker's death sentence to life in prison without the possibility of parole. Mr. Whitaker must spend the remainder of his life behind bars as punishment for this heinous crime." (source: KXXV news) ** Executions under Greg Abbott, Jan. 21, 2015-present30 Executions in Texas: Dec. 7, 1982present-548 Abbott#scheduled execution date-nameTx. # 31--Mar. 27Rosendo Rodriguez III--549 32--Apr. 25Erick Davila---550 33--May 16-Juan Castillo--551 (sources: TDCJ & Rick Halperin) FLORIDAnew death sentence Jury recommends death for man who raped, killed Florida girl Cherish Perrywinkle Jurors who took less than 15 minutes to convict a Florida man last week of abducting, raping and killing an 8-year-old girl have now decided he should be executed. The Jacksonville jury voted unanimously Thursday after about 2 hours of discussion that 62-year-old Donald Smith should receive the death penalty. If just 1 of the 12 jurors had voted against execution, Smith would have instead faced life in prison. During a 2-day sentencing phase, experts testified that Smith is a psychopath who lacks control over his impulses. Doctors also described Smith as callous, uncaring, manipulative and lacking empathy. Smith was convicted last week in the 2013 death of Cherish Perrywinkle, who was abducted from a Walmart store in Jacksonville after he befriended her mother. In tearful testimony during his trial, Rayne Perrywinkle said she thought Smith was a good Samaritan because he had offered to buy her children clothing. Multiple jurors were crying as they an
[Deathpenalty] death penalty news----TEXAS, FLA., ALA.
Feb. 22 TEXAS: Man who plotted his family's murder will not be executed, governor says The governor of Texas decided today to spare the life of a convicted killer who carried out a plot to kill his parents and his brother. About 40 minutes before the scheduled execution, Texas Gov. Greg Abbott announced he would grant clemency to 38-year-old Thomas "Bart" Whitaker. The Texas Board of Pardons and Paroles, in a rare recommendation, voted unanimously Tuesday in favor of the "lesser penalty" of commuting Whitaker's death sentence to life behind bars without the possibility of parole. “In just over three years as governor, I have allowed 30 executions. I have not granted a commutation of a death sentence until now," Abbott said in a statement. “The murders of Mr. Whitaker’s mother and brother are reprehensible. The crime deserves severe punishment for the criminals who killed them. The recommendation of the Texas Board of Pardons and Paroles, and my action on it, ensures Mr. Whitaker will never be released from prison." Bart Whitaker was convicted of capital murder for the shooting deaths of his mother, Tricia Whitaker, and his younger brother, Kevin Whitaker, in an attack he devised at the family's Sugar Land, Texas, home in December 2003. Bart's father, Kent Whitaker, was also shot during the attack, but survived. Kent Whitaker said he has forgiven his son and became his most outspoken advocate. "I love him. He's my son," Kent Whitaker told "20/20." "I don't want to see him executed at the hands of Texas in the name of justice when there's a better justice available." On Tuesday, the Texas Board of Pardons and Paroles, in a rare recommendation, voted unanimously in favor of the "lesser penalty" of commuting Whitaker's death sentence to life behind bars without the possibility of parole. Prosecutor Fred Felcman, who was also the original prosecutor in the case, told ABC's Houston station KTRK on Tuesday that he was disappointed by the parole board's recommendation. "I guess the 12 jurors' opinion means nothing to the parole board," Felcman said. "20/20" sat down with Kent Whitaker awhile he awaited the board’s decision on his son’s fate. He said that Bart has learned Spanish in prison and was teaching some inmates English, while helping others earn their high school diplomas. "I have seen such change in him," Kent Whitaker said of his son. "He's been incarcerated for 11 years. That's 4,000 days. He's done a lot of work himself and he's struggled hard to try to find out what it was that went wrong in his mind." "There's a mental illness issue here that we still don't quite understand," the father added. "But he has learned how to recognize the danger points and to work around them. I want the opportunity to spend years watching him grow. And there's so much that he can do." Kent Whitaker said he recognizes the horrible crime his son committed, saying, "I live with it every day... and nobody's denying it." "Forgiveness is absolutely critical if you want to heal from your loss," he continued. "It is the only way that you can get the bitterness out, and the bitterness is going to stay there and it's going to affect your relationships in ways that you can't even see or recognize. But it's going to negatively affect them. I was able to forgive on the night of the shootings." On Dec. 10, 2003, Bart Whitaker announced to his family that he had finished his final exams at Sam Houston State University and would be graduating. To honor his achievement, his parents presented him with a Rolex watch. That night, the family went to a popular Cajun restaurant to celebrate. Photos taken from that night show Bart smiling for the camera, but he told "20/20" in a 2009 interview that he knew at that moment that an intruder had entered their home and was waiting for their return. If everything went according to his plan, his brother, mother and father would all be dead within minutes. "I don't really know a better term for how I was feeling [that night], other than I was on auto-pilot. I wasn't even aware of myself," Bart Whitaker told "20/20" in 2009. "I wanted them dead," he added. "It was my idea." When the family arrived home, Bart, knowing what awaited his family inside, ran down the driveway, saying he needed to grab his cell phone out of his car. Kevin Whitaker, 19, was the first one to open the door and was shot in the chest, then his mother followed and was also shot. Next, his father was wounded, too -- he was shot through the right chest and arm, breaking his humerus bone. Bart said he then ran into the house and pretended to try and catch the shooter. They wrestled a bit and then Bart was shot in the arm to make him appear to be a victim. "It was to distance me from the guilt," he told "20/20" in 2009. "But also I think on an internal level it was me realizing that there was no way that I could come out of this physi
[Deathpenalty] death penalty news----TEXAS, FLA., ALA., MO., NEB., UTAH, CALIF.
Feb. 22 TEXAS: Jury selection put on hold in death penalty trial Jury selection in the trial seeking the death penalty against 1 of 2 men accused of gunning down U.S. Border Patrol Agent Javier Vega has been postponed until March 26. Gustavo Tijerina-Sandoval is 1 of 2 men accused in the August 2014 shooting death. A pool of more than 400 potential jurors was called into the 197th state District Court on Feb. 12. By Feb. 14, only a handfull of potential jurors had been interviewed. "We are not even half way there," said Jessica Carrizales, 197th District Court court coordinator. Wednesday, she confirmed over the phone that Tuesday was the last day of jury selection until March 26. The next round of jury selection will take up to 3 weeks and trial is expected to begin in late April. Tijerina-Sandoval, of La Villa, and Ismael Hernandez-Vallejo, of Weslaco, are charged with capital murder and attempted capital murder in the shootings of Javier Vega Jr. and his father, Javier Vega Sr., who survived. Tijerina-Sandoval's trial comes to court after more than 3 years of hearings. It's been nearly 4 years since Vega was murdered while defending his family during a fishing trip in Willacy County. According to a U.S. Customs and Border Protection news release, Javier Vega Jr. attempted to draw his weapon when the men approached the family and was shot in the chest. (source: The Monitor) Rosendo Rodriguez asks for stay of execution, citing settlement with chief medical examiner Rosendo Rodriguez, III, sentenced to death for the murder of a pregnant woman and her unborn child, asked for a stay of execution on Tuesday, based on the actions of Lubbock County Chief Medical Examiner Sridhar Natarajan. Natarajan said he performed the autopsies in the Rodriguez case and testified at his trial. The motion cites a case filed by Dr. Luisa Florez under the Texas Whistleblower Act back in 2015, claiming that Natarajan delegated critical decisions to a senior forensic nurse, Honey Haney Smith. The motion claims that Smith would frequently serve as Natarajan's proxy, "making decision that only a duly deputized medical examiner should be making." The motion cites the claim that Natarajan was not performing his own autopsies, but was instead delegating the "cutting, removal of tissue and organs, and collection of forensic evidence to technicians who were not licensed or trained doctors or forensic pathologists." The lawsuit also claimed that Dr. Natarajan conspired with Nurse Smith to backdate autopsy reports. Dr. Natarajan and Lubbock County settled this lawsuit on Nov. 7, 2017, paying Dr. Florez the sum of $230,000. The motion claims that Lubbock County District Attorney Matt Powell was aware of this lawsuit and failed to disclose it to Rodriguez, resulting in a violation of his due process rights. The Rodriguez execution was scheduled for March 27, but his legal team is now asking for a stay so they can investigate how the autopsies were conducted in this case, and how that may have affected his conviction. Rodriguez rejected a plea deal that would have given him life in prison back in October 2006. (source: KCBD news) FLORIDAimpending execution Legal experts ask U.S. Supreme Court to stay Eric Branch's execution A group that includes former Florida Supreme Court justices and Circuit Court judges has banded together to file a brief in a case before the U.S. Supreme Court, asking the high court to stay Eric Branch's upcoming execution to address what they believe is an unconstitutional application of the law. Branch is scheduled to be executed Thursday for the 1993 murder of University of West Florida student Susan Morris. He has been on death row for almost 25 years after an Escambia County jury in 1994 recommended the death penalty with a 10-2 vote. The U.S. Supreme Court struck down Florida's death penalty law in 2016, and state law was then changed to mandate a jury unanimously sentence someone to death. The decision was based on another Escambia County case, that of Timothy Hurst, and has since been referred to as the Hurst ruling. The Escambia County Circuit Court, and subsequently the Florida Supreme Court, have determined the Hurst ruling does not retroactively apply to Branch's case because too much time has passed since the murder. Last week, Branch appealed his case on the same grounds to the U.S. Supreme Court after exhausting all appeals on the local and state levels. Once documents were filed at the federal level, it opened the door for the former justices and judges to file a "friend of the court" brief, which is a way for people not directly involved in cases to offer their opinion on a case. In their brief filed Thursday, the group wrote that the state had implemented an "unconstitutional retroactivity rule" in Branch's case. It further urged the U.S. Supreme Court to s
[Deathpenalty] death penalty news----TEXAS, FLA., ALA.
Feb. 11 TEXAS: Willacy to seek ultimate penalty Nearly 1 century has passed since a person convicted and sentenced to death in Willacy County has been executed by the state of Texas. This week, 1 of 2 men accused of shooting and killing an off-duty Border Patrol agent and injuring the man's father in rural Willacy County will stand trial in the 197th state District Court. The Willacy County District Attorney's Office is seeking the death penalty for both men, who are being tried separately and have pleaded not guilty to the charges. Gustavo Tijerina-Sandoval, a La Villa man, is charged with capital murder and attempted capital murder for allegedly shooting and killing Javier Vega Jr. of Kingsville and injuring the agent's father, Javier Vega Sr. of La Feria, in August 2014. Ismael Hernandez-Vallejo of Weslaco faces the same charges. Authorities have said the murder took place while the suspects robbed the Vegas, who were on a fishing excursion with their family. While 86 years have gone by since the last convicted murderer in Willacy County was executed, another 8 decades have passed since the Willacy County District Attorney's Office has secured a death sentence after a murder conviction. According to Texas Department of Criminal Justice online death row records, which date back to 1923, just 2 people from Willacy County have been sentenced to die in Huntsville. Both of those cases date back to the 1930s. Those stories have largely been forgotten, until now. HISTORY UNCOVERED The 3rd floor of the Willacy County Courthouse, which was built in 1922, used to be a jail. Nowadays, the physical memories of that jail remain. There are bars and jail doors, and memories of inmates told through jailhouse graffiti. But these days, instead of prisoners, the jail cells hold court records. In one of those cells, off in a corner of the jail, is a large black file cabinet. That's where staff from the Willacy County District Clerk's Office found the case files for Estanislado Lopez and Pio Quesada. Lopez and Quesada were held on the very same floor and sentenced to death in the courthouse that holds the only records of the cases against the men. Lopez pleaded guilty to murdering Jesus Villareal on Aug. 24, 1931, and was electrocuted less than 1 year later on June 10, 1932. Quesada pleaded guilty Jan. 22, 1937, to killing Fernando Ramirez on Nov. 27, 1936. Unlike Lopez, Quesada's sentence was commuted and he was never executed. Efforts to discover why Quesada's sentence was commuted were not successful. Unlike modern day death penalty cases that can take years to work their way through the courts, Lopez and Quesada were charged, tried and sentenced within 1 week of their arrests. The appeals process was just months-long. And for Lopez, his sentence was carried out less than one year after he pleaded guilty. However, the case files for the men still contain all of the documentation and are in excellent condition. There are indictments, arrest warrants, handwritten notes, Western Union receipts, and even appeals and notices of court-appointed attorneys; all neatly folded handbills reminiscent of the shape and size of a warrant that a proverbial western lawman would pull out of the pocket of their duster. AXE MURDER In July of 1930, Lopez, a San Antonio man who lived at a residence just northeast of downtown in the Alamo City for 8 years, traveled to Raymondville to pick cotton. The details of what transpired next are held in handwritten notes taken by authorities at the Harris County jail from an account given to them by a man named Francisco Moreno and a confession they took from Lopez, which still bears the man???s signature. In a coincidence, Moreno was arrested in Houston and placed in a cell with Lopez. Unfortunately for Lopez, Moreno was 1 of the 7 farm workers staying in a house about 4 miles east of Raymondville, along with Lopez, when the murder occurred. "When I was put in the cell ... Lopez covered up his face and would not let me see him. I told Lopez to take his hands down from his face I want to see who you are," Moreno told authorities in Houston according to the records. Moreno stated that he never saw the murder because they were all asleep, but when they woke up to a dog barking at sunrise and discovered the body, Lopez was long gone. While sharing a cell, Moreno asked Lopez where he went after the killing. "Lopez said he stayed in the brush 3 or 4 days and then went some place around Ft. Worth and then to Waco and then to Bryan, then Lopez said to me not to tell any one about the killing at Raymondville Texas for they will put me in the electric chair, he did not tell me how he killed this man," Moreno said, according to the records. Lopez killed the man by striking him with an axe while he slept. Lopez gave his account of the murder and signed it in the handwritten letter. The night of the murder was Ju
[Deathpenalty] death penalty news----TEXAS, FLA., ALA., LA., OHIO
Feb. 3 TEXASimpending execution He's Fighting to Save His Family's Killer. The Killer: His Own Son Bart Whitaker set to be executed Feb. 22 for killing his mom and brother, but dad isn't giving up on him "My wife and son were murdered by a masked gunman, and my other son and I were left for dead, but survived." Those are the words of Kent Whitaker on his website, detailing the horrific crime that tore his life apart in December 2003. But, he adds, things soon got worse: The son who'd survived, Thomas "Bart" Whitaker, was later arrested and convicted for planning the attack with 2 friends, and he now awaits a Feb. 22 execution on Texas' death row. The Washington Post documents the elder Whitaker's rage in the hours just after the shootings, which had taken place as the 4 family members arrived home from a dinner out. As he stewed in his hospital bed, recovering from the bullet that had come within inches of his heart, Whitaker first vowed to "inflict pain" on the shooter, then started thinking on his faith and how God wouldn't want him to go down a path of vengeance. And so he decided then to forgive, "no matter who was responsible" - a promise made before finding out that Bart, in his early 20s, had helped mastermind the attack. Even though Whitaker and his extended family pleaded with the DA not to pursue the death penalty, prosecutors painted Bart as a sociopath who wanted his parents' money; he was convicted of 2 counts of 1st-degree murder and sentenced to die. The case of the now 38-year-old, who's been on good behavior behind bars and is about to earn his master's degree, underscores how victims should be folded into the process of doling out justice, Whitaker says. "This isn't just a case of a dad who is ignoring the truth about his son," he says. "Believe me, I'm aware of what his choices have cost me." The Whitakers have filed a petition with Texas' parole and pardons board to commute Bart's sentence to life in prison. (source: newser.com) *** Man charged in deadly assault of son's mother headed to trial in Denton County The jury trial for Ricardo Alfonso Lara-Martinez begins Monday, more than three years after he was accused of murdering his young son's mother at a local business office. The trial, which begins at 9 a.m., will be in Judge Bruce McFarling's 362nd Judicial District Court. FBI agents returned Lara-Martinez to Denton in June after he had been in custody in Mexico since February 2016. He's specifically charged in the murder of his son's mother, Maria Isabel Romero Medina, who was found dead Dec. 13, 2014, at Sanchez Insurance and Tax Services, E. McKinney St. He remains in Denton County Jail in lieu of $1 million bail. Lara-Martinez's lawyer, Denton attorney Derek Adame, maintains the woman's death was an accident. "We're optimistic," he said. "Lara-Martinez's position is this was accidental, and we're hoping that's what the evidence will show. We don't believe he was guilty, and we don't believe the state will be able to prove that." Police said Medina died Dec. 12, 2014, as a result of a deliberate assault. She suffered numerous injuries, including a fractured skull. The cause of death included strangulation, according to Lara-Martinez's arrest affidavit. Lara-Martinez and Medina had been in a custody battle for the boy, Ricardo Alekzander Lara, who was 4 years old at the time of her death. Police said it was a point of contention between the parents. "The manner in which the victim was murdered is indicative of a direct reaction to a strong emotional response, frequently seen in and known to happen in child custody cases," the affidavit states. Lara-Martinez fled to Mexico with his son shortly after police found Medina's badly beaten body at her workplace. After an Amber Alert had been issued for the boy, a man came forward to Denton police and said he had driven Lara-Martinez and his son to Mexico, according to earlier reports. Investigators obtained an arrest warrant for a murder charge as the search for Lara-Martinez continued. In early 2015, a Denton County grand jury indicted Martinez on the charge. The following year, a Mexican judge granted Lara-Martinez's extradition to the country. Police found him with his son in Mexico in February 2016 and returned the now 7-year-old boy to Texas. Then, in June 2017, Denton police investigators took custody of Lara-Martinez at DFW International Airport. Police said when he returned, he admitted to killing the woman. Other trials rescheduled Several other high-profile cases that were originally slated for Monday trials have been rescheduled. The jury trial for Earl Leroy Thompson Jr., who was arrested in June in connection with a sexual assault and attempted sexual assaults near the University of North Texas campus, is now set for April 30 in Judge Brody Shanklin's 211th Judicial District Court. Hanyel
[Deathpenalty] death penalty news----TEXAS, FLA., ALA., TENN., IOWA, UTAH, ARIZ.
Jan. 19 TEXASnew execution date Fort Worth man convicted in birthday party slaying gets execution date A Fort Worth man convicted of killing a rival gang member's mother and a 5-year-old girl at a children's birthday party 10 years ago has been given an execution date. Erick Davila is scheduled to meet his fate in the Huntsville death chamber on April 25 at 6 p.m., according to court papers. A judge signed off on the death date on Wednesday. "Like that Winston Churchill movie, we shall never surrender and we intend to aggressively fight for Mr. Davila," said Houston defense attorney Seth Kretzer. The Supreme Court gave a death row prisoner a 2nd chance because one of the juror's made racist remarks. Davila, 30, is on death row for a shooting that killed Annette Stevenson and her granddaughter Queshawn, according to court filings. In April 2008, Davila drove by the Village Creek Townhouses in Fort Worth and opened fire on a rival gang member along with 15 children who were eating ice cream and cake on the front porch at the "Hannah Montana"-themed party. Court records describe a "chaotic scene" with "blood splattered everywhere." 2 other children were wounded in the shooting, but survived. Since his 2009 conviction, Davila has fought the case in appeals courts, taking his claims of bad lawyering all the way up to the U.S. Supreme Court last year. Kretzer, who is co-counsel with Houston-based attorney Jonathan Landers, argued the case. In a 5-4 ruling, the justices rejected Kretzer's claims that earlier appellate counsel erred in failing to point out possible missteps made earlier by trial attorneys regarding bad jury instructions. In addition to signing off on a death date, a Tarrant County judge on Wednesday also slapped down a defense motion to disqualify the local prosecutor's office, as current District Attorney Sharen Wilson was the judge during Davila's 2009 trial and Assistant District Attorney David Richards previously served as Davila's attorney earlier in the appeals process. "We were surprised and concerned by the trial judge's denial on our motion to recuse," Kretzer said Thursday. "I'm not making up some new legal theory here that there's a conflict." Davila's death date is the 6th on the calendar in Texas this year. (source: Houston Chronicle) 'Tourniquet Killer' executed in Texas for 1992 strangling Texas carried out the nation's 1st execution of 2018 Thursday evening, giving lethal injection to a man who became known as Houston's "Tourniquet Killer" because of his signature murder technique on 4 female victims. Anthony Allen Shore was put to death for 1 of those slayings, the 1992 killing of a 21-year-old woman whose body was dumped in the drive-thru of a Houston Dairy Queen. In his final statement, Shore, 55, was apologetic and his voice cracked with emotion. "No amount of words or apology could ever undo what I've done," Shore said while strapped to the death chamber gurney. "I wish I could undo the past, but it is what it is." As the lethal dose of pentobarbital began, Shore said the drug burned. "Oooh-ee! I can feel that," he said before slipping into unconsciousness. He was pronounced dead 13 minutes later at 6:28 p.m. CST. "Anthony Allen Shore's reign of terror is officially over," Andy Kahan, the city of Houston crime victims' advocate, said, speaking for the families of Shore's victims. "There's a reason we have the death penalty in the state of Texas and Anthony Shore is on the top of the list. This has been a long, arduous journey that has taken over 20 years for victims' families." Shore's lawyers argued in appeals he suffered brain damage early in life that went undiscovered by his trial attorneys and affected Shore's decision to disregard their advice when he told his trial judge he wanted the death penalty. A federal appeals court last year turned down his appeal, the U.S. Supreme Court refused to review his case and the 6-member Texas Board of Pardons and Paroles unanimously rejected a clemency petition. Shore's attorneys said his appeals were exhausted. They filed no last-minute attempts to try to halt his execution. In 1998, Shore received 8 years' probation and became a registered sex offender for sexually assaulting 2 relatives. 5 years later, Shore was arrested for the 1992 slaying of Maria del Carmen Estrada after a tiny particle recovered from under her fingernail was matched to his DNA. "I didn't set out to kill her," he told police in a taped interview played at his 2004 trial. "That was not my intent. But it got out of hand." Estrada was walking to work around 6:30 a.m. on April 16, 1992, when he she accepted a ride from him. The former tow truck driver, phone company repairman and part-time musician blamed his actions on "voices in my head that I was going to have her, regardless, to possess her in some way." He also confessed to killing 3
[Deathpenalty] death penalty news----TEXAS, FLA., LA., ARK., IOWA, UTAH
Jan. 18 TEXASimpending execution "Tourniquet Killer' set to be executed in Texas A Houston-area sex offender who was convicted of killing a young woman and confessed to 3 more strangling deaths is set for lethal injection in Texas Thursday in what would be the 1st U.S. execution of 2018. The Harris County District Attorney's office dubbed Anthony Allen Shore the "Tourniquet Killer" because of how he ended his victims' lives, using a stick to tightly twist a cord around their necks. "Anthony Shore is the worst of the worst," Harris County District Attorney Kim Ogg said. "He's a serial killer. He took pleasure in his victims' suffering. He's appropriate for the death penalty." Shore was condemned for the slaying of 21-year-old Maria del Carmen Estrada, who disappeared as she walked to work early on April 16, 1992. Her strangled body was later found dumped in the drive-thru lane of a Houston Dairy Queen. The slaying went unsolved for more than a decade until a tiny particle collected from beneath her fingernail matched the DNA of Shore, by then a convicted sex offender whose DNA had been added to a state database. When police arrested Shore, the former tow truck driver, phone company repairman and part-time musician confessed to killing Estrada and 3 others: Laurie Tremblay, 15, whose body was found beside a trash bin outside a Houston restaurant in 1986; Diana Rebollar, 9, who was abducted while walking to a neighborhood grocery store in 1994; and Dana Sanchez, 16, who disappeared in 1995 while hitchhiking to her boyfriend's home in Houston. All were Hispanic. At least 3 of them had been sexually assaulted. A Harris County jury convicted Shore in 2004 of capital murder in the killing of Estrada. After hearing 4 days of prosecution evidence on the 3 other slayings and hearing from 3 women who testified Shore raped them, the jury recommended the death penalty. Attorneys said Shore's appeals have been exhausted. The U.S. Supreme Court has refused to review his case. "We've made the best arguments we can," attorney Knox Nunnally said Tuesday. A bizarre scheme hatched by a fellow inmate temporarily halted Shore's execution, which had been set for Oct. 18. Hours before he was to have been taken to the death chamber, prosecutors agreed to a reprieve to investigate a claim that another man convicted of murder, Larry Swearingen, had tried to get Shore to take responsibility for the killing that put Swearingen on death row. Shore, 55, told investigators he declined to go along with the plan. Shore also told authorities in recent weeks that he was responsible for 2 other slayings, but a Texas Rangers' investigation determined evidence did not support his claims. Shore is scheduled for execution Thursday evening in Huntsville, Texas. 23 prisoners were put to death nationally in 2017, 7 of them in Texas, more than any other state. (source: Associated Press) Executions under Greg Abbott, Jan. 21, 2015-present27 Executions in Texas: Dec. 7, 1982present-545 Abbott#scheduled execution date-nameTx. # 28-Jan. 18-Anthony Shore--546 29-Jan. 30-William Rayford547 30--Feb. 1-John Battaglia-548 31--Feb. 22Thomas Whitaker549 32--Mar. 27Rosendo Rodriguez III--550 (sources: TDCJ & Rick Halperin) ** Number of death sentences, executions continue declineNo death sentences handed down in Harris County in 2017 Texas, and specifically Harris County, have long been known as the epicenter of capital punishment in the United States. Over the last 20 years, 438 people have been executed in the state, according to the Texas Department of Criminal Justice. However, the number of yearly executions nationwide has dropped steeply since the turn of the century. According to the Death Penalty Information Center, there were 98 executions in the United States in 1999. Last year, there were 23. During the same time in Texas, the number of executions dropped from 35 to 7. "People are more reluctant to give out death sentences," said city of Houston victims rights advocate Andy Kahan. He said there are several factors contributing to the trend. The most significant impact came in 2005, when juries were given the option to hand down a sentence of life in prison without the possibility of parole. Kahan said the effect on the death penalty was immediate. "(Juries) feel as long as that person will remain behind bars for the rest of their life, they're not going to be so inclined to give out the death penalty," Kahan said. Before the law, sentencing someone to life in prison for capital murder meant they still had a shot at getting paroled after serving 40 years in prison. "(Juries) knew that if they did not come back with the dea
[Deathpenalty] death penalty news----TEXAS, FLA., OHIO, IDAHO, USA
Jan. 5 JANUARY 5, 2018: TEXAS: Breanna Wood murder suspect to face death penalty The primary suspect in the Breanna Wood murder case will face the death penalty according to prosecutors. Joseph Tejeda appeared in Nueces County Court Thursday, and learned prosecutors will seek the death penalty. Tejeda is accused of killing Wood after she disappeared in October 2016. Wood's body was found by police months later. During Thursday's hearing, defense attorneys filed motions requesting Tejeda be released on his own recognizance, or that his bond be lowered from $1,000,000. Judge Jack Pulcher denied those requests. Judge Pulcher is considering a defense request to allow Tejeda to have facial tattoos removed before trial. Tejeda's appearance came a year and a day after Wood's body was discovered. On Wednesday, family and friends gathered for a candlelight vigil to remember her. Fallon Wood, Breanna's mother, says she hasn't grieved for her daughter yet, and won't until after those responsible are behind bars. She's confident justice will be served in the case. "They're all going to be held accountable for what they did," said Wood. "Like I've always said, the justice isn't just for my daughter and myself, but for everyone they've hurt. I'm grateful these people are off the streets of Corpus Christi." 6 other suspects have been charged in connection to Breanna Wood's death. 2 of the suspects could also face the death penalty. (source: KRIS TV news) State to seek death penalty for man accused of murdering Tyler gas station clerk Officials are seeking the death penalty for a man suspected of murdering a Smith County gas station clerk in January 2017. Dameon Jamrc Mosley, 25, of Tyler, was indicted in April 2017 on charges of capital murder by terror threat and aggravated robbery. On Jan. 28, 2017, just before 4 a.m., Mosley and another suspect, Lamarcus Hannah, reportedly robbed a Conoco gas station on Loop 323 in Smith County. Billy Dale Stacks was working as the clerk at the time. He was shot several times and was later pronounced dead at the hospital. Mosley was arrested the following day in Dallas. On Thursday, Smith County Judge Jack Skeen Jr. approved a motion continuance in a separate case. On that document, Skeen noted that attorneys for the State would be unavailable due to their scheduled involvement in a capital murder trial for Mosley. The document noted that the State is seeking the death penalty in the 114th Judicial District Court on May 10, 2017, and Mosley's trial is set for June 4, 2018. (source: KLTV news) FLORIDA: Killer receives life in prison after resentencingKevin Jeffries, part of a trio who tortured and killed a World War II veteran, showed little emotion during the short hearing, and gave only 1 word responses. 3 1/2 years ago, Judge Brantley Clark Jr. signed an order that would end Kevin Jeffries' life, sentencing him to death for 1st-degree murder. On Thursday, Clark signed an order to spare Jeffries' life, converting his sentence to life in prison. Jeffries showed little emotion during the short hearing, and gave only 1-word responses. When asked if he knew why he was appearing in court, he answered simply, "formality." Convicted in the 2013 killing of Lynn Haven World War II veteran Wallace Scott, Jeffries was sentenced to death in a 10-2 decision handed down by a jury in September 2014. 3 years later, after the Florida Supreme Court ruled the guidelines used to impose the death penalty in Florida were unconstitutional, it would be those 3 jurors who voted no who opened the door for Jeffries' life sentence. "This record, coupled with a 10-to-2 jury recommendation and the mitigation presented, simply presents too many unanswered questions," the state Supreme Court wrote in its July ruling. "Therefore, we must find reversible error and remand the case for a new penalty phase." According to court records, the state decided in November it no longer wished to pursue the death penalty in Jeffries' case. Chief Assistant State Attorney Larry Basford reiterated that decision in court, saying the state was in agreement that it would not be pursuing the death penalty. With that in mind, Clark sentenced Jeffries to life in prison. Because of his family ties in Alabama, Jeffries likely will be housed in Northwest Florida. Jeffries, along with co-defendants David Ian Challender and Ashley Griffin, broke into Scott's home in April 2013. Scott, who was 90 years old, was bound and tortured as the trio repeatedly held a knife to Scott's genitals, demanding his ATM personal identification number. When he refused, they killed him. Challender's mother previously had been Scott's caregiver and was a beneficiary in Scott's will. According to trial testimony, Scott was in the process of removing her as a beneficiary when the trio broke in. After Scott's death, Griffin
[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 a
[Deathpenalty] death penalty news----TEXAS, FLA., LA., OHIO, ARK.
Dec. 16 TEXAS: Why Texas' 'death penalty capital of the world' stopped executing people Since the Supreme Court legalized capital punishment in 1976, Harris County, Texas, has executed 126 people. That's more executions than every individual state in the union, barring Texas itself. Harris County's executions account for 23 percent of the 545 people Texas has executed. On the national level, the state alone is responsible for more than a third of the 1,465 people put to death in the United States since 1976. In 2017, however, the county known as the "death penalty capital of the world" and the "buckle of the American death belt" executed and sentenced to death a remarkable number of people: zero. This is the 1st time since 1985 that Harris County did not execute any of its death row inmates, and the 3rd year in a row it did not sentence anyone to capital punishment either. The remarkable statistic reflects a shift the nation is seeing as a whole. "The practices that the Harris County District Attorney's Office is following are also significant because they reflect the growing movement in the United States toward reform prosecutors who have pledged to use the death penalty more sparingly if at all," said Robert Dunham, the director of the Death Penalty Information Center. The city of Houston lies within the confines of Harris County, making it one of the most populous counties in the country - and recently it became one of the most diverse, with a 2012 Rice University report concluded that Houston has become the most diverse city in the country. Under these new conditions, Kim Ogg ran in 2016 to become the county's district attorney as a reformist candidate who pledged to use the death penalty in a more judicious manner than her predecessors, though the longtime prosecutor didn't say she would abandon it altogether. Rather, Ogg said she would save it for the "worst of the worst" - such as serial killer Anthony Shore, who was rescheduled for execution next month. But this year, Ogg appears to have held true to her promise of only pursuing the death penalty in what she deems the most extreme cases. It represents a break from a long pattern of Harris County prosecutors who pushed for the death penalty in nearly all capital cases. "The overall idea of what makes us safer is changing," Ogg said. "We're reframing the issues. It's no longer the number of convictions or scalps on the wall. It's making sure the punishment meets the crime." Ogg's approach has earned her recognition from experts, including those opposed to the use of capital punishment. "She is a much more fair-minded prosecutor than we've seen in the past," said Kristin Houle, the executive director of the Texas Coalition to Abolish the Death Penalty. "She's very deliberate in her approach to the issues and appears to listen to the concerns of the community. But I think there are still a lot of opportunities for further reform in Harris County." But Ogg said she cannot alone take credit for the recent drop in executions. The trend precedes her slightly and can also be connected to better educated and more diverse jury pools, as well as Texas' new sentencing option of life without parole. The state also has a more skilled group of indigent defense lawyers who build up mitigating circumstances - such as an abusive childhood or mental illness - for an alleged murderer's crime. Even a state like Texas might stop sentencing alleged killers to death in the near future. And that trend could well extend nationwide. "We've seen a deepening decline in the death penalty since the year 2000, and some states fell faster than others," said University of Virginia law professor Brandon Garrett, who wrote "End of Its Rope: How Killing the Death Penalty Can Revive Criminal Justice." He added that the declines are steepest in counties that had sentenced the most people to death. "Juries are turning away from it, prosecutors are turning away from it, so [the death penalty is] withering away on the vine whether courts or legislators decide to do anything about it," Garrett said. As for Ogg, she only said that she represents modern-day Harris County, not the one made famous for the number of people it executed. She said that her office still has more than 80 pending capital murder cases and she'll examine each one thoroughly to decide whether the death penalty is the most fitting punishment. "With other sentencing options and with an increased knowledge of science and technology, Americans feel responsible as jurors in a way they didn't in the past because there's more information to be considered," she said. "So I think attitudes toward the death penalty are changing." (source: NBC News) * It's Debatable: Should death penalty be used more often? This week, Arnold Loewy and Charles Moster debate states' use of the death penalty. Moster is a former liti
[Deathpenalty] death penalty news----TEXAS, FLA., LA., OHIO
Dec. 12 TEXAS: Salvadoran man on Texas death row loses Supreme Court appeal The U.S. Supreme has refused to review an appeal from a 48-year-old Salvadoran man on Texas death row for the slayings of 2 Houston store clerks during an attempted robbery more than 17 years ago. The high court had no comment in its decision Monday in the case of Gilmar Guevara. Attorneys for Guevara asked the justices to reverse lower courts' rulings rejecting arguments that he's mentally impaired and ineligible for the death penalty. Guevara was convicted and sentenced to death for the fatal shootings of 48-year-old Tae Youk and 21-year-old Gerardo Yaxon. Youk was from South Korea and Yaxon from Guatemala. Guevara, identified as the shooter, and 2 accomplices fled the scene in southwest Houston in June 2000 without any money. He does not yet have an execution date. (source: Associated Press) FLORIDA: Convicted killer Duane Owen wants off death row Attorneys for a man convicted of 2 heinous murders in the 1980s and sentenced to death are fighting to save his life. "Duane Owen is nothing more than a cowardly, misogynistic bully who preys on people he knows he can overcome," the state argued before a judge inside a Palm Beach County courtroom on Monday. Decades after juries convicted him and judges sentenced him to death for two murders in Boca Raton and Delray Beach, Duane Owen wants to get off of death row. Attorneys are trying to now use a 2016 U.S. Supreme Court and Florida Supreme Court ruling to vacate Owen's death sentence for the gruesome rape and murders of 14-year-old babysitter Karen Slattery and 38 year-old single mother Georgianna Worden. Owen's attorney argues juries in both cases were split 10-2 when recommending death for Owen and the judges had the final say. Florida law now requires a unanimous verdict for the death penalty. ???At the end of the day, Mr. Owens was denied his rights in both cases," attorney James Driscoll argued. "We would ask for the court to grant relief in both cases." "It disgusts me, that's how I feel. It disgusts me to think that we have to go there," said Jane Smith, who was one of Slattery's teachers. "Just pray for the family. It's been a heartache. You can't bring her back if you execute him but there's got to be closure, somewhere." The judge didn't indicate when he'll rule or how long it could take. (source: WPEC news) * Convicted killer sentenced to death for 3rd timeJury unanimously recommended execution for Randal Deviney For the 3rd time since a woman was brutally killed 9 years, a Duval County judge has sentenced Randal Deviney to be put to death for the murder. In August 2008, when Deviney was 18 years old, he slit the throat of Delores Futrell and beat her during an attempted burglary. He then moved her body and staged the scene to make it appear that she had been sexually assaulted. In October, after two days of testimony from detectives, forensic scientists, family members and psychologists, a jury unanimously recommended he be given the death penalty. On Monday, Judge Mark Borello formally sentenced Deviney to be returned to death row. On Monday, Borello said the nature and cruelty of the crime and age of the victim were all factors that led him to give Deviney to the death penalty. "All lives have value, but we are a nation of laws," Borello said. "Randall Deviney, you have not only forfeited your right to live among us, but under the laws of the state of Florida, you have forfeited your right to live at all." This and all death sentences are automatically reviewed by the Florida Supreme Court. Futrell's family was in court Monday, but did not comment after the hearing, but did make remarks after the jury recommended the death penalty 2 months ago. "We're glad it's finally over (and) he got the sentencing he deserved," Futrell's granddaughter Raqia Blades said. "I'm glad we don't have to keep replaying the memories of what happened and keep asking the question, 'Why?'" It was the 3rd jury that has been asked to sentence Deviney to death for the crime. The 1st conviction was overturned on appeal and his 2nd sentence was thrown out when the Florida Supreme Court ruled that death penalties are only constitutional if there is a unanimous jury recommendation. Futrell, a dialysis technician and mother of four, was described in court this week as loving life and having a thirst for knowledge. "A person like my mom should have died a peaceful death," said Jacquelynn Blades, Futrell's oldest daughter. During the sentencing hearing, the defense presented 37 mitigating factors to try and convince the jury to spare Deviney from the death penalty. It called Deviney's father and a forensic psychologist to testify an abusive childhood. Despite Deviney mental, sexual and physical abuse as a child, Borello said Deviney still had a loving family and
[Deathpenalty] death penalty news----TEXAS, FLA., ALA., OHIO, NEB., NEV., CALIF.
Dec. 5 TEXAS: For 1st time in more than 30 years, no Harris County death row inmates executed For the 1st time since 1985, no Harris County killers will be executed by the state of Texas this year, a landmark shift for a county once known as the "capital of capital punishment." Despite a slight uptick in executions nationwide, Harris County's 1 execution this year was cancelled after a desperate death row plot led to a last-minute stay for serial killer Anthony Shore in October. 2 U.S. Supreme Court rulings spared 2 other inmates. "This has been an important year in terms of death penalty litigation," said District Attorney Kim Ogg. "I view it as a positive thing. I don't think that being the death penalty capital of America is a selling point for Harris County." Nationwide, executions reached a high water mark in 1999, and Texas executions topped out at 40 the next year. But it's Harris County courts that have kept the death chamber busiest, with 126 executions since the state resumed capital punishment in 1982. "Harris County has always symbolized America's death penalty because it has executed more people than any other county and - apart from the rest of Texas - more than any other state," said Robert Dunham of the Death Penalty Information Center. "It is both symbolic and emblematic of the change in capital punishment in the United States. For the 1st time in a generation, the nation's largest executioner has executed no one." In part, that's due to the long-range impact of the Lone Star State's introduction of life without parole as a sentencing option starting in 2005. Before that, jurors on capital murder cases had to pick between death and the possibility of eventual release. But it's also due to the more immediate impacts of court actions this year. In October, death row inmate Duane Buck was given a life sentence after the Supreme Court granted him a new hearing in light of testimony from an expert who told the jury that Buck was more likely to be a future danger because he is black. Then in November, Harris County prosecutors asked for a life sentence for Bobby Moore, months after the Supreme Court determined that Texas did not properly consider whether he was too intellectually disabled to face execution. Falling murder rates and changing political tides have also contributed to the decline in capital punishment. "Perhaps the most important change is that the public is substantially less supportive of the death penalty than it has been at any time since 1972," Dunham said, citing a recent Gallup poll. The research group's October findings showed that 55 % of U.S. adults support capital punishment for convicted murderers, a low not seen since March 1972. Outspoken death penalty supporter Dudley Sharp blamed the drop on the length of time between sentencing and execution. "At this point it's more than doubled since the 1980s, which would dramatically lower the execution rate," Sharp said. Even without Harris County, Texas regained its spot this year as the busiest death chamber in the nation with seven executions. Nationwide, 23 prisoners were put to death - 3 more than the year before - amid an otherwise downward trend. A generation ago, it was a different story. A year before Karla Faye Tucker's execution grabbed national headlines amid the tough-on-crime efforts of the 1990s, Harris County saw 11 killers in 1997 executed. Tucker, the 1st woman executed in Texas since the 1800s, was convicted of a brutal pickaxe slaying; she blamed the killing on drugs. The next execution in Texas is Jan. 18, when "Tourniquet Killer" Anthony Shore is slated to die by lethal injection. Shore's execution on Oct. 18 was halted at the last minute after he told investigators of an abandoned confession plot with fellow death row inmate Larry Swearingen, a Montgomery County killer whose execution was also delayed. A handful of other Harris County killers who are nearing the end of their appeals process could potentially net 2018 execution dates, including Carlos Ayestas, a Honduran man convicted in a 1995 slaying. The court heard oral arguments in the case in October and is expected to offer a decision next year. No new death sentences, however, were imposed in Harris County this year - Ogg's 1st to helm the district attorney's office. "I think it reflects both the new administration and the new skepticism about the death penalty and life without parole all combined with a dash of Harvey," said local defense attorney Pat McCann. "And then of course there's the simply bizarre continuing tale of Mr. Shore and Mr. Swearingen and the frankly inexplicable turn of events there." Next year could be different, however. "When you have an historic low one year it's not surprising to see the numbers rise slightly the following year," Dunham said. Death row exoneree Anthony Graves lauded local prosecutors for their role in
[Deathpenalty] death penalty news----TEXAS, FLA., OHIO, MO., S. DAK., NEV., USA
Nov. 23 TEXAS: Professor explains why Texas executes so many prisoners If Harris County were its own state, it would have a more active death chamber than the entire rest of the country - except for the rest of Texas. Of the 1,465 U.S. executions in the modern death penalty era, 125 have come from Harris County - roughly 8 %. The next-closest executioner is Dallas County, with 55 death sentences carried out since the Supreme Court reinstated the ultimate punishment in 1976. Houston's reputation as ground zero for the death penalty, it seems, is well-earned - even though prosecutors here have been less apt to dole out capital sentences in recent years. But while the numbers are stark, the reasons behind the Bayou City's apparent zeal for capital punishment are less apparent. It's not driven by public support for the practice. It's not driven by an unusually high crime rate or by especially heinous murders. So what is it? What sets apart jurisdictions that frequently turn to capital punishment from those that don't? That is one of the questions Frank Baumgartner and his co-authors explore in Deadly Justice, a numbers-heavy study of capital punishment released this month. The University of North Carolina-Chapel Hill political science professor took some time this week to field questions from the Chronicle about his new book and its implications in the Houston area. Houston Chronicle: So, Harris County is known as the capital of capital punishment - why is that? Are Houstonians just more supportive of it? Frank Baumgartner: Well, actually I would say 2 things. We got data from a Rice University Houston-area poll and it turns out the public opinion in Houston is less supportive for the death penalty than in the rest of Texas. In general across the country we don't find any correlation between public opinion and executions, and the reason for that is that if you don't support capital punishment you're not allowed to sit on a jury. The key driver in the system is the choices that district attorneys make, because they start the process and they get to pick and choose whether to seek death. Looking at all 3,000 counties in the U.S. there are just a few counties that have executed more than, say, 10 people - there's only 20 counties like that - and it's really astounding that there'd be so much concentration in a few jurisdictions. There's really no rhyme or reason to it. Harris County has far more executions than any other county in the country. HC: It's not that Houston has more horrific crimes? FB: No, not at all. I think it's something about a local culture that develops around the courthouse. Most counties never go there, but a few counties happen to scucessfully carry through to the end a death sentence - and then when the next really bad murder happens the prosecutors say, "Well this is just as bad as that one where we sought death so we kind of have to do it again this time." HC: We hear a lot about botched executions - is this happening more than it used to - and why we aren't seeing these botched executions in Texas? Or is it just a matter of time? FB: Lethal injection is a medicalized procedure but in most states no doctors are allowed to participate so I think it does lend itself to botches in a way that other methods like firing squad or hangings did not. But Texas has a lot more practice. So there have been fewer botches in Texas because I think their teams in the corrections department are relatively in practice. In carrying out 400 or 500 hundreds executions they've just done it a lot more. These charts show the average wait time before an execution is carried out in some of the nation's busiest death chambers. HC: People always seem to express frustration over the length of the delays - sometimes it's 20 years. Is Texas an outlier in this or is this a pretty normal timeframe here? FB: The average as of 2015 is about 20 years delay from crime to execution, so that's pretty shocking. There's three shockers. One is the extreme delay - that's 20 years in solitary confinement. So it's 20 years of harsh punishment followed by execution. The other shocker is that we only carry out 13 % of the death sentences. It's just astounding. And the 3rd shocker is that even when the governor signs a death warrant it's not usually carried out. On average, those things are cancelled. HC: So you've been looking at this for a while - how are the questions and discussion around the use of the death penalty changing? FB: I think the biggest change was in the 1990s we started to pay serious attention to the concept of innocence and whether there might be innocent people on death row and whether we should celebrate it when we identify them and they're exonerated or if we should interpret that number as catastrophic. I think the innocence argument has really shaken people's faith that you can count on the government to get
[Deathpenalty] death penalty news----TEXAS, FLA., LA., OHIO
Nov. 17 TEXAS: Flawed evidence is why the death penalty must go After leading the nation for decades in recommending death sentences, juries in Dallas County and Harris County have apparently cooled to the idea. In Dallas, prosecutors have asked juries to condemn a murderer to death just 2 times since 2014, and in both cases the juries declined. That's good news for anyone concerned about how justice is meted out in Texas. While there are crimes that probably deserve death, the defining characteristic of an execution is its irreversibility. Once carried out, there is no possibility for mistakes to be corrected. That's a problem for a criminal justice system whose mistakes are being brought to light more often than ever by advances in science and technology. This basic incompatibility has helped soften support for the death penalty. Dallas County District Attorney Faith Johnson has sought the death penalty in only 2 cases since taking office, which we hope suggests an increasingly high bar for executions in general. The 1st of them, however, was upended last week when new information about defendant Antonio Cochran's intellectual disability made him ineligible for execution, thanks to the Supreme Court's narrowing interpretation of when the Constitution permits the death penalty. But it's a case out of Bell County not even involving a capital crime that best explains why our system of justice is fundamentally incompatible with the death penalty. When jurors convicted George Powell of a Killeen robbery in 2009, it looked solid enough. A camera recorded the robber leaving the 7-Eleven, where he had put a handgun on the counter and told the terrified cashier to give him the cash and some cigarettes. The cashier told police the robber had been about 5-foot-6, according to a story published last week by Brandi Grissom, The Morning News' Austin bureau chief, but the clerk and a manager later testified that Powell, who is 6-foot-3, was the robber. Eyewitness testimony has a lousy track record. And in this case, it was disputed by the manager of another store that had been robbed 12 days before when she testified that she recognized Powell and he was definitely not the one who robbed her. But prosecutors pointed to the video. And introduced an informant who told jurors that Powell had confessed while they were in jail. Now, however, both the video and the snitch's testimony have been contradicted. The inmate says he lied to curry favor in his own case. And the video? An expert hired by the Texas Forensic Science Commission has concluded it is impossible that the man in the video was taller than 5-foot-9. Powell remains in jail serving 28 years. An appeals court will have to decide whether all this means he's innocent. Lawmakers ought to ponder whether new standards for analysis of video evidence are needed, as the commission has suggested. But whatever happens, we know that since he's still alive any mistakes in Powell's case can still be corrected. That's not possible for those who've been executed. That's precisely why the death penalty remains fundamentally incompatible with justice. (source: Editorial, Dallas Morning News) FLORIDA: Court will not reconsider Oviedo killer's death sentenceThe Florida Supreme Court heard arguments to throw out Andrew Allred death sentence in the 2007 Oviedo double homicide. Asst. FL. Attorney General Stacey Kircher argues that he was not in a "disassociative" mental state when he committed the crimes. The Florida Supreme Court on Thursday upheld a lower court's decision not to reconsider the sentence of an Oviedo man on death row, documents show. Andrew Allred, 31, was convicted of 1st-degree murder for killing his best friend and his ex-girlfriend in 2007, following a public break-up during his 21st birthday party. He was sentenced to death for both murders in 2010. He was appealing the Seminole County Circuit Court's decision to deny his initial post-conviction motion in 2016, where he claimed he was assigned an ineffective attorney. In January 2017, Allred filed an appeal to the initial motion, which was also denied by the lower court because he voluntarily waived his right to a jury during the sentencing hearings. "Allred is among those defendants who validly waived the right to a penalty phase jury, and his arguments do not compel departing from our precedent," the justices wrote. According to court records, on Aug. 25, 2007, Allred's girlfriend at the time - Tiffany Barwick, 19, - broke up with him at his birthday party. During the next few days, he used photos of her for target practice and later sent her pictures of those images with bullet holes. After Allred discovered Barwick was seeing his best friend, Michael Ruschak, 22, he sent both of them threatening messages. About a month later, he drove to Ruschak's home in Oviedo, where he rammed into his ex-girlfri
[Deathpenalty] death penalty news----TEXAS, FLA., ALA., OHIO, ARIZ., NEV., CALIF.
Nov. 16 TEXASnew death sentences Tracy gets death penalty for murder of Telford officer A Bowie County jury deliberated just over an hour Wednesday morning before sentencing Texas prison inmate Billy Joel Tracy to death. Tracy, 39, will face the ultimate punishment in the July 15, 2015, fatal beating of Barry Telford Unit Correctional Officer Timothy Davison. The jury had to consider 2 questions, or special issues, in arriving at Tracy's sentence: "Whether beyond a reasonable doubt there is a probability that the defendant would commit criminal acts of violence that would constitute a continuing threat to society," and "whether taking into consideration all of the evidence, including the circumstances of the offense, the defendant's character and background and the personal moral culpability of the defendant, there is a sufficient mitigating circumstance or circumstances to warrant that a sentence of imprisonment without parole rather than a death sentence be imposed." The jury unanimously answered "yes" to question one and "no" to question 2. Each of the 9 men and 3 women on Tracy's jury was polled after 102nd District Judge Bobby Lockhart read the jury's answers. Lockhart pronounced the punishment of death after advising Tracy of his rights to appeal. A packed courtroom watched in silence, some of them with hands over their mouths, as Lockhart released the jury. Davison's brother and niece sat surrounded by Texas Department of Criminal Justice staff as the trial ended. "Justice has been a long time coming," Ken Davison said. Tracy attacked Timothy Davison as he opened the door to cell 66 and briefly turned his gaze. After knocking Davison to the floor, Tracy grabbed the officer's metal tray slot bar and wielded it like a hammer, striking Davison repeatedly in the head and face after he lost consciousness. Tracy took Davison's pepper spray before throwing him feet over head down the stairwell. As a group of Davison's fellow officers approached, Tracy fouled the air with the chemical agent and retreated to his cell. A member of the 5-man extraction team that entered the cell to remove Tracy was bitten. During the trial, Tracy's jury heard testimony concerning multiple acts of violence by Tracy and the offenses which earned him 2 life sentences and a 20-year term in 1998. The jury heard of planned and calculated attacks on officers at units of the Texas Department of Criminal Justice across the state. Defense experts and Tracy's defense team, Mac Cobb of Mount Pleasant and Jeff Harrelson of Texarkana, argued that Tracy suffers from a "broken brain" compounded by a horrible childhood and years in prison. "He didn't choose this kind of brain. Billy had bad nature and bad nurture," Harrelson said. The state argued that Tracy is an incorrigible person with a diagnosis of antisocial personality disorder who will continue to murder and maim if the ultimate punishment is not imposed. "The state of Texas will never bring you a stronger case for the death penalty," argued Assistant District Attorney Lauren Richards. Lead prosecutor Assistant District Attorney Kelley Crisp told the jury that someone will be sentenced to death at the end of Tracy's trial. "Will it be another correctional officer with TDCJ, or will it be Billy Joel Tracy?" Crisp asked. "You decide." (source: Texarkana Gazette) ** Tennessee Colony man sentenced to death in case where 6 killed Tennessee Colony resident William Mitchell Hudson has been sentenced to death for killing 6 family members in one night in November 2015. Jurors deliberated for about 45 minutes before delivering the punishment verdict on the 2-year anniversary of Hudson's arrest; District Judge Mark Calhoon sentenced the 35-year-old man. Hudson was indicted on 3 counts of capital murder in connection with the slaying of six members of the Johnson and Kamp families on the night of Nov. 14, 2015: Thomas Kamp, 45; Nathan Kamp, 23; Austin Kamp, 21; Kade Johnson, 6; Carl Johnson, 77; and Hannah Johnson, 40. According to testimony over the trial's 11 days, the families gathered in Anderson County that weekend to celebrate the upcoming 24th birthday of Nathan Kamp, on land Thomas Kamp had recently purchased from a distant relative of Hudson's. Carl and Cynthia - the sole survivor of that night - arrived 1st, in an RV the retired couple used to travel around the country. Using a lock Tom had given them, the couple cut a lock on the gate, gaining entrance to the land Tom had recently puchased. Shortly after arriving on the land, the RV got stuck in the sandy ground near their campsite. The sound of Cynthia yelling at Carl as he tried to work the RV out of the ground made its way over to Crystal Hudson's home, where William had been staying. Friends of the Hudson family testified that they had owned the land since the 1800s, and that William had wanted to buy the land
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Nov. 15 TEXAS: Science has taught us juries rely on flawed evidence for convictions; that's why the death penalty must go After leading the nation for decades in recommending death sentences, juries in Dallas County and Harris County have apparently cooled to the idea. In Dallas, prosecutors have asked juries to condemn a murderer to death just 2 times since 2014, and in both cases the juries declined. That's good news for anyone concerned about how justice is meted out in Texas. While there are crimes that probably deserve death, the defining characteristic of an execution is its irreversibility. Once carried out, there is no possibility for mistakes to be corrected. That's a problem for a criminal justice system whose mistakes are being brought to light more often than ever by advances in science and technology. This basic incompatibility has helped soften support for the death penalty. (Other factors that may be playing a role: It is also expensive and has not been proven to be more a more effective deterrent against future crime than, say, the life sentence without parole that has, since 2005, been the minimum sentence for anyone convicted of capital murder in Texas.) Dallas County District Attorney Faith Johnson has sought the death penalty in only two cases since taking office, which we hope suggests an increasingly high bar for executions in general. The first of them, however, was upended last week when new information about defendant Antonio Cochran's intellectual disability made him ineligible for execution, thanks to the Supreme Court's narrowing interpretation of when the Constitution permits the death penalty. But it's a case out of Bell County not even involving a capital crime that best explains why our system of justice is fundamentally incompatible with the death penalty. When jurors convicted George Powell of a Killeen robbery in 2009, it looked solid enough. A camera recorded the robber leaving the 7-Eleven, where he had put a handgun on the counter and told the terrified cashier to give him the cash and some cigarettes. The cashier told police the robber had been about 5-foot-6, according to a story published last week by Brandi Grissom, The Morning News' Austin bureau chief, but the clerk and a manager later testified that Powell, who is 6-foot-3, was the robber. Eyewitness testimony has a lousy track record. And in this case, it was disputed by the manager of another store that had been robbed 12 days before - it was thought by the same robber - when she testified that she recognized Powell and he was definitely not the one who robbed her. But prosecutors pointed to the video. And introduced an informant who told jurors that Powell had confessed while they were in jail. Now, however, both the video and the snitch's testimony have been contradicted. The inmate says he lied to curry favor in his own case. And the video? An expert hired by the Texas Forensic Science Commission has concluded it is impossible that the man in the video was taller than 5-foot-9. Powell remains in jail serving 28 years. An appeals court will have to decide whether all this means he's innocent. Lawmakers ought to ponder whether new standards for analysis of video evidence are needed, as the commission has suggested. But whatever happens, we know that since he's still alive any mistakes in Powell's case can still be corrected. That's not possible for those who've been executed. That's precisely why the death penalty remains fundamentally incompatible with justice. Texas Forensic Science Commission recommendations regarding use of video evidence: 1. The basis for analytical conclusions reached in forensic casework must be supported by clear and comprehensive scientific methods. 2. Analysts should address error rates and uncertainty in their reports. 3. All analytical reports should be subject to peer review before use in a trial. 4. When post-conviction analysis is performed, the results should be immediately communicated to the prosecutor, the court and the defendant. 5. Analysts should follow established industry guidelines that are the consensus of the scientific community. 6. Analysts should take precautions to protect against confirmation bias. 7. In light of ... the concerns highlighted in this particular case, the commission's advisory committee should consider whether new licensing requirements for forensic analysts should be added. 8. The Bell County prosecutor should consider seeking further assistance from the FBI or another qualified law-enforcement forensic service provider if questions remain in the Powell case. 9. The criminal justice community should seek assistance and training when they encounter a forensic video analysis case and need to retain an expert witness. (source: Editorial, Dallas Morning News) ** Hudson not insane, but deficient, experts say Psychologists, medica
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Nov. 14 TEXAS: Cardenas Execution Raising Questions About Treatment of Mexican Nationals In U.S. Prisons The Cardenas execution in Huntsville is raising questions about the treatment of Mexican Nationals in American prisons. News Center 23 had a chance to speak to the Mexican Ministry of Foreign Affairs moments before and after the execution of Ruben Ramirez Cardenas. "Ruben if you can hear us, we are here for you" yell protesters outside the in the rain. Those may have been some of the last sounds heard by Ruben Ramirez Cardenas, a Mexican National, convicted of killing and Raping his 16 year old cousin back in 1997. News Center 23 had the opportunity to bear witness to the execution. Friends, family, were not present to see the passing of their loved one. Instead 4 lone protestors battling 50-degree weather in the rain and Mexican dignitaries were hoping the execution was delayed fi not avoided. Among those protestors, Gloria Ruback a representative of the TX Death Penalty Abolition Movement. She claims that she has been attending and protesting executions since the 1980???s. She says, "we found out that they can hear us back there in the room where they execute them. So to give him a little support ... maybe a smile before he's murdered." The execution, once slated for 6 PM on November 8th had visitors tense. Appeals made by Cardenas' attorney and The Mexican Foreign Ministry to the Supreme Court were to decide Cardenas' fate. They appealed to have "the DNA evidence [that] can be properly evaluated." Those appeals were rejected, and Cardenas was pronounced dead at 10:26 that same night. Jason Clark, spokesperson Texas Department of Criminal Justice talked to press immediately after the execution. He says, "Ruben Cardenas was executed for the brutal murder of 16 year old Mayra Laguna in 1997. He was the 7th person to be executed in the state of Texas this year. He did make a written last state he did not make a verbal last statement." Ruben Cardenas' Attorney, Maurie Levin states, "I am convinced that we would not be standing here now if Texas had not violated its Vieanna Convention obligations preventing the Mexican consulate when he most needed its help." "Carrying out the execution would be the equivalent to the arbitrary depravation of life, and the United States would be in Violation of its obligations under International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, The ICCPR." States Alejandro Alday Legal Advisor, Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Mexico. Also in attendance, Susana Guerra coming from Guanajuato Mexico to wait for the execution's results. She proclaims, "We are deeply sorrowed after this result and by the execution of Ruben ... When it comes to the family, the mother, we will try our best to support her. She is sick and frail. But we will be there for whatever she needs." Mexico abolished the death penalty in 2005. Despite the execution, efforts are underway to prove Cardenas' innocence. (source: rgvproud.com) * Psychiatrist testifies convicted murderer Hudson has personality disorder A Brazos County jury heard from experts that William Hudson suffers from mixed personality disorder, alcoholism and narcissism. The defense rested Monday in the punishment phase of Hudson's murder trial. The jury will decide if he gets life in prison or the death penalty. Hudson was convicted last week for 2 of the 6 murders at a campground in East Texas. The victims ranged in age from 6 to nearly 77-years-old. The jury heard from psychiatrist David Self. He said Hudson can have his personality issues managed but he can't be cured. The defense also called Antoinette McGarrahan. She is a Forensic Psychologist. She told the jury she spent 14 hour with Hudson completing I.Q. and other tests. She believes he had average intelligence at one time but has fallen 10-15 points after repeated injury to his brain. On one test his intelligence score was 72. She talked about several cars accidents he was in including a roll over where he didn't have a seat belt on. She said damage to his frontal lobes can contribute to things including poor judgment, decision making, planning, aggression and lack of insight. The court also heard more about what serving life in Texas prisons can look like. Hudson's defense attorneys called Lane Herklotz to testify. He is a retired TDCJ employee who worked for the state prison system for more than 25 years. He described how inmates are classified when they are transferred into prison custody. Many of in the court were surprised to learn that, despite the fact Hudson is accused of murdering six people, that isn't taken into account when they classify him in the system. TDCJ has five levels, Herklotz told the court, capital murder inmates serving life usually have a roommate or on occasion live in a dormitory. He also speculated Hudson would be considered minimum to medium
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Nov. 3 TEXAS: Lawyers agree to DNA testing in Swearingen's death row case After years of courtroom wrangling, lawyers from both sides are finally agreeing to move forward with DNA testing in the 1998 rape and murder of Montgomery College student Melissa Trotter. The agreement, expected to be finalized in court papers in the coming weeks, comes just days after a judge called off the pending execution of death row inmate Larry Swearingen, who was convicted in the slaying nearly 2 decades ago and has since repeatedly professed his innocence. "They're doing the right thing," defense attorney James Rytting said Sunday, pointing to another death row inmate's alleged plan to confess to the crime as evidence of the need for testing. A lab would likely evaluate the rape kit, the ligature used to strangle Trotter, finger nail scrapings and hair. "We're still working out the details, but I'm excited that Mr. Rytting has finally agreed to allow us to test this DNA," Montgomery County District Attorney Brett Ligon said Sunday. "I'm glad to be moving forward on this matter." Years-long legal battles over DNA testing have become a hallmark of Swearingen's case, which even sparked changes to state laws regarding post-conviction DNA testing in 2015. Both sides have pushed for DNA testing at times, but always using different legal mechanisms and never in agreement. At least twice, a trial court judge sided with Swearingen's testing requests - but each time the state slapped down the lower court's move, ruling that new DNA wouldn't be enough to counter the "mountain of evidence" pointing to Swearingen's guilt. In 2013, prosecutors filed a failed bid for DNA testing, but the defense opposed. Now, though, an alleged death row confession plot that could have seen another convicted killer confess to Trotter's death has sparked new interest in testing. "Both sides now recognize that there's a need to test the evidence," Rytting said. Swearingen and Trotter were seen in the college's library together on Dec. 8, 1998 - the day of the teen's disappearance. Afterward, a biology teacher spotted Trotter leaving the school with a man. Hair and fiber evidence later showed that she'd been in Swearingen's car and home the day she vanished. The killer's wife testified that she came home that evening to find the place in disarray - and in the middle of it all were Trotter's lighter and cigarettes. Swearingen later filed a false burglary report, claiming his home had been broken into while he was out of town. That afternoon, Swearingen placed a call routed through a cell tower near FM 1097 in Willis - a spot he would have passed while heading from his house to the Sam Houston National Forest where Trotter's decomposing body was found 25 days later. Swearingen was convicted and sentenced to death in 2000, but on Friday a judge approved calling off his Nov. 16 death date - the fifth one scheduled in the case - as a result of a filing snafu. Back in August,, the Montgomery County District Clerk sent notice of the November execution scheduling to the Office of the Attorney General's writ office instead of to the Office of Capital and Forensic Writs. Because the law requires notice to the OCFW - which defends death row convicts - to be mailed within 2 days of the setting of an execution, the date had to be called off. It has not been rescheduled. Swearingen's attorneys first pointed out the problem in court papers on Wednesday, filing a motion to withdraw the execution in light of the mistake. But aside from the clerical issues, Rytting also requested calling off the execution in order "to investigate newly discovered information suggesting that Anthony Shore - a convicted serial killer - has confessed to the murder of Melissa Trotter," according to court papers. "Mr. Swearingen will seek to depose Mr. Shore in order to preserve his testimony regarding the nature of any confessions he made, to obtain a DNA sample, and to obtain all other relevant information including documents, recordings and any other evidence concerning Mr. Shore's connection to Ms. Trotter's murder." Word of the alleged confession scheme emerged on the eve of Shore's scheduled execution on Oct. 18. Hours before he was scheduled to die, Shore won a 90-day stay after prosecutors said the 4-time killer admitted to an abandoned plan to admit to Swearingen's crime. Officials first found out about the possibility of a last-minute confession attempt back in July, when a death row cell search uncovered materials relating to Trotter's killing - including a hand-drawn map marking the supposed location of more evidence - stashed in Shore's cell. The day before his scheduled execution, Shore told investigators he'd only considered confessing to get his friend off, and not because he'd actually committed the additional crime. The multiple murderer also agreed to answer questions a
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Nov. 1 TEXAS: Brazos County jury hearing testimony today in 2015 Anderson County slayings Brazos County jurors will hear testimony today as trial gets underway for a Tennessee Colony man facing the death penalty for allegedly killing 6 people at an Anderson County campsite in November 2015. William Mitchell Hudson, 35, is accused of killing 6 people between the ages of 6 and 77 on Nov. 14, 2015. According to the Palestine Herald Press, Hudson is accused of killing members of 2 families after sharing alcoholic drinks with them. Though the case occurred in Anderson County, about 100 miles away, Anderson County District Attorney Allyson Mitchell will try the case at the Brazos County Courthouse. According to the Palestine Herald Press, Mitchell filed a State of Notice to Seek the Death Penalty on Jan. 23. Brazos County District Clerk Marc Hamlin said 180 jury summons were sent to potential jurors around Sept. 1, the vast majority of whom responded. Hamlin said the number of county residents sent jury summons varies by case, and that the severity and heinousness of crimes are taken into account when determining how many potential jurors to ask to come into court. Mitchell said it took about 4 weeks for attorneys to pick the 14 jurors needed for the case. Because Hudson's case involves the death penalty, potential jurors are individually interviewed and can be given written questionnaires to determine their general stance on capital punishment. Mitchell said attorneys began individual interviews with potential jurors Oct. 2. The 14 jurors were finalized Oct. 27. Mitchell will prosecute Hudson alongside Lisa Tanner, from the Texas Attorney General's Office. Hudson's attorneys are Stephen Evans and Jess Harrington. District 3 Judge Mark Calhoon will oversee the case in 361st District Court Judge Steve Smith's courtroom, on the fourth floor of the Brazos County Courthouse. Authorities transferred Hudson from the Anderson County Jail to the Brazos County Jail on Sept. 22, according to public records. He is charged with 6 counts of capital murder and is being held on a $2.5 million bond. The trial begins at 9 a.m. today. (source: theeagle.com) *** U.S. Supreme Court Rejects Lubbock Death Penalty Appeal Court documents filed Monday in both New Orleans and in Lubbock indicated that the United States Supreme Court will not hear the appeal of a death row inmate. It would appear to clear the way for the execution of Rosendo Rodriguez III, but his defense team could file further requests for court review. Rodriguez was convicted of killing Summer Baldwin. Her body was found in a suitcase by landfill workers. "He picked up Baldwin in the early morning hours of September 12, 2005, and took her to his hotel room where he beat, strangled, and sexually assaulted her," the appeals court record said. "He then purchased the suitcase, placed her body in it, and threw it in a dumpster." "The ongoing police investigation also linked Rodriguez to the disappearance of 16-year-old Joanna Rogers, who had been missing for more than a year," the appeals records said. "Rodriguez confessed to Rogers's murder, and her body, like Baldwin's, was found in a suitcase in the Lubbock city landfill." Prosecutors offered Rodriguez a plea deal for prison time instead of the death penalty. At first, Rodriguez took it, but then when finalizing the deal in court he claimed to not understand the deal or the charges against him. The deal was withdrawn and prosecutors sought the death penalty. Ultimately, Rodriguez was found guilty and sentenced to death. He appealed in both state court and federal court. A federal district court in Lubbock rejected Rodriguez' claims last year including his claim of ineffective assistance of counsel. The Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit in New Orleans did likewise in May of this year. The Texas Court of Criminal Appeals had already rejected his appeal in 2013. The U.S. Supreme Court refused a writ of certiorari - meaning it won't even hear Rodriguez' case. As of Tuesday, state court records in Lubbock did not yet indicate an execution date. (source: Everythinglubbock.com) FLORIDA: Jurors will have to be unanimous for death sentence against Luis Toledo The same St. Augustine jury that convicted Luis Toledo of murder is expected to begin hearing evidence Wednesday on whether he should be sentenced to death for killing his wife's 2 children. But first the court must resolve the issue of Toledo insisting he does not want his attorneys to argue against the death penalty. That's what Toledo said moments after a jury found him guilty of all counts: 2 counts of 1st-degree murder for killing 9-year-old Thalia Otto and 8-year-old Michael Elijah Otto and 1 count of 2nd-degree murder for killing their mother, 28-year-old Yessenia Suarez in their Deltona home. He was also found guilty of evidence
[Deathpenalty] death penalty news----TEXAS, FLA., LA., OHIO, IND., ARK., USA
Oct. 13 TEXASimpending executions Man convicted in Texas prison guard's death to be executed A Texas death row inmate who sued unsuccessfully to try to halt his execution, arguing that more DNA testing needed to be done, is now trying to convince the U.S. Supreme Court to stop the punishment scheduled for Thursday. Robert Pruett was already serving 99 years for a neighbor's killing when he was convicted in the death of a prison guard who was stabbed in an attack that prosecutors say stemmed from a dispute over a peanut butter sandwich. Pruett wanted to take the sandwich into a recreation yard against prison rules, they said. An autopsy showed corrections officer Daniel Nagle died of a heart attack brought on by the December 1999 stabbing. Pruett, 38, has insisted he's innocent of Nagle's death at the McConnell Unit near Beeville, about 85 miles (136 kilometers) southeast of San Antonio. He would become the 6th prisoner executed this year in Texas, which carries out the death penalty more than any other states. Texas executed a total of seven inmates last year. Pruett avoided execution in April 2015 when a state judge halted his punishment just hours before he could have been taken to the death chamber. His lawyers had convinced the judge that new DNA tests needed to be conducted on the tape-wrapped, 7-inch sharpened steel rod used to repeatedly stab the 37-year-old Nagle. The new tests showed no DNA on the tape but uncovered DNA on the rod from an unknown female who authorities said likely handled the shank during the appeals process after the original tests in 2002. The execution was put on the schedule again. After seeking even more DNA testing and being rejected by the courts, Pruett's attorneys filed a federal civil rights lawsuit in August in which they argued that the courts denied Pruett due process. The lawyers asked the federal courts to halt the rescheduled execution, allow the additional DNA testing and then check the results for matches in law enforcement databases.Last week, the 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals rejected the lawsuit. But Pruett's attorneys appealed to the U.S. Supreme Court on Tuesday, arguing that a lower court judge wrongly rejected the case after sitting on it for 2 months. In a second appeal to the Supreme Court, also filed on Tuesday, the attorneys asked the high court to revisit the question of whether it is constitutional to execute a prisoner who claims actual innocence because of newly discovered evidence. U.S. Supreme Court justices in 1993 ruled 6-3 in a Texas case that it was constitutional to do so. State attorneys say Pruett's lawyers have long engaged in "a pattern of delay." No physical evidence tied Pruett to Nagle's death. At his 2002 trial, prisoners testified that they saw Pruett attack Nagle or heard him talk about wanting to kill the guard. According to some of the testimony, he talked about possessing a weapon as well. Pruett has said he was framed and that Nagle, an officer for more than 3 years, could have been killed by other inmates or corrupt officers at the McConnell Unit. "I never killed nobody in my life," Pruett testified at his trial. He said he was in a gym when he learned the officer had been stabbed. Pruett's 99-year murder sentence that he was already serving was for participating at age 15 with his father and a brother in the 1995 stabbing death of a 29-year-old neighbor, Raymond Yarbrough, at the man's trailer home in Channelview, just east of Houston. Pruett's father, 70-year-old Howard Pruett, is serving life in prison. His brother, 47-year-old Howard Pruett Jr., was sentenced to 40 years. (source: Associated Press) * Houston serial killer loses appeal 1 week before scheduled execution With just a week to go before his scheduled execution, Houston serial killer Anthony Shore lost a last-ditch appeal claiming decades-old unrealized brain damage left him so impaired he was not morally culpable for his crimes. The so-called Tourniquet Killer slated for execution Wednesday was convicted of capital murder in 2004 after he confessed to brutally slaying 4 young women in the Houston area. In the latest appeal, turned down by the Texas Court of Criminal Appeals on Tuesday, Shore's lawyers argued that the extent of his brain damage rendered the execution unconstitutional, likening it to executing an intellectually disabled prisoner. "Mr. Shore does not claim he is ineligible for the death penalty because he is unintelligent or uncharismatic," his lawyers wrote earlier this month in a court filing. "Mr. Shore is ineligible for the death penalty because his brain injury decreases his moral culpability for his crimes, in the same way that a juvenile, despite intelligence or charisma, is nonetheless ineligible for the death penalty." But the state's highest criminal court didn't buy into that argument. "We find that applicant has f
[Deathpenalty] death penalty news----TEXAS, FLA., ALA., LA., OHIO
Oct. 5 TEXAS: Irving killer who shot his baby girl, 3-year-old son wins death row reprieve An Irving father sentenced to death for the revenge killing of his children after their mother left him has been granted a new punishment trial. Hector Rolando Medina, 38, shot 3-year-old Javier and 8-month-old Diana in the head and the neck after his girlfriend left him in March 2007. He then shot himself in the neck outside his Irving home. Medina was convicted of capital murder in 2008 and sent to death row, after defense attorney Donna Winfield didn't call a single witness or present closing arguments during the punishment phase of the trial. The Texas Court of Criminal Appeals upheld a lower court's ruling that Medina should be granted a new punishment trial because of his defense attorney's "deficient performance." The Dallas County district attorney's office will decide whether to again seek the death penalty against Medina. The automatic sentence for capital murder in Texas is life without the possibility of parole. "These cases are very expensive and very time-consuming," said First Assistant District Attorney Michael Snipes. "Those two factors have to be taken into consideration, not only in this case but in every case where a defendant is death penalty-eligible." The district attorney's office is seeking the death penalty against Antonio Cochran, who is accused of kidnapping and killing 18-year-old Zoe Hastings in 2015. Justice Michael Keasler wrote in a concurring opinion that granting Medina a new punishment trial gives the convicted child killer "a 2nd bite at the apple." Keasler expressed "profound disgust" at Winfield's handling of the punishment phase of the trial, saying that the attorney "intentionally torpedoed" the case. There was a six-week break after Medina was convicted before the punishment phase began. Winfield asked for more time to bring expert witnesses to the courthouse, but the judge denied the request. In response, Winfield refused to call any witnesses or rest her case during punishment. She was thrown in jail for being in contempt of court. During a hearing requesting a new trial after Medina was sentenced, Winfield said, "I wasn't going to put on a disjointed defense of Mr. Medina. ... That wasn't fair to him or to the jury." Justice Sharon Keller wrote in a dissenting opinion that Medina's defense attorney had "fully participated in the state's punishment case, including cross-examining witnesses." Prosecutors say Medina killed his children as revenge after his longtime girlfriend left him. Elia Martinez-Bermudez testified that Medina would hold her down and force her to have sex with him. He begged her to come back after she left him in January 2007. When she did, he threatened to kill her, the children and himself if she ever left him again. In March 2007, Medina borrowed a friend's gun and a box of bullets and then refused to let Martinez-Bermudez see her children when she asked. Later that day, he shot Javier and Diana and then himself. Diana "had a tombstone before she could talk," prosecutor Felicia Oliphant said during the trial. "Is there anything sadder than that?" (source: Dallas Morning News) *** Convicted murderer Randall Mays found competent to be executed A Henderson County man found guilty of capital murder in the shooting death of two East Texas sheriff deputies, has been found competent to be executed. Randall Mays was convicted of killing Henderson County Sheriff Deputy Tony Ogburn and Paul Habelt and seriously injuring Deputy Kevin Harris in May of 2007. The ruling of competency was made by visiting Judge Joe Clayton, of Tyler and a date has not been set for Mays' execution. Prior to the imminent execution scheduled for March 18, 2015, Mays filed a motion regarding competency to be executed. According to court documents, Mays was examined by several doctors. What the court ultimately determined was that Mays' mental illness does not deprive him of his understanding. The court's findings were detailed in documents filed in Henderson County: After consideration of all the credible evidence, the Court has concluded that Randall Mays has failed to meet his burden by a preponderance of the evidence, and the Court rules as follows: While Randall Mays does have some form of mental illness, it does not deprive him of the rational understanding of the connection between his crime and the punishment received. "Since Mr. Mays has been sitting on death row, he has not been diagnosed, treated or received prescribed medications for any mental illness or obsession that has any bearing on this inquiry," the court found. During Mays' trial, jurors heard more than a week of testimony. It took jurors just under three hours to hand down Randall Mays' death sentence for the murder of Ogburn and Habelt. Mays was sentenced by Judge Carter Terrance to the deat
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Sept. 30 TEXAS: Texas Set to Execute Man Despite DNA Evidence Excluding him from Murder A Texas man on death row is scheduled to be executed on November 16, even though DNA evidence excludes him from a 1998 murder for which he was convicted. In 2000, Larry Swearingen was sentenced to the death penalty for the murder and rape of 19-year-old Melissa Trotter. Since then, Swearingen has maintained his innocence and fought for DNA testing of evidence including Trotter's clothes, the murder weapon and a rape kit. Texas courts have struck down his repeated requests. But some DNA testing has been performed. And it supports Swearingen's innocence, according to the Innocence Project. Blood from beneath Trotter's fingernails excluded Swearingen and yielded the profile of an unknown man. To this day, Trotter's clothes have never been tested for DNA and the swabs in the rape kit collected from her body were also never tested. Cigarette butts found at the scene of Trotter's murder could have been swabbed for saliva, which would reveal DNA. But they never were. Since Swearingen's conviction, Texas has made improvements with its post-conviction DNA testing statute. Swearingen was twice granted DNA testing. But the state Court of Criminal Appeals struck down his request, ruling the court should only consider whether the DNA evidence would exclude Swearingen and should not be required to "rely on the ramifications of hypothetical matches" to an unknown genetic profile. "The notion that they're expressing - which is that we only consider exclusionary results - has nothing to do with how DNA actually works," Bryce Benjet, one of Swearingen's attorneys, told The Intercept. "I don't know why they haven't figured that out, but the end result of that error is that DNA testing is no longer available to most people in prison." Under a 16-year statute, defendants have rights to testing only if several conditions are met including the requirement to establish "by a preponderance of the evidence" that "the person would not have been convicted if exculpatory results had been obtained through DNA testing." In 2011, legislators revised the statute to require unidentified DNA profiles be uploaded to a government database. The DNA found under Trotter's fingernails was not linked to a known offender, which would bolster Swearingen's claim of innocence. DNA matches to offenders in the government database occurred in roughly 42 % of 351 DNA exonerations to date, according to the Innocence Project. (source: photographyisnotacrime.com) FLORIDAimpending execution Florida Supreme Court denies Death Row inmate's appeal. Execution scheduled Thursday. The Florida Supreme Court on Friday said it won't reconsider the case of a longtime death row inmate who is scheduled to be put to death next week. The ruling means the execution of convicted double-murderer Michael Lambrix will, for now, take place as planned at 6 p.m. Oct. 5. Lambrix had filed another challenge to his death sentences - his 8th successive post-conviction motion, the court said - on the basis of recent changes to Florida's death-penalty sentencing procedures, which were prompted by a U.S. Supreme Court ruling in a case known as Hurst v. Florida. That ruling in January 2016 demanded Florida fix its then-unconstitutional procedures. The Legislature enacted changes this spring so now a unanimous jury recommendation is required in all death penalty cases. In his latest request for the Florida Supreme Court to rehear his case, Lambrix argued that his death sentences are unconstitutional under Florida's new law because they came from non-unanimous juries. He also argued the state Supreme Court's decisions on how the Hurst opinion applied retroactively to previous death sentences was a violation of equal protection rights. Following Hurst, the Florida Supreme Court in December cemented death sentences for nearly 200 prisoners - including Lambrix - whose sentences were finalized before a June 2002 U.S. Supreme Court ruling referenced in the Hurst decision. The justices cited their December decision and related rulings as their reasons for denying Lambrix's request for a rehearing. The Supreme Court had also previously ruled that Lambrix "is not entitled to relief based on Hurst" because of when his sentences were finalized, which they emphasized again Friday. "While it is true that the jury non-unanimously recommended death for the 1983 murders of the 2 victims, Lambrix's sentences were final in 1986," the court wrote in its majority opinion. "No rehearing will be entertained by this court." The decision was 5-1, with Justice Barbara Pariente dissenting. The court's 7th justice, Peggy Quince, recused herself. Pariente said she preferred to vacate Lambrix's death sentences and send the case back to a lower court so Lambrix can be re-sentenced - the same process that's aff
[Deathpenalty] death penalty news----TEXAS, FLA., MO., COLO., USA
August 22 TEXASstay of impending execution Court halts execution of convicted child killer who claims intellectual disability A man convicted in the sexual assault and murder of an 11-year-old girl was set to die next Wednesday. But the Texas Court of Criminal Appeals stopped his execution amid claims of intellectual disability. The Texas Court of Criminal Appeals on Monday halted the execution of a convicted child murderer who claims he's intellectually disabled and therefore ineligible for the state's harshest punishment. Steven Long, 46, was set to die next Wednesday for the 2005 rape and murder of an 11-year-old girl in Dallas County. Courts had previously rejected his appeals claiming intellectual disability, but that was before the U.S. Supreme Court invalidated Texas' methods for determining intellectual disability for death-sentenced people in March. With that ruling in mind, Long's lawyer, Thomas Scott Smith, again asked the courts to stay Long's execution earlier this month, presenting evidence that Long's IQ score has regularly been placed in the low 60s. His request was granted Monday afternoon - the court tossed out the execution to further review the case. "In light of this new law and the facts of applicant's application, we have determined the applicant's execution should be stayed pending further order of this Court," the court order said. Long was sentenced to death in the murder of Kaitlyn Smith. In October 2005, Long had recently moved in with a couple and their daughter across the street from Kaitlyn, and one night she came over for a sleepover, according to a court opinion. By morning, Kaitlyn was missing, and her body was later found partially wrapped in trash bags underneath an empty trailer. A bloody fingerprint near her body matched Long's, and he confessed to the rape and murder of the girl. He was sentenced to death the next year, and he has lived on death row for almost 11 years. In a 2008 appeal, Long's lawyers appealed his sentence, claiming he was intellectually disabled. The U.S. Supreme Court ruled in 2002 that executing intellectually disabled people was unconstitutional, but it left it up to the states to determine the disability. The courts ruled him fit for execution under Texas' standards at the time. But over the years, the high court had several more rulings further refining how states may determine who is disabled. In March, the case invalidated Texas' method in the case of death row inmate Bobby Moore. In 2014, a state court used current medical standards to deem Moore intellectually disabled, but the Texas Court of Criminal Appeals overruled that determination, saying the court should have used the state's standards instead. The state relied on decades-old medical standards and a requirement that a person has a low IQ and has had poor adaptive functioning since childhood, which it determined in a controversial set of factors. The high court rejected the method, saying Texas' refusal to use current medical standards and its reliance on nonclinical factors violated the U.S. Constitution. Since the ruling, other Texas death row inmates have had their sentences changed from death to life in prison. With a new standard in place after Moore, Long again brought his intellectual disability claim to the courts. "The use of [Texas' rejected method] in deciding the claim creates the impermissible risk that Mr. Long will be executed despite significant evidence establishing that he is among the class of persons for whom execution is proscribed as cruel and unusual," his lawyer, Smith, wrote in a court filing. (source: Texas Tribune) * Executions under Greg Abbott, Jan. 21, 2015-present25 Executions in Texas: Dec. 7, 1982present-543 Abbott#scheduled execution date-nameTx. # 26-Sept.7--Juan Castillo--544 27-Oct. 12-Robert Pruett--545 28-Oct. 18-Anthony Shore--546 29-Oct. 26-Clinton Young--547 30-Nov. 8--Ruben Cardenas-548 31-Nov. 16-Larry Swearingen---549 32-Jan. 30-William Rayford550 (sources: TDCJ & Rick Halperin) FLORIDAimpending execution Florida Supreme Court's mea culpa doesn't halt execution The Florida Supreme Court on Monday rejected a reprieve for a convicted murderer scheduled to be executed Thursday, after justices acknowledged the court had been mistaken for more than 2 decades about the race of 1 of the victims. Lawyers for Mark James Asay, convicted of killing Robert Booker and Robert McDowell in 1987, asked state and federal courts to grant a new hearing after the Florida Supreme Court last week issued a rare mea culpa for mistaking 1 of the victims as black. But the Supr
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August 19 TEXAS: As lethal injection lawsuit continues, Texas replenishes execution drug supplies Even with a lawsuit over lethal injection drugs winding its way through court, Texas has managed to replenish its supply. The last doses of the state's execution drugs, pentobarbital, were set to expire in January, just days before a scheduled execution. A new record indicates that the supply won't expire until July 2018, well past all scheduled executions. It's unclear whether the state purchased more of the drug or just established a new expiration date, and Texas Department of Criminal Justice spokesman Jason Clark declined to clarify. Robert Dunham, director of the Death Penalty Information Center, wasn't surprised to learn of the state's renewed stock. "While Texas has from time to time stated that it's having difficulty obtaining pentobarbital, it has always been able to obtain the drugs to carry out executions," he said. "When it's needed the drugs, Texas has always found them." Since 2012, the state has used a single-drug protocol, administering a lethal dose of the barbiturate pentobarbital. On Thursday, the US Food and Drug Administration told Texas and Arizona that over a thousand vials of drugs they ordered for executions in their states would not be released to them. the Texas Department of Criminal Justice and the Arizona Department of Corrections ordered sodium thiopental from India in 2015. The drugs were and seized by U.S. Customs. The confiscated shipments have been refused because they seem to contain unapproved new drugs and misbranded drugs. Texas came close to exhausting its supplies with executions still on the calendar in spring 2015. Ultimately, TDCJ managed to get more of the lethal drug, but Clark declined to offer details except to say that no executions in the Lone Star State have been delayed due a lack of execution drugs. A records request last month showed that eight pentobarbital doses were set to expire in July 2017 and another 10 in January. 1 of those doses was used in the July 27 execution of Taichin Preyor, leaving 9 that expire just after the new year. And now, instead of 8 doses expiring on July 20, 2017, state logs list eight doses received that day as "return from supplier" and set to expire on July 20, 2018. "Given the documents supplied by TDCJ designating that these vials were returned to the supplier and then the reemergence of vials with a brand new expiration date exactly one year out, an educated guess is that they're using the same drugs that they previously stated already expired," said Maurie Levin, a Texas death penalty lawyer with experience in lethal injection litigation. "But because they insist on keeping this information secret, we don't know what they're doing." Currently, the state is embroiled in a lawsuit over an intercepted order of another lethal injection drug, sodium thiopental. The powerful drug was part of the execution process until 2011 when dwindling supplies forced the state to replace it with pentobarbital as part of a 3-drug cocktail. The following year, the state switched from a 3-drug mix to a single dose of pentobarbital. But when pentobarbital suppliers started drying up, Texas started searching for other lethal injection drugs. That search landed Texas in hot water when authorities at Bush Intercontinental Airport seized 1,000 vials of sodium thiopental en route to Hunstville from India-based supplier Harris Pharma. The U.S. Food and Drug Administration later said the drugs were improperly labeled and not approved for injection in humans, but TDCJ this year filed a lawsuit demanding the return of what state officials deemed an "unjustified seizure." Although the detained drugs appear to have expired in May, Texas has continued its legal action, which also seeks to lift the FDA's ban on importation of sodium thiopental for law-enforcement use. (source: Houston Chronicle) *** Execution set for man who killed cousin A Mexican national on death row for the rape-slaying of his 16-year-old cousin in the Rio Grnde Valley more than 20 years ago has received anexecution date. Texas Department of Criminal Justice spokesman Jason Clark said the agency has received court documents setting the lethal injection of 47-year-old Tuben Ramirez Cardenas for Nov. 8. Cardenas was convicted of the February 1997 slaying of Mayra Laguna. Her body was found dumped in a a canal near Edinburg, about 10 miles northeast of McAllen, after she was abducted from her home. Evidence showed he slipped in through a window, bound her with duct tape and drove her away. Evidence showed whe was raped, beaten and strangled. Prison records list Cardenas as originally from Guanajuato in central Mexico. (source: Dallas Morning News) FLORIDAimpending execution Sister hopeful brother's looming execution will be blockedMan who killed 2
[Deathpenalty] death penalty news----TEXAS, FLA., ALA.
August 13 TEXASnew execution date Judge sets death date for Montgomery County killer Death row inmate Larry Swearingen, a Willis man who raped a 19-year-old coed before strangling her with panty hose nearly 2 decades ago, is now set to die on Nov. 16. After 7 thwarted attempts, Montgomery County has finally succeeded in setting yet another execution date for its only death row convict, a Willis man who raped a 19-year-old coed before strangling her with panty hose nearly 2 decades ago. Larry Swearingen, convicted of killing Montgomery College student Melissa Trotter in 1998 and dumping her body in the Sam Houston National Forest, is slated to meet his fate in Huntsville's death chamber on Nov. 16, a judge ruled late Wednesday. "It still won't bring back Melissa," her mother, Sandy Trotter said in July. "There are no winners in this because we still don't have Melissa." Victim advocate Andy Kahan said it's been a "painstaking" wait for the Trotter family. "Even when you finally believe that you're going to achieve justice, until it actually happens you're questioning whether the actual execution will take place or not," he said. And in Swearingen's case, those questions are particularly well placed. This is the state's 8th effort to get Swearingen's execution on the calendar. At least 4 times, similar requests yielded a death date, but every time the Court of Criminal Appeals stayed the execution. But it is those repeated bids for testing that have become the hallmark of Swearingen's legal case. For years, his lawyers have insisted that crime scene DNA taken from evidence near Trotter's body could hold the keys to prove his innocence. But prosecutors - and higher courts - have deemed such testing unnecessary. At least twice, a trial court judge sided with Swearingen's testing requests - but each time the state slapped down the lower court's grant, ruling that new DNA wouldn't be enough to counter the "mountain of evidence" pointing to Swearingen's guilt. Swearingen and Trotter were seen in the college's library together on Dec. 8, 1998 - the day of the teen's disappearance. Afterward, a biology teacher spotted Trotter leaving the school with a man. Hair and fiber evidence later showed that she'd been in Swearingen's car and home the day she vanished. The killer's wife testified that she came home that evening to find the place in disarray - and in the middle of it all were Trotter's lighter and cigarettes. Swearingen later filed a false burglary report, claiming his home had been broken into while he was out of town. That afternoon, Swearingen placed a call routed through a cell tower near FM 1097 in Willis - a spot he would have passed while heading from his house to the Sam Houston National Forest where Trotter's decomposing body was found 25 days later. "A too trusting 19-year-old in the wrong place at the wrong time," Sandy Trotter said, recalling her daughter's death. "It's just every parent's nightmare." Swearingen was convicted and sentenced to death in 2000. He went on to file what prosecutors described as "an abundance of habeas corpus applications, pro se motions, mandamus petitions, civil-right actions, and amended pleadings in both state and federal courts." The state's Court of Criminal Appeals rejected all 7 of Swearingen's habeas appeals, and in July a federal district court slapped down a civil suit seeking to win the convicted killer more DNA testing. Through it all, Swearingen maintained his innocence. "The way I look at it, I'm a POW of Texas," the former electrician has told the media. "It's my army against their army." Even though his bids for more testing ultimately didn't pan out, Swearingen's DNA complaints sparked charges in state law in 2015. That year, lawmakers expanded access to testing by removing the requirement that the accused prove biological material - like saliva, sweat or skin cells - exists before testing evidence for it. But no amount of DNA evidence would be enough to exonerate the convicted killer, prosecutors say. Visiting Judge J.D. Langley greenlit Wednesday's decision in the 9th state District Court after Judge Phil Grant recused himself from the case in June 2016 given his prior involvement as a prosecutor during his time in the District Attorney's office. "It appears there is no necessity for an evidentiary hearing related to any issue raised in either the motion or the response," Langley wrote. "The court can find no reason to further delay the imposition of the sentence." Even at this late date in legal saga, Montgomery County prosecutor Bill Delmore still anticipates pushback from Swearingen's attorneys. "I would say I'm cautiously optimistic that if there's an execution date we might finally see the culmination of this case," he said. "But I fully expect the attorneys for Swearingen to request another stay and they've been very tenacious in the pa
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July 30 TEXAS: Book details history of hangings in Texas -- Brazos County included Before lethal injections and electric chairs, the preferred method of death-penalty execution in Texas was hanging, conducted by local sheriffs at their county jails, not at prison facilities. Such is the subject of a new book, Death on the Gallows: The Encyclopedia of Legal Hangings in Texas, by West Gilbreath, captain of the criminal investigation division at the University of North Texas Police Department. Gilbreath, who published a similar book in 2002 about New Mexico's legal hangings, said he decided to compile the executions for a book so future historians could have a more reliable source of information than the internet. "I was trying to come up with a better resource for researchers and historians," Gilbreath, adding that the book is for anyone who is interested in true crime or Old West or Texas histories and wants to read eyewitness accounts of the men and women who stood on the gallows or their last words spoken to the crowd before they were hanged. Gilbreath's book details 467 legal executions conducted between 1834 and 1923, the year Texas authorized the use of the electric chair for executions conducted by the state in Huntsville; of those, he found 2 in Brazos County. Authorities executed the `st man, Ezekiel Bradley, on May 2, 1879. In Gilbreath's recounting, Bradley had been drinking and gambling on Christmas Day in 1878 before going with his friend Shep Wilson to a Steele's store, about 15 miles west of Bryan, to buy more whiskey. At the shop, Wilson began arguing with a man named Buck Pollock, who eventually struck Wilson in the face. Drunk, Bradley rushed to help his friend, pulling out a concealed pistol and shooting Pollock in the mouth, killing him. According to a story published in the Galveston Daily News on May 3, 1879, Bradley told the paper on the day before his execution that he had "been a drinking and quarrelsome boy all my life," and that he greatly regretted having killed Pollock. "I have lain down and wept at the thought of having killed a man who never done me harm or injury, and whom I had not known," Bradley told the reporter. Gilbreath said that between 4,000 and 6,000 people came to Bryan -- far more than lived there at the time -- to see Bradley's execution on May 2. "The entertainment value of an execution was a big deal," said Bill Page, library associate II at Texas A&M University's Evans Library. The same Galveston Daily News story notes that a doctor offered up prayers before Bradley's execution. After praying, "the sheriff pulled the drop and the prisoner was launched into eternity." The 6-foot fall dislocated his neck, and he struggled for 5 minutes before the doctor pronounced him dead almost 12 minutes after his hanging began. Gilbreath said the 2nd man executed in Brazos County, Bob Ballard, died in a more private setting on Nov. 22, 1901, a year after the law changed, requiring sheriffs' to take precautions to make executions as private as possible. Public sentiment, Gilbreath said, had changed to thinking that executions "shouldn't be a carnival or public spectacle." Gilbreath said Ballard shot two men Nov. 7, 1900, a little more than a year before he would be executed. An article in The Eagle published on Nov. 8, 1900, states that Ballard shot "2 Bohemians at Smetana yesterday." One man, Jacob Shramek, a postmaster, survived after being shot in the chest, but Joe Blazek, shot "in the lower part of his body," died. "The tragedy," The Eagle reported the next day, "caused bitter feelings among the Bohemians and there were some indications that violence might possibly be resorted to." The sheriff at the time, fearing a violent mob, took Ballard to another jail in Houston, according to the a story published on Nov. 16, 1900, in the Houston Daily Post. Page said Ballard had been "denied due process" and received an unjust death sentence. "Officials didn't want a lynching on their hands, so they arranged to have him found guilty and sentenced to death," Page said of the jury's verdict, which originally was for life imprisonment but changed after the judge and district attorney indicated the ruling had to be the death penalty. Page sent a document to The Eagle in which he wrote Ballard had been "essentially lynched under a veneer of law." Page said that some immigrant whites new to the U.S. participated in lynchings to "establish their own whiteness," and that Ballard's stepfather had been a county commissioner, so it's possible the whites who lived in his precinct resented him for being a successful, powerful black man. Gilbreath said he's still finding new hangings he'd missed before publishing his book. Currently, he's reviewing around 20, which he may publish in a second volume or a revised edition of his book. One such case is Frank Hammond, executed on May 21, 1875. An a
[Deathpenalty] death penalty news----TEXAS, FLA., OHIO, TENN., OKLA., NEB., UTAH, NEV., USA
July 29 TEXAS: Death Row Sentencing In Texas Has Significantly DecreasedTexas carried out its 5th execution of the year Thursday night, but overall executions are dwindling, and that trend is likely to continue. Last year, Texas executed 7 inmates on death row. That was the lowest number in the past 20 years. Kristin Houle suggests that the state will keep following that trend. She is with the Texas Coalition to Abolish the Death Penalty. "Well, Texas like the rest of the United States has been experiencing a steady decline in use of the death penalty," Houle says. This decline can be attributed, in part to sentencing. Houle says there is a big difference from 1999 when Texas peaked at sentencing 48 people to death row and only sentencing 3 in the past 2 years. She says what's led to the decrease in sentencing is cases being put on hold and advancements in forensic science. "Where the science that was presented at the original trial has been called into question or even debunked," Houle says. Although, executions are decreasing in the U.S., she says Texas continues to account for about 1/3 of them. "This year so far Texas has carried out five of the 16 executions nationwide," Houle says. In the state, there are 5 more executions scheduled for this year. (source: houstonpublicmedia.org) FLORIDA: Woman charged in Jupiter homicide to see psychiatric test results Prosecutors agreed Friday to give notes and test results from a state-order psychiatric evaluation to lawyers for Kimberly Lucas, the Jupiter woman charged with the 2014 drowning of her 2-year-old daughter and attempted murder of her then-10-year-old son. That agreement regarding Dr. Wade Myers' evaluation of Lucas comes less than 2 months before the long awaited death-penalty case is scheduled to go to trial in front of Judge Charles Burton. Confusion surrounding Florida's death penalty law had stalled Lucas' case from moving forward. That trial now is slated to begin Sept. 14. Lucas, 43, was not present for the brief hearing Friday. She has been in custody since her arrest May 27, 2014, on murder charges to which she has since pleaded not guilty. Jupiter police say Lucas drowned her 2-year-old daughter, Elliana Lucas-Jamason, May 26, 2014, in a bathtub and attempted to kill her son, Ethan, and herself by overdosing on Xanax. Lucas' suicide note blamed her actions on Jacquelyn Jamason, her then-separated partner and the biological mother to Elliana and Ethan. On that day, Ethan, then 10, woke up drowsy from the drugs, found his sister unresponsive in the bathtub and called 911. Lucas and Jamason, the children's biological mother, had been together for more than 20 years and joined together in a 2001 civil union, but were estranged at the time of the killing. Jamason has said that Lucas suffered from complications from gastric bypass surgery and had subsequently developed a prescription drug problem that contributed to their split. Lucas' attorneys plan to pursue an insanity defense, arguing that she suffers from dissociative identity disorder - formerly known as multiple personality disorder - and that one of her alternate personalities committed the crimes. Her attorneys wrote in a 2015 pleading: "The defendant was receiving mental health-care treatment long before, as well as the time of, the events which resulted in her arrest." Jamason is anxious for the case to go to trial. "I think that once trial is over, Ethan and I can finally have more peace, and not put it behind us, but look to the future," Jamason told The Post in May. (source: Palm Beach Post) * Judge rejects challenge to new execution drugs A death row inmate scheduled to be executed next month failed in a bid to get a Jacksonville judge to delay his execution because of the state's new triple-drug lethal injection protocol. Duval County Circuit Court Judge Tatiana Salvador on Friday rejected a request from Mark James Asay to put a hold on an Aug. 24 execution date scheduled by Gov. Rick Scott. Asay's appeal included a challenge to a new lethal injection protocol --- which includes a drug never used before for executions in Florida, or in any other state --- adopted by the Florida Department of Corrections earlier this year. In its new protocol, Florida is substituting etomidate for midazolam as the critical first drug, used to sedate prisoners before injecting them with a paralytic and then a drug used to stop prisoners' hearts. In a 30-page order issued Friday, Salvador ruled that Asay failed to prove that the new three-drug protocol is unconstitutional. Etomidate, also known by the brand name "Amidate," is a short-acting anesthetic that renders patients unconscious. 20 % of people experience mild to moderate pain after being injected with the drug, but only for "tens of seconds" at the longest, the judge noted. "Defendant has only demonstr
[Deathpenalty] death penalty news----TEXAS, FLA., ALA., OHIO, MO., NEV., USA
July 28 TEXASexecution S.A. man executed after Supreme Court rejects bid for stay A San Antonio man was executed Thursday night for killing a woman in 2004 after a last-minute request for a stay to the Supreme Court was rejected. TaiChin Preyor, 46, had been on death row for 13 years after a Bexar County jury convicted him of killing Jami Tackett, 24, in a drug-related attack. Preyor was pronounced dead at 9:22 p.m., about 20 minutes after a lethal dose of Pentobarbital was sent through the veins of both of his arms. In a brief final statement, Preyor said, "First and foremost, I'd like to say, 'Justice has never advanced by taking a human life,' by Coretta Scott King. Lastly, to my wife and to my kids, I love y'all forever and always. That's it." Neither Preyor's nor Tackett's relatives were present for the execution, just 4 journalists and some corrections officers. Preyor is the 5th inmate to be executed in Texas this year, and the 16th nationally, according to data provided by the Texas Department of Criminal Justice. Earlier Thursday, Cate Stetson, an attorney representing Preyor said via email that the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals denied an appeal and stay for her client, just hours before he was to be executed. Preyor's lawyers had argued that his appeals should be reviewed more fairly because poor legal representation had tainted his case. After that bid was rejected, Stetson then filed a petition seeking a stay from the nation's highest court. That request to Justice Samuel Alito was denied some time after 8 p.m. On Feb. 26, 2004, Preyor said he went to Tackett's Southeast Side apartment to buy drugs and that he defended himself when attacked by Tackett and her friend, Jason Garza, 20. Preyor told police he "poked" Tackett with a knife to defend himself. Preyor was arrested in the parking lot of the Grove Park Apartments in the 2500 block of Goliad Road near Interstate 37 South after he returned to the scene to look for his car keys, according to court documents. He had been covered in Tackett's blood. Tackett, whose throat was slashed, was found when her neighbors heard her screams. Prosecutors told the Bexar County jury that heard the case that Tackett also suffered defensive wounds to her hand and forearm and had cuts on her face and abdomen. Defense attorneys argued that Preyor went to Tackett's house to buy drugs from her and that she and Garza attacked Preyor when he arrived, and intended to rob him. He told police that he pulled a knife and "poked" Tackett with the weapon in an attempt to defend himself. Witnesses testified during the trial that Tackett's throat and windpipe were severed, and that she bled to death in her apartment. Neighbors heard the screams, and Garza, who was wounded in the attack, managed to escape and call 911. Preyor left the scene. He was arrested when he returned to get his keys. (source: Houston Chronicle) ** Texas executes man who claimed his lawyers committed fraudTexas carried out its 5th execution of the year Thursday evening, putting to death TaiChin Preyor in the 2004 murder of a San Antonio woman. After more than 12 years on death row, a San Antonio man convicted in a fatal stabbing was executed Thursday night. It was Texas' 5th execution of the year. TaiChin Preyor, 46, had filed a flurry of appeals in the weeks leading up to his execution date, claiming his trial lawyer never looked into evidence of an abusive childhood and his previous appellate counsel - a disbarred attorney paired with a real estate and probate lawyer who relied on Wikipedia in her legal research - committed fraud on the court. But he lost all of the appeals, with the U.S. Supreme Court issuing a final ruling in the case more than 2 hours after his execution was originally set to begin. At 9:03 p.m., he was injected with a lethal dose of pentobarbital in Texas' death chamber and pronounced dead 19 minutes later, according to the Texas Department of Criminal Justice. In his final words, he mentioned his love for his wife and kids and cited a Coretta Scott King quote, saying, "Justice has never advanced by taking a life," according to TDCJ. Preyor was accused of breaking into 20-year-old Jami Tackett's apartment in February 2004 and stabbing her to death. He was found at the scene by police covered in her blood. Preyor claimed the killing was done in self-defense after a drug deal gone bad, but the jury was unconvinced. He was convicted and sentenced to death in March 2005. No witnesses for Preyor or Tackett attended the execution, according to TDCJ spokesman Robert Hurst. During his latest appeals, Preyor's attorneys argued that his trial lawyer, Michael Gross, was inadequate because he didn't present evidence of a physically and sexually abusive childhood that could have swayed a jury to hand down the alternate sentence of life in prison. "[The
[Deathpenalty] death penalty news----TEXAS, FLA., OHIO, TENN., ARIZ.
July 26 TEXAS: Death row inmate Scott Panetti to get further competency review Scott Panetti, 59, remains on death row in Huntsville, convicted of killing a Fredericksburg couple in 1992. "It's still so fresh in my mind, " said Rowena Alvarado. Alvarado's parents, Joe and Amanda Alvarado, were shot and killed by Panetti. Panetti was the couple's son-in-law, and married to Rowena's sister. "We never saw it in him." Panetti has already been sentenced to death and has been granted stays of execution. From the very beginning, Panetti's case has been about mental illness. Panetti's attorneys claim he's suffered from severe mental illness for nearly 4 decades and that he's also a paranoid schizophrenic. Panetti represented himself during his 1995 trial, he also dressed up as a western TV cowboy and tried to subpoena the Pope, John F. Kennedy, and Jesus Christ. "We had no idea, nor did he have any episodes. He was just a normal guy," Alvarado went on to say. The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit has now returned Panetti's case to the federal district court in Texas to further review Panetti's competency. "The taxpayers have been paying for this for many years, and that is just not fair for us," added Alvarado. While Alvarado says she has forgiven Panetti. "I'm kinda in between because I do feel that the death penalty would be too good for him," she said. Panetti's legal team issued the following statement: "We are grateful that the court found that Mr. Panetti's nearly 4 decades of documented schizophrenia and severe mental illness provided a sufficient showing to obtain experts and resources to pursue the claim that he is currently incompetent for execution. And we are grateful to the Texas Defender Service for their support, which allowed us to obtain a stay and to litigate on behalf of Mr. Panetti in the Fifth Circuit. Mr. Panetti has not been evaluated by any mental health experts since 2007 and his severe mental illness has only worsened while in prison. We are confident that when the lower court is presented with all the evidence, it will find that Mr. Panetti, a schizophrenic man who insisted on representing himself at trial and attempted to subpoena the Pope, John F. Kennedy, and Jesus Christ, is not now competent for execution. Ultimately, commuting Mr. Panetti's sentence to life in prison without parole would keep the public safe and affirm our shared beliefs in a humane and moral justice system." (source: foxsanantonio.com) FLORIDA: 'NICOLE WAS LEFT TO DIE': Prosecutors call 1st witnesses in Sean Bush death penalty trial Jurors heard the 1st day of testimony Monday as prosecutors began laying out their case against Sean Alonzo Bush, who is facing the death penalty should he be convicted of 1st-degree murder in the death of his estranged wife Nicole Bush. During her opening statement in Circuit Judge Howard Maltz's St. Johns County courtroom, Assistant State Attorney Jennifer Dunton told the all-white jury that Nicole Bush was shot 5 times in the face, stabbed, and beaten with an aluminum baseball bat in the early morning hours of May 31, 2011, in her Julington Creek townhome. "Nicole was left to die, but she didn't die right away," Dunton said. Instead, she explained, the mother of 2 managed to get a phone call out to a friend who, in-turn, called another friend who called 911 and travelled to the home to see what was the matter. Jurors heard from both of those friends Monday morning as well as the 1st responding deputy and a paramedic who was at the scene. The 1st friend, Tracie Walker, testified that she only heard Nicole Bush whisper "help" into the phone when she answered a call around 6 a.m. When the call went silent, Walker called another friend, Lenora Jerry, who said that she called Nicole Bush who answered but was "whispering" like "she was struggling to speak." Jerry said her friend told her, "Send help, I can't make it to the door." A deputy, she said, arrived at the home shortly after she made it to Julington Creek. That deputy, Graham Harris, told jurors that he found Nicole Bush lying in a pool of a blood in the doorway to her bedroom. She was wearing only a bra and a pair of ripped underwear. Lieutenant Michelle Grant with St. Johns County Fire Rescue, who was a paramedic at the time, described some of the efforts to save the woman and the wounds that were apparent at the scene. Grant said Nicole Bush had at least 1 exit wound from a gunshot on top of her head and was suffering from a good deal of swelling. She said she appeared "like her head was dipped in blood." Grant and Harris both testified that Nicole Bush was speaking somewhat when they began rendering aid but she could not identify who attacked her. Nicole Bush died later that day after being flown to a Jacksonville hospital. Through the testimony of St. Johns County Sheriff's Office crime scene techni
[Deathpenalty] death penalty news----TEXAS, FLA., OHIO, KY., ARK.
July 20 TEXASimpending execution Death Watch: Represented by WikipediaTaiChin Preyor did not get the legal expertise he deserved The exact details of the crime that delivered Taichin Preyor to death row remain unclear and continue to be investigated by his current team of attorneys. What's clear is that Preyor was denied certain constitutional rights during both his trial and the appeals process. But unless Gov. Greg Abbott grants him clemency or he receives a stay, he will be executed next Thursday, July 27. Three recently filed motions by Preyor's latest attorneys argue that Preyor was represented through his appeals by a disbarred attorney, Phillip Jefferson. His current lawyer, Catherine Stetson, of the Washington, D.C., firm Hogan Lovells, told the Chronicle that Jefferson used Brandy Estelle, a California attorney who works in real estate, as his legal stand-in to represent Preyor. A federal court in San Antonio originally denied Estelle's motion to represent Preyor, but the 5th Circuit Court of Appeals later granted her request and began paying the real estate lawyer for her services. (Estelle was also collecting money from Preyor's mother for much of the same work.) What's more egregious is the possibility that Estelle may have relied on Wikipedia to file Preyor's federal appeal. The latest motion, filed on July 14, states within Estelle's files was "a copy of the Wikipedia page" titled "Capital punishment in Texas" on the printout with a Post-It note reading "Research" next to highlighted passages of "Habeas corpus appeals" and "Subsequent or successive writ applications." A July 11 supplement also argues that Preyor's previous attorneys "completely overlooked" the physical and sexual abuse Preyor experienced as a child. The mitigating evidence, says Stetson, could have convinced the trial jury to spare him a death sentence. Stetson said she and her team are currently investigating Preyor's past as well as the crime itself that landed him on death row. ? The state claims that Preyor "fatally stabbed" his "girlfriend" Jami Tackett after breaking into her San Antonio apartment in February 2004, and in the process stabbed another man. But in Preyor's appeals, Estelle argued that Tackett was actually his drug dealer (not his girlfriend), and that Preyor acted in self-defense against her and her male companion. Preyor was arrested shortly after the attack, covered in Tackett's blood. In March 2015, a judicial clerk reviewing death penalty cases contacted the Texas bar to seek new counsel for Preyor. The clerk, Stetson said, had concerns about how Estelle and Jefferson had handled the case. "When the federal court system sees this and asks for help, it tells you something awful happened," said Stetson. Austin attorney Hilary Sheard took over Preyor's case (one year after the 5th Circuit denied his appeal), and ushered in Stetson's firm in May after she fell ill. That month, the court approved her budget request of $45,000 to further investigate the case. The new motions seek a stay on Preyor's execution so that his new attorneys can prepare a case for mitigation. A week before Preyor's execution date, Stetson said his team remains "in the dark" about what or when a ruling will come, but they're "continuing their investigation to better expose" Estelle and Jefferson's fraud. Should their efforts be unsuccessful, Preyor will be the 1st Texan killed by the state since James Bigby in March, and only the 5th this year. 542 Texans have been executed since the Supreme Court reinstated the death penalty in 1976. (source: Austin Chronicle) FLORIDA: State Attorney to seek Death Penalty in CR 340 murder case The State Attorney plans to seek the Death Penalty in the Staleys murder case. Bill Cervone, State Attorney for the 8th Judicial Circuit said on Monday, July 17, "We intend to pursue the Death Penalty in this case." Cervone went on to say that they are working on the case, but he did not expect the case to come to trial until sometime in 2018. On April 28, 2017, Phillip David Wheeler was indicted for the murder of Kevin Lawrence Staley, 49 and Kevin Justice Staley, 19. The Gilchrist County Spring Term Grand Jury returned a True Bill indicting Phillip David Wheeler at the Gilchrist County Courthouse. The Staleys were found dead back in November of 2015. The murders occurred at a mobile home located off CR 340 near Bell. Phillip David Wheeler was 37 when he was indicted and a resident of Old Town and a former resident of Newberry. (source: Gilchrist County Journal) *** 3rd death penalty sentencing for convicted killer J.B. Parker likely a year away State prosecutors will try for a third time to get a death sentence that will stick for convicted killer J.B. "Pig" Parker, but it will be at least a year before they will have the chance. Parker is 1 of 4 men convicted of the April 2, 1
[Deathpenalty] death penalty news----TEXAS, FLA., IND., MO., KAN., UTAH, ORE., USA
July 12 TEXAS: Death row inmate who shot in-laws in Fredericksburg granted evaluation The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit sided with a Texas death row inmate, ordering on Tuesday that Scott Panetti's case be returned to a federal district court in Kerr County with orders to appoint counsel, authorize funds for a mental health evaluation and allow adequate time to prepare a petition raising the claim he is currently incompetent to be executed. Panetti, who suffers from schizophrenia, shot and killed his in-laws in Fredericksburg in 1992. Dressed as a cowboy, he insisted on representing himself at his trial and attempted to subpoena the Pope, John F. Kennedy and Jesus Christ. Panetti was found guilty and sentenced to death. Panetti has twice been granted a stay of execution, in 2004 and 2014. In 2007, the U.S. Supreme Court blocked Panetti's execution, saying lower courts should have considered psychiatric evidence about his mental illness. His attorneys, Greg Wiercioch and Kathryn Kase released a statement Tuesday saying Panetti has suffered from extreme mental illness for nearly 40 years and has not been evaluated by a mental health expert since 2007. A defendant must be found competent in order to be executed. Competency is defined by state laws as being aware of what is going on in the case. Panetti's attorneys said he was convinced the reason was going to be executed in 2014 was for preaching the gospel. His attorneys released a statement: "We are grateful that the court found that Mr. Panetti's nearly 4 decades of documented schizophrenia and severe mental illness provided a sufficient showing to obtain experts and resources to pursue the claim that he is currently incompetent for execution. And we are grateful to the Texas Defender Service for their support, which allowed us to obtain a stay and to litigate on behalf of Mr. Panetti in the Fifth Circuit. Mr. Panetti has not been evaluated by any mental health experts since 2007 and his severe mental illness has only worsened while in prison. We are confident that when the lower court is presented with all the evidence, it will find that Mr. Panetti, a schizophrenic man ... is not now competent for execution. Ultimately, commuting Mr. Panetti's sentence to life in prison without parole would keep the public safe and affirm our shared beliefs in a humane and moral justice system.: (source: Austin American-Statesman) *** Windows On Death Row: Boiling Down the Death Penalty to a Single FrameAn exhibit at the University of Houston-Downtown showcases editorial cartoons about the death penalty and artwork by inmates, some of them on death row. "Windows on Death Row: Art from Inside and Outside the Prison Walls" is on display through July 31. An editorial cartoon about the death penalty from the Houston Chronicle's Nick Anderson, which is part of the exhibit "Windows on Death Row: Art From Inside and Outside the Prison Walls." How do you encapsulate an issue as complex and sensitive as capital punishment into an editorial cartoon or a painting? A traveling exhibit looks to answer that question at the O'Kane Gallery at the University of Houston-Downtown through July 31, 2017. "Windows on Death Row: Art from Inside and Outside the Prison Walls" features more than 60 pieces of artwork on the subject of the death penalty from political cartoonists and prison inmates on death row. It includes work from Nick Anderson, Pulitzer Prize-winning cartoonist for the Houston Chronicle. Michael Hagerty recently visited the exhibit to take a look at the artwork and to talk with Dr. Krista Gehring, an assistant criminal justice professor at the University of Houston-Downtown. (source: houstonpublicmedia.org) FLORIDA: Trial begins for St. Cloud man accused of fatally beating infant son The murder trial of a St. Cloud man accused of killing his 3-month-old son in 2013 will begin Wednesday morning. Investigators said Larry Perry beat Ayden Perry so badly at their home that the boy died at a hospital. Archie Guzman, Perry's neighbor at the time, told Channel 9 in 2013 that she often babysat the child for Larry Perry and his girlfriend. Guzman said the beating was so loud that she could hear it from next door. "I was coming into the kitchen, and all of a sudden I heard boom," she said. "He didn't mean to. I can feel it, because he just snapped." Larry Perry told investigators that he harmed his son, because he couldn't take it anymore, an arrest report said. Larry Perry faces the death penalty if convicted. The case was 1 of 24 that Florida Gov. Rick Scott reassigned from State Attorney Aramis Ayala to State Attorney Brad King after she announced she wouldn't pursue the death penalty during her tenure. Opening statements will begin at 9 a.m. Wednesday. (source: WFTV news) Ayala's Office Operating With $1.3M Budget Cut In Rift Over
[Deathpenalty] death penalty news----TEXAS, FLA., OHIO, MICH., MO., ARIZ., USA, USA/EU
June 29 TEXAS: Surviving bad lawyers just got tougher for death row inmates For inmates on death row, having a bad lawyer just got deadlier. In a ruling Monday against a Texas death row inmate who claimed his lawyer failed to argue his case adequately, the Supreme Court ruled that federal courts could not review prisoners' claims that their state appeals lawyers were ineffective, resolving an issue that had split courts across the country. The decision makes it harder for death row inmates who had poor legal representation to make that part of their appeals, a particular issue for poor inmates who likely have court-appointed lawyers in the early stages of their cases. "It does perpetuate a system of inequality," said Sean O'Brien, a law professor at the University of Missouri-Kansas City School of Law who has argued several capital punishment cases and served as the director of many of the school's criminal defense law clinics. "It gives the state a reward for giving prisoners incompetent lawyers in state post-conviction That's the net effect of this." In 2008, Erick Davila was convicted of fatally shooting a 5-year-old girl and her grandmother. Davila argued that he had meant to shoot a rival gang member - the girl's father. The fact that he had not meant to kill more than 1 person should have made him ineligible for a capital murder verdict and the death penalty. But the judge gave the trial jury incorrect instructions about Davila's eligibility, and they sentenced him to death by lethal injection. During Davila's appeal, his lawyer failed to argue that those bad instructions affected Davis' sentencing. Then, crucially, during Davila's post-conviction proceedings in state court, a new lawyer didn't bring up the appeal lawyer's failure to mention the instructions. With his case now up for a federal appeal, Davila's latest lawyer argued that because his appeals lawyer was incompetent, the federal court should review the impact of the inaccurate instructions to the jury. Federal courts, however, typically won't rule on issues that could have been reviewed at the state level. "The question is [not] really whether or not Davila had a fair trial," O'Brien said. "He did not. The question is whether the federal court can remedy that he had an unfair trial." The answer to that question, the justices ruled in a 5-4 decision in Davila v. Davis, is no. "Claims of ineffective assistance of appellate counsel, however, do not pose the same risk that a trial error - of any kind - will escape review altogether," Justice Clarence Thomas wrote in the majority opinion. (Thanks to a 2011 Supreme Court case, federal courts can already review lawyers' mistakes at the trial level.) Thomas added that, if the court ruled in Davila's favor, "Not only would these burdens on the federal courts and our federal system be severe, but the benefit would - as a systemic matter - be small." It's unclear just how many cases will be affected by Monday's ruling. During oral arguments, lawyers for Texas argued that a ruling in Davila's favor could unleash a "flood" of cases into federal courts. Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton echoed that assessment in a statement celebrating the ruling, saying, "Had the high court ruled otherwise, states and the federal court system would have been burdened with an avalanche of claims facing an infinitesimal chance of success." "It's going to exacerbate the difference between prisoners who have access to good lawyers and those who don't." Stephen Vladeck, a professor at the University of Texas School of Law who wrote about the case for the Supreme Court outlet SCOTUSBlog, says this case wasn't just about the fates of what both he and O'Brien believe will actually be only a small number of prisoners who find themselves in situations like Davila's. Instead, Vladeck says, the case demonstrates a "lack of doctrine that responds to and accounts for these inequalities" in the criminal justice system - particularly for people facing capital punishment. "It's going to further exacerbate the difference between state prisoners who have access to good lawyers for their post-conviction proceedings, and those who don't," Vladeck said. "Because the good lawyers will be able to salvage the ineffectiveness of the appellate counsel." That difference may be steep. A Harvard Law School study of the 16 counties that imposed the death penalty 5 or more times between 2010 and 2015 (3 were in Texas) found "appalling inadequacies" in the quality of legal defense. "You've got to win the lottery and get 3 good lawyers in a row," O'Brien said of the trial, appellate, and post-conviction process. "Even if you do get 1 good lawyer, the other 2 lawyers are going to undo the work of that lawyer They have a hard time consistently providing competent lawyers at the trial level, especially Texas." As of late last year, Texas had executed
[Deathpenalty] death penalty news----TEXAS, FLA., MISS., KY., ARK.
June 10 TEXAS: Death penalty sought for alleged hitman accused of killing Uptown dentist The Dallas County district attorney's office is seeking the death penalty against the man accused of shooting a dentist in a murder-for-hire plot. Authorities say a love triangle may have led to the 2015 slaying of 35-year-old Kendra Hatcher in her Uptown apartment parking garage. Kristopher Love, 33, is one of three people charged with capital murder in the case. Investigators believe Brenda Delgado, who used to date Hatcher's boyfriend, hired Love to be the triggerman. Prosecutors filed a motion Friday to seek the death penalty against Love. Police said Delgado, 34, was jealous of Hatcher's relationship with Ricardo Paniagua, whom Delgado had dated for two years. She's accused of hiring 23-year-old Crystal Cortes to help rob Hatcher. Cortes told police Delgado paid her $500, and she drove Love to Hatcher's parking garage. Before the slaying, Cortes asked Love how much he was being paid to rob Hatcher. He told her it was "none of her business." Cortes said she waited in the getaway car while Love attacked Hatcher. She heard 1 gunshot, and then Love got back into the Jeep with 2 purses. He told Cortes that if she told police, she and her son "would be next," police records show. But their getaway car, a Jeep Cherokee belonging to Delgado, was captured on surveillance cameras. Initially, police questioned and released Delgado about her role in Hatcher's slaying. She told police that she loaned the Jeep to Cortes, who was arrested shortly after the killing. About a month later, police issued arrest warrants for Love and Delgado, but by then Delgado had fled to Mexico. Delgado was extradited to the United States a year after the killing. Though authorities believe she was the mastermind behind Hatcher's killing, she isn't eligible for the death penalty as part of the extradition agreement with Mexico. Trial dates for Love, Cortes and Delgado have not been set. (source: Dallas Morning News) FLORIDA: State could seek death penalty for Naomi Jones' alleged killer The man accused of murdering 12-year-old Pensacola girl Naomi Jones has been denied bond. Robert Letroy Howard, 38, made his first appearance in court Friday morning via video conferencing. At the hearing, Judge Joyce H. Williams determined there was probable cause for the State Attorney's Office to charge Howard with 1st-degree murder, kidnapping and failure to register as a sex offender. In a press conference following the hearing, Assistant State Attorney Greg Marcille said the state will present to a grand jury within the next 2 weeks its reasons for charging Howard. If the grand jury indicts Howard on the charges, the state will then decide whether or not to pursue the death penalty. Marcille said he anticipates that decision will be made before Howard's arraignment June 30. Marcille added the state is still investigating and reviewing the facts of the case, but at this point, "the factors of the case do indicate there are circumstances that would justify the death sentence." A few of the factors under consideration are Naomi's age and whether her death was heinous, atrocious or cruel. Another factor will be Howard's previous criminal history. Howard, of Brewton, Alabama, is a convicted felon who served 15 years in prison for 2 counts of rape. According to Alabama Law Enforcement Agency Community Information Center, Howard was arrested Dec. 8, 1998, and convicted Sept. 1, 1999, in Escambia County, Alabama. Howard's address in Brewton was last verified the day after Naomi's murder. Marcille said the state is reviewing the information on Howard's previous convictions. "If the prior cases do constitute a violent felony, then we could consider those in seeking a sentence," Marcille said. Howard was given a $600,000 bond for his failure to register charge, but was denied bond on the murder and kidnapping charges. Procedurally, the no bond takes priority, meaning Howard will remain in jail until his trial unless a judge orders otherwise. Howard developed as a person of interest in Naomi's disappearance June 2, two days after the 12-year-old went missing, according to his arrest report. Naomi lived in Aspen Village Apartments on East Johnson Avenue, the same complex where Howard's girlfriend resides. During a neighborhood canvas, Howard reportedly gave investigators inconsistent statements about his whereabouts at the time of Naomi's disappearance. Naomi was found deceased in a creek bed near Ashland Avenue and Detroit Boulevard June 5. On June 7, investigators recovered surveillance video from a business in the area. It allegedly showed Howard's silver Nissan Altima traveling around the intersection and bridge near the creek bed around 2:35 a.m. June 1, approximately 14 hours after Naomi disappeared. Investigators re-interviewed Howard later in the d
[Deathpenalty] death penalty news----TEXAS, FLA., ALA., LA.
May 19 TEXAS: Court lifts reprieve for Nicaraguan man on Texas death row The Texas Court of Criminal Appeals on Wednesday lifted a reprieve it gave a Nicaraguan man a day before he was to be executed 2 years ago for killing a Houston high school teacher during a 1997 robbery. The state's highest criminal appeals court had halted the scheduled August 2015 lethal injection of Bernardo Tercero, 40, after his attorneys contended Harris County prosecutors unknowingly presented false testimony at his trial in 2000 for the death of Robert Berger, 38. Wednesday's ruling affirms the findings of Tercero's trial court that last year held a hearing on the claim and determined the testimony was proper. Berger was at a Houston dry cleaners in March 1997 with his 3-year-old daughter when Tercero came in to rob the store, records show. Berger was fatally shot and the store was robbed of about $400. Prosecutors said Tercero was in the U.S. illegally at the time. Tercero, now 40, argued the shooting was acciental. He testified Berger confronted him and tried to thwart the robbery, and the gun went off as they struggled. He was arrested in Hidalgo County near the Texas-Mexico border more than 2 years after the slaying. A 2nd man sought in the case never has been found. In another case, the appeals court Wednesday denied an appeal from Bartholomew Granger, condemned for the slaying of a 79-year-old woman during a 2012 shooting rampage outside the Jefferson County Courthouse. Attorneys for Granger, 46, raised 10 challenges to his 2013 conviction and death sentence. 5 issues foused on claims his trial attorneys were deficient, 4 raised questions about the constitutionaltiy of the death penalty in Texas and the last contended he was denied his right to an impartial jury. He was convicted of fatally shooting Minnie Ray Sebolt, a bystander walking outside the courthouse in downtown Beaumont. Granger admitted he opend fire on his daughter outside the courthouse after she testified against him a sexual assault case. His daughter and her mother were among 3 people wounded. In a 3rd case, the appeals court refused an appeal from Charles Raby, 47, who was sent to death row in 1994 for killing 72-year-old Edna Mae Franklin. The court said the appeal focusing on DNA testing was improperly filed and did not rule on the merits of the argument. In 2015, the court upheld a lower court finding that results of new DNA tests didn't cast doubt on Raby's conviction for Frankling's stabbing death. The appeals court also sent back to trial in Bastrop County the case of Rodney Reed to review claims that new evidence was improperly withheld and to show prosecutors presented false and misleading testimony at his trial, where he was convicted and sentenced to die for the 1996 rape and strangling of 19-year-old Stacy Stites. Her body was found off the side of a road about 35 miles southeast of Austin. Last month, the appeals court refused to allow additional DNA testing of evidence in the case, saying the request was meant to "to unreasonably delay the execution of his sentence or the administration of justice." (source: Associated Press) FLORIDA: Matthew Caylor granted new sentencing hearing Matthew Caylor, the man convicted of strangling a 13-year-old then hiding her body under the bed of a Panama City motel, has been granted a new sentencing hearing after the Supreme Court of Florida threw out his original death sentence. In a move that was expected, the Supreme Court of Florida has ruled that Matthew Caylor is eligible for a new penalty phase. Caylor killed Melinda Hinson, 13, in a Panama City Motel in July of 2008 after raping her. In an opinion released Thursday, Justices ruled 6-0 that because Caylor's death sentence in 2009 wasn't unanimous (it was 8-4) that he was entitled to a new penalty phase. Caylor, who is now 41, is the man who murdered Melinda Hinson, 13, at the Valu-Lodge Motel in Panama City on July 8, 2008. Caylor used a telephone cord in the motel room to strangle Hinson after he raped her. He hid her body underneath the bed in the motel room then took off. Hinson's body was discovered 2 days later. Caylor's case is just the latest death penalty case to get a new sentencing phase. Last year the Supreme Court of the United States ruled that all death sentences from juries must be unanimous and that a judge can't impose a death penalty without it. So all of the convicts on death row are filing appeals of their sentences if the jury recommendation for death wasn't unanimous. So far, no new sentencing hearings in any of the cases have occurred. They're scheduled to happen within the next few months. If the recommendation for death isn't unanimous, all of the killers will more than likely be sentenced to life in prison without parole. But that determination won't be made until the new sentencing phases take place. (source: WJHG news)
[Deathpenalty] death penalty news----TEXAS, FLA., GA., KY., OKLA., COLO.
May 13 TEXASstay of impending execution Fort Worth death row inmate gets second stay of execution this year An appeals court has postponed a 2nd execution date for a death row inmate from Fort Worth who was scheduled to die next week. In an order issued Friday, the Texas Court of Criminal Appeals ruled that they would review Tilon Lashon Carter's application for relief before going forward with his execution, which was scheduled for Tuesday. Carter, 37, was convicted of the robbery and 2004 slaying of James Tomlin, 89, a Bell Helicopter retiree. Prosecutors said that Carter and his girlfriend, Leketha Allen, went to Tomlin's home to rob him and took $6,000. Allen was sentenced to 25 years after agreeing to a plea bargain arrangement with prosecutors. Carter's attorney, Raoul D. Schonemann, filed a motion on Tuesday to set aside the execution date, arguing that new evidence conflicts with evidence that was presented at trial. The motion also states that Carter had ineffective trial counsel and was denied due process because Nizam Peerwani, Tarrant County medical examiner, presented false and misleading testimony. Peerwani's testimony led the jury to believe that Tomlin had been intentionally smothered, even though Tomlin's cause of death was listed as "smothering with positional asphyxia," which may not have been intentional, the motion contends. Carter's trial attorney never sought evidence highlighting the role that intent played in the trial, which Schonemann used to bolster his allegation that Carter had ineffective counsel. The motion also argues that the autopsy results, from Peerwani and 3 other experts, do not support the theory that Tomlin's death was caused by an intentional act. Carter survived an earlier execution date scheduled for Feb. 7 due to a technicality. The appeals court granted a stay of execution by a 5-4 vote on the grounds that notice of the scheduled execution date arrived 1/2 a day late at a state office that sometimes works on death penalty appeals. 2 death row inmates from Tarrant County have been executed this year. Christopher Wilkins was put to death on Jan. 11 for a double murder committed in Fort Worth. He was the 1st person to be executed in the United States this year. Texas also executed a former Kennedale auto mechanic who killed a father and his infant son in a 1987 Christmas Eve killing spree. James Eugene Bigby, 61, was pronounced dead on March 14. An execution date for Paul Storey, which had also been set for this year, was stayed pending a hearing. Storey, 32, who was convicted for the murder of Jonas Cherry, was scheduled to die on April 12. Cherry, a manager at the Putt-Putt Golf and Games in Hurst, was shot twice in the head and twice in his legs on Oct. 16, 2006 on a robbery. (source: star-telegram.com) Juan Castillo's execution date has been changed from May 24 to September 7. Executions under Greg Abbott, Jan. 21, 2015-present24 Executions in Texas: Dec. 7, 1982present-543 Abbott#scheduled execution date-nameTx. # 25-June 28--Steven Long---543 26-July 19-Kosoul Chanthakoummane---544 37-July 27-Taichin Preyor-545 28-Sept.7--Juan Castillo--546 (sources: TDCJ & Rick Halperin) Former Mavs ManiAAC dancer receives life sentence after jury deadlocks A former Mavs ManiAAC dancer received life in prison after the jury in his murder trial deadlocked on the death penalty. Erbie Bowser killed 4 people and wounded 4 children during a 2013 shooting rampage. He was on trial for 1 of the murders. The jury got hung up on the death penalty and deadlocked. The judge had to go with a life sentence in prison without the chance of parole. The jury had already signaled it was having trouble with a verdict on the punishment after being sequestered overnight. They began sending out a note on Friday for a clarification on "beyond a reasonable doubt". Bowser was found guilty of capital murder for the death of 4 women and wounding several children. Prosecutors said in 2013 Bowser went to his girlfriend's house and killed Toya Smith and her 17-year-old daughter and then went to DeSoto to kill his estranged wife, Zina Bowser, and her 28-year-old daughter. Smith's mother, Lurlean, had some words for Bowser at the end of the trial. "You not only killed once, you killed 4 times," she said. "And you left four innocent children without parents. But those children are going to go on with their lives and will have a good life." Defense attorneys tried to show Bowser was not guilty by reason of insanity because of his military service and concussions from playing football had impacted his mental state. (source: Fox News) FLORIDAfemale to face death penalty Kimberly L
[Deathpenalty] death penalty news----TEXAS, FLA., ALA., LA., OHIO, KY.
April 19 TEXAS: Condemned inmate avoids execution with life sentence for Houston crime spree A North Carolina man who spent years on Texas' death row awaiting execution was sentenced Monday to 4 consecutive life sentences, a plea bargain that Harris County prosecutors hope will keep him behind bars for the rest of his life. Randolph Mansoor Greer, 43, was on death row until 2011, when the U.S. Supreme Court handed down a ruling that meant he and dozens of condemned inmates would get new sentencing hearings because of insufficient jury instructions. Those cases, called Penry retrials because of the Supreme Court case, have been winding their way through Houston's courts for years. Some have successfully been retried as death penalty cases, others have gotten plea bargains with elaborately structured pleas to ensure the former death row inmates are never free. Since Texas did not have a punishment of life in prison without parole when those crimes were committed, prosecutors and families of victims have worried that even a capital murder conviction in these cases might one day lead to parole. The decision to grant parole is made by prison officials with the Texas Department of Criminal Justice under the law at the time of the crime. On Monday, Greer was sentenced to 4 consecutive life sentences in a Texas prison after pleading guilty to capital murder and other crimes he committed during a 1991 spree in the Houston area, according to the Harris County District Attorneys Office. "26 years after committing a murderous crime spree, Mr. Greer has been resentenced to 4 consecutive life terms without parole," First Assistant Tom Berg said Tuesday. "Greer, now 43, has been incapacitated and will never again pose a threat to public safety." Prosecutors said his crime spree spanned 6 months. In separate incidents, he abducted and sexually assaulted 2 Houston area women who survived the attacks. He also robbed from a business, stole a car, and shot and killed Walter Chmiel, owner of the Alamo gun shop in Bellaire. Greer also committed a capital murder in North Carolina as well as sexual assaults, robberies and a home invasion. Prior to new sentencing, prosecutors consulted with survivors and the families of victims, Berg said. Defense attorneys Allen Tanner and Gerald Bourgue said it was a just result. "It was an agreement based on the fact that he was 18 at the time, and he's been a model inmate ever since then," Tanner said. "We think his prison record was helpful for him." Tanner also said mitigation experts combed through records and witnesses in North Carolina and Cleveland and were expected to testify about how Greer's troubled childhood led him to a life of crime. (source: Houston Chronicle) FLORIDA: Death penalty will be pursued against man accused of shooting Sanford mother, sonSuspect Allen Cashe faces 1st-degree murder charges The death penalty will be pursued against Allen Cashe, who is accused of killing a mother and her son and shooting 4 other people, was indicted Monday on 1st-degree premeditated murder charges, according to the Seminole County State Attorney's Office. Cashe was indicted Monday on 1st-degree premeditated murder charges in connection with the deaths of Latina Herring, 35, and her 8-year-old son, Branden Christian. Officials on Tuesday filed a notice of intent to pursue the death penalty in that case. Cashe was also indicted on 4 counts of attempted 1st-degree murder with a firearm in connection with the shootings of Latina Herring's father, 60-year-old Bertis Herring; Latina Herring's youngest child, 7-year-old Brenden Christian; and 2 bystanders, Rakeya Jackson, 18, and Lazaro Paredes, 43. Sanford police released body camera footage of Cashe and Herring had been arguing about a set of keys hours before the double fatal shooting on March 27. Police encountered the couple twice before the shooting, but no arrests were made. Cashe left Herring's home in Sanford after the 2nd police encounter, then returned around 6:20 a.m. with an AK-47, police said. Cashe is accused of opening fire on the family as they were sleeping. Herring was shot 7 times and killed in her bedroom, police said. Her 2 sons were sleeping on the couch when they were shot 3 times, the report said. Bertis Gerard Herring was shot 5 times in another bedroom. Cashe is accused of shooting Jackson and Paredes as he was fleeing the area. Assistant State Attorney Dan Faggard and the lead Sanford Police Department investigator presented information to the Grand Jury before the indictment was returned late Monday afternoon. Cashe also faces charges of burglary of a dwelling with assault or battery with a firearm, possession of a firearm by a convicted felon and shooting into a dwelling. Aramis Ayala used direct verbiage from anti-death penalty group, emails showState attorney consulted few death
[Deathpenalty] death penalty news----TEXAS, FLA., ALA., OHIO, MO., S.DAK., NEV.
Feb. 18 TEXAS: Faith leaders support death-row inmate's religious discrimination claim More than 500 faith leaders across the country have endorsed a statement calling for a new trial for a Texas death row inmate claiming religious discrimination in the selection of his jury. National faith leaders including Tony Campolo and Shane Claiborne of Red Letter Christians, author Brian McLaren and Baptist ethicist David Gushee issued a statement Feb. 16 supporting Christopher Anthony Young, a 33-year-old man from San Antonio, Texas, sentenced to death for killing a mini-mart and dry cleaners owner during an armed robbery in 2004. Among other things, Young argues that one prospective juror interviewed at his 2006 trial was dismissed because prosecutors believed her association with an outreach ministries program at her Baptist church might bias her against imposing the death penalty. "It is absolutely unacceptable to strike a juror based on her affiliation with her church," said Pastor Joel Hunter at Northland, A Church Distributed in Longwood, Fla., and a lead signatory. "As evangelical Christians, we firmly believe that people of all faiths and backgrounds should be able to participate as jurors." Prosecutors dismissed prospective juror Myrtlene Williams, 1 of 6 African Americans in the 60-member jury pool, because they believed her membership in Outreach Ministries at San Antonio's Calvary Baptist Church could cause her to be more sympathetic to the defendant, particularly in the punishment phase of trial. During questioning Williams said that while some members of the group visited jails and prisons in an effort to rehabilitate persons who are incarcerated, she did not personally work with prisoners. Another reason given for her dismissal was she had a daughter with a past conviction of a larceny-type offense in another state. The statement by faith leaders said her removal was wrong. "Membership in a particular church or association with a particular ministry is not a fair basis for preventing someone from carrying out her civic duty as a juror," they said. "Indeed, eliminating a particular juror based solely on her religious affiliation offends the Free Exercise Clause of the United States Constitution." Young, who is African American, also has argued that the state used Williams' religious affiliation and daughter's criminal history as a pretext to dismiss 5 of the 6 impaneled jurists who were black. The Fifth U.S. Court of Appeals denied Young's right to appeal his conviction in August. The U.S. Supreme Court will confer March 3 about whether to accept the case. The faith leaders said they do not all agree on the morality of capital punishment and are not stating an opinion about whether or not Young deserves to die. "We do believe, however, that the process by which he was sentenced to death was tainted by the decision of the government to strike a juror, not because of her personal beliefs, but solely because she was affiliated with a ministry that works to improve the lives of the poor, the elderly, and the incarcerated," they said. "Indeed, the government struck this juror even though she did not personally work with prisoners; she was removed, in short, because of her mere association with a church that pursued its mission of aiding the weak." Gushee, director of the Center for Theology and Public Life and Distinguished University Professor of Christian Ethics at Mercer University in Atlanta, currently serves as interim pastor at First Baptist Church in Decatur, Ga., a flagship congregation in the Cooperative Baptist Fellowship. 2 years ago Gushee and other individual CBF members campaigned unsuccessfully for clemency for Kelly Gissendaner, the 1st woman executed in Georgia in 70 years and a graduate of a prison theology program sponsored by a consortium including Mercer University???s McAfee School of Theology, 1 of the CBF's partner schools. Other Baptists signing on in support of a new trial for Young include Fisher Humphreys, a retired professor at Samford University???s Beeson Divinity School and member at Baptist Church of the Covenant in Birmingham, Ala.; Mikael Broadway, associate professor of theology and ethics at Shaw University Divinity School and associate minister at Mount Level Missionary Baptist Church in Durham, N.C.; Roger Olson, Foy Valentine Professor of Christian Theology and Ethics at Baylor University's George W. Truett Theological Seminary in Waco, Texas; and Frederick Haynes III, senior pastor at Friendship-West Baptist Church Dallas. (source: Baptist News) FLORIDAfemale death sentence overturned After 2 death row stints, mother of murdered 'Baby Lollipops' no longer faces execution Ana Maria Cardona, the Miami mother twice sentenced to execution for the torture and murder of her toddler son known as "Baby Lollipops," is no longer facing death row. Prosecutors on Fri
[Deathpenalty] death penalty news----TEXAS, FLA., ALA., MISS., OHIO, IND.
Feb. 10 TEXASnew execution date New death date for inmate spared from execution this week A Texas death row inmate whose execution date scheduled for this week was halted because of a legal technicality has received a new execution date. Texas Department of Criminal Justice spokesman Jason Clark says the prison agency has received court documents setting 37-year-old prisoner Tilon Carter's lethal injection for May 16. Carter had been set to die Tuesday for smothering an 89-year-old man during a robbery at the man's Fort Worth home. But the Texas Court of Criminal Appeals issued an order last Friday halting the punishment because a state office that represents death row inmates was notified of the scheduled punishment a half-day late, a violation of state law. Carter was condemned for the 2004 robbery and slaying of James Tomlin, a retired Bell Helicopter worker. (source: Associated Press) Executions under Greg Abbott, Jan. 21, 2015-present22 Executions in Texas: Dec. 7, 1982present-540 Abbott#scheduled execution date-nameTx. # 23-March 7--Rolando Ruiz--541 24-March 14-James Bigby---542 25-April 12-Paul Storey---543 26-May 16---Tilon Carter--544 27-June 28--Steven Long---545 28-July 19-Kosoul Chanthakoummane---546 (sources: TDCJ & Rick Halperin) FLORIDA: Florida Supreme Court Upholds Sentence for Killing Guard The Florida Supreme Court is upholding the conviction and death sentence for a man who killed a Daytona Beach corrections officer. The court on Thursday rejected arguments by Enoch Hall that his attorney mishandled his case. The court also noted that his sentence should remain in place because a jury unanimously recommended the death penalty. Hall was serving life sentences in the sexual battery and kidnapping of a 66-year-old woman when he killed a corrections officer. Hall stabbed 50-year-old Donna Fitzgerald 22 times with sheet metal in 2008. Fitzgerald was alone while supervising Hall and others in an inmate work program. An investigation determined Hall may not have been eligible for the program, and Fitzgerald should've had a radio or body alarm to summon help. (source: WTXL news) ** Death sentence tossed out in Florida drive-by shooting case The Florida Supreme Court is throwing out the death sentence of a Jacksonville man convicted in a drive-by shooting that killed a young girl watching television at her grandma's house. The high court on Thursday upheld Rasheem Dubose's conviction for the crime, but ordered a new sentencing hearing because a jury did not unanimously agree to impose the death penalty. The court in a split decision recently ruled that death sentences require a unanimous jury recommendation if the sentence was imposed after a 2002 key ruling by the U.S. Supreme Court. DreShawna Washington-Davis, 8, was killed when 29 shots were fired into her house in July 2006. Authorities said the shooting was a retaliatory strike against the child's uncle. Dubose's brothers, Terrell Dubose and Tajuane Dubose, were sentenced to life in prison for their role in the crime. (source for both: Associated Press) ALABAMA: Former Alabama death row inmates to share their stories of confinement, freedom Racism, poverty, freedom and confinement will be the focus of speeches delivered by 2 former Alabama death row inmates, sharing their stories at the University of North Alabama later this month. Anthony Ray Hinton, who spent 30 years on death row, and Gary Drinkard, who was released after 5 years, will share their stories of exoneration and wrongful conviction during a conference at UNA Feb. 23-24. The events are open to the public. Hinton walked free in April 2015 at age 52. He'd been on death row for 30 years for the 1985 murders of 2 Birmingham fast food restaurant managers. Hinton and his attorneys asked prosecutors for years to retest the gun that linked him to the crime. On April 3, Anthony Ray Hinton walked free, prosecutors dropping the charges - the U.S. Supreme Court had ordered a retrial - that he'd killed 2 men in a Birmingham area fast food managers in 1985. The bullets didn't match up beyond a doubt, the state said. Shortly before his release, new tests ultimately ruled that the bullets found at the crime scenes couldn't be conclusively linked to the gun or to each other. Hinton's conviction, he has said, is rooted in racism, poverty and failures of the criminal justice system. "We want to help people think critically about the crimes and evidence that warrant sentencing someone to death," said Stephanie Renee Adair, one of several English graduate students helping plan the conference at UNA. Incarceration
[Deathpenalty] death penalty news-----TEXAS, FLA., OHIO, KY.
Feb. 7 TEXAS: Death penalty trial starts Monday The death penalty trial of Michael Dwayne Bowman, 33, is set to begin in a Troup County Superior courtroom Monday morning. Bowman is accused of shooting and killing Griffin Police Officer Kevin Jordan, 43, while he was working an off-duty job at a Waffle House 1702 North Expressway on June 1, 2014, police said. Attorney's asked for a change of venue for the trial, citing concerns with the media attention surrounding the case. The Troup County Government Center was chosen as the site for Bowman's trial. The Spalding County District Attorney's Office and Bownman's defense lawyer spent weeks picking a jury comprised of Troup County citizens. Officer Jordan was trying to break up a fight between several people who were asked to leave the restaurant, including Bowman's girlfriend Chantell Mixon. The off-duty officer was allegedly trying to restrain Mixon when Bowman allegedly shot Jordan several times in the back, police officials stated. Jordan died from his injuries. He left behind 7 children. Bowman was indicted on 3 counts of murder, aggravated assault of a police officer, obstruction of a police officer, aggravated assault and possession of a firearm during the commission of a felony, according to the Spalding County District Attorney's office. Mixon was also charged with murder in the case. It was unclear as of press time Sunday when or if she will stand trial. (source: LaGrange Daily News) FLORIDA: Murder charge dismissed against inmate accused of killing North Naples man Prosecutors have dismissed a murder charge against a North Florida inmate accused of the brutal 2012 prison rape and killing of a Collier County man in their shared cell. Instead, the state intends to re-indict Shawn "Jiggaman" Rogers, 36, and seek capital punishment after Florida legislators take another stab at rewriting the state's death penalty law this spring. Rogers is accused of raping, stabbing and beating to death Ricky Martin, 24, of North Naples, in their Santa Rosa Correctional Institution cell in March 2012. Bill Bishop, an assistant state attorney in Okaloosa County, said prosecutors were worried Rogers' attorneys would file a demand for a speedy trial at a time when there is confusion about whether or not the state's death penalty is available as a punishment. The State Attorney's Office in the First Judicial Circuit dismissed the charges Jan. 9. Prosecutors intend to re-indict Rogers after the state's death penalty is clarified by lawmakers and the Florida Supreme Court. Rogers already is serving a life sentence with no chance at parole for armed burglary and aggravated battery in Volusia County. "Death is the appropriate sanction for Mr. Rogers," Bishop said. "He could have basically just received another life sentence and would not have been punished and held accountable for the death of Mr. Martin." The U.S. Supreme Court struck down Florida's death penalty law in January 2016, ruling it unconstitutional because it placed the decision of death in the hands of a judge. During last year's legislative session, lawmakers rewrote the law to require 10 of 12 jurors to agree on the death penalty. But in October, the state Supreme Court declared the new law unconstitutional because it doesn't require a unanimous decision. Death penalty cases across the state are in flux due to the ruling. "We have every belief the Florida Legislature is going to make those modifications to the death penalty law,??? Bishop said of requiring a unanimous jury decision. Martin's father-in-law, Russell Sharbaugh, who also is the personal representative of Martin's estate, said he understands the decision to dismiss the charges. Sharbaugh, who lives in the Naples area, supports the death penalty for Rogers. "I don't think he should walk away with no punishment," Sharbaugh said. Investigators said Rogers, who has gang ties and an extensive history of violence behind bars, bound Martin???s hand and feet with strips of bed sheet and then beat him within 36 hours of Martin arriving at the Santa Rosa prison. Martin was found lying in a pool of blood with his pants and underwear down to his knees. Several inmates in nearby cells said the attack was racially motivated, according to an Inspector General's Office report about the killing. Rogers admitted to the killing in letters to relatives, Florida Department of Corrections records show. Martin died April 8, 2012, about a week after being removed from life support at a Pensacola hospital. A 2014 Miami Herald article about the killing raised questions about why Martin, a 150-pound nonviolent offender, was placed in a cell with the 6-foot-4, 226-pound Rogers, who has a long history of attacking and beating other inmates. Rogers has admitted to being one of the state's most violent prisoners, according to the paper. 4 months before Martin was tra
[Deathpenalty] death penalty news----TEXAS, FLA., MISS., TENN, OHIO
Feb . 2 TEXASimpending execution Death Watch: "An Intentional Smothering"Tilon Carter says he never meant to kill James Tomlin Tilon Carter faces execution on Tuesday, Feb. 7, after 10 years on death row. The 37-year-old was convicted of capital murder in a Tarrant County court in 2006 for the capital murder of James Eldon Tomlin. In April 2004, Carter and his girlfriend, Leketha Allen, robbed Tomlin, an 89-year-old retired veteran with jars of cash stashed throughout his home. Carter taped Tomlin's hands and legs together and covered his mouth with duct tape before the couple ransacked the house and stole $6,000 and a shotgun. Tomlin's daughter discovered her father's body that day. An autopsy indicated Tomlin had been beaten and smothered, and died of positional asphyxiation. Carter admitted before his trial that he planned to rob Tomlin, though he maintained that he did not mean to kill him. The Tarrant County medical examiner testified that it wasn't exactly clear how Tomlin suffocated. The position and restraints were "consistent" with positional asphyxiation, but marks on the victim's lips "indicated an intentional smothering." Carter's history of misdemeanors and armed robbery made it easy for prosecutors to convince the jury that he was a career criminal. Carter pleaded not guilty. Jurors disagreed and sentenced him to death. Allen accepted a plea for 25 years in prison. She's eligible for parole this year. Carter's appeals have hinged on arguments that his trial attorneys failed to offer contradicting testimony regarding the cause and manner of Tomlin's death, thereby violating his Sixth Amendment right to effective counsel. Attorneys have also focused on the court's alleged failure to prove the death penalty was warranted (as opposed to life in prison), and that state law pertaining to a jury's right to know is in fact a violation of the Eighth and 14th amendments. Those appeals have all failed - most recently, last March, at the U.S. Supreme Court. On Nov. 2, 2016, Carter's appellate attorney Robin Norris requested permission from a federal court to withdraw as Carter's attorney - at Carter's request. Norris wrote: "All judicial avenues for review of Mr. Carter's capital murder conviction and death sentence have been exhausted." What remained were procedural filings for clemency and commutation to the governor and state Board of Pardons and Paroles. Those, Norris suggested, could be taken over by new counsel. The court has not yet responded. Carter is expected to be the 2rd Texan executed this year. John Ramirez's execution, scheduled for today (Feb. 2), was stayed in a Corpus Christi federal court on Tuesday. Attorney Gregory Gardner, who played a crucial role in the stay of Kosoul Chanthakoummane's execution last month, took over Ramirez's case Jan. 27. Judge Nelva Gonzales Ramos wrote in her order that "the short time remaining before Ramirez's execution" meant that the substitution of counsel "could only be given effect through a stay." Last week, despite newly discovered forensic evidence, and proof that Dallas County prosecutors falsified evidence to secure a conviction, the Supreme Court denied Terry Edwards' last-minute appeal. He was executed Jan. 26 at 10:17pm, nearly 4 hours after his scheduled court-ordered time of death. (source: Austin Chronicle) ** Executions under Greg Abbott, Jan. 21, 2015-present22 Executions in Texas: Dec. 7, 1982present-540 Abbott#scheduled execution date-nameTx. # 23-February 7---Tilon Carter--541 24-March 7--Rolando Ruiz--542 25-March 14-James Bigby---543 26-April 12-Paul Storey---544 27-June 28--Steven Long---545 28-July 19-Kosoul Chanthakoummane---546 (sources: TDCJ & Rick Halperin) FLORIDA: Waffle House killer to get chance to get off death row The death row inmate who marched 3 employees of a Davie Waffle House into a freezer, ordered them to their knees and shot them as they begged for their lives will get another chance to fight for his own, the Florida Supreme Court decided. Gerhard Hojan, now 41, was found guilty in 2005 of murdering Christina Delarosa, 17, and Willie Absolu, 28, during a robbery at the restaurant. A 3rd employee, Barbara Nunn, survived a shot to the head. The state's high court ruled that Hojan is entitled to a new sentencing hearing because Florida's process for implementing the death penalty at the time was unconstitutional. The jury that convicted Hojan recommended execution by a vote of 9 to 3. Last year, the court ruled that death penalty recommendations had to be unanimous. Hojan's was 1 of more than 200 cases statewide where the Supreme Court ruled a defendant on death row could be entitled t
[Deathpenalty] death penalty news----TEXAS, FLA., ARIZ.
Feb. 1 TEXASstay of impending execution Execution halted for man convicted in Corpus Christi stabbing death2 days before death row inmate John Ramirez was scheduled to be executed, a federal district court in Corpus Christi halted the execution. A federal district court in Corpus Christi halted the execution of Texas death row inmate John Ramirez on Tuesday, 2 days before he was set to die. Ramirez, 32, was convicted in 2009 in the stabbing death of Pablo Castro in Corpus Christi during a 2004 robbery. Castro was stabbed 29 times, and Ramirez wasn't arrested until more than 3 years later when he was found near the Mexican border, according to court documents. He was set for execution on Thursday. The stay comes after 2 motions were filed last week by federal death penalty attorney Greg Gardner, even though he had no previous experience in the case. The court granted the motions to stop the execution and grant Ramirez new counsel because, the motion claimed, Ramirez's previous attorney had failed to file a clemency petition. The state has appealed the court's decision to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit, which has the ability to overrule the lower court's decision before Thursday and reverse the stay. On July 19, 2004, Ramirez and 2 women, Angela Rodriguez and Christina Chavez, were driving around in a van looking for people to rob for drug money when they spotted Castro taking the trash out from the convenience store where he worked, according to an opinion by the Texas Court of Criminal Appeals. Rodriguez and Ramirez approached Castro, and Ramirez slashed his throat and repeatedly stabbed him in his head, neck, shoulders and back, according to court records. Rodriguez went through his pockets and came back to the van with $1.25, according to Chavez's testimony. The 2 woman were found the night of the murder appearing high and drunk, records stated. Rodriguez is currently serving a life sentence for murder, and Chavez pleaded guilty to aggravated robbery and got a 25-year sentence, according to prison records. She became eligible for parole in January. Ramirez evaded arrest until Feb. 20, 2008, when he was found near the Texas-Mexico border. He was convicted of capital murder and sentenced to death; he's been on death row for almost 8 years. In the recent motions filed Friday, Ramirez claimed his previous appellate attorney abandoned him by not filing a clemency petition, a motion commonly filed in capital cases to the Texas Board of Pardons and Paroles and the governor asking for a stay of execution or commutation to life in prison. About 3 weeks after receiving an execution date, Ramirez wrote his previous attorney, Michael Gross, saying he wanted Gross to remove himself from his case so he could seek new representation. Gross complied, and didn't file a clemency petition, but neither did anyone else. Attorney General Ken Paxton argued for Texas that Gross was simply following Ramirez's instructions, but the court ruled Gross was still responsible because he hadn't been replaced. After Ramirez's godmother called Gardner, he filed the motions. Paxton said the 2 lawyers were engaging in "gamesmanship," noting that both were involved in another death penalty case that was recently stayed. The court said a hearing did not suggest any such tactics. It is the 1st stay of execution in Texas this year, stopping what would have been the state's 3rd execution. Another execution is set for next Tuesday for Tilon Carter. *** Texas lawmakers aim to eliminate death penalty for convicts who didn't killAt least 2 Texas Democrats and one Republican are pushing to reform the death penalty under the law of parties, which holds those involved in a murder equally responsible, even if they weren't directly involved in the actual killing. Months after Jeff Wood narrowly and temporarily avoided execution for a murder he didn't commit, his case has motivated Texas lawmakers on both sides of the aisle to call for death penalty reform. Wood, 43, was convicted in the 1996 murder of Kriss Keeran, who was fatally shot by Wood's friend in a Kerrville convenience store. Wood was sitting in a truck when his friend, Daniel Reneau, went into the store to steal a safe and then pulled the trigger on Keeran, who worked there as a clerk. Even though Wood didn't kill Keeran, he was convicted of murder and given the death penalty under the Texas statute known as the "law of parties," which holds that those involved in a crime resulting in death are equally responsible, even if they weren't directly involved in the actual killing. He was scheduled to die last August, but, after a rally in front of Gov. Abbott's mansion and uproar from a group of lawmakers, the Texas Court of Criminal Appeals stayed, or stopped, his execution six days before it happened, sending it back to the trial court to review
[Deathpenalty] death penalty news----TEXAS, FLA., MISS., OHIO, NEB.
Jan. 27 TEXAS: Texas prisoner dies of lethal injection after last-minute appeal fails The US supreme court rejects a plea from Terry Edwards' attorneys for stay of execution and reinvestigation of 'flawed' murder conviction There was no clear gunshot residue from the murder weapon on his hands and no blood from either victim on his body or clothes. Yet Terry Edwards has been put to death in Texas as the result of a conviction his attorneys argue was deeply flawed and potentially tainted with racial bias. After the federal 5th circuit appeals court denied his petition on Wednesday, Edwards' final hope for a stay of execution and a fresh examination of his case rested with a last-day appeal to the US supreme court. But that failed and Edwards, 43, died of lethal injection at 10:17pm on Thursday at the state's death chamber in Huntsville, said Texas department of criminal justice spokesman Jason Clark in a statement. "Yes, I made peace with God. I hope y'all make peace with this," Edwards said before he was put to death, according to the statement released by Clark. The execution was the 540th in Texas since the supreme court reinstated the death penalty in 1976, the most of any state. Edwards was fired from his job at a Subway in suburban Dallas in 2002 for suspected theft of money. He returned a couple of weeks later with his cousin, Kirk. The sandwich shop was robbed and 2 employees were shot dead. Mickell Goodwin, 26, and the store manager, Tommy Walker, 34, died from close-range bullet wounds on 8 July 2002. A witness reported seeing Terry Edwards dumping a gun into a bin across the street. He was arrested soon afterwards and convicted in 2003. Kirk Edwards pleaded guilty to robbery in exchange for a 25-year sentence with the possibility of parole. Terry, who in contrast to his cousin had no history of violence, according to his lawyers, received the death penalty. At trial the prosecution asserted that Terry Edwards pulled the trigger, telling the court that he went to Subway "with murder in mind, with greed in mind, with evil in his heart". But in appeals his lawyers have claimed that he was not the killer and that his cousin is a more likely culprit. Under Texas's "law of parties", accomplices can be sentenced to death even if they do not personally commit murder. Texas has executed more people since 1976 than the next 6 states combined. Last year it put 7 prisoners to death by lethal injection, while Georgia led the nation with nine. Edwards would be the 2nd inmate executed by Texas this month. The state has 7 more scheduled for later in the year. Edwards' attorneys have also cast doubt on the fairness of the jury selection process. They said in a statement that prosecutors "removed all eligible African Americans from the jury pool of 3,000 citizens [143 of whom were questioned] and seated an all-white jury to decide the fate of an African American man charged with murdering 2 white people". They say they have obtained a strike list that next to the names of 32 of the questioned potential jurors has a handwritten, encircled "B" that could stand for "black". "When we saw the strike list with B's next to potential jurors names we were stunned," John Mills, one of the attorneys, said. In May last year the supreme court ruled in a case known as Foster v Chatman that the conviction and death sentence of a black man convicted of killing a white woman in Georgia in 1986 was unconstitutional because of the way potential black jurors were excluded. In that case, prosecutors marked the names of possible black jurors with a "B" on lists. But in Edwards' case, Mills said that they have been unable to obtain juror questionnaires. These would indicate jurors' races and allow cross-referencing with the strike list, perhaps proving the theory that "B" means "black". The questionnaires appear to have been lost. The 43-year-old's current team raised a common claim in death penalty cases: inadequate counsel. The defence called as a witness a trace evidence analyst who ended up testifying on cross-examination that Terry Edwards could have removed 2 of the 3 chemical components typically found in gunshot residue from his hands, perhaps from sweating or wiping it off. But Edwards' attorneys say a review they commissioned last year by a former FBI agent contradicts this, and argues: "The testing and evidence introduced at trial raises very serious questions of reliability." Mills also said it looks as if the district attorney's office has closed off access to the conviction integrity unit, a branch of the office that was set up in 2007 to review cases in the wake of a spate of wrongful convictions in the county. "We're concerned that the district attorney's office is no longer interested in having the unit look at the case," he said. A spokeswoman for the office did not respond to a request for comment but told the Dal
[Deathpenalty] death penalty news----TEXAS, FLA., ALA., OHIO
Jan. 6 TEXAS: Officials: Austin might be without local DNA lab for at least 2 years The Austin Police Department's troubled DNA lab could easily be closed until summer 2018 by the time city and county officials implement a new way to analyze locally DNA evidence collected from Austin crime scenes, an Austin advisory commission estimated Tuesday. Austin police Assistant Chief Troy Gay agreed the delay was possible, though he hoped a solution would be implemented sooner. The city's Public Safety Commission unanimously passed a resolution Tuesday urging the Austin City Council to find a temporary solution within 6 months. Since June, Austin police have been sending some of their DNA evidence to the Texas Department of Public Safety to be tested, and since December, they have also been sending some of it to Dallas County. Still, DNA evidence is not being tested as often as it comes in, Gay said. A backlog existed even before police closed the lab in June. The crisis at the police department's DNA lab reached a climax last month. On Dec. 12 DPS officials, who were re-training the Austin Police Department's 6 DNA analysts, told police they had lost confidence in four of the technicians and refused to continue working with them. 4 days later, Austin's interim Police Chief Brian Manley said the lab would not reopen as previously planned. All of the DNA lab's analysts are still being paid to do administrative work, Gay said. Now that the lab won't reopen, Scott Milne, a former official with the Arizona Department of Public Safety who was recently hired to be the Austin lab's new chief forensic officer, is currently on administrative leave. "We are looking at what the future is for those employees in our lab," Gay said. Austin police officials will now rely on outside experts to help them figure out what form a future DNA lab should take, Gay said. A few ideas that Austin and Travis County officials have floated include putting the lab under the supervision of the Travis County medical examiner's office or creating a government lab that works separately from any current branch of the criminal justice system. On Jan. 26, the Austin City Council will likely vote on whether to negotiate and execute a contract with a firm that can assess the situation and determine the best way forward. However, that firm???s report could take up to 6 months to complete, Gay said. Austin police have been discussing the issue with a few different firms, Gay said. Austin will not be issuing a request for proposals because only a few firms exist that offer the service the Austin Police Department is seeking, he said. "Then, there will be commissions and meetings and panels to discuss the findings, and there won't be a decision made for at least another year," Commissioner Kim Rossmo said, predicting how long it could take to implement the report's recommendations. Rossmo said the process could take until 2020, "unless the city and the police department see this as something of urgency." The police department shut down the DNA section of its forensic lab after a state audit was highly critical of some of the lab analysts' techniques. A Texas Forensic Science Commission report released over the summer concluded that one of the lab's DNA testing practices raised "concerns about the APD DNA lab's understanding of foundational issues in DNA analysis." Commissioners also asked Gay whether Austin police have opened an internal investigation regarding how the DNA lab got to this point. According to some estimates, retesting the evidence in cases that led to convictions could cost Travis County taxpayers $14 million. "We all know what has happened here has been a colossal management failure. ... There's lots of examples of labs having problems, but I don't think there's too many where the lab completely collapses," Rossmo said. "It's obvious there were some issues here that were incredibly significant in terms of the cost. If some patrol officer on the street gets into trouble, he'll be punished. Are you doing any sort of internal investigation as to who was just asleep at the wheel, costing the taxpayers probably millions of dollars?" Gay said officials plan to rely on the outside firm to help them conduct that investigation. "I don't disagree with you," Gay said. "We believe the look-back will help us identify where the challenges were and if there were mistakes made. If those mistakes were made and they were negligent, then we will attempt to hold those individuals accountable." (source: Austin American-Statesman) Texas sues feds over death penalty drug Texas is suing the federal Food and Drug Administration over a months-long delay in access to drugs the state uses in lethal injections. State Attorney General Ken Paxton (R) said Wednesday his office filed suit to gain access to hundreds of doses of thiopental sodium, whic
[Deathpenalty] death penalty news----TEXAS, FLA., CALIF., WASH., USA
Jan. 5 TEXASimpending execution Death Watch: Conflicts of InterestWhen your attorney goes to work for the D.A. The state's death chamber fires up again after a year in which the total number of state-sanctioned killings (7) was the fewest since 1996, when former Gov. George W. Bush oversaw the execution of only 3. First set for strapping in is 48-year-old Christopher Wilkins, convicted of capital murder in 2008, 2 1/2 years after confessing to the shooting deaths of 2 men - Willie Freeman and Mike Silva - near Ft. Worth during a drug deal gone awry. Several weeks before the murders, Wilkins left a halfway house in Houston, stole a truck, and drove to Ft. Worth, where he made plans to meet Freeman to buy drugs. Instead, Freeman presented Wilkins with a $20 piece of gravel and laughed at him. Williams testified during trial that he decided at that moment to kill his new acquaintances. During testimony Wilkins also expressed a desire to plead guilty, skip the remainder of the trial, and await sentencing. He told jurors they had a job to do. Jurors took only 90 minutes to return a guilty verdict and sentenced Wilkins to death. Despite the verdict, the Fort Worth Star-Telegram reported that 2 of the jurors cried during the announcement, while Wilkins mouthed "It's okay. It's okay." In 2010, the state's Court of Criminal Appeals affirmed Wilkins' conviction. Wilkins' appellate lawyers, led by Hilary Sheard, filed a federal petition for relief in May 2012 that claimed Wilkins' trial counsel conducted a "belated inadequate and cursory investigation" and violated his Sixth Amendment right to effective assistance of counsel. They also claimed their client suffered from a conflict of interest because one of his previously assigned lawyers had formerly represented another of Wilkins' victims: Gilbert Vallejo, whom Wilkins confessed to killing the night before he shot Silva and Freeman. They also argued that the original trial violated their client's 14th Amendment right to due process, in that the defendant was self-destructive and therefore incapable of entering a plea deal or standing trial. The petition was denied by a federal judge, and the Supreme Court declined a motion to stay the proceedings. "Strickland took the case, but failed to reinvestigate the trial, and [he] had contracts to work with the prosecutor's office that put Wilkins on death row." - Hilary Sheard A 2015 execution date was stayed in order to address potential DNA concerns with the case, and the execution was eventually rescheduled for this Wednesday, Jan. 11. On Dec. 21, Sheard requested another stay of execution from the state's Court of Criminal Appeals, asking that Wilkins be given a full and fair review of his claims. Sheard cited the poor quality of capital habeas representation in "some Texas cases and the devastating consequences" such conditions have on the convicted. Specifically, Jack Strickland, who represented Wilkins at trial, was also assigned to be Wilkins' attorney during appeals. Strickland, however, had begun working for the Tarrant County D.A.'s office, which sentenced his client to death, before resigning from Wilkins' case. According to Wilkins' appeal, Strickland made public his plans to return to the D.A.'s office in May 2010, prior to filing Wilkins' habeas application, but waited until Feb. 2011 to withdraw from the case - after habeas had been denied. "He should have been appointed a new attorney, or at least been given a hearing on the issue," Sheard told the Chronicle. "Strickland took the case, but failed to reinvestigate the trial, and [he] had agreed to work with the prosecutor's office that put Wilkins on death row. Wilkins tried to fire Strickland repeatedly, but to no avail." Late on Wednesday (Jan. 4), the CCA denied Wilkins' appeal. He currently has a petition for writ of certiorari pending with the U.S. Supreme Court regarding an absence of funding for reinvestigating the case and trial; SCOTUS has not issued a ruling on that, either. If the state moves forward with the execution, it will mark the 539th execution in Texas since the state reinstated the death penalty in 1976. The Department of Criminal Justice currently has 2 additional executions scheduled for January: Kosoul Chanthakoummane on Jan. 25 and Terry Edwards the following evening. "For Law Enforcement Purposes Only" The Texas Department of Criminal Justice filed a lawsuit on Jan. 3 in a Galveston federal court against the Food and Drug Administration and Commissioner Robert Califf, arguing the FDA has failed to make a prompt final decision on the lethal injection drug sodium thiopental. The 2 agencies have been in a standoff since July 2015, when the FDA intercepted a shipment of sodium thiopental being sent from India, arguing on three grounds that the drug shouldn't be allowed into domestic commerce. The FDA issued a tentative decision last April tha
[Deathpenalty] death penalty news----TEXAS, FLA., NEV., USA
Nov. 27 TEXAS: Death penalty, the mentally disabled at issue for justices The U.S. Supreme Court is set to examine whether the nation's busiest state for capital punishment is trying to put to death a convicted killer who's intellectually disabled, which would make him ineligible for execution under the court's current guidance. Lawyers for prisoner Bobby James Moore, 57, contend that the state's highest criminal court, the Texas Court of Criminal Appeals, ignored current medical standards and required use of outdated standards when it decided Moore isn't mentally disabled. That ruling removed a legal hurdle to Moore's execution for the shotgun slaying of a Houston grocery store clerk in 1980. The Texas court is a "conspicuous outlier" among state courts and "defies both the Constitution and common sense," Clifford Sloan, Moore's lead lawyer, told the justices in written briefs submitted ahead of Tuesday's scheduled oral arguments. Such a "head-in-the-sand approach ... ignores advances in the medical community's understanding and assessment of intellectual disability over the past quarter century," he wrote. Moore's lawyers want his death sentence set aside, contending his punishment would violate the Constitution's ban on cruel and unusual punishment and the Supreme Court's 2002 ruling in a North Carolina case that prohibited execution of the mentally disabled. The Texas attorney general's office says the state "fully complies" with Supreme Court precedents. The state points to its use of 1992 clinical definitions for intellectual disability as cited by the high court in its 2002 decision. And the office says it has consulted and considered more recent standards. The question before the high court "rests on a false premise," Texas Solicitor General Scott Keller said, arguing that Moore's claim of intellectual disability is refuted "under any relevant standard." Two years ago, the Supreme Court ruled unconstitutional a Florida law that barred any other evidence of intellectual disability if an inmate's IQ was over 70. Texas uses a 3-pronged test to define intellectual disability: IQ scores, with 70 generally considered a threshold; an inmate's ability to interact with others and care for him or herself; and whether evidence of deficiencies in either of those areas occurred before age 18. The state says Moore had a troubled childhood with little supervision and scored 57, 77 and 78 on IQ tests before dropping out of school in the 9th grade. He'd been convicted 4 times of felonies by age 17 but never was diagnosed with an intellectual disability as a youth, the state argues. It describes him as living on the streets, playing pool for money and mowing lawns. During the fatal robbery of 72-year-old Houston supermarket clerk James McCarble, Moore wore a wig and fled to Louisiana afterward, and had represented himself in legal actions, showing the required intellectual capabilities, the state contends. Moore's lawyers argue the state "cherry-picked" specific higher IQ scores, and that at age 13 Moore had no basic understanding of the days of the week or seasons of the year, couldn't tell time and couldn't read or write or keep up in school. Since the Supreme Court allowed capital punishment to resume in 1976, Texas has carried out 537 executions, far more than any other state. Moore arrived on death row in July 1980, and only 5 of the state's some 250 condemned inmates have been there longer. In 1999, an appeals court threw out his death sentence, ruling that the legal help at his trial was deficient. At a new punishment hearing 2 years later, a Harris County jury again sentenced him to die. In an appeal of that verdict, the Court of Criminal Appeals returned the case to the trial court for a hearing, where the judge decided Moore was mentally disabled and ineligible for execution. But the appeals court rejected that recommendation, saying the trial judge had disregarded case law. 8 of the appeals court's 9 members participated in the case, and 2 of them disagreed with the majority. (source: Associated Press) FLORIDA: Anti-death penalty event planned for Wednesday in St. Augustine Less than a year after a St. Johns County priest was found shot to death in Georgia, parishioners and officials from the Catholic Diocese of St. Augustine, as well as other community members, will gather to say that no one convicted of a violent crime should ever be put to death. The 1-hour, anti-death penalty event, billed as Cities for Life and co-hosted by Equal Justice USA, will be held at the Shrine at Mission Nombre de Dios at 101 San Marco Ave. on Wednesday at 6:30 p.m. Father John Gillespie, pastor at San Sebastian Church, told The Record last week that the event wasn't necessarily planned in response to the death of his friend, Father Rene Robert. But the topic, he said, has taken on a greater meaning since Georgia distri
[Deathpenalty] death penalty news----TEXAS, FLA., ALA., MISS., OHIO
Nov. 3 TEXAS: Death Row Inmate Sues Texas for DNA Tests With help from The Innocence Project, death row inmate Larry Ray Swearingen claims that DNA tests could prove his innocence of a 1998 murder, but the Texas Court of Criminal Appeals has unconstitutionally denied him the opportunity to present the evidence. Swearingen sued the nine judges on the state's highest criminal appeals court on Oct. 28 in Federal Court, challenging the appellate court's interpretation of the criminal code, and demanding the release of evidence for DNA testing. "It's not a casual thing to bring a federal civil rights action, but the denial of DNA testing in a death penalty case is really something that is pretty extraordinary," said Bryce Benjet, an attorney with The Innocence Project of New York City. "We think it is appropriate for a federal judge to step in and enforce the Constitution," Benjet said in an interview. Swearingen was convicted of the 1998 murder of Melissa Trotter, of Willis, Texas, a 19-year-old freshman at Lone Star Community College-Montgomery. She was found in the Sam Houston National Forest, strangled to death by a pair of pantyhose. The state presented evidence at trial that Swearingen and Trotter had been seen leaving campus together the day she disappeared. Prosecutors said Swearingen kidnapped, raped, and murdered her after she refused his sexual advances. Swearingen's attorneys say in the new lawsuit that he was convicted "largely on the basis of circumstantial evidence." Swearingen has always maintained his innocence and has filed several motions to secure DNA testing under the Texas Code of Criminal Procedure, which requires post-conviction DNA testing if such evidence would more than likely have resulted in a not-guilty verdict. His first 2 motions were unsuccessful, but the Montgomery County Court granted 2 subsequent motions for DNA testing, which the court of appeals reversed. As those motions wended through the courts, the Texas Legislature made several amendments to the DNA testing statute in the criminal code. The Legislature cited Swearingen's case as the impetus for these changes, which included expanding the definition of what "biological material" could be tested and broadening the statute to require testing of evidence that has "a reasonable likelihood of containing biological material." "His case was the subject of legislative testimony, yet still, when it gets back to the Court of Criminal Appeals, they interpret the statute in a way that denies him testing," Benjet said. The 28-page lawsuit against the Court of Criminal Appeals states that Swearingen's repeated efforts to obtain DNA testing have been "thwarted" by the appellate court's "unreasonably narrow" interpretation of the criminal code, and that its interpretation "ignores the most powerful aspects of DNA testing and sets a bar that cannot be satisfied in most cases." This alone has denied him due process, his attorneys say, and "unconstitutionally deprived [him] access to the courts" to obtain other remedies which could prove his innocence. Swearingen seeks declaratory relief that the appeals court's interpretation of the code is unconstitutional. He also sued the director of the Texas Department of Public Safety, the Montgomery District [Court] Clerk and the Montgomery County Sheriff, to force release of evidence for testing, including the murder weapon, the rape kit, the victim's clothing and cigarette butts found near her body. Montgomery County prosecutor Bill Delmore told the Houston Chronicle last year that "a lot" of DNA testing had been done in Swearingen's case, and that Swearingen's DNA profile was matched to a hair on a pantyhose fragment found in his trailer and 2 hairs found in Swearingen's truck were matched to Trotter. "We're very confident that we have the right guy," Delmore told the Chronicle article in June 2015. "We've executed on far less." But Swearingen's attorneys call the pantyhose evidence found in Swearingen's trailer "troubling," as the pantyhose had not been found during the first 2 searches of the trailer. Also, "serious doubts have been raised about the reliability" of the tear line analysis that matched the fragment to the pantyhose found tied around Trotter's neck, according to the complaint. The only pre-trial DNA testing that revealed a male donor, taken from fingernail scrapings, excluded Swearingen, and the state offered no "plausible" explanation for the presence of someone else's DNA underneath Trotter's fingernails, his attorneys say in the complaint. They say the state speculated that "perhaps blood from an officer present during the autopsy who may have cut himself while shaving hours before inexplicably worked its way under the victim's fingernails," or that blood circulating through the morgue's air-conditioning system "somehow landed in the scrapings from Mr. Trotter's fingernails."
[Deathpenalty] death penalty news----TEXAS, FLA., Neb., USA
Oct. 24 TEXAS: She watched her husband get sentenced to death. Now she's becoming a lawyer to save him and others. When her boyfriend Juan Balderas was sentenced to death in March 2014, Yancy Escobar Balderas couldn't understand what was happening. She sobbed uncontrollably as the lawyers she believes failed her soon-to-be husband walked out of the courtroom. 2 1/2 years later, on a Saturday earlier this month, Yancy sat in a classroom at the University of Houston, dressed in a smart suit, holding her new, hard-earned paralegal certificate. Yancy - a 29-year-old immigrant from El Salvador who is the 1st from her family to graduate from high school - is turning her experience of marrying a death row inmate into a powerful motivation to become a lawyer and help defend other people facing capital punishment. "After sitting through this trial, seeing the injustices in Juan's case, I want to do something where I can make a change in the system, in people's lives," she told me this week. Yancy and Juan, who went to the same middle school, started dating when they were 14 and 15. Her family emigrated from El Salvador, and she was undocumented when she was brought to the U.S. at age 6. (She's now a U.S. citizen.) Theirs was a pretty typical childhood romance: Yancy remembers holding Juan's hand in church, and him getting all dressed up to meet her mother. "We would just talk every day on the phone, and he would always try extra to make me happy," she said. "He was my best friend." The 2 grew up in a rough neighborhood on the edge of Houston's suburban sprawl. Juan, who had done time in juvenile detention, was involved with a street gang of 18- and 19-year-olds known as La Tercera Crips. Yancy says he was trying to avoid the group, go to college, and move on with his life - but he wasn't able to escape. On December 16, 2005, when Juan was 19, he was arrested as part of a larger raid picking up seven alleged gang members who police said were behind a string of shootings. He was charged with murder, accused of gunning down 16-year-old Eduardo Hernandez in a bleak apartment complex near an expressway. When she first heard that her boyfriend was arrested, Yancy was reeling. "I was in disbelief," she said. Because she didn't own a car, she had to take 3 buses to get to the Harris County jail in downtown Houston to visit him. He said he was innocent, and she stood with him. Juan and Yancy waited and waited as his trial date kept getting pushed back. The trial didn't actually begin until January 2014 - an extraordinary 8 years after he was arrested, all spent behind bars. The case was delayed because of his lawyer getting sick, changes in judges and prosecutors, and a back-and-forth while the district attorney decided whether or not to seek the death penalty. Moreover, Harris County was facing a backlog of more than 1,000 criminal cases. While Juan was waiting for a trial, according to court documents, his brother committed suicide and he wasn't allowed to attend his funeral. Before he was arrested, he was preparing to go to college and study art. Instead, he spent the equivalent of 2 college degrees incarcerated without being convicted of anything. Once the trial finally began, Yancy quit her job and stopped going to her community college classes because she couldn't concentrate. She attended Juan's trial every day for 2 months, sitting behind him, filled with nerves. Juan's court-appointed lawyer was Jerome Godinich, who has been reprimanded by a federal appeals court for missing deadlines and failing to file appeals in other death penalty cases. A 2009 investigation by the Houston Chronicle found that he represented more criminal clients than any other court-appointed attorney in the county. Between 2006 and 2009, he represented 21 different defendants facing the death penalty - a caseload that legal experts say makes it almost impossible to provide sufficient representation. Godinich and his 2nd chair attorney didn't even meet with Juan until just before the trial, and conducted almost no investigation, Yancy said. According to Pat Hartwell (an anti-death penalty activist who attended the trial and befriended Yancy), at times during jury deliberations, neither of Juan's lawyers were present while the judge and prosecutors responded to questions from the jury by themselves. Hartwell said that when she confronted Godinich, he told her, "I have another trial to take care of." (Godinich did not respond to a request for comment.) On March 14, 2014, the jury sentenced Juan to death. When the foreman read the verdict, "I didn't know what was going on," Yancy told me. "A few jurors were crying, but it was not clicking in my head. Then it became clear to me, the decision - I guess I cried so much, my nose was bleeding." 2 weeks after the sentence, the couple decided to get married. They had talked about it before, but now they rushe
[Deathpenalty] death penalty news----TEXAS, FLA., ARK., OKLA., N.MEX., CALIF., ORE.
Oct. 21 TEXAS: New hearing set in death penalty capital murder appeal Another hearing has been scheduled concerning an appeal of the capital murder conviction of Micah Crofford Brown. Brown remains in custody at the Hunt County Detention Center after being transferred from state prison in April. A status hearing concerning the appeal which had been scheduled July 1 was not conducted, due to an elevator fire which forced the evacuation of the Hunt County Courthouse. A hearing is now set in the court on Jan. 5, 2017. Brown, 37, of Greenville, was convicted in May 2013 and sentenced to death by lethal injection in connection with the 2011 murder of Stella Michelle "Doc" Ray. He does not yet have an execution date scheduled. The Texas Court of Criminal Appeals has upheld the conviction and sentence, but a separate post conviction writ was filed by the Office of Capital Writs, listing multiple alleged issues with Brown???s conviction and sentence, including ineffective assistance by the trial and appeals defense attorneys, improper arguments by prosecutors during the punishment phase, and failure to present evidence during the punishment phase that Brown suffers from an Autism Spectrum Disorder, which may have mitigated the jury's decision to issue the death penalty. The First Administrative Judicial Region has appointed 196th District Court Judge J. Andrew Bench to oversee the proceedings. (source: Herald Banner) FLORIDA: State Supreme Court suspends death penalty For the 2nd time this year, a court has ruled that Florida's death penalty statute is unconstitutional. This time, it was the Florida Supreme Court, handing down a pair of historic rulings on Oct. 14 that shifted Florida into the legal mainstream and are expected to cut the number of people sent to death row. Florida has not executed anyone since Jan. 7 because of uncertainty about its death penalty, and Friday???s rulings are expected to extend that moratorium indefinitely. 'A clear outlier' In the 1st case, the Florida high court threw out the death penalty given to a Pensacola killer, Timothy Lee Hurst, because jurors had not unanimously recommended it. Their vote was 7-5. In the 2nd case, the court ruled that the Florida Legislature botched its rewrite of the statute this year. The problem: The new law required just 10 of 12 jurors to agree on a death sentence. "The Florida Supreme Court said today that is has to be unanimous under Florida law," said Stephen K. Harper, a death penalty specialist at Florida International University College of Law. Until the Oct. 14 rulings, Florida was 1 of 3 states that did not require a unanimous jury recommendation in death penalty cases. The high court said that made the state "a clear outlier." Called historic As a consequence of last Friday's rulings, Florida currently has no death penalty. Former Circuit Judge O.H. "Bill" Eaton Jr. called the rulings historic, pointing out that for the 1st time in 44 years, no inmates will be sent to Florida's death row without all 12 members of a jury agreeing that that is the right punishment. In the Hurst case, the high court ruled that the defendant must be given a new sentencing hearing. Still unclear, though, is what will happen to the other inmates on Florida's death row and to murderers given the death penalty under the new statute, which was signed into law March 7 by Gov. Rick Scott. Blow to Bondi Some attorneys had urged the court to automatically convert all Florida death sentences to life in prison, but the recent opinions did not order that. The new rulings were a blow not just to the Florida Legislature but also to Attorney General Pam Bondi, who had defended the old and new laws. Both of the Oct. 14 rulings were a consequence of an opinion handed down Jan. 12 by the U.S. Supreme Court. It ruled that Florida's death penalty was unconstitutional because it required a judge - not a jury - to decide whether a defendant should be put to death. Bondi had argued that the error was harmless, but in that January ruling, Justice Sonia Sotomayor wrote that the court disagreed but left it to the Florida Supreme Court to hash out who, if anyone, was harmed. Huge backlog? The Florida Supreme Court answered that question last Friday, but only in part. Hurst was harmed, the court wrote, so he should be resentenced. It was silent about all other death penalty cases. Belvin Perry Jr., former chief judge of the Orange-Osceola circuit, predicted that all 385 death-row inmates would now file paperwork, arguing that they, too, were harmed. It might mean a huge backlog for the Florida Supreme Court and for trial courts, he said. But Harper and Eaton predicted the rulings could apply to far fewer cases, primarily those with active appeals and those that have not gone to trial. All 3 legal experts faulted members of the Florida Legislature. Eaton said they had
[Deathpenalty] death penalty news-----TEXAS, FLA., ALA., LA., OHIO
Oct. 13 TEXAS: Texas death row inmate Danny Bible loses at US Supreme Court The U.S. Supreme Court on Tuesday refused an appeal from Texas death row inmate Danny Paul Bible, who was convicted of the 1979 icepick slaying of a woman who went to his house in Houston to use a telephone and was found later stabbed 11 times, raped and dumped on the bank of a bayou. The high court offered no comment on its rejection. Bible, 65, does not yet have an execution date. Court records show Bible has confessed to 4 killings, including 20-year-old Inez Deaton, whose slaying went unsolved for nearly 2 decades. He wasn't tied to her death until 1998 when he was arrested in Fort Myers, Florida, for a Louisiana rape and told authorities about killing Deaton in Houston and a woman and her baby west of Fort Worth in North Texas. Bible previously served prison time after pleading guilty in 1984 in Palo Pinto County to killing another woman. Texas Department of Criminal Justice records show he arrived in prison with a 25-year sentence for that slaying plus 20 years for a robbery conviction in Harris County but was released in February 1992 to Montana. While out of prison on a form of parole known as mandatory supervision, Bible "lived a life of extreme violence," according to a 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals ruling earlier this year when Bible's appeal of his death sentence was rejected. It's that appeal that went to the Supreme Court. At his 2003 capital murder trial in Houston for Deaton's death, prosecutors provided evidence of robberies, thefts, assaults and abductions, including the rape of an 11-year-old girl in Montana and his confessions to repeated sexual assaults of young nieces from 1996 to 1998. Bible contended in his appeal that his lawyers, during the punishment phase of his capital murder trial in Houston, were deficient for not objecting to prosecutors' re-enacting a rape and how Bible tried to stuff his victim into a duffel bag. He also said in the appeal that he is disabled and in permanent pain after the prison van carrying him to death row in 2003 crashed, killing a corrections officer and the driver of another vehicle involved in the wreck. Bible's appeals attorney, Margaret Schmucker, said Tuesday that her next option could be to seek clemency from Texas Gov. Greg Abbott, although Abbott and previous governors have little history of commuting death sentences to life in prison. Bible is "not a danger to anybody," Schmucker said. "He can't get out of a wheelchair by himself. He can't lift his arms. He can't do anything." He also has a Louisiana sentence of life without parole, she said. (source: Associated Press) *** Race shouldn't matter in sentencing, but it does In 1995, Duane Edward Buck was convicted of murdering his ex-girlfriend and her friend. During his sentencing hearing, the prosecution presented evidence of Buck's potential for recidivism, based on his criminal history, conduct, and demeanor. In defense, his court appointed attorney called a clinical psychologist, Dr. Walter Quijano, as an expert witness, who stated that he believed Buck's "black" race increased the likelihood of future dangerousness. Buck was subsequently sentenced to death and the Texas Court of Criminal Appeals affirmed his conviction and sentence. On October 5, 2016, the U.S. Supreme Court heard an oral argument on Buck's case. His new attorney, Christina A. Swarns, claims that his previous counsel was ineffective by knowingly calling an expert witness who testified that race was a factor in evaluating future dangerousness. Although the circumstances of Buck's conviction were not up for debate, his attorney asked the Justices to order "a new, fair sentencing hearing." Although the Justices described what happened during the sentencing phase of Buck's case as "indefensible" and "abysmal," they raised considerable concern that the outcome of his case wouldn???t be impacted, if a new sentencing hearing were granted. The circumstances surrounding Buck's arrest were aggravating. His crimes were gruesome, he wasn't remorseful, and he had committed various acts of domestic violence prior to the murders. However, his defense attorney maintained that, "putting an expert scientific validity to this pernicious idea that Mr. Buck would be more likely to commit criminal acts of violence because he's black" led to an arbitrary death sentence decision. Her argument centered on the fact that the expert witness' testimony directly impacted the jury's future dangerousness determination, which is the prerequisite for a death sentence in Texas. The attorney for the State, Scott A. Keller, did not defend the competency of Buck's public defender nor the racially bias statements made by the expert witness. Instead, he focused on the fact that the prosecutors did not use the expert witness' testimony to make their claims for capital punishm
[Deathpenalty] death penalty news----TEXAS, FLA., N.Y., ALA., OHIO, ARK.
Oct. 11 TEXAS: Texas will see lowest number of executions in 20 years For the 1st time in 20 years, the number of Texas executions will fall out of double digits this year. The 7 men put to death this year are the fewest since 1996, when executions halted amid legal challenges to a new state law intended to hasten the death penalty appeals process, according to data from the Texas Department of Criminal Justice. Only 1 more execution is scheduled for 2016. "There is clearly a change going on in Texas," said Robert Dunham, executive director of the Death Penalty Information Center. Judges and appellate courts rescheduled or stopped executions 15 times for 11 people in 2016. At least 2 judges on the Texas Court of Criminal Appeals have said better lawyering by defense attorneys - including bringing forward better arguments and challenging "junk science" convictions - has contributed to the recent stays. The state's highest criminal court sent multiple cases back to trial courts this year to resolve claims relating to potentially faulty evidence, including that of Jeff Wood, who didn't pull the trigger in a murder and claims his sentencing trial was tainted by misleading testimony from a highly criticized psychiatrist nicknamed "Dr. Death." "Texas courts are now aware of the dangers associated with forensic sciences and are closely scrutinizing this evidence," said Greg Gardner, a capital defense attorney who represents John Battaglia, the man scheduled for the last execution of the year for killing his 2 daughters. 2 death penalty cases pending in the U.S. Supreme Court could also be affecting decisions on setting execution dates, Dunham said. Duane Buck and Bobby Moore are currently fighting their death sentences in the nation's highest court. Some experts think the enforcement of the death penalty - carrying out executions - is an indicator of the status of the punishment. "Looking at the number of executions as a measure of the usage of the death penalty, it shows the death penalty is declining in Texas," Dunham said. "I think even more importantly in the long term is that new death sentences continue to be low. That means there will be fewer and fewer people on the row subject to execution in the future." The number of new sentences dropped significantly after 2005, when life without parole became the alternative for jurors in death penalty trials, but the past 2 years have seen even lower numbers. Texas counties have sentenced 3 men to death this year, and only 2 received the penalty last year, according to TDCJ. Robert Kepple, executive director of the Texas District and County Attorneys Association, said the answer may be as simple as fewer murders. "Could it simply mean there are a lot less murders in Texas these last 15 years, so naturally the number of death-eligible defendants is way down as well?" he said in an email. "That, coupled with life without parole option, means less death penalties." Murder rates in Texas steadily decreased from 1996 to 2013, dropping from 7.7 to 4.4 murders per 100,000 people, according to FBI crime data. The rate increased slightly the next 2 years. Aside from lower murder rates, national support for the death penalty is also declining, according to a recent poll by Pew Research Center. Just under 1/2 of Americans support the punishment, the lowest number in four decades. The poll did not highlight Texas in its report. While Texas is seeing a record low in executions, the country's dip is even larger. Nationwide, there have been 16 executions, the fewest in 25 years, according to the Death Penalty Information Center. The decrease in Texas plays a major role in the national scope - the state usually accounts for the largest share of the country's executions - but issues with finding and using lethal injection drugs and a U.S. Supreme Court ruling that invalidated Florida's death sentencing process have affected the numbers as well, Dunham said. In Texas, there are currently 243 men and women on death row, the lowest in almost 30 years, according to the Bureau of Criminal Justice Statistics. The number peaked at 460 in 1999 and has been steadily dropping since. Experts were unsure if the drop in executions and new sentences would continue in the future. The numbers seem to ebb and flow, Kepple said. (source: KHOU news) ** Texas bishops call for abolition of death penalty "Capital punishment vitiates our hearts' capacity for mercy and love," the Texas bishops said in a statement released by the Texas Catholic Conference in Austin. "The death penalty not only does not correspond to the common good, it actually does great harm to it." The Catholic bishops of Texas Oct. 10 called for the abolition of the death penalty, denouncing its effects not only on victims and others immediately affected, but also on society. "Capital punishment vitiates our hearts' c
[Deathpenalty] death penalty news----TEXAS, FLA., OHIO, ARK., NEB., CALIF.
Sept. 29 TEXAS: Man accused of tossing wife off bridge will face death penalty trial Tarrant County prosecutors will seek the death penalty against the man accused of kidnapping his wife and killing her by throwing her body from the Lake Worth bridge in April. Rodolfo Montes "Rudy" Arellano, 34, of Fort Worth, is accused of kidnapping Elizabeth Pule Arellano and tying a rope that was attached to concrete around her neck and throwing her off the bridge. He remains in the Tarrant County jail with bond set at $500,000 on the capital murder charge, jail records show. The Tarrant County district attorney's office filed a notice of intent to seek the death penalty on Sept. 16, records show. The last person to get the death penalty in Tarrant County was Cedric Ricks of Bedford, who was convicted in 2014 for killing his girlfriend and her 8-year-old son. He remains on death row. Fishermen on a Lake Worth dock had called 911 at 3:20 a.m. April 16 - some 10 hours before Elizabeth Arellano, a 28-year-old mother of four, was reported missing - after seeing what appeared to be a person falling from the bridge across Loop 820. When the Fire Department's swift-water rescue team pulled the woman's body from the water, Elizabeth Arellano's body was still clad in maroon scrubs she wore as a medical assistant. 10 days after her disappearance and death, police arrested her estranged husband on a capital murder warrant. Family members say the couple had been sweethearts at Diamond Hill-Jarvis High School and had been together 13 years. The couple recently separated, however, and Elizabeth Arellano had planned to divorce him. Arellano told homicide detectives that he last saw his wife 2 days before she died and that he last spoke to her at 2:39 a.m. on the day she disappeared. He said she told him in that phone call that she had just arrived at her parents' house and would soon be bringing their four children to his house. Arellano said that when his wife and children never arrived, he assumed she had decided to stay at her parents' home. Asked about his whereabouts that night, Arellano told the detectives he had spent most of the evening of April 15 with a friend, tinting the man's windows. He said he arrived home about midnight and didn't leave the house again until 7:30 a.m. Through interviews, investigators learned that Arellano had torn down and replaced a wooden fence for an acquaintance within the past year. The fence included wood posts set in concrete. In the back yard of Arellano's Fort Worth home in the 1400 block of Jasper Street, police found pieces of concrete similar to the one used to weigh down Elizabeth Arellano's body. In the bed of his pickup, they uncovered a small piece of concrete consistent with that found at the crime scene. A large piece of concrete was also found in the driveway directly behind his truck, the affidavit states. (source: star-telegram.com) FLORIDA: Florida Death Penalty Still On Hold As Courts Seek Answers Executions are on hold, judges are postponing death penalty cases, and defense lawyers are seeking additional reviews after the U.S. Supreme Court's decision in January that struck down Florida's death penalty sentencing process. Supreme Court justices ruled that Florida gave too much power to judges, instead of juries, in deciding whether defendants should be executed. But the 8-1 ruling also created uncertainty by failing to address whether jury recommendations for death sentences should be unanimous. The focus is now on the Florida Supreme Court. "Defense lawyers are trying to push the cases off, waiting for the court, and in some instances judges are going along with it," said Bernie McCabe, the state attorney in the 6th Judicial Circuit in Pasco and Pinellas counties. "And if they don't go along with it, defense lawyers file other motions claiming other stuff, to try to push it. So the frustration is we're not getting the cases to trial that ought to be tried. And, unlike fine wine, my cases don't get better with age." Of nearly 3 dozen states that have the death penalty, Florida is 1 of only 3 states - including Delaware and Alabama - that do not require unanimous jury recommendations for death. Delaware's death penalty is also in flux. The Delaware Supreme Court in August decided that the state's death-penalty process, similar to Florida's, was unconstitutional. In contrast to Florida, Delaware's last execution was in 2012. The U.S. Supreme Court's decision in a case known as Hurst v. Florida dealt with the sentencing phase of death-penalty cases after defendants are found guilty, and it focused on "aggravating circumstances" that must be determined before defendants can be sentenced to death. The ruling cemented a 2002 U.S. Supreme Court decision, in a case known as Ring v. Arizona, requiring that determinations of such aggravating circumstances must be made by juries,
[Deathpenalty] death penalty news----TEXAS, FLA., IND., N.MEX., CALIF.
Sept. 22 TEXAS: Law firm recommends system for initial capital case appeals A law firm that's been representing Texas death row inmates for more than 2 decades is recommending the state establish a system for condemned prisoners to have better legal help during the initial appeal that follows their trial. The Texas Defender Service this week released a report that examines what's known as direct appeals in death penalty cases. It cited "systemic weaknesses" in the way those appeals are handled, contending lawyers are overwhelmed by caseloads and underpaid for the time they spend on these cases, that some attorneys who do accept the cases are inadequately prepared and that no entity in the state is devoted to training or consulting with lawyers handling direct appeals. "The direct appeal framework for Texas death penalty cases is fraught with structural weaknesses," the legal group concluded in its report, adding that those weaknesses heighten the likelihood that convictions and death sentences will be upheld when the appeals are reviewed by the Texas Court of Criminal Appeals, the state's highest criminal court. In direct appeals, attorneys review the trial court record for potential errors. The legal firm is calling on the Legislature to consider establishing a statewide capital appellate defender office to represent death row convicts in their direct appeals, a statewide appointment system with caseload controls and uniform pay rates, and appointment of 2 lawyers - rather than 1 now required - to handle direct appeals. "Deficient representation squanders scarce criminal justice resources, undermines the integrity of the Texas criminal justice system and warrants immediate attention from stakeholders," the 56-page report said. The group's recommendations are based on a review of documents from the 84 direct appeals to the Court of Criminal Appeals during the 7-year period ending Dec. 31, 2015. In its study, the Defender Service said it found the direct appeal attorneys had inadequate resources, excessive caseloads, inadequate briefing and showed "routine avoidance" to filing reply briefs and applying for review by the U.S. Supreme Court. Capital murder defendants in need of legal help - most of whom are indigent - already have a regional public defender for trials in most rural areas of the state. State lawmakers in 2009 created the Office of Capital Writs to handle later appeals. The Defender Service is recommending such formal legal availabilities be extended to the direct appeals process, where it argues the quality of representation has remained "unexamined." Roe Wilson, who heads the Harris County District Attorney's Legal Services Bureau, which handles capital case writs in the county that has sent the most inmates to death row, questioned the need for 2 defense attorneys to handle a direct appeal. "In a direct appeal, you're limited to the record itself, there's no outside investigation," Wilson said Wednesday. "It literally comes down to reading the record, identifying claims, doing the legal research and writing. I don't know why it would take 2 people to do that." The report, however, pointed out that county prosecutors have more ready access to resources, such as auxiliary staff. Of the 84 cases in the study, 2/3 were handled by solo practicing attorneys. None of the 84 convictions was overturned by the Court of Criminal Appeals. The death sentence was overturned in 3 of them. Wilson said defendants have better chances later in the appeals writ process because factual claims outside the trial record can be presented and investigated. "It's very difficult to get any case, not just a capital case, overturned on direct appeal because you are limited to exactly what???s in front of you," she said. (source: Associated Press) * Capital Punishment should be controlled by state It has been just over 5 months since Texas last executed someone. This is the longest stay in executions since 2008, when the Supreme Court was on recess and states could charge people with the death penalty but couldn't execute anyone. With this stay, Texas has only executed 6 people this year, meaning this could be the 1st year since the death penalty was reinstated in 1974 that Texas' execution count doesn't reach double digits. This has caused many to wonder about the future of the death penalty, instead of highlighting the true issue - that the death penalty is enacted differently throughout the 254 counties in Texas. Leading the states, Texas has carried out 537 executions since 1982. But not all counties handle the death penalty in the same way. "If Harris County was a state, it would be 2nd only to Texas [in number of executions]," Jim Marcus, clinical professor at and co-director of the UT Law School's Capital Punishment Clinic, said. "But there are 254 counties in Texas, and over a hundred of th
