Dec. 12 TEXAS: Damnable death of a salesman There are dark holes in some souls that seem to exist outside the human condition, devoid of any fundamental or deep-seated appreciation of life. This was demonstrated clearly last week in Texarkana, in the shooting death of Tommy Ables, a much loved car salesman who went on a test drive with a bogus customer and never returned. If initial accounts prove true - and 2 teen-agers have been arrested and charged with capital murder - this is the type of inhumane crime that even defiles the concept of senselessness. Put it in perspective, if you will. While most of us would agree that murder of any kind is reprehensible and outside the laws of both society and God, we aren't beyond a degree of empathy. We might not condone it, but we understand crimes of passion. We might not condone it, but we understand crimes of anger. We understand emotions that are misguided and out-of-control because even the best of us fight with these compulsions from time to time. And, while we might loathe it, we've watched enough television crime-dramas to understand the concept of eliminating witnesses. For the calculated, for those devoid of emotion and pity, this is the practical response. But what we don't understand is cold calculated killing for no reason. And the Ables murder makes no sense on any rational or even irrational level, which is what makes it so heinous. For all their reported actions after the killing, the accused might as well have pushed Mr. Ables out the door of the BMW as it went around some country corner. They would have been no worse off for letting him live and limp off to tell the police. Consider this: They had already cased the car lot the week before. Unless they were complete idiots, they knew there were security cameras there. They were being recorded. There was no need to kill the witness. They were already fingered. Consider this: After they shot their captive and left his dead body on a remote road in Miller County, they went off to do the kind of things kids of that age do: Watch a basketball game and brag about their deeds. Only in this case, the deed was death. Obviously this was not a crime of passion or anger. The victim and suspects were practically strangers, connected only by a lust for a hot BMW on one side and the legitimate possession of it on the other. Nobody hated anybody when they slid into the car. It was just a business venture, very typical for a car salesman. What wasnt typical was a 2nd vehicle, driven by the female juvenile, that followed the BMW out of the car lot. And finally, consider this: This crime doesnt seem like it was completed with any sense that it needed to be covered up or kept secret. It wasnt the means to an end, it was just the means. The suspects were bragging about it to friends. In the little town of Waldo, Ark., where the vehicle was discovered, and where those arrested were from, the details of the crime were making the rounds. Be it arrogance or stupidity, those who committed the crime did very little to hide it. It some young circles, it was the talk of the town. The point of all these points is simply this: This was a murder that didn't have to happen and seems about as cold-blooded and pointless as can be imagined. Nobody thought of the victim's family. Or his friends. Or what he might contribute to the greater good of a community. Or even if pulling the trigger was necessary. It was just an action. Cold and heartless. Nothing calculated about it. And it doesn't even seem like it was viewed as evil or excessive. And that is scary. This is a tough world we live in. Certainly the death that awaits each of us may be neither fair nor deserved. But the idea that a stranger might someday step into our life and casually bring it to an end for no apparent reason is a frightening testament to an unraveling of social code we have long taken for granted. Most of us have a healthy fear of death. Most of us understand and cherish the sanctity of life. But when too many see life as cheap and something that can be snuffed out on a whim, the ties that bind us will dissolve into tribes that thrive only on self-interest or self-preservation. Some will view the Ables murder as an anomaly. Some will see it as part of a downward spiral that will only get worse. It is undoubtedly both. It is rare as it is unfathomable. It leaves behind no lessons to be learned. The idea of justice in-kind and the death penalty as a deterrent will have no impact on those who do not value life. Yet, when the killers are brought to trail, their fate should be knotted to their own sick views. When that day comes, a jury of their peers should consider the value of their lives with the same level of thoughtfulness and compassion that the killers afforded Mr. Ables and act accordingly. It will not be justice. It will not make up for the meaningless loss. But it will be symmetry in its most profound articulation. (source: Opinion, Les Minor, Managing Editor, Texarkana Gazette) WASHINGTON: Prosecutors Office losing many lawyers----Some point to hefty workloads, interoffice tension as factors As caseloads have increased in the Skagit County Prosecutors Office over the past 3 years, so has the departure of staff attorneys. Much of the blame is directed at Prosecutor Tom Seguine, who took office in January 2003 with an ambitious agenda that saw about a 50 % increase in criminal filings that year. The recent wave of resignations brings the total office turnover for the past 3 years to 12 lawyers - 9 deputy prosecutors and 3 civil attorneys. Speaking of the last 5 resignations, the deputy prosecutors union representative says the problem is simple - overwork. "He (Seguine) has doubled the workload, and the level of frustration is extremely high," said Bill Keenan, director of organizing for the union that represents the 10 deputy prosecutors. Seguines critics also point to personnel problems, including tensions between deputy prosecutors and Chief Criminal Deputy Dona Bracke. A dispute over sick leave for assistant prosecutors resulted in the filing of an unfair labor practices complaint. But the biggest complaint among the 10 lawyers assigned to criminal felony and misdemeanor cases is simply that there arent enough hours in a day to get the job done. "Who in their right minds work nights and weekends and, even then, not get the job done?" said Keenan, of the Washington State Council of County and City Employees Local 176-PA. "They are worried about doing a substandard job." Running on a platform of victims rights, Seguine narrowly won election in 2002 after a contentious campaign during which then-Prosecutor Tom Verge was accused of being too soft on criminals. Seguine boosted criminal filings by about half during his first year in office. Verge saw 5 assistant prosecutors leave the office during his entire 4 years, compared with 12 during Seguines first 3. Seguine agrees the latest round of resignations was caused by the workload and understaffing. "The office continues to be besieged by heavy caseloads," Seguine said. "It's a difficult environment to work in." Although Seguine has asked the Skagit County commissioners for additional deputy prosecutors and support staff, the county has only given him enough money to add one criminal attorney. Bracke, the chief criminal deputy, said backlogged cases are stacking up to the point where the office may have to decline cases because the statute of limitations will expire on them before charges can be filed. "There is a breaking point," she said. "The biggest risk is your ability to prep for cases." Seguine's critics say his policies on charging and plea bargains have created the difficult work environment. Dennis Scott, a lawyer with 30 years of experience as both a prosecutor and defense lawyer, filled in temporarily at the Skagit County Prosecutors Office during the summer of 2004 for a senior deputy prosecutor on family leave. "If you have a prosecutor's office that refuses to see the benefit of resolving cases equitably, then you have crushing caseloads," Scott said. "Morale is so bad that people have difficulty finding the time to be civil to each other. My experience was that there was no collegiality, which is necessary to sounding out good legal strategy and making reasoned decisions." In a report on the court system done in 2005 as part of a jail study, a consultant noted that the number of charges filed per case rose in 2003. More charges require more time for case preparation. Defense lawyers say deputy prosecutors tell them they want defendants to plead as charged, leaving little room for negotiation. "From a defendants standpoint, what exactly would be the benefit of pleading guilty when you can take your chances and end up with the same result at trial?" said Scott, who previously worked for the Skagit County Public Defender. Seguine's plea bargaining policy has made a critic out of a former supporter from his own office. Former deputy prosecutor Ron Costeck said Seguine's philosophy got in the way of his stated goals. "The rigid approach to some of the plea bargaining is not victim-friendly or victim-oriented," Costeck said. "That neither caters to the community nor to the victims." Costeck was among those lawyers who recently resigned, but was suspended without pay before his final day on the job because of what he said was Seguine's unhappiness over the way a case was settled. Seguine said he would not comment on Costeck's exit because it's a personnel matter. But he said some of his deputies have had different philosophical approaches to the job. He said that when he ran for office, he said he would put victims first. "I've told you that's a goal," Seguine said. "Justice is a goal you strive to achieve. Being human beings, we are not able to achieve our goal perfectly." Turnover not unexpected High turnover isn't new among prosecutors and public defenders, especially in smaller counties. Young lawyers often use their time as deputy prosecutors or public defenders as a training period before entering private practice. Many lawyers in Skagit County are former deputy prosecutors, public defenders or elected prosecutors. In 1997 and 1998, when Garl Long was prosecutor, 12 attorneys left the office. During the 1998 election, Seguine ran against Long in the Republican primary, saying if he were elected, he would stop the "parade of deputies" leaving. Long won the primary, but lost the election to Verge, a Democrat. Seguine has now matched the staff turnover of the Long era. In comparison, the Snohomish County Prosecutors Office criminal division, with 50 lawyers, has lost 10 in the same time period, said Mark Roe, Snohomish chief criminal deputy. 3 of Seguine's deputy prosecutors - Shauna Byers, Jason Powers and Costeck - are going into private practice. A 4th, Laura Riquelme, joined the county public defender. She declined to discuss her reasons. A fifth, Katie Wetmore, will soon start working for the Snohomish County Prosecutors Office. She said the position pays more and is closer to her home. Byers, who worked as a prosecutor in Oregon and Washington, said shed seen work levels ebb and flow in other offices. But that was not the situation in Skagit. "There was no end in sight," Byers said. "You begin to be concerned about your ability to handle (the cases) as you're supposed to professionally. You're worried about your reputation." Costeck and Powers, who are opening a law firm in Mount Vernon together, said they once envisioned themselves as longtime prosecutors, if not lifetime. Both said they left, in part, because they felt the caseload might hurt the quality of their work. "It's like flying by the seat of our pants prosecution," said Powers, who prosecuted juveniles. "If any mistakes were made - and I'm not sure there were any - we have been able to catch them. At some point, were not going to be able to catch it." This latest exodus, combined with the loss of three seasoned criminal litigators in spring 2004, has left a shortage of institutional memory and trial experience, said Gene Willett, a former deputy prosecutor. Willett left the office that spring, as did Jim Dolan and Robin Webb-Lakey, who was fired and later received a $200,000 judgment this summer in a civil rights lawsuit she filed against the county. When Willett quit, he accused Seguine of putting off decisions, which left the office in disarray and caused the staff to move from crisis to crisis. "Quite frankly, there are only 3 attorneys there that actually have more than 5 or 6 years experience," said Willett, who lives in Burlington and is now a legal consultant for a computer firm in California. Heavy caseloads The upsurge in caseloads after Seguine took office in January 2003 was almost immediate. His office filed 981 criminal cases in 2003 compared with 667 under Verge in 2002, according to records of the state administrator for the courts. The number of filings remained about the same in 2004 but is on track to dip for 2005. The total number of felony counts filed jumped from 1,131 in 2002 to 1,776 in 2003, according to state records. Seguine pushed his deputy prosecutors to increase the number of charges they filed against each defendant to increase time served in prison or jail. But more criminal counts per case also increases the prosecutors workload because of the additional preparation time needed. When Seguine came into office in 2003, he criticized Verge for leaving a backlog of as many as 1,000 cases. Deputy prosecutors filed charges on many of those cases to try to reduce the backlog. Seguine's office now has a backlog of 1,126 cases submitted by law enforcement but yet to be filed by prosecutors. While caseloads have gone up dramatically, Seguine has in three years only been able to get funding from the Skagit County commissioners for 1 additional criminal deputy prosecutor. Generally he asks for 1 or 2 additional attorneys each year. "I've racked my brain for three years," Bracke said. "You either hire more people to distribute the load, expedite the trial schedule or pull lawyers from other units." Does the office have enough lawyers? "Given the increase in the caseload, probably not," Seguine said. But he said he isn't willing to back down on his goal to vigorously pursue justice. "The answer is not to throw in the towel," Seguine said. Without extra resources to do the job, he said the best bet is "to set priorities as best you can." To get a handle on the caseload, Skagit County Superior Court plans to implement an expedited court calendar by years end. The change is being made because Bracke learned about the Snohomish program that fast tracks cases. She and Seguine asked the judges and public defender if the program could be adopted locally. Under that program, cases that don't have complexities, such as issues with evidence or witnesses, get on an accelerated schedule. For instance, in a case involving three forged checks, the prosecutor might offer a guilty plea to one forgery charge along with repayment of all the checks and less jail time. The accelerated schedule prompts defense lawyers and clients to make a decision about their cases more quickly and gets cases out of the system. Added cases A recent reassignment of some sex-crime cases from Seguines chief criminal deputy Bracke to other lawyers in the office added to resentment that was already festering, said Keenan, the deputy prosecutors union representative. He said it created an uneven workload in the office. "This was the straw that broke the camel's back," Keenan said. "Some of them were coming up to trial, and no work obviously had been done on them." Bracke said 12 of her 40 nondrug court cases were reassigned. Seven of the cases were sex crimes. "No one ever came to me and said this hasn't been done," Bracke said. Seguine said he wouldnt confirm that deputy prosecutors complained to him about Bracke, because that would be a personnel matter. Seguine said he reassigned the cases because Bracke needed a break. "I had a chief criminal deputy who had been in trial virtually six months straight," he said. "She needed some relief." But Seguine said Bracke "still has a full caseload." Several deputy prosecutors said that Seguine told them the cases were reassigned because he wanted Bracke to take on more administrative duties. Bracke said that her intense trial scheduled left her with little time to train the less experienced lawyers in felony trials. Additionally, she likely will review cases to determine which will be fast-tracked, at least until someone can be brought up to speed. "Tom said, 'Enough, you cant train anyone because youre not here,'" Bracke said. But others, including Costeck, said the way Bracke deals with the deputy prosecutors needs improvement. "No one can approach his chief with their perspective on a case and not get verbally beaten down," Costeck said. "She's verbally reprimanded a number of people for bypassing her." Bracke said she was unaware anyone had accused her of browbeating colleagues. She said she sometimes must be blunt when she has just 10 minutes to spare when shed rather take 30 to speak with a deputy prosecutor. "I bottom-line a lot of stuff," Bracke said. "That's part of not having the time to talk to someone." And she said she often plays devil's advocate to see if a deputy prosecutor has considered all the angles. She noted she has been litigating criminal cases for more than 25 years. While with the Los Angles District Attorneys Office from 1978-87, she handled death penalty cases and high-profile celebrity trials, including that of Marvin Gay Sr., who was convicted of manslaughter in the killing of his son Marvin Gaye. Bracke also was part of a special investigation unit that investigated then-Gov. Jerry Brown for alleged misuse of a state computer for political purposes. Bracke said her perspective of a case will be considerably different than someone with just a years experience trying felony trials. "If someone is wrong, absolutely, Im going to tell them. That's my job," Bracke said. (source: Skagit Valley Herald) MARYLAND: A Tardy Look at Executions When Maryland put Wesley E. Baker to death last week, it highlighted just about all the disparities that afflict its use of capital punishment. Mr. Baker was an African American man who killed a white person in Baltimore County. Blacks who kill whites are substantially more likely to receive the death penalty in Maryland than are whites who kill blacks, and Baltimore County prosecutors are dramatically more likely to seek it than are their counterparts elsewhere. While Mr. Baker committed a horrible crime, his execution nonetheless poses the question of whether the justice system would have demanded his life had he or his victim looked different or had the crime taken place somewhere else. Such disparities used to bother Lt. Gov. Michael S. Steele (R) -- and presumably still do. Mr. Steele, now running for U.S. senator, opposes the death penalty. Nearly three years ago, when Gov. Robert L. Ehrlich Jr. (R) lifted his predecessor's moratorium on executions -- disregarding a University of Maryland study that clarified just how unevenly the state's death penalty is applied -- Mr. Steele expressed concern. Mr. Ehrlich asked him to study the issue further and make recommendations. Yet even as Maryland has resumed executions, Mr. Steele's long-awaited study has not materialized. While he has reportedly met with people to discuss the subject, there has been no formal task force -- something the governor's office says neither Mr. Ehrlich nor Mr. Steele ever envisioned. A spokesman for the governor, Henry P. Fawell, says Mr. Steele has met with a variety of interested parties and expects to make his much-delayed recommendations in the first few months of the new year. Maryland's use of the death penalty is relatively rare. Yet partly because it is used so infrequently, its disparities can become particularly pronounced. Reserving the death penalty for the worst of the worst is better than profligate executions. But capital punishment cannot be reserved for black killers of white people in Baltimore County. As an opponent of capital punishment in an administration that has dismissed such concerns, there is undoubtedly a limit to Mr. Steele's influence. Yet burying the issue for 3 years is not a sign of political courage. (source: Editorial, Washington Post) OHIO: Cards plea as Richey faces another festive season in jail SUPPORTERS of death row Scot Kenny Richey have been asked to send Christmas cards to the American jail where he looks set to spend another festive season. Richey's 1987 conviction for murdering two-year-old Cynthia Collins by setting fire to an apartment in Ohio was overturned in January by an appeal court. It was hoped he would be home for Christmas, but in a shock ruling the US Supreme Court ruled in favour of prosecutors, who had appealed against the decision to quash his conviction. Richey, 41, who has always proclaimed his innocence of the crime, will remain on Death Row in the Mansfield Correctional Institute, Ohio, for at least another 18 months as the case returns to the appeals court in Cincinnati for further examination. The Supreme Court has asked the appeals court to revisit its concerns about Richey's defence lawyer, who they claimed made a number of serious mistakes amounting to incompetence. Richey, who was brought up in Edinburgh before moving to America, has been very grateful for all the support his case has received. Anyone wanting to send him a Christmas card can write to Kenneth T. Richey A194 764, DR Man CI, PO Box 788, Mansfield, Ohio 44901, USA. (source: The Scotsman) ***************** Judge blasts parole board ---- Ineligible inmates listed among those given hearings, Cain says Judge David E. Cain says his 2004 ruling was misinterpreted. A Franklin County judge has told the Ohio Parole Board to stop hiding behind his robes as it considers, and sometimes grants, the release of murderers and rapists. "I'm trying very hard not to speculate on the parole board's motives here," Common Pleas Judge David E. Cain wrote attorneys for the parole board. In response, the board pulled from its Web site a list of thousands of inmates it said were set for special parole reviews called "Ankrom hearings," created after inmates won a lawsuit against the parole board. Cain was the presiding judge in that lawsuit. A board spokesman acknowledged confusion over who should be on the list. "We're trying to figure it out ourselves," said Brian Niceswanger, a spokesman for the Ohio Department of Rehabilitation and Correction. In August 2004, Cain ruled in Ankrom v. Hageman that the state had employed improper tactics to hold some inmates longer than agreed to in plea bargains. Those inmates, convicted before 1996, when the state replaced wide-ranging sentences with set prison terms, deserved fair reconsideration for parole and a reason if denied, Cain ruled. The corrections department determined that 2,635 inmates were eligible for hearings and posted their names as the Ankrom list. Since then, Cain has received letters from victims asking why he helped Ohio's worst criminals get new hearings. Cain said he didn't. The parole board, he said, misinterpreted his ruling: It included rapists and murderers who didn't qualify for new hearings with those who were convicted of less-serious crimes and did qualify. His ruling applied to those who had struck plea bargains, only to have the parole board impose a tougher minimum sentence based on dropped charges or guidelines the agency created itself. Aggravated murder and rape convictions, the judge noted, are not the result of plea deals, so those inmates did not qualify for Ankrom hearings. Cain recounted his conversation with Assistant Attorney General Philip A. King, representing the parole board, held in his chambers Nov. 17. "I asked, "Why are you calling all of these inmates serving sentences for aggravated murder Ankrom hearings?" "King said, "Well, we just call it that." "The whole conference was so acrimonious," Cain said. A spokeswoman for the attorney general's office referred questions to the corrections department. 2 weeks ago, Cain told the board to stop misleading families about who is eligible for Ankrom hearings. The parole board, Cain said, hears cases of murderers and rapists routinely, not because of his ruling. Cain has received letters similar to one he received from Daniel F. Von Hoene of Cincinnati, who is trying to keep the man who killed his father in prison. Samuel Ellis McCree was on parole in 1981, when he robbed and killed Daniel G. Von Hoene, a pharmacist and father of 11. "The criminal who killed my father is getting a parole hearing because of your decision," the son told Cain. Cain wrote the son that McCree was not supposed to be on the Ankrom list. Cain is weighing a motion by the Office of the Ohio Public Defender to hold the parole board in contempt. The office says the parole board twisted Cain's ruling to deny Ankrom hearings to qualified inmates. "It's crazy," Cain said. "The people they're supposed to have hearings for, they don't. "How they can get it so screwed up, I don't know. It might just be that they don't know what they're doing." Crime-victim advocate Bret Vinocur thinks the board's actions are intentional. "The parole board is using Judge Cain as the fall guy so it can intentionally dump dangerous prisoners," said Vinocur of findmissingkids.com. While the parole board said it has held 729 Ankrom hearings and released 54 inmates since June, Vinocur said dozens more were let out. Among them, he said, were 71 killers, including seven convicted of aggravated murder, and 29 rapists. "This is a government organization that is the last line of defense between citizens and criminals," Vinocur said. The Ankrom list is undergoing a "thorough review," file by file, to make sure prisoners who shouldn't be on it aren't and those who should be are, Niceswanger said. "We're a public safety agency and one of the key components of our mission is public safety," Niceswanger said. "So dumping dangerous criminals would not be in keeping with our mission." (source: Columbus Dispatch)
