August 4 TEXAS: see: http://capitaldefenseweekly.com/hced.html (source: KKeys) ALABAMA: Governor refuses to delay execution of anti-government extremist Gov. Bob Riley refused to delay the scheduled Thursday execution of an anti-government extremist convicted of capital murder in the 1993 shooting death of an Opelika police officer. George Sibley Jr., 62, who also had an appeal pending before the U.S. Supreme Court, had asked Riley to delay the execution for six months. But Riley refused. "There is no new evidence that would justify such a delay," the governor said in a statement. Sibley, who previously has contended the courts don't have any jurisdiction over him, was set to die by lethal injection at 6 p.m. CDT at Holman prison near Atmore for the shooting death of Opelika police Officer Roger Motley. Sibley's common-law wife, Lynda Lyon Block, 54, was executed in 2002 for her role in the shooting death of Motley. The police officer was gunned down by both in a Wal-Mart parking lot when he approached their car after a passer-by said a child in the car had asked for help. Block was executed after she and Sibley for years had refused to file appeals. They renounced their U.S. citizenship and contended the courts were biased and without jurisdiction. In his petition Wednesday to the Supreme Court, Sibley wrote that his appeal has never been fully reviewed by the court in Washington, D.C., and it is "crucial in a case such as this." But state's attorneys filed a response brief saying Sibley is not entitled to a delay. "For no good reason, Sibley has waited until the eve of his execution to file this motion," the filing said. Sibley, who did pursue an appeal for a time after Block's execution, unsuccessfully sought a stay recently from the Alabama Supreme Court. At the time of the Opelika policeman's killing, the 2 were fleeing from Orlando, Fla., to avoid being sentenced on assault convictions in the stabbing of Block's 79-year-old former husband during an argument. (source: The Tuscaloosa News) VIRGINIA: Jury deliberates over mental capacity of death row inmate In Yorktown, a jury deliberated for nearly 6 hours Thursday without reaching a verdict on whether death row inmate Daryl Atkins is mentally retarded. The U.S. Supreme Court ruled in Atkins' case three years ago that executing the mentally retarded is unconstitutional. However, the court said it is up to states to determine whether inmates are retarded. If the York County Circuit Court jury decides Atkins is retarded, he will spend the rest of his life in prison for the robbery and slaying of an Air Force enlisted man. If not, the 27-year-old will be executed. After closing arguments, the jury of 6 men and 6 women began deliberations shortly after 11 a.m. There are no blacks on the panel. Atkins is black. Judge Prentis Smiley Jr. called jurors into the courtroom at about 5 p.m. and asked if they were close to a verdict. When the foreman said no, he sent them home for the night. The jury will resume deliberations at 8 a.m. Friday. Testimony in the case centered on Atkins' mental capabilities. The defense portrayed him as so limited he was cut from the football team because he couldn't understand the plays. "He was teased unmercifully as a child because of mental slowness," defense attorney Mark Olive said during opening statements in the 2-week trial. The prosecution blamed his poor performance in school on the use of drugs and alcohol, and said the claim of mental retardation was a ploy to avoid execution. "None of his teachers, friends or family believed Daryl was mentally retarded until he was facing the death penalty," York County Commonwealth's Attorney Eileen Addison said in her opening statement. Both sides called expert witnesses who disagreed on whether Atkins fell into the category of mentally retarded. An IQ of 70 or less by the age of 18 is required to be considered mentally retarded in Virginia, which also takes into account social skills and the ability to care for oneself. Atkins had scores of 59, 67, 74 and 76 on IQ tests, but they were given when he was older than 18. Atkins was 18 when he and William Jones killed Airman 1st Class Eric Nesbitt, 21, for beer money. Nesbitt was abducted outside a convenience store, forced to withdraw money from an automated teller machine and driven to a desolate road, where he was shot 8 times. Prosecutors said Atkins was the triggerman. A plea agreement was reached with Jones, who testified against Atkins and received a life sentence. 18 states already had laws on the books exempting the mentally retarded from execution before the Supreme Court's ruling in Atkins' case. Eight, including Virginia, have revised their laws to comply with the ruling. (source: Associated Press) FLORIDA: Death penalty for murderer of wanted-to-be-cuddled-after-sex wife Christopher Offord wanted to watch sports on television. "The defendant struck his wife approximately 70 individual blows after spending a happy interlude with her," the judge said. A U.S. man who got angry with his wife because she wanted to cuddle after sex when what he really wanted to do was watch sports on television has been sentenced to death for killing her with a claw hammer. Christopher Offord, 30, was sentenced Wednesday by Florida Circuit Judge Dedee Costello, who said the brutality of the crime outweighed any mental problems Offord may have had. "The defendant struck his wife approximately 70 individual blows after spending a happy interlude with her," the judge said. "Her desire to cuddle after sex does not justify the extremely violent, brutal response of the defendant." Offord pleaded guilty to 1st-degree murder in the 2004 slaying of Dana Noser, 40, at his apartment. He confessed to a bartender at a sports bar before his arrest. Offord told investigators that his wife had been nagging him to come back to bed. Offord did not speak in court but said in a jailhouse interview in June: "I figured I killed her so I deserve to die." (sourcce: EITB24) ************************** Man found guilty of killing Tampa couple In Tampa, a jury will decide if a 53-year-old St. Petersburg man should be executed after he was found guilty of 1st-degree murder Wednesday in the November 2003 slayings of a Tampa couple. Jurors deliberated about 3 hours before convicting William James Deparvine of the slayings of Richard and Karla Van Dusen. Prosecutors said he shot them in the head at close range after buying a restored pickup truck from them. A penalty phase, during which prosecutors will try to persuade jurors to recommend a death sentence for Deparvine, will begin Thursday morning. He was also found guilty of 2 counts of carjacking. A DNA match from a blood sample pulled off the couple's Jeep Cherokee led police to arrest Deparvine, who was on supervised release from prison. He contended that he had bought the 1971 Chevrolet Cheyenne pickup from the Van Dusens but that someone who resembled him actually killed the couple. Deparvine was arrested in January 2004, three months after the couple's bodies were found lying face-down in a dirt driveway in northwest Hillsborough County. Officials have said that Deparvine is a suspect in several other unsolved slayings. (source: Associated Press)
