NCADP AUGUST 2005 EXECUTION ALERT Scheduled Executions: August 4: George Sibley: (AL) http://www.demaction.org/dia/organizations/ncadp/campaign.jsp?campaign_KEY=1 027 August 10: Gary Sterling (TX) http://www.demaction.org/dia/organizations/ncadp/campaign.jsp?campaign_KEY=1 028 August 15: Kenneth Turrentine (OK): http://www.demaction.org/dia/organizations/ncadp/campaign.jsp?campaign_KEY=1 032 August 23: Robert Shields (TX): http://www.demaction.org/dia/organizations/ncadp/campaign.jsp?campaign_KEY=1 036 August 31: Arthur Baird (IN): http://www.demaction.org/dia/organizations/ncadp/campaign.jsp?campaign_KEY=1 037 Alabama George Sibley August 4, 2005 6:00 p.m. CST http://www.demaction.org/dia/organizations/ncadp/campaign.jsp?campaign_KEY=1 027 The state of Alabama is scheduled to execute 62-year-old George Sibley, Jr., a white man, on Aug. 4, 2005 for the June 10, 1994 murder of an Opelika police officer, Roger Lamar Motley, in Lee County. Sibley's common-law wife, Lynda Lyon Block, 54, died in the electric chair for the same crime on May 10, 2002. The couple was heading through Alabama from Florida when they stopped so Block could use a payphone. While Block was on the phone a witness reportedly saw Block's son in the car crying for help. This witness called Officer Motley to investigate the situation. Officer Motley asked Sibley for his driver's license. When Sibley indicated that he did not have a driver's license, Officer Motley attempted to arrest him. Sibley, believing that this arrest was unlawful, pulled a gun. Sibley and Block shot Officer Motley. At trial, the forensic tests were inconclusive as to which gun fired the fatal shot. Sibley was unable to prove his claim that Motley had a history of corruption as a police officer. Block and Sibley were both found guilty and sentenced to death. They failed to file appeals. After Block was executed Sibley decided to pursue his appeals. Sibley's scheduled execution in November of that year was stopped two days before he was to die of lethal injection, when he filed an appeal. On appeal, Sibley chose to represent himself despite the extraordinarily technical and complex legal issues involved in appealing a capital conviction. In that appeal, Sibley claimed that Alabama's death penalty law is unconstitutional because it allows the judge, not the jury, to make the final decision on a death sentence. A federal court dismissed the appeal, saying Sibley missed deadlines for filing such a motion. He failed to properly file a timely application for his post conviction relief, therefore being denied his habeas corpus review. Sibley claimed that his execution date was set when he still had one more day to make an appeal. The death penalty does not deter crime nor does it create a more just society. It is more costly to administer than other alternatives and it disproportionately affects people with fewer resources. Please take a moment to contact Gov. Bob Riley and the Alabama Board of Pardons and Paroles and ask them to spare the life of George Sibley. Texas Gary Sterling August 10, 2005 6:00 p.m. CST http://www.demaction.org/dia/organizations/ncadp/campaign.jsp?campaign_KEY=1 028 The state of Texas is scheduled to execute 38-year-old Gary Lynn Sterling, a black man, on Aug. 10, 2005 for the May 31, 1988 murder of 72-year-old John Wesley Carty, a white man, in Navarro County. While in jail in Hill County, Texas, Sterling informed law enforcement officials of the locations of two bodies in neighboring Navarro County. After directing authorities to the bodies, Sterling produced a written statement in which he admitted to the killings. He was subsequently arrested and charged with Carty's murder. A jury found Sterling guilty of capital murder in the death of Carty and decided that he should die for the crime. Sterling possessed a strong ineffective assistance of counsel claim. During questioning of prospective jurors, one of Sterling's attorneys, Robert Dunn, failed to inquire into the racial views of a prospective juror that he knew to harbor prejudicial feelings towards African-Americans. Evidence of the prospective juror's racism is found in a post-trial affidavit in which he used a highly inflammatory racial epithet in reference to African-Americans. Dunn possessed knowledge of the prospective jurors' racism well before trial, for the two were long-time acquaintances. Yet Dunn neither asked the prospective juror about his racial views nor took efforts to remove him from the jury pool. The unfortunate result of this inaction was that the prospective juror was seated on the jury for Sterling's trial. And there exists good chance that he was not the only racist juror. Dunn admits that he did not inquire into the possible racial biases of any of the members of the jury pool. The presence of a racially prejudicial juror on Sterling's jury, and the possible presence of others, might have impacted the verdict and sentence. An additional point of concern in Sterling's trial is the court's decision to appoint Dr. James Grigson to aid in Sterling's defense. Sterling's attorneys desired to have their client's mental state evaluated prior to trial. Therefore, they asked the court for access to a psychiatric expert. The court appointed Dr. Grigson, a psychiatrist whose reputation for being sympathetic to the prosecution in capital cases had become so notorious that he had earned the nickname "Dr. Death." Well aware of this dubious reputation, Sterling's attorneys declined his assistance. Had Sterling been afforded a proper evaluation by an unbiased, psychiatric professional, findings might have been yielded that would have reduced Sterling's degree of culpability in Carthey's murder. The fairness of Sterling's trial is clearly in doubt. Not only was Sterling convicted and sentenced to death by a jury tainted with racial prejudice, he was not provided access to an unbiased psychiatric evaluation. Please contact Gov. Rick Perry and request that he stop the execution of Gary Lynn Sterling. Oklahoma Kenneth Turrentine August 15, 2005 6:00 p.m. CST http://www.demaction.org/dia/organizations/ncadp/campaign.jsp?campaign_KEY=1 032 The state of Oklahoma is scheduled to execute 52-year-old Kenneth Eugene Turrentine, a black man, on Aug. 15, 2005 for the June 4, 1994 murder of his estranged girlfriend, Anita Richardson, her daughter, 22-year-old Tina Pennington and her child, 13-year-old Martise Richardson. Turrentine also shot his sister, Avon Stevenson, in Green County. Turrentine confessed to the murders in a 911 call and again to the police after they had read him his Miranda warning. The errors in Turrentine's trial included failure to give proper instructions to the jury with regard to second-degree murder, prejudicial victim impact testimony and a claim of ineffective assistance of trial counsel. Furthermore, evidence that Turrentine was abused as a child was never brought to the attention of the jury. The Oklahoma Court of Criminal Appeals' jury instructions regarding sentencing options were found to be prejudicial. The court found that when this type of instruction is given it has a "substantial and injurious effect, or influence in determining the jury's verdict." It found that it would infect the entire trial so that the resulting conviction violates due process. However, this alone was not enough to overturn his conviction. Another claim of Turrentine was that the trial court violated his rights by excluding certain mitigating evidence from the sentencing stage of his trial. Specifically, Turrentine contended that it should have allowed testimony as to his diminished capacity at the time of the murders. Although the trial court admitted similar evidence at the guilt stage of the trial, it excluded this type of evidence from the sentencing stage. Mr. Turrentine now claims that the exclusion of this mitigating evidence was improper because sentencing courts may not refuse to consider, as a matter of law, any relevant mitigating evidence. His final claim was ineffective assistance of counsel. He contended that trial counsel failed to properly present evidence of his mental health. They jury was not informed that Turrentine suffered from abuse as a child. Had the jury been aware of this information, the mitigating evidence may have outweighed the aggravating circumstances surrounding the crime. In short, Turrentine has not had a chance to prove he did not have a healthy mental state at the time of the murders. The jury instructions made it impossible for him to be convicted of anything less than 1st degree murder. Mitigating evidence that might have made the jury convict him of a lesser charge was never presented. Turrentine has not had the opportunity for a jury of his peers to determine whether a death sentence is appropriate considering all factors surrounding the case. Please contact Gov. Brad Henry and the Oklahoma Board of Pardons and Paroles and ask them to stop the execution of Kenneth Turrentine. Texas Robert Shields August 23, 2005 6:00 p.m. CST http://www.demaction.org/dia/organizations/ncadp/campaign.jsp?campaign_KEY=1 036 The state of Texas is scheduled to execute 30-year-old Robert Alan Shields, a white man, for the Sept. 21, 1994 killing of 27-year-old Paula Stiner, a white female, in Galveston County. Shields was 19 years old at the time of the crime. Shields broke into Stiner's house in the late afternoon. He was later caught by the police driving Stiner's car, and wearing clothes with her blood on them. He was convicted and sentenced to death in October of 1995. Shields argued on appeal that he had ineffective assistance of counsel, and that he was wrongly denied the chance to represent himself. He also maintained that the evidence showed that he was in the victim's home but did not establish that he was the actual killer. The court ruled against him on these claims. Like the majority of those on death row, Shields had few resources with which to hire a good attorney. It has been made clear that persons who are executed in the United States are not always those who commit the "worst crimes" but rather those who have the fewest resources. The death penalty is not a deterrent. A Texas study determined in 1999 that there was no relation between the number of executions and murder rates in general. The millions of dollars spent on capital punishment may be better used for other community interests, such as schools, hospitals, public safety and employment. Please take a moment and contact the state of Texas requesting that they spare the life of Robert Shields. Indiana Arthur Baird August 31, 2005 12:00 a.m. CST http://www.demaction.org/dia/organizations/ncadp/campaign.jsp?campaign_KEY=1 037 The state of Indiana is scheduled to execute 59-year-old Arthur P. Baird, Jr., a white man, on Aug. 31 for the Sept. 6, 1985 murders of his parents, 78-year-old Kathryn and 68-year-old Arthur, and his pregnant wife, 32-year-old Nadine in Montgomery County. He was 39 years old when he committed the murders. There is evidence to support the claim that Baird was suffering from mental illness at the time the crime was committed. At trial, evidence was introduced that Baird believed that the federal government was about to pay him $1 million in return for his advice regarding the national debt. In reality, Baird was in debt and had just lost his job. Baird maintains the murders were a result of "irresistible impulse" spurred by mental illness. His attorney, Sarah Nagy, has said Baird believes that a big, burly man was moving his arms and forcing his participation in the crime. Before these murders, Baird was a law-abiding citizen for 39 years. There is new newly discovered evidence that supports Baird's mental illness claim. The source of the new evidence was testimony at the post conviction hearing by clinical psychologist Dr. Howard E. Wooden. Dr. Wooden testified that at the time of the murders Baird suffered from a "delusional disorder" accompanied by a "psychotic reaction." According to Wooden's diagnosis, Baird acted and functioned in accordance with fanciful beliefs or delusions. The content of Baird's illusory belief system was threatened by a different tangible reality -- the failure of the federal government to supply funds to purchase the new farm. He refused to confront this reality and snapped, murdering his family -- the accompanying psychotic reaction. Dr. Wooden said that at the time of the trial, such delusional disorders were not available for firm independent diagnosis but were considered mainly in conjunction with substance abuse. Baird did not assert that this evidence required a finding of not guilty by reason of insanity. Rather, his contention is that if this diagnosis had been available to present in the sentencing phase or on direct appeal, it would have established Baird's inability to control his behavior and thus changed the balance of weighing the mitigating and aggravating factors to determine the appropriateness of a death sentence. Next, Baird contended, the post conviction court erred in concluding that Baird received a fair trial. He maintains four members of the jury were not impartial because they had been exposed to information derived from media accounts of plea negotiations that Baird had participated in before jury selection. His direct appeal was denied. Justice Robert D. Rucker sided with the Indiana Court of Criminal Appeals but indicated he is open to hearing about Baird's current mental state. The United States Supreme Court has never addressed the question of executing people who kill due to an "irresistible impulse" inspired by mental illness. In short, Baird is a man with extreme mental and emotional disturbance. He has no criminal history. Before these murders, he was active in the church, employed, he provided for his family, received an honorable discharge from the military, and was considered a person of good character in the community. There is strong evidence to support the claim that Baird's violent behavior was induced by mental illness. It is a grave human rights violation to execute those persons suffering from mental illness. Please contact Gov. Mitch Daniels and the Indiana Board of Pardons and Paroles and ask them to spare the life of Arthur P. Baird. Sarah Wisely Communications Assistant National Coalition to Abolish the Death Penalty 202-543-9577 ext. 14
