Nov. 30
FLORIDA:
Convictions may prove difficult in boot camp death
Even as family attorney Ben Crump celebrated the arrest of 8 boot camp
workers in 14-year-old Martin Lee Andersons death, he acknowledged the
difficult road ahead.
"We know were a long way from a conviction," Crump said.
It's unusual that so many law enforcement officers were charged in the
death of the Panama City teen, legal experts say.
But it will be even more unusual if the officers are convicted.
"Based on my experience, it's a difficult situation to prosecute a law
enforcement officer because a jury will have a sympathetic ear to their
situation," said Gainesville-based State Attorney Bill Cervone.
Cervone's office handled the case of Frank Valdes . In 2001, 5 state
corrections officers were charged with 2nd-degree murder in the beating
death of Valdes, a death row inmate. None were convicted.
Prosecutors, defense attorneys and law professors agree that successfully
prosecuting law officers is a difficult challenge. Even with a videotape,
as in the Rodney King beating in Los Angeles, jurors vote to acquit.
The reason, experts say, is that many people grow up with a positive image
of law officers, wanting to believe the officers' motives and actions are
pure.
"Officers are symbols of something more than just individuals who have
committed an offense, said Professor Kenneth Nunn of the University of
Floridas Levin College of Law. "The jury may reach a verdict based on the
value of those symbols to them. Sometimes people use these cases to send
messages for support of the police department as a whole."
Still, compelling evidence can override jurors' preferential treatment for
law officers, according to Stetson University College of Law Professor
Robert Batey .
"Jurors are notoriously reluctant to convict law enforcement officers, but
on the other hand, virtually all jurors follow the evidence," he said. "If
the evidence proves those officers are guilty, they'll convict them."
Another potentially important distinction is that the law officers
involved were correctional guards, not police, according to Howard
Varinsky , a national trial consultant.
Varinsky helped prosecutors pick juries in the trials of domestic guru
Martha Stewart, Oklahoma City bomber Timothy McVeigh and wife killer Scott
Peterson. He worked to get former First Lady of the Philippines Imelda
Marcos acquitted on U.S. fraud and racketeering charges.
People don't put corrections officers on the same pedestal as police and
might be less inclined to side with them, Varinsky said.
But he suggests prosecutors seek a venue change. Bay County is a largely
rural, conservative place in Florida's Panhandle.
A case against prison guards accused of killing an inmate, particularly a
black prisoner, might not find a favorable jury pool there, Varinsky said.
"I wouldn't want it to be in that county because it's going to be more
pro-law-enforcement and law-and-order and conservative there," he said.
"I have no idea on earth why prosecutors would agree to that. ... You want
to get to a big city where theres a black population or at least more
minorities."
The videotape adds a interesting twist to the case, said Gloria Fletcher .
She served as part of a team of attorneys retained by the police union in
the Valdes case.
It's great that so many law enforcement situations are taped now, she
said, because videos can bring clarity to emotionally charged situations.
She cautioned that jurors need to understand corrections officers are
trained to use forceful tactics. Those tactics may look rough on camera,
she said, but may still be necessary.
People who doubt that should try working in a detention center, she said.
"They've never worked in a correctional facility where one inmate out of
control can lead to a riot."
And though it seems a tape would bring clarity for jurors, that's not
always the case, said Cervone, the state attorney. People will bring their
own life experience and perceptions with them as they watch the tape, he
said.
"Video is very helpful," Cervone said. "But it's in the eyes of the
beholder."
(source: St. Petersburg Times)
USA:
7M in U.S. Jails, on Probation or Parole
A record 7 million people -- or one in every 32 American adults -- were
behind bars, on probation or on parole by the end of last year, according
to the Justice Department. Of those, 2.2 million were in prison or jail,
an increase of 2.7 percent over the previous year, according to a report
released Wednesday.
More than 4.1 million people were on probation and 784,208 were on parole
at the end of 2005. Prison releases are increasing, but admissions are
increasing more.
Men still far outnumber women in prisons and jails, but the female
population is growing faster. Over the past year, the female population in
state or federal prison increased 2.6 % while the number of male inmates
rose 1.9 %. By year's end, 7 % of all inmates were women. The gender
figures do not include inmates in local jails.
''Today's figures fail to capture incarceration's impact on the thousands
of children left behind by mothers in prison,'' Marc Mauer, the executive
director of the Sentencing Project, a Washington-based group supporting
criminal justice reform, said in a statement. ''Misguided policies that
create harsher sentences for nonviolent drug offenses are
disproportionately responsible for the increasing rates of women in
prisons and jails.''
>From 1995 to 2003, inmates in federal prison for drug offenses have
accounted for 49 % of total prison population growth.
The numbers are from the annual report from the Justice Department's
Bureau of Justice Statistics. The report breaks down inmate populations
for state and federal prisons and local jails.
Racial disparities among prisoners persist. In the 25-29 age group, 8.1 %
of black men -- about 1 in 13 -- are incarcerated, compared with 2.6 % of
Hispanic men and 1.1 % of white men. And it's not much different among
women. By the end of 2005, black women were more than twice as likely as
Hispanics and over 3 times as likely as white women to be in prison.
Certain states saw more significant changes in prison population. In South
Dakota, the number of inmates increased 11 % over the past year, more than
any other state. Montana and Kentucky were next in line with increases of
10.4 % and 7.9 %, respectively. Georgia had the biggest decrease, losing
4.6 %, followed by Maryland with a 2.4 % decrease and Louisiana with a 2.3
% drop.
(source: Associated Press)
VIRGINIA----female could face federal death penalty
Woman could face death penalty in July slaying
In Norfolk, the Justice Department is considering pursuing the death
penalty against Tanya Y. Torrence, the 35-year-old woman charged with the
kidnapping and murder of her estranged boyfriend's mother this summer.
Torrence was arraigned Wednesday in U.S. District Court on a four-count
indictment that could carry a death sentence if she is convicted. Led to
the magistrate court's podium in shackles, Torrence pleaded not guilty.
The indictment charges Torrence with murder, kidnapping, interstate
kidnapping resulting in death and use of a firearm.
Magistrate James E. Bradberry set a trial date of March 13.
Assistant U.S. Attorney Laura P. Tayman told the judge that she expects a
decision on whether to seek the death penalty from Washington by Jan. 23.
Torrence is accused of kidnapping 72-year-old Mary Knight from her
Virginia Beach home on July 1 and driving north in Knight's minivan.
Along the way, Torrence shot Knight twice, killing her, according to the
indictment and other court filings.
She continued driving, ending up in Philadelphia, where she exchanged the
handgun for crack cocaine, according to court records.
She then turned herself in to police, and Knight's body was found in the
minivan.
The indictment says Torrence committed the crimes "to punish her estranged
boyfriend."
In a confession to authorities following her arrest in Philadelphia,
Torrence said the shooting was an accident.
Torrence remains jailed without bond.
Court records indicate that Torrence suffers from mental health issues,
has recently attempted suicide and was a daily crack cocaine user for the
4 months prior to her arrest.
(source: The Virginian-Pilot)
*************
Judge overturns conviction in 1997 Norfolk murder case
A Norfolk Circuit Court judge cited an unreliable police confession in
overturning the conviction of one of three former Navy men who maintain
they have been wrongly imprisoned for the rape and murder of a Norfolk
woman 8 years ago.
Judge Everett Martin found that Derek Tice's confession to police was
admitted as evidence, even though Tice had invoked his right to remain
silent.
"There was no fingerprint, DNA, or other scientific evidence against him;
no independent eyewitnesses implicated him; no physical evidence directly
implicated him," the judge wrote in a ruling Monday that was released
Wednesday.
"I find there is a reasonable probability the jury would have acquitted
(Tice) if his confession had not been admitted into evidence."
Tice, Joseph Dick Jr. and Danial Williams were convicted for the July 1997
stabbing and strangulation of Michelle Moore-Bosko in her home.
A 4th man, Eric Wilson, was convicted of rape but acquitted of murder. He
was released in September 2005 after eight and a half years in prison, but
still is seeking to overturn his conviction.
Attorneys have said Norfolk police immediately focused on Williams, a
young sailor believed to have been attracted to the victim. They argued he
confessed only after harsh interrogation and got details of the crime
wrong.
Dick and Tice later were implicated and also confessed.
Tice was the only one of the three remaining in prison who could petition
on habeas corpus grounds, challenging the way his trial was conducted,
said attorney Deborah Boardman. Statute of limitations ran out for both
Dick and Williams, she said.
"We were told early on that it's very difficult to win" on those
conditions. "But we did," said Derek Tice's father, Larry Tice, from his
home in Clayton, N.C. "It just reinforces what we've known all along, and
that's that Derek and the other 3 are innocent."
The case was before a Circuit Court judge, because that court has
jurisdiction over habeas corpus petitions, Boardman said.
Lawyers last year asked then-Gov. Mark R. Warner to grant clemency to
Tice, Dick and Williams. They said at the time that a yearlong review of
trial transcripts and police reports uncovered evidence that exonerates
the men and shows that the true murderer was prepared to testify that he
acted alone.
Attorneys have said that Detective R. Glen Ford told the suspects they
would face the death penalty if they did not acknowledge guilt.
Boardman said she hopes Martin's decision will influence Gov. Timothy M.
Kaine when he decides on clemency.
"Only the governor has all of the evidence before him," she said.
Kaine said Warner last year asked the state parole board to investigate
the possibility of clemency for the four men. The board won't make a
recommendation to the governor until all legal proceedings are completed,
spokesman Kevin Hall said Wednesday.
The attorney general's office will appeal the judge's decision to the
Virginia Supreme Court, said Tucker Martin, spokesman for Attorney General
Robert McDonnell.
Tice remains in Sussex II state prison. He is scheduled to appear in court
on Dec. 20.
"We hope that he'll be released, and we have every expectation that he
will be," Boardman said.
(source: Associated Press)
**************************
Execution Alert November 30, 2006
Action Requested: Contact Governor Kaine requesting clemency for Mr. Walton
Forward this request to your contacts
Send a Letter to the Editor of your
local newspaper
Vigil in Protest on December 8th
Percy Walton is scheduled for execution on Dec. 8, 2006. This will be his
third trip to the Death House at the Greensville Correctional Center since
entering death row in 1997. Unlike other inmates Walton is unable to prepare
for his death as he believes that after the execution he is going to eat at
Burger King with his deceased grandfather. He does not understand what
execution means.
Percy Walton is a mentally ill man suffering from severe chronic
schizophrenia. In 2003 a Virginia Department of Corrections psychiatrist
described him as mentally retarded shortly before a previously scheduled
execution. The DOC doctor was reassigned after her diagnosis.
On June 8, 2006 Gov. Timothy Kaine issued a stay of execution just hours
before Mr. Walton's 2nd scheduled execution. He called for additional
clinical observation and review of Percy Walton's mental condition. The
governor has stated that he will review those reports before deciding the
issue of clemency for Mr. Walton.
During his first year in office Gov. Kaine has refused to stay the
executions of four other individuals. He has stated that only in June in Mr.
Walton's case was his office deluged with calls and emails requesting
clemency. It is vital that once again the governor be contacted and asked to
stop this execution and commute Mr. Walton's sentence. Send a Letter to the
Editor of your area paper.
There is precedent in Virginia for the commutation of the mentally ill. In
1999 Gov. Gilmore commuted Calvin Swann's death sentence because he suffered
from schizophrenia. Nationally there have been four other acts of clemency
to condemned men based on an inmate's extreme mental illness. These include
Arthur P. Baird II (Indiana 2005); Herbert Welcome (Louisiana 2003, mentally
ill and mentally retarded); Alexander Williams (Georgia 2002); and Bobbie
Shaw (Missouri 1993). These commutations reflect a greater understanding of
the ravages of severe schizophrenia, its biological cause, and the need for
compassion and treatment rather than condemnation for sufferers.
For a history of this case see Men/Women on the Row: Percy Levar Walton
posted on the VADP website at:
http://www.vadp.org/cases/walton.htm
Please contact Gov. Tim Kaine and ask him to commute this man's sentence to
life in prison.
Emails messages can be sent via the Governor's website at
http://www.governor.virginia.gov/AboutTheGovernor/contactGovernor.cfm.
Personal cards and letters should be address to
The Honorable Timothy M. Kaine
Office of the Governor
Patrick Henry Building, 3rd Floor
1111 East Broad Street
Richmond, VA 23219
Phone: (804) 786-2211
Fax: (804) 371-6351
Also contact your state legislators and ask them to petition Gov. Kaine to
commute this sentence. Go to "Who's my legislator?" at
<http://conview.state.va.us/whosmy.nsf/main?openform>
http://conview.state.va.us/whosmy.nsf/main?openform.
Execution Protest at the Governor's Office
December 8, 2006
4:00 p.m. - 6:00 p.m.
Broad Street Entrance of the Patrick Henry Building
1111 East Broad Street, Richmond, VA 23219
Execution Vigil / Protest at the Greensville Correctional Center
& 20+ additional locations across Virginia
December 8, 2006
8:30-9:30 p.m.
Greensville Correctional Center
901 Corrections Way
Jarratt, Virginia 23870-9614
Directions:
>From Richmond take I-95 South to Jarratt exit (Exit 20), turn right at stop
sign, then turn left (South) on U. S. 301, go about 1 mile to State Route
397; turn right onto 397 to the complex.
Other Locations:
Vigils will also be held in over twenty locations across the state. A full
list of vigil locations and contacts can be found at
<http://vadp.org/attend-a-vigil.html> http://vadp.org/attend-a-vigil.html
For More Information: Call 888-567-VADP or e-mail <mailto:office at vadp.org>
office at vadp.org
Jack Payden-Travers, Director
Virginians for Alternatives to the Death Penalty
P.O. Box 4804
Charlottesville, VA 22905
888-567-VADP (office)
434-960-7779 (Jack)
434-984-2803 (Fax)
www.vadp.org
jack at vadp.org
NEW YORK:
As ex-fugitive enters guilty plea, some wish death penalty could apply
In CLifton Paprk, local officials are happy to see Ralph 'Bucky' Phillips
go to state prison for the rest of his life, but they also are frustrated
that Phillips won't face the death penalty for shooting and killing state
Trooper Joseph Longobardo of Middle Grove.
'If there was ever a case where it would be justified -- it would be this
one,' Clifton Park Supervisor Phil Barrett said Wednesday evening.
Phillips wounded Trooper Donald Baker Jr. of Clifton Park the same night
he fatally wounded Longobardo. Both men were assigned to State Police
barracks in Saratoga County but were serving with a task force hunting
Phillips with the state police's SWAT-like Mobile Response Team.
Baker -- whose father, Donald Baker Sr., is the Clifton Park animal
control officer -- was discharged this last week from Albany Medical
Center to his home in Halfmoon. Barrett said he has met with Baker since
he got out of the hospital.
'I can imagine psychologically, he's going stir crazy,' Barrett said.
'He's used to being a very active guy and I think it's hard for him to be
laid up like his. But his spirits are high.'
The Police Benevolent Association of the New York State Troopers Inc.,
issued a news release saying Wednesday's outcome was 'unfortunately, the
best possible outcome under the confines of the available sentencing
laws.'
PBA Communications Director Michele Matteson said New York's highest court
in 2004 threw out the state's death penalty law. She said Governor-elect
Eliot Spitzer has said he supports the death penalty. There are bills in
the state House that would reinstate the penalty, although too late to
apply to Phillips.
'That's something we're going to push for in the coming legislative
session,' Matteson said.
Assemblyman Roy J. McDonald, R-Wilton, said he'd vote for such a bill. But
he's not sure it would help, considering his party is in the Assembly
minority.
'I just don't think there is enough support in my house, the New York
State Assembly, for the death penalty,' he said. 'I think it's a
deterrent. He won't do it again. I'm not happy about supporting him for
the rest of his life. He's a cold-blooded killer.'
But McDonald said the plea will save the families of Baker, Longobardo and
Sean Brown -- who also was shot and wounded by Phillips -- a long trial.
'I understand the wear and stress on a family,' he said.
(source: Saratogian)
************
Retired local officers call for death penalty reinstatement
The Retired Corning Police Officers Association supports the New York
State Police P.B.A. in the call to reinstate the death penalty in New York
for the murder of a law enforcement officer.
According to a press release, "The tragic deaths of officers in the
Southern Tier of New York and the Northern Tier of Pennsylvania served to
illustrate the dangers these men and women face every day they hit the
streets."
The association said a message must be sent to criminals like Ralph
"Bucky" Phillips, who pled guilty on Wednesday to 2 charges of attempted
aggravated murder and aggravated murder, that if an officer is killed, the
ultimate price should be paid.
(source: Elmire Star-Gazette)
