Oct. 27 OREGON: Condemned prisoner challenges death-penalty initiative----Rape, murder convict has no state appeals left Clinton Cunningham, who was sentenced to death after the rape and murder of a hitchhiker, has become Oregon's first death-row inmate to complete the state appeals process since voters reinstated capital punishment in 1984. Cunningham, 37, filed his federal appeal last week, The Oregonian reported. If his case makes its way through that process, he could be the 1st Oregon prisoner to be executed after running out of appeals since 1962. 2 inmates were put to death in the mid-1990s, but they had abandoned their appeals. The case also could affect the other 28 death-row inmates. The federal courts will evaluate Oregon's death-penalty statute. If the courts uphold the law against Cunningham's constitutional challenge, the rest of the men on death row will have fewer hurdles to clear before execution. On the other hand, if the courts agree with Cunningham, Oregon may have to retry its death-row inmates. "It certainly has the potential for relieving some of the bottleneck," said Kevin Neely, a spokesman for the Oregon Department of Justice. But "if they find that the system is flawed, that may in fact have a significant impact on our ability to move these (cases) through at all." The appeal takes aim at Oregon's 1984 death-penalty initiative, which includes a separate sentencing proceeding. After the jury convicts a defendant of aggravated murder, jurors must unanimously agree on the answers to four questions to impose the death sentence. One of Cunningham's claims is against the second question, which asks the jury "whether there is a probability that the defendant would commit criminal acts of violence that would constitute a continuing threat to society." C. Renee Manes, Cunningham's attorney, said psychological and psychiatric groups have "rejected the concept" that a person can be accurately diagnosed as a future danger. (source: Associated Press) NEW JERSEY: Prosecutor mulls death penalty in Holmdel murder The Monmouth County Prosecutor's Office has not determined whether the case against a 43-year-old Holmdel man, charged earlier this week with killing his wife, will be presented as a death penalty case. On Wednesday, Prosecutor Luis A. Valentin said it was premature for his office to decide if it would present a death penalty case against George Calleia, who was charged with killing his wife, Susan Calleia, and leaving her body in an isolated area of the PNC Bank Arts Center in Holmdel. Valentin said his office is continuing to gather evidence in the case and would not make a decision regarding the death penalty until his office is ready to present the case to a grand jury for an indictment. In New Jersey, a grand jury must decide if a murder charge can proceed as a death penalty case. George Calleia remains at the Monmouth County Jail on $3 million bail. (source: Asbury Park Press) DELAWARE----impending execution Del. high court denies appeal by killer facing Nov. 4 execution The Delaware Supreme Court has denied convicted killer Brian Steckels appeal to delay his Nov. 4 execution. In a decision made public today, all 5 justices ruled there is no merit to Steckels appeal and no reason to delay his date to die by lethal injection. Steckel was convicted of the 1994 rape and murder of Sandra Lee Long and the arson of her apartment. He was sentenced to death in 1996. In this most recent appeal, Steckels attorneys, Joseph Bernstein and John Deckers, contended the Nov. 4 execution date did not give them 90 days to file an appeal with the U.S. Supreme Court. Steckels attorneys intend to argue that Delawares death sentence at the time of Steckels conviction was unconstitutional based on recent U.S. Supreme Court decisions. The state Supreme Court, however, said there is no automatic stay of execution "simply because Steckel intends to file - with the United States Supreme Court." The justices went on to say there is no reasonable likelihood that at least 4 U.S. Supreme Court justices would vote to hear Steckels case. Bernstein and Deckers could not be reached for comment today. No information was available about the status of Steckels appeal to the U.S. Supreme Court or whether the appeal has been filed. (source: The News Journal) ********************* Groups oppose death penaltyProtesters vow to continue until Nov. 4 execution--Other events protesting the death penalty will take place Nov. 3: >From 1 to 1:45 p.m., there will be an interfaith service at St. Joseph's Catholic Church, 1012 N. French St., Wilmington. >From 3 to 4 p.m., there will be a rally in front of Legislative Hall in Dover. >From 8 to 9 p.m., there will be an interfaith service at the Thomas More Oratory, 45 Lovett Ave., Newark. >From 10:15 p.m. to 12:25 a.m., there will be a candlelight vigil. Participants will gather at the Smyrna Rest Area between 10:15 and 11 p.m. They will then drive to the demonstration area at the Delaware Correctional Center near Smyrna. For more information call 656-2721, 463-7977 or 674-2496. Death-penalty opponents began protests Wednesday that they promise will continue until the execution of convicted killer Brian D. Steckel, scheduled for Nov. 4. A half-dozen people opposing capital punishment gathered in Rodney Square carrying signs and a message. "We're here to say that on Nov. 5, the people of Delaware won't be safer," said lawyer Kevin J. O'Connell. Steckel, 36, was convicted of the 1994 rape and murder of 29-year-old Sandra Lee Long. Long's family would not comment. Wednesday's rally was organized by Delaware Citizens Opposed to the Death Penalty and Because Love Allows Compassion. Participants carried signs that read "Abolish the Death Penalty" and "I Support the Moratorium on the Death Penalty." Kristin Froehlich, a Brandywine Hundred resident who participated in the rally, said she does not believe the death penalty helps in any way. Her brother was murdered in Connecticut in 1995, and his killer was sentenced to life in prison. "I would have not benefited at all from the execution of my brother's killer," she said. "In fact, I believe executions add to the powerlessness of the victim's family." The 45-minute noontime rally attracted a few onlookers, including Latisha Wing. The Wilmington resident was waiting for a bus, but wanted to learn more. She then briefly held a sign to show her support. "Everybody's life is important," she said. James Barr watched the rally from some nearby steps. "I think everybody is entitled to their own opinion," he said. "But I think [the death penalty] is only right. You take a life, you got to give up your own." Sally Milbury-Steen, treasurer of Delaware Citizens Opposed to the Death Penalty, said she was not disappointed by the low turnout. "A lot of people are working, and they can't come out," she said. "It doesn't mean that what is going on here doesn't resonate." (source: Delawareonline) MISSOURI: Shadow of a doubt lingers in mind after execution "I go with a peace of mind that comes from never having taken a human life." - Marlin Gray. Those words from Gray's final statement before his execution Wednesday haunt me. I would think a man, moments away from death, with no options for reprieve, would fess up and go to the great beyond with a clear conscience. Gray didn't. Instead he left words that should sting the conscience of those who enthusiastically embrace the death penalty: "Never having taken a human life." Doesn't that betray the reason we Missourians kill people? Isn't that the motivation of those who opposed Gray's execution? Did the state prove beyond a shadow of a doubt that Gray took lives? I don't think so. Despite what the courts ruled, the 1991 rape and murder case of the Kerry sisters (Robin, 19, and Julie, 20) contained too many unanswered questions, too many conflicting testimonies, too many allegations of forced confessions and prosecutorial misconduct. My feelings were accurately reflected in comments from Gray's lawyer, Joanne Martin Descher, before the execution. The death sentence, she said, was "completely unjust and inappropriate." But it makes so little difference now. Gray is dead. And his death was, indisputably, premeditated. Like Descher, I'm "deeply saddened over the outcome." But my reasons are compounded by other factors. Since writing my column Sunday, asking that Gov. Matt Blunt closely analyze Gray's clemency appeal, I've been discussing and debating the case with readers. Many framed their arguments in strange "him versus them" parameters. If I favored Gray's clemency, I didn't care about the victims, they wrote. I found myself in the unbelievable position of explaining that the sisters didn't deserve to die. By many accounts, Robin and Julie were politically active young women who worked for racial harmony. But even if they weren't, whoever raped and pushed them off the bridge deserved punishment to the fullest extent of the law. As it stands, the death penalty is the maximum punishment for murder. But, like others who supported his clemency appeal, I don't feel the state proved that Gray's crime warranted the death penalty. If my conversations with readers revolved around that issue, I wouldn't be as frustrated. Instead, many discussed the hypocrisy of opposing the death penalty while supporting abortion. Some vented about "liberal judges" protecting "minority criminals." Several others claimed Gray should be killed because he participated in the rapes and didn't stop the killing. A couple even thought he should die because "OJ got away with murder." Those comments were debatable but bearable. Most unsettling, however, were the readers fixated on the rape (not the murder) of the Kerry sisters. Their derogatory comments about lynching, killing and executing blacks "who raped white girls" transported me back to life circa 1965. "This is not a death, it is a lynching," Gray said in his final statement. Was it? Did the "race and rape" factor play into the prosecution, trial and sentencing? Of the five arrested suspects, one white man was exonerated while the other spends 30 years in prison. The 3 blacks all received the death sentence with 1 having had his sentence on appeal reduced to life in prison. Was Gray's execution another example of WGNU radio host Lizz Brown's repeated question: "Is it the crime, or the color of those accused of the crime?" It troubles me that I can't answer that question with a resounding "no." Before dying, Gray said he forgave those who thought he deserved to die. "They know not what they do," he said. If only that were true Marlin, if only that were true. (source: Sylvester Brown Jr., St. Louis Post-Dispatch) INDIANA: Prosecutors given time to build murder case A Superior Court judge on Wednesday gave Marion County prosecutors 72 more hours to build their murder case against Adam Rogers, 22, the man accused of gunning down Palwinder Singh at a convenience store. Rogers admitted shooting Singh during the robbery of the Tobacco Road gas station and convenience store in the 3100 block of English Avenue and was very remorseful, according to court documents. He said it was an accident. Singh, 22, was shot about 9:20 p.m. Saturday when two men tried to rob his store, police said. Rogers was arrested on preliminary charges of murder and attempted robbery. He turned himself in Monday after media reports showed surveillance video of the robbery and shooting, police said. (source: Indianapolis Star)
