death penalty news September 25, 2004
ARKANSAS: Court Denies Stay Of Execution The state Supreme Court on Thursday declined to halt the execution of Rickey Dale Newman, set for Tuesday. The high court said in its ruling that the federal public defender who filed the request was not Newman's attorney and had no standing in the case. Newman has fired his previous attorneys and has said more than once that he wants to be executed, the state Supreme Court said. Newman was convicted in the 2001 stabbing of a woman near what authorities described as a "hobo camp" in Crawford County. Last week, U.S. District Judge Robert T. Dawson appointed federal public defender Jennifer Horan to represent Newman. Monday, Horan filed a petition in Crawford County Circuit Court asking that his execution be delayed pending additional forensic testing. A hearing on that request is set for 1 p.m. today. Tuesday, Horan filed a stay request before the state Supreme Court, arguing that Newman is mentally ill and mentally retarded and not competent to waive his rights to a thorough and accurate review of his case. Also Tuesday, Newman, in a written statement, fired Horan, saying he did not want attorneys to stop his execution. Newman, who has waived his appeals in the case, has said he is ready to die for the death of Marie Elaine Cholette, 46, who was found dead in February 2001. A circuit court judge has ruled that Newman was competent to waive his appeals and Attorney General Mike Beebe asked Gov. Mike Huckabee to set the execution date. The state Supreme Court also conducted an automatic review of his conviction and sentence and affirmed them in June 2003. A state hospital evaluation said Newman did not suffer from any mental disease or defect, and had the capacity to knowingly, intelligently and voluntarily waive his right to have an attorney advise him of his post-conviction rights. Earlier this month, the state Post Prison Transfer Board denied a clemency request for Newman because it was not filed by his attorney. That request was filed by Betsy Wright, an advocate for death-row inmates and former gubernatorial chief of staff for Bill Clinton. (source: The Times Record, Fort Smith, AR)
