Feb. 27
GEORGIA: Just say "nope" The American Bar Association has released a report which identifies serious flaws in Georgia's use of the death penalty. The flaws were so serious, in fact, that the panel, comprised of former prosecutors, politicians, criminal defense attorneys and a judge, all agreed (save one) that the state must call a halt to seeking the death penalty while these issues are addressed. The day before the report was released, Gov. Sonny Perdue was asked if he would support such a moratorium in Georgia. His 1-word answer through a spokesperson was simply: "Nope." You might expect that the chief executive of the state would want to review the findings and carefully consider the merits of the arguments before venturing an opinion. After all, members of the commission and their researchers have spent months compiling statistics, reviewing laws and procedures and making recommendations based on solid ABA principles. Nope. You might expect that a thoughtful and compassionate citizen would want to carefully examine a system which does not provide capital defendants with lawyers during their state habeas corpus appeals, a shame in which Georgia stands almost entirely alone. Nope. Attorney General Baker stated through his spokesperson that he does not agree with the call for a moratorium. But no reason was given. Yet the report clearly shows that people who kill whites are 4.56 times more likely to be sentenced to death than people who kill blacks. As the report notes, race clearly matters in capital sentencing in Georgia. The report even found that more than 40 % of jurors interviewed did not understand that they could consider any evidence in mitigation. More than 62 % of them erroneously believed that the defense had to prove mitigating factors beyond a reasonable doubt. The blame is attributed to jury instructions which provide no guidance on mitigating circumstances. Ominously, the report warns us that death sentences resulting from juror confusion or mistakes are not tolerable. This should be cause for any thoughtful citizen to take pause, right? Nope. We should never let our compassion and love for the victims of violent crime and their families blind us from our civic obligation to ensure that the justice system is fair even to the perpetrators of violent crime, particularly in capital cases, where the balance of life rests in our hands. When we the people choose to take life, we the people are responsible should innocent blood ever be shed. I hope Gov. Perdue and Attorney General Baker were simply speaking with election year bravado. I sincerely hope that they will at least take the time, along with legislators and other elected officials, to pay serious attention to the horrific flaws found in our system of capital punishment. If they can't take the time to be bothered, then it will be very easy for me to say "nope" to them come November. (source: Savannah Morning News) ********************** Standing up for what's right Sometimes one attempts do something just because it's right, not that he or she has any solid expectations that the effort will succeed. This likely applies to legislation introduced last week by state Sen. Vincent Fort of Atlanta, who wants to put executions on hold until a commission can study whether or not the death penalty is being used appropriately in Georgia. What Sen. Fort seeks to determine, as does the American Bar Association, which raised the question in the first place, is whether the state is making absolutely certain it is executing only those who deserve to die. 9 members of a 10-member panel of Georgia legal experts recommended that the state place a moratorium on executions until a review can determine if the state has the proper safeguards to ensure innocent people aren't executed. The state doesn't provide legal assistance for condemned prisoners to challenge the legality of their convictions, and Georgia makes it virtually impossible for a defendant to prove mental retardation. Addressing these issues wouldn't be unreasonable; it would be comforting to know that we aren't executing innocent people or persons so mentally incompetent they are unaware of their crimes. But Gov. Sonny Perdue and the Republican-dominated General Assembly are marching in lockstep, saying that appropriate safeguards are in place. For that matter, many members of Fort's own Democratic Party are in agreement. Critics insist that this is an attempt to do away with the death penalty. Not true. Unquestionably, there are those who commit crimes so horrendous that execution is a perfectly appropriate response. And if the review were conducted, and appropriate changes made, Georgia would still have the death penalty. But there have been too many recent instances of prisoners being released from Death Row after new techniques have determined their innocence. And executing the mentally incompetent accomplishes nothing. Fort isn't just tilting at windmills, he's taking a stand as a responsible Georgia lawmaker, something our legislators ought to try more often. (source: Opinion, Macon Telegraph) WISCONSIN: Ochoa represents strong WIP success (This is part 3 of a series highlighting some of the most influential students on the University of Wisconsin campus.) Imagine living 12 years of your life behind bars for a crime you did not commit. Such was the unfortunate reality for Chris Ochoa, a third-year law student at the University of Wisconsin, who served 12 years in prison after being wrongfully convicted of murder. Without hope and without freedom, Ochoa contacted the Wisconsin Innocence Project, which proved to be the miracle program responsible for turning his life around. "Without the Wisconsin Innocence Project I wouldn't be where I am today," Ochoa said. "I wouldn't be here at Wisconsin, and, more importantly, I wouldnt have my freedom." In 1988, Chris Ochoa, then 22 years old, was convicted of murdering Nancy DePriest outside of a local Pizza Hut in Austin, Texas. He was sentenced to prison, with the death penalty a likely possibility. During the investigation into DePriest's murder, Ochoa broke down and confessed to the crime after he was continually interrogated for 2 days, even though he did not kill DePriest. "Today Ochoa is a law student and his case shows that people can falsely confess to the worst of crimes and still be a smart and rational person," John Pray, co-director of the Wisconsin Innocence Project, said. "It shows the power of interrogation and being able to instill so much fear in someone that they would falsely admit to a horrible crime." The Wisconsin Innocence Project is a clinical program within the UW Law School, comprised of 12 law students, attorneys and professors who investigate and litigate claims of innocence on behalf of prisoners primarily within the state of Wisconsin. The Innocence Project is a national program that started at Yeshiva University's Benjamin N. Cardozo Law School in New York by attorney Barry Scheck. The Innocence Project has grown within the past decade, and today more than 30 states employ the Innocence Project. Founded in 1998 by law professors Keith Findley and John Pray, the Wisconsin branch of the Innocence Project is still in its infancy. In the past decade, the Wisconsin Innocence Project has handled high profile cases and successfully overturned 6 verdicts. In Ochoa's case, DNA evidence was ultimately responsible for proving his innocence. When exoneration occurs, it usually makes big news, like it did when DNA evidence was used to clear Wisconsin native Steven Avery. Wrongfully convicted of sexual assault in 1986, Avery was sentenced to 32 years in prison. After serving 18 years of the sentence, DNA tests were conducted on evidence that had been ignored throughout the trial and Avery was released from prison in 2003. Findley, co-director of the Wisconsin Innocence Project, said wrongful convictions have proven to be a significant problem nationwide and added the main goal of the Innocence Project is to limit the amount of instances where this occurs. A study showed that in the past 15 years, more than 340 people were convicted of crimes they did not commit. "We can learn from these cases what it is that causes wrongful convictions and improve the system so fewer incidences of wrongful convictions will occur in the future," Findley said. Pray added the Wisconsin Innocence Project is a great way for UW law students to learn about the field they are pursuing. Every day, small strides are being taken to better the judicial system, and the Innocence Project has been a major contributor. "Obtaining justice is getting to the bottom of the truth, the WIP helps victims get to the truth by getting finality," Ochoa said. "Juries are finally starting to look more closely at evidence whereas before the Innocence Project, they acted as rubber stamp juries. The WIP has influenced juries to be more careful when examining evidence." The Wisconsin Innocence Project continues to revolutionize the judicial system and continues to work in the favor of those like Ochoa, who have experienced much of life behind bars due to a wrongful conviction. (source: The Badger Herald - University of Wisconsin-Madison) ILLINOIS: Jury Recommends Death Penalty For Convicted Double-Murderer----Runge Also Suspected In Other Murders In Chicago, a jury has recommended the death penalty for accused serial killer Paul Runge. Runge, 36, was found guilty in February on 2 counts of 1st-degree murder in the deaths of 10-year-old Jessica Muniz and her mother, 35-year-old Yolanda Gutierrez. Runge's lawyer asked the jury for life in prison, saying that Runge was mentally ill and was driven to commit the murders. Runge also has been charged in the killings of 5 other women in a string of attacks between January 1995 and March 1997. Authorities say Runge went to Gutierrez's Chicago apartment on Feb. 3, 1997, after responding to a for-sale sign for exercise equipment. Runge then sexually assaulted Gutierrez and Muniz, slashed their throats and torched their apartment, authorities alleged. Prosecutors said Runge got in his car and drove away from a burning apartment building. (source: NBC News)
