April 20 SOUTH CAROLINA: Death penalty 'off the table' in killing -- Federal prosecutors reviewed case of 2003 drug informant shooting Federal prosecutors will not seek the death penalty against 3 York County men accused in the shooting death of a Rock Hill drug informant in 2003. "The death penalty is off the table," Assistant U.S. Attorney Mark Moore told Judge Cameron Currie on Tuesday. Patrick Ray Simpson, Kenneth Roshaun Reid and Samuel Larell Anderson face drug, conspiracy and murder-for-hire charges in the death of Ernest Hollis. Hollis was shot dead in his girlfriend's apartment at Catawba Point Townhomes on Springdale Road in September 2003 with his children and others close by inside the apartment. As is required in the federal system, the U.S. Department of Justice reviewed the case and agreed with prosecutors' decision not to seek the death penalty, Moore said. In state courts, prosecutors alone decide whether to seek the death penalty in certain murder cases. Reid offered Simpson $3,000 to kill Hollis, according to an FBI affidavit that says Simpson confessed and implicated the other 2. The killing happened two weeks after Hollis bought drugs from Reid while cooperating with York County drug agents, the affidavit alleges. Hollis faced drug charges of his own at the time of his arrest. Indictments allege Simpson brought cocaine to Rock Hill from Texas, where he sold it to Reid and others. Additionally, a federal grand jury will consider 6 new weapons allegations against Reid today, Moore said in court. Simpson had been in a psychiatric hospital for evaluation before Tuesday's hearing. But Currie said sealed evaluations show he is competent to stand trial. Prosecutors severed Simpson's case and Currie set a trial date of July 14. Reid and Anderson will face trial Sept. 7. (source: The Herald) NEW JERSEY: Killer may face death penalty A 25-year-old man was found guilty of murder yesterday in the grisly slayings of two men, whose bodies were discovered in a burning SUV dumped in Jersey City 3 years ago. Tariq Maqbool, of Old Bridge, was convicted for the murders of Joong Ahn, 45, of Maple Glen, Pa., and his nephew, Mun Ahn, 28, of Queens, on the night of Nov. 1, 2002. He will receive a minimum of life in prison with a chance for parole, but could face the death penalty, Hudson County Prosecutor Edward DeFazio said. Hudson County Assistant Prosecutor Salvatore Rozzi argued the case against Maqbool, who also was found guilty of robbery and kidnapping, DeFazio said. Maqbool and 3 other men had a deal to buy $300,000 in pre-paid phone cards from the Ahns, but attacked them and stole the money, investigators said. Prosecutors say Maqbool put a plastic bag over Joong Ahn's head in an attempt to suffocate him, then kneeled on his back and strangled him with a power cord. Mun Ahn and the body of Joong Ahn were then taken to a desolate area at the foot of Duncan Avenue near the Hackensack River and put into a car, Rozzi said. Mun Ahn was then shot in the head, and the SUV doused with gasoline and set on fire, prosecutors said. An autopsy determined that Mun Ahn had soot in his lungs, indicating he was probably alive when the vehicle was torched, DeFazio said. Two of the other men involved in the crime were convicted in October 2004. Paul Reid, 41, of Sayreville, was convicted of 2 counts of felony murder and related charges and was given 2 consecutive sentences of 30 years without parole. His brother, Stephen Reid, 31, of Sayreville, was convicted of 2nd-degree theft and sentenced to 10 years in state prison with a five year minimum of no parole. The penalty phase of proceedings for Maqbool begins Monday at the Hudson County court house. (source: The Jersey Journal) PENNSYLVANIA----new death sentence//female Hatchet killer of Pearl Harbor vet gets death sentence from jury A woman convicted of killing her 83-year-old neighbor with dozens of hatchet blows was sentenced to death Tuesday. Shonda Walter, 25, sat quietly as the foreman announced the sentence. The same jury had deliberated for fewer than 30 minutes Monday before finding Walter guilty of the 2003 murder of James Sementelli, a World War II vet who was serving on Oahu when the Japanese attacked Pearl Harbor. Prosecutors said Walter struck Sementelli with a hatchet 66 times and carved a cross in his stomach. She watched TV and ate ice cream before taking Sementelli's car, prosecutors said. Witnesses testified she said she took a break during the slaying to recite the Lord's Prayer. Later she returned and stole $510 in quarters. District Attorney Ted McKnight said Walter rejected a pretrial offer of a life sentence if she pleaded guilty. (source: Associated Press) VIRGINIA: A Sept. 11 Plea? ZACARIAS MOUSSAOUI, the only person charged with a crime in connection with the attacks of Sept. 11, 2001, is reportedly ready to plead guilty to the capital offenses with which he is charged. If Mr. Moussaoui is really prepared to acknowledge that he was a participant in the Sept. 11 conspiracy, as the government alleges, his plea could offer an unexpectedly constructive ending to the embarrassing spectacle his case has become. Mr. Moussaoui's erratic behavior throughout the case, however, raises caution flags. His fulminations against his lawyers, prosecutors and Judge Leonie M. Brinkema have led to questions about his mental health. Any questions on this score should be addressed unambiguously so that the public can rest assured that a conviction of this importance doesn't rest on an impulsive act of an unstable man. Just as important, while pleading guilty is a defendant's right, Judge Brinkema needs to satisfy herself that Mr. Moussaoui's plea is not just the latest pose by a defendant keen to make a mockery of the U.S. justice system. Mr. Moussaoui, after all, has tried to plead guilty before; he also has insisted that he had no involvement in the Sept. 11 attacks. And while the evidence that he is an al Qaeda operative who meant to do grave harm is beyond serious dispute, the evidence of his connection to the attacks of that day is less clear. Judge Brinkema needs to make sure that Mr. Moussaoui is pleading guilty because he is in fact guilty. More broadly, a plea would not resolve the problems in the justice system that the case has highlighted. It has taken Mr. Moussaoui's case more than 3 years to get to this point; without the plea, it would go on for many more months. It has been up and down the appellate ladder on profound constitutional questions concerning how much access Mr. Moussaoui should have to detainees abroad who have evidence in his favor. It has revealed just how thoroughly a committed al Qaeda operative can tie the courts in knots. All of this would be an excellent argument for military tribunals, except that the government has failed to bring anyone to trial using that mechanism either; that process, too, is tied up in litigation. The government has captured numerous figures who ought to be formally charged and brought to justice: Khalid Sheik Mohammed and Ramzi Binalshibh, for starters. Yet years after Sept. 11, this country lacks a viable and predictable means of trying its highest-value captives. Congress should step in and clarify the rules regarding both military tribunals and federal court prosecutions in terrorism cases. The Bush administration has resisted seeking legislative assistance, but Congress cannot afford to wait any longer to be asked to participate. Even if Mr. Moussaoui's plea ends his case, these issues are not going away. (source: Editorial, Washington Post)
