March 14 NORTH CAROLINA: Capital option is kept open in tot's death----DA seeks hearing on death penalty Orange County's district attorney has taken a step toward seeking the death penalty against a woman accused of killing a 2-year-old girl by holding her in a bathtub of scalding water. Orange-Chatham District Attorney Jim Woodall has requested what's known as a Rule 24 hearing in the case against Jamie Lee Wilson. The hearing, in which a prosecutor asks for permission to seek the death penalty, and lays out reasons for doing so, is a required step in capital cases. However, Woodall emphasized Monday that the move is designed to keep his options open at this point and does not signify a definite decision to seek the death penalty. Wilson, 21, is charged with 1st-degree murder in the death of Briana Faucette, whom she was baby-sitting. According to an autopsy, Faucette died of complications from severe burns. She also had bruises on her arms, and burn patterns consistent with being held in a tub of scalding water. The hearing, scheduled for April 25, would be the first in Orange County since 2002. In July 2002, a judge ruled that then-district attorney Carl Fox, now a superior court judge, could seek the death penalty in separate cases against Alan Douglas Gates and Robert "Peanut" Gattis Jr. Gates ended up pleading guilty to the murder of his daughter, her friend and the friend's 2-year-old son, and received three consecutive life sentences. Fox later decided not to seek the death penalty against Gattis, who was accused of killing two men while robbing a poker game. Gattis eventually was acquitted of the charges. If Woodall decides to pursue the death penalty, it could be difficult to find a jury willing to impose it. According to Department of Correction records, the last person executed on a conviction from Orange County was John H. Breeze on Jan. 16, 1948. Keith Acree, a spokesman for the Department of Correction, said the last time an Orange County defendant received a death sentence was in 1973. Tommy Noell was convicted of 1st-degree rape, which at the time carried a mandatory death sentence. He was later resentenced to 20 to 30 years in prison. The Orange County Board of Commissioners, the Chapel Hill Town Council and the Carrboro Board of Aldermen have all passed resolutions supporting a moratorium on executions in the state. Woodall also may have a difficult time winning a death sentence against a female defendant. According to figures compiled by Victor Streib, a law professor at Ohio Northern University, women account for about one in 10 murder arrests, and only one in 50 death sentences imposed at the trial level. Of those executed from 1973 to 2005, 1 in 90 was a woman. 4 of the 173 inmates on North Carolina's death row are women. Streib, who also represents women on death row, said that the disparity is in part because women are less likely to commit the types of crimes that most often result in death sentences. But he also said that jurors are less willing to sentence women to death, especially those that fit traditional molds of femininity. He said the reluctance to sentence women to death coincides with other societal conventions that place special value on women's lives, such as letting women and children into lifeboats first. "There's a whole series of things where we protect the life of a woman over a man," Streib said. (source : The News & Observer) ALABAMA: New Information May Be Clear Death Row Inmate Christopher Floyd convicted of a murder that took place 14 years ago and sits on death row. Few months after his sentencing, Floyd lawyers say new information may be able to clear him of the crime. Floyds attorney's say the testimony of 68 years old Dorothy Dyson may help clear their client of a murder conviction that put him on death row. "In my heart, I do not believe Chris shot that man. And I go to my grave, not believing he done it," said Dyson. Floyd was convicted of killing Archie Crawford during a robbery at Waller's Grocery Store in February of 1992. Dyson says she remembers talking to another man that same night, just one mile away from the scene of the crime, who was wearing a bloody shirt. Paul Wayne Johnson was considered at one point to be a primary suspect in the case and Floyds attorneys say that the new information merits a retrial. "That is evidence that if a jury had heard that evidence and believed it, it would have made a difference in the outcome of the trial," said Floyds attorney Tom Brantley. Dyson is a distant relative of Floyd, and the judge overseeing the case, Judge Larry Anderson says that coupled with all the media coverage surrounding the case, makes her testimony quote "fortuitous" considering the fact that now is when she is coming forward with information relating to the night in question. Floyd's attorney's say that Dyson never knew Johnson to be a suspect, and that due to poor health she was unable to remember her experience the night of the murder, until now. Whether Floyd will be granted a retrial has yet to be determined. Alabama law requires that a motion for retrial be ruled on by a judge, on or before the 60 days following a persons sentencing. Monday was that day for Floyd, and a ruling was not handed down. Means, the motion will now be automatically denied, by operation of law, Tuesday. Floyd's attorneys say they will now use the appeals process to try and get their client a new trial. (source: WTVY News) ************* Complaint filed over Justice Parker's newspaper writing A Tuscaloosa attorney has filed a complaint with a judicial panel accusing state Supreme Court Justice Tom Parker of violating the standards of conduct for Alabama judges by writing a critical article for a newspaper. Joel Sogol said Monday he filed the complaint with the state Judicial Inquiry Commission over an op-ed page article by Parker that was published in The Birmingham News on Jan. 1. The complaint comes as Parker considers a possible run for chief justice. Parker said he looks forward "to addressing this frivolous complaint." Parker's article criticized a U.S. Supreme Court decision that banned executions for killers who were under 18 when they committed their crimes. Parker also faulted his fellow justices on the Alabama Supreme Court for following that decision when they lifted the death sentence of a Montgomery man who was 17 when he raped and killed a pregnant woman. Parker called the U.S. Supreme Court's 5-4 decision "the unconstitutional opinion of five liberal justices on the U.S. Supreme Court," and he said that "state supreme court judges should not follow obviously wrong decisions simply because they are 'precedents.'" He said the Alabama Supreme Court should have kept the killer on death row and used the case to get the U.S. Supreme Court to reconsider its decision with 2 new justices appointed by President Bush. Sogol said the criticism amounted "to a call for judicial tyranny." "Such a view of the role of state supreme courts undermines the judiciary, public respect for it, and undermines the administration of justice, and breeds contempt for the law," Sogol said. Sogol's complaint went to the Judicial Inquiry Commission, which acts like a grand jury to review complaints against judges. It can forward complaints to the state Court of the Judiciary for trial. If the court finds the complaint is justified, its punishment can range from a reprimand to removal from office. "At a minimum, he ought to apologize to all involved," Sogol said. In responding to Sogol's complaint, Parker said, "It's nothing more than a transparent effort by a liberal ACLU attorney to stifle a conservative voice on the Alabama Supreme Court and overturn the vote of the people in the last election." A trial before the Court of Judiciary resulted in former Chief Justice Roy Moore being ousted from office in 2003 for refusing to follow a court order to remove his Ten Commandments monument from display in the state judicial building. Sogol, a former attorney for the American Civil Liberties Union, was not involved in that case, but he did bring a suit in 1995 that challenged Moore's display of a Ten Commandments plaque when he was a county circuit judge in Gadsden. Parker, a former aide to Moore, was elected to the Alabama Supreme Court in 2004 with strong support from Moore. Joe Van Heest, president of the Alabama Criminal Defense Lawyers Association, was not surprised a complaint got filed. "It's pretty troubling for a sitting Supreme Court justice to ask other Supreme Court justices to blatantly ignore U.S. Supreme Court precedent," Van Heest said. John Eastman, a law professor at Chapman University in Orange, Calif., said Parker simply voiced his opinion in a long-running constitutional debate about the impact of court decisions, and he should have no problem because he waited until after the case was decided to make his remarks. "All he has done is criticize a decision of the Supreme Court," Eastman said. (source: Associated Press) GEORGIA: Senate rejects death penalty study In Atlanta, the Senate on Monday defeated a proposal to study the use of the death penalty in Georgia at a time when other states are considering moratoriums on capital punishment. Sen. Vincent Fort, D-Atlanta, appealed to his conservative colleagues by taking language out of his resolution that could have allowed a moratorium in Georgia. In the well of the Senate, Fort described 3 Georgia cases where men were sentenced to die before the charges against them were thrown out when it was found that evidence had been tampered with or witnesses had lied. While the Democrat said he is against capital punishment, he argued that those in favor of the death penalty could still vote on his bill "with a clear conscience" because it simply would work to ensure that the right people are convicted of crimes. "Making a mistake is an irreversible error," Fort said. In Illinois, former Republican Gov. George Ryan declared a moratorium on capital punishment several years ago after discovering that more people on death row had been exonerated of their crimes than had been executed since the state reinstated the death penalty in 1977. While no one debated Fort, his measure failed by a vote of 17 to 33. After the vote, Sen. Don Balfour, chairman of the Senate Republican Caucus, said Georgia's criminal justice system already ensures that defendants sentenced to death are guilty. "I'm obviously for the death penalty. I think it's used appropriately," said Balfour, R-Snellville. "We do quite a bit right now to make sure we are following up with people in the right manner." (source: Gwinnett Daily Post) ************* Millionaire who had wife killed is spared death penalty A millionaire who had his socialite wife killed by a hit man posing as a flower deliveryman 19 years ago was spared the death penalty Tuesday by a jury that decided he should get life in prison without parole. Judge John Goger immediately followed the jury's recommendation and also sentenced Sullivan to 20 years in prison for aggravated assault and 20 years for burglary, both sentences to be served consecutively. The jury decided at the start of its deliberations Tuesday that Sullivan wouldn't be sentenced to death, said juror Debra Klayman of Roswell. She said the jury instead spent more than 5 hours arguing over whether Sullivan should ever be eligible for parole. "We thought that life imprisonment without the possibility of parole was enough," said juror Debra Klayman of Roswell. "We didn't want to be the judge about somebody else's life. We wanted God to be the judge." Both prosecution and defense claimed a measure of victory. "We are elated," District Attorney Paul Howard said. "We're excited about the sentence - we hope it brings a measure of justice to the McClintons and the community." Lita Sullivan's mother, state Rep. Jo Ann McClinton, said, "We still don't have our daughter. At least we were waiting on our judicial system. We waited a long time but it happened and we're happy." Defense attorney Don Samuel said he was pleased with the decision to spare James Sullivan's life. He plans to appeal Sullivan's conviction in 30 days. If Sullivan wins a retrial and is convicted again, he cannot be sentenced to death. Sullivan was convicted Friday of murder in the 1987 slaying of 35-year-old Lita Sullivan. She was gunned down on the doorstep of her Atlanta town house by a man carrying a dozen long-stemmed pink roses. The jury had the option of the death penalty, life in prison without parole or life with parole. Mrs. Sullivan's parents embraced after the judge imposed the sentence. "For 19 years he has lived without facing any consequence, any punishment at all," prosecutor Anna Green told the jury in asking for the death penalty during a sentencing hearing Monday. "19 years is too long for there to be no consequence for a crime as heinous as this." During the sentencing phase, relatives, some weeping, testified that Mrs. Sullivan's slaying has caused them pain for nearly 2 decades. Sullivan's lawyers asked for mercy, telling jurors their guilty verdict would ensure the 64-year-old would die in prison. Once one of the FBI's most-wanted fugitives, Sullivan was captured in Thailand in 2002, four years after he was indicted on murder charges. The murder occurred the same day that a hearing was scheduled to discuss property distribution in the couple's divorce. Prosecutors said Sullivan paid $25,000 to Phillip Harwood, a trucker who once moved some furniture for him, to kill his wife. Harwood, 55, is serving a 20-year sentence for manslaughter after pleading guilty and admitting he killed Mrs. Sullivan. On the stand last week, however, he denied being the triggerman. (source: Associated Press) USA: Executions unlikely for racist jail gang -- Many 'Aryans' are already in prison for life Federal prosecutors could be hard-pressed to win death sentences when one of the biggest capital cases in U.S. history -- an attempt by the government to take down the Aryan Brotherhood prison gang -- gets under way this week. 20 members of the white supremacist gang will be brought to trial in groups in the coming months, beginning with four defendants today. Altogether, the case involves 32 murders and attempted murders allegedly orchestrated by the gang's leaders. However, many of the 16 defendants who could face the death penalty are already serving long prison terms. Nearly all of the victims were themselves dangerous thugs. And the prosecution's witnesses are likely to be jailhouse informants who could be despicable characters themselves. Given the circumstances, jurors could be satisfied with a sentence of life without parole if the men are convicted, said William McGuigan, a defense attorney who has worked on cases targeting members of the Mexican Mafia, another prison gang. "The dynamics could not be as good for prosecutors as they think they are," he said. Authorities arrested 40 Aryan Brotherhood members in 2002 after a six-year investigation intended to dismantle the gang's leadership under a federal racketeering law originally aimed at the Mafia. Crimes detailed in the indictment span 30 years and occurred in prisons around the nation. 19 defendants struck plea bargains and one has died. Prosecutors declined to be interviewed. Michael Radelet, a sociology professor and death penalty expert at the University of Colorado at Boulder, said juries are less likely to vote for death if they know a defendant is already serving a life sentence. That is the case with many of the Aryan Brotherhood defendants. Barry "The Baron" Mills is serving two life terms for murder after nearly decapitating an inmate in 1979. In the upcoming trial, he faces a possible death sentence for allegedly orchestrating the 1997 killings of 2 black inmates serving time for rape at a prison in Lewisburg, Pa. "If the person is already doing a life term and is having problems in prison, that in some ways shows a failure of the criminal justice system," Radelet said. "The fact that justice systems are imperfect is an anti-death penalty argument. It's not a pro-death penalty argument." Radelet also questioned whether a death sentence for the gang ringleaders would serve as a deterrent, as prosecutors hope. "A fair number of people doing life without parole would prefer death," he said. "When people get executed, they become heroes" to other inmates. Laurie Levenson, a law professor at Loyola Marymount University and a former federal prosecutor, said it is also difficult for prosecutors to win death sentences when the victims themselves were serving time for violent crimes. A case built around jailhouse informants can compound the problem, she said. "It's a much dirtier case when you have to use informants," Levenson said. "If the jurors hate the informant, they're not going to vote for the death penalty." (source: Associated Press) PENNSYLVANIA: D.A.: He's 'The Great Pretender' A CONVICTED fraud who passed himself off as a court consultant - and later pretended to be a psychotherapist - was indicted yesterday on charges of bilking the Philadelphia court system out of nearly $400,000. Richard Gottfried, 48, whose resume deceptions were revealed in a 2002 Daily News article, pretended for years to be a court "mitigation expert." He duped attorneys, judges, defendants and prosecutors. He often was given such free reign inside the Criminal Justice Center that he could access official court computers in some courtrooms. "I supposed if I were in a singing voice I'd sing, 'Oh, yes, I am the great pretender,'" Philadelphia District Attorney Lynne Abraham said yesterday while announcing the indictment. Gottfried allegedly used his phony resume, charming personality and forged or fraudulent invoices to collect court payments for work he never performed, Abraham said. Also indicted with Gottfried were licensed private investigator Ronald Miller; Mary Beth McNichol, described as Gottfried's "paramour"; and Margaret Porter, a former employee of Gottfried. The indictments came after a two-year grand jury investigation into billing irregularities in the courts. The arrests also mark a change in how the courts do business with specialists, said Philadelphia Court Administrator Joe Cairone. The grand jury recommended that regulations be tightened for experts to qualify and receive payment for work in criminal cases. "It is embarrassing, to say the least, when an institution such as the First Judicial District has the wool pulled over its eyes," Abraham said. It was during a two-year lag - between the publication of the first Daily News story on Gottfried's fake credentials and the beginning of the grand jury investigation - that the "consultant" and his cohorts allegedly bilked the court system out of $373,000. Abraham said Gottfried worked the scam by forging signatures of nearly 30 criminal defense attorneys, having lawyers sign blank forms and even asking judges to sign off on invoices. Abraham said the defense attorneys and judges committed no crime. Cairone said it was inappropriate for him to comment on why Gottfried had the run of the CJC for years after his resume fraud and criminal background were uncovered. He said more details of the investigation would come out at Gottfried's trial. Miller, a criminal investigator who has worked for the courts since 1995, allegedly received about $73,000 for more than 200 fake vouchers he submitted. The indictment alleges that Miller - a flashy dresser who frequently took exotic vacations to London and Hawaii - forged attorneys' signatures to get paid. About a year ago, Miller told the Daily News he wanted to retire from criminal work because it posed too many hassles. He admitted that he had been ensnared in the grand jury investigation, but maintained his innocence. When confronted about his resume deceptions during lengthy - often bizarre - interviews in 2002, Gottfried told the Daily News that he never meant to deceive anyone. "The work I've done has been honest and forthright," he said at the time. In fact, Gottfried has testified under oath - twice in death penalty cases - about work experience and professional qualifications he didn't have. After the grand jury began its investigation in 2004, Gottfried, of Havertown, gradually stopped visiting the CJC. In January, the Daily News uncovered the new career that had been occupying Gottfried's time: passing himself off as a licensed psychotherapist. On a new resume, Gottfried replaced his legal consulting experience with mental health experience and, using a fake license number, obtained listings as a therapist at the online sites of Psychology Today and the National Mental Health Association. After learning about the deception, both organizations immediately removed Gottfried's listing - complete with office phone number, rates and photo - from their sites. Abraham said Gottfried also worked his court scam in New York City. Gottfried began his career as a court mitigation expert using a resume that listed more than 10 years experience, but overlooked his most in-depth experience with the criminal justice system: the 20 months he spent in a federal penitentiary for an elaborate fraud he perpetrated against a New Jersey mortgage company. His resume also failed to include other convictions he's had for theft by deception, making unsworn falsification to authorities and retail theft. Gottfried, Miller, McNichol and Porter were charged with operating a corrupt organization, forgery, criminal conspiracy, theft by deception and tampering with public records. Gottfried and Miller also were charged with bribery. Gottfried did not return a telephone call requesting comment yesterday. Miller could not be reached for comment. (source: Philadelphia Daily News)
