June 4 OHIO: Judge: Comments 'improper'----Deters criticized; death row inmate may be resentenced Calling former Hamilton County Prosecutor Joseph Deters' remarks in a murder case "improper and flagrant," a U.S. magistrate judge has ruled that a death row inmate should be re-sentenced. "This decision brings Bobby Shepphard a major step closer to being removed from death row," Tim Payne, an assistant Ohio public defender said Thursday. Shepphard, also called "Sheppard" in some records, was convicted of shooting to death Dennis Willhide, 56, of Harrison, while robbing his College Hill drive-through in 1994. The slaying was captured on surveillance videotape. Shepphard, now 29, has been imprisoned awaiting execution since 1995. Deters, now state treasurer, criticized the decision. "I think it's just nonsense," he said. "Our comments were very appropriate. ... This poor man was laid on the floor and executed, and the jury saw everything, including the defendant's behavior the entire time." But a 110-page decision issued Tuesday could mean Shepphard, formerly of Springfield Township, will receive life in prison instead, Payne said. The ruling still requires a federal judge's approval and then could be appealed. In 2000, an Enquirer story pointed out that one of every three Hamilton County death sentences since 1988 contained critical errors that could help condemned killers delay or avoid execution. The Shepphard case was among those cases. In his decision this week, U.S. Magistrate Judge Michael R. Merz said, "While the evidence against (Shepphard) at the guilt phase of the trial was overwhelming, the same cannot be said of the separate penalty phase." Deters made repeated comments to the jury "denigrating the integrity of defense counsel and (a psychologist)," Merz said. The psychologist testified he believed Shepphard was suffering from mental illness after sustaining a head injury in a 1993 car wreck. Merz said it was improper for Deters to: Call the psychologist "slick." Speculate that the defense would have put on false or untruthful evidence if not for the videotape. Tell jurors they were best able to assess Shepphard's mental condition because they had viewed his actions on the video. Deters said that, if U.S. District Court Judge Walter Rice agrees with Merz's decision, Ohio Attorney General Jim Petro will have to decide whether to appeal. Payne said the case could remain tied up for a couple more years because of the legal issues. (source: Cincinnati Enquirer) ************************** Facing the needle: examining the death penalty----Vrabel becomes 2nd in Ohio to volunteer for early execution Volunteering for capital punishment still remains something uncommon on Ohio's death row. Since the death penalty was reinstated in 1999, 2 inmates have volunteered - Wilford Berry, who was also the 1st person to be executed by lethal injection in 1999, and Stephen Vrabel, who is awaiting his execution date. "Vrabel's case is carved out of Wilford Berry's case," said Greg Meyers, chief council for the Ohio Public Defender's office. "It pretty much adopted the federal practice that is already existing." Meyers said Berry's case followed prior U.S. Supreme Court rulings in Pate v. Robinson (1966) and Drope v. Missouri (1975). Berry's case also set a precedent for all future Ohio cases. "Right now, our Ohio Supreme Court is basically sending the message that if someone is willing to give up their rights, we will not honor that individual's choice without first getting a psychological assessment of competence," said Meyers, who assisted in Vrabel's case. Vrabel, of Mahoning County, was psychologically reviewed because of prior mental illness that deemed him unable to stand trial in the early 1990s. In July 2003 he submitted a handwritten letter, asking to waive any further appeals, to Ohio Public Defender David Bodiker. Vrabel has undergone evaluations by 2 mental health experts, said Kim Norris, spokeswoman for Attorney General Jim Petro. "They both determined that he understands his consequences, and he doesn't have any mental illnesses," Norris said. Although Berry underwent psychological evaluation as well, Norris said it doesn't have to be completed in every case. "It depends on the case; it depends if (the request for evaluation is) raised by attorneys, the judge - it depends on a lot of factors," she said. Meyers, who also served on Berry's case, said it is important to recognize mental stability before proceeding with a volunteer's request. "Fundamentally, it boils down to the basic question of whether the person is competent in making the decision ... that the death row inmate understands that by tossing in the towel, he will free the executioner's hand to kill him - that, in fact, their decision will result in death," Meyers said. Opinions about volunteering on death row are mixed because actual occurrences are minimal and information is limited. "Most individuals want to fight for their life," said Rudolph Alexander, professor and director of the undergraduate program in social work at Ohio State. "It's not the norm (to volunteer). It might be that they prefer to die rather than spend the rest of their life in prison." Regardless of the reasoning behind the decision to step forward, Alexander said he thinks the courts should honor a death row inmate's request to move ahead with the execution. "I think one can make a rational decision," said Alexander, who is also involved with OSU's Criminal Justice Research Center. "I think a person who has been convicted has the right to withdrawal appeals and accept their punishment." Meyers is not convinced. In his experiences with both the Berry and Vrabel cases, he said it is essential to accurately determine mental awareness and stability, rather than competence, in any case, especially with volunteers. "Competency is fluid; it can change over time," he said. "You can be very sick and still be competent in the eyes of the law." In Vrabel's handwritten letter, he referenced such cases as Roe v. Flores (2000), State v. Tenace (1997), State v. Edwards (1997), among others, and wrote, "Clearly it is my right not to appeal. Please honor that choice." Vrabel also pleaded for compliance from the Ohio Public Defender and invited psychological evaluation of his mental competency. He wrote, "You will not prevent my execution." Vrabel was convicted of two counts of aggravated murder in 1994 for shooting his common-law wife, Susan Clemente, and his daughter, Lisa, in 1989. Norris said typically, volunteers would progress through court, as Vrabel did, before they decide to waive remaining appeals. "When they get to a point where they've exhausted their appeals - it's a very long process, over a decade - at that point, they say 'OK,'" Norris said. Regardless of when an inmate decides to step forward, all cases must go to the Ohio Supreme Court, said Joseph Wilhelm, chief council of the death penalty division of the Ohio Public Defenders office. "The independent review by the Ohio Supreme Court they have to do, so they're not really volunteering," Wilhelm said. "The statute requires the Supreme Court to review the appropriateness of the death sentence imposed." Vrabel still sits on death row, awaiting an execution date. "The courts have not moved with his request to be a volunteer," said Andrea Dean, spokeswoman for the Ohio Department of Rehabilitation and Correction. Meyers said the Mahoning County trial court completed the mental competency tests and referred Vrabel's request to the Ohio Supreme Court. "We're just waiting for his case to come to the top of the pile," he said. (source: The (Ohio State Univ.) Lantern, May 26) FLORIDA: Man Gets Death Sentence For Security Guard's Killing A Lake County man is getting a death sentence for killing a security guard during a crime spree that also left a pizza deliveryman dead and an elderly woman badly beaten. Quawn Moses Franklin occasionally bowed his head in court Thursday as he listened to Circuit Judge Mark Hill read the sentence. It's for the slaying of security guard Jerry Lawley on Dec. 29, 2001. Franklin also received a life sentence at the hearing. That's being added to the six life terms he is already serving for the killing of pizza deliveryman John Horan and for nearly beating to death 78-year-old Alice Johnson, whose car he also stole. Both occurred within days of Lawley's death. Lawley was shot in the back at Leesburg's Elberta Crate and Box Co., where he worked. Pamela McCoy, 16, who was Franklin's accomplice in the Lawley shooting, pleaded guilty in a deal last summer and is serving 35 years in prison. (source: Associated Press) OKLAHOMA: Jurors recommend death sentence A jury recommended Thursday night that a former Oklahoma City motel manager should die for his role in the death of the motel's owner. The Oklahoma County jury deliberated about 4 hours before recommending the death sentence for Richard Eugene Glossip, 41. The motel owner, Barry Alan Van Treese, 54, of Lawton, was beaten to death with a baseball bat Jan. 7, 1997, at the Best Budget Inn, 301 S Council Road. Glossip was accused by prosecutors of being the mastermind behind the plot to kill Treese, who was beaten by the motel's maintenance man, Justin Sneed, 28. Prosecutors alleged Glossip arranged for Treese's death because he feared he was about to be fired by Treese. Sneed pleaded guilty to killing Treese and agreed to testify against Glossip in exchange for a sentence of life without parole. Jurors returned Tuesday night with a guilty verdict against Glossip. It is the 2nd time he has been convicted of the crime. His 1st conviction was overturned in 2001 by the Oklahoma Court of Criminal Appeals after justices agreed with the findings of District Judge Twyla Mason Gray that Glossip had received an inadequate defense. (source: The Oklahoman)
