July 10
TEXAS:
Escaped prisoners plead innocent to capital murder
2 convicts whose escape from a work detail last year led to the death of a
corrections officer pleaded innocent Thursday to capital murder charges.
Prosecutors will seek the death penalty for Jerry Martin, 38, and John Ray
Falk, 41, Walker County Assistant District Attorney Stephanie Stroud said.
Both inmates, chained at the waist and ankles and escorted by numerous
officers, appeared separately during brief hearings Thursday. Prosecutors
said they planned to try the pair together. Defense lawyers asked the
trial be moved outside Huntsville.
The Walker County Courthouse is just a couple miles east of where
corrections officer Susan Canfield, 59, died in September after the
inmates broke away from the detail outside the Wynne Unit prison in
Huntsville. They stole a truck and rammed into her while she was on
horseback.
The prisoners dumped the pickup about a mile away, then confronted a woman
in a bank drive-through and took her car. Huntsville police then shot out
a tire in that car and the inmates ran away.
Falk was apprehended within an hour. Martin was caught hiding in a tree
about 3 1/2 hours later. The next day, Martin unsuccessfully tried to hang
himself in his cell.
Martin had been locked up since 1997 with a 50-year term for attempted
murder. Falk was serving life for murder in 1986.
Canfield, from New Waverly, had been a corrections officer for 7 years.
Her horse was shot in the gunfire and was euthanized.
According to a Texas Department of Criminal Justice report of the escape,
Martin jumped into a Huntsville city truck and rammed it into Canfield.
The horse threw the officer and she struck the truck's windshield before
crashing to the ground, causing her fatal head injuries.
The report also said events were set in motion when a supervisory officer
allowed Martin to improperly approach him after the prisoner asked that
the officer hold his broken watch. Falk created a noise that distracted
the officer and Martin got close enough to rush the guard and get his gun.
Martin threw the pistol to Falk, who aimed it at the officer as the two
inmates then climbed over a barbed wire fence where Canfield was on her
horse in a parking lot. Falk began firing at her and she and other
officers returned fire. Falk then stuck his gun in Canfield's side and
grabbed her rifle as Martin, who had jumped into the truck, rammed
Canfield.
The agency investigation found the staffing level of 9 officers, including
a sergeant, was proper for the 76-prisoner work detail.
The supervising officer was cited during a disciplinary hearing and
recommended for dismissal and subsequently resigned.
(source: Associated Press)
****************************
Both sides rest in sentencing phase of cop killer's murder trial
The prosecution and defense both rested this morning in the sentencing
phase of the capital murder trial for Wesley Lynn Ruiz, who was convicted
last month of killing Dallas Police Senior Cpl. Mark Nix.
Closing arguments are scheduled for Friday morning followed by the jury's
deliberation. Jurors have 2 sentencing options: life with no parole or the
death penalty.
Mr. Ruiz did not testify during the four days of sentencing testimony this
week. But he did take the witness stand during the guilt and innocence
phase of the trial last month and testified that he shot Cpl. Nix because
he feared for his life.
Mr. Ruiz said he thought that police were shooting at the car in which he
was hiding. The jury did not believe his self-defense claim.
In a letter he mailed while in jail, Mr. Ruiz wrote about his time in
jail. But he marked over some of his words. Prosecutors called a forensic
document examiner, who testified Thursday about what he believed the
scratched-out words read.
Kenneth Crawford, who works in the criminal lab for Texas Department of
Public Safety, read his findings aloud in court.
"I've been feeling so helpless, which I really am," Mr. Crawford said as
he read his interpretation. "[Expletive], girl. These [expletive] guards
think they so hard on the real.Just keep all this [expletive] inside me.
One day I'm going to lose my [expletive] cool."
Mr. Ruiz's mother and grandparents testified Wednesday and asked the jury
to be merciful.
"I never in my worst nightmares thought I'd have to stand up for his
character," said Mr. Ruiz's grandmother, Sue Anne Ziegenhain. "That fatal
day, he honestly believed his life was in danger."
"I'm terribly sorry that Officer Mark Nix is not here," Mrs. Ziegenhain
said, crying from the witness stand. "But Wes is part of me, just like
Mark Nix was part of you." (source: The Dallas Morning News)
FLORIDA:
State To Seek Death Penalty In Correctional Officer Slaying----Inmate
Indicted For Premeditated Murder
Prosecutors announced on Thursday that they will seek the death penalty
against an inmate accused of killing a correctional officer at the Tamoka
Correctional Institution.
Enoch Hall, 39, is accused of killing 13-year veteran Donna Fitzgerald on
June 25. Police said Hall hid in a welding shed adjacent to a workshop
area with a knife made out of a piece of sheet metal.
When Fitzgerald confronted Hall, she was stabbed multiple times, police
said.
A grand jury returned indictments for 1st-degree premeditated murder
against Hall.
"We believe that the facts and the loss support the state's request for
the death penalty in this case," State Attorney John Tanner said. "We will
be seeking death for Mr. Hall and that will be a matter for the jury and a
judge to decide."
State Attorney Leah Case will be the lead prosecutor for the case.
"The facts will come out in trial, or through the discovery process as you
all are aware, but we have a good case and we think the appropriate
penalty in this case is the death penalty," Case said.
Hall was already serving 2 consecutive life sentences at Tamoka, one for
kidnapping and another for sexual battery.
"We want to make certain that the inmates in the state of Florida
understand that if they harm a corrections officer, if they kill a
corrections officer, that justice will not only be swift, it will be
sure," Tanner said.
The State Attorney's Office said they would like to move the case through
the court system as quickly as possible and begin the trial in as soon as
6 months.
(source: WESH News)
ILLINOIS:
Prosecutors seek death penalty in burning case
DuPage County prosecutors say they'll seek the death penalty against a
suburban Chicago man accused of killing his 2 sons by dousing them with
gasoline and setting them on fire.
Kaushik Patel has pleaded not guilty to 10 counts of 1st-degree murder and
counts of aggravated battery of a child in the deaths of 7-year-old Vishv
Patel and 4-year-old Om Patel.
Kaushik Patel showed no emotion in court Wednesday when he was informed
that prosecutors would seek the death penalty in the case.
Patel has told reporters he meant to kill himself, not his children. Both
boys survived for months after the November fire before dying earlier this
year.
A trial isn't expected to begin for at least a year.
(source: Associated Press)
MISSOURI:
Killing spree suspect charged in 2 more slayings
A man suspected of bludgeoning 8 people to death in a 1-week killing spree
was charged Thursday in two more of those killings, a Missouri prosecutor
said.
Nicholas Troy Sheley, 28, who already faces murder charges in 2 deaths in
Illinois, was charged Thursday in 2 killings in Festus, Missouri,
Jefferson County prosecutor Forrest Wegge said.
Sheley ambushed a couple as the two got out of their car in the St. Louis
suburb, Wegge said.
All 8 of the victims, who included a child, died from blunt-force trauma
to the head, officials said.
Altogether, Sheley is suspected in six killings in Illinois and two in
Missouri; he has been charged in 4 of the cases so far. The suspect is
being held in an Illinois jail on a $1 million bond.
A lead investigator in the case told CNN that the motive for the killings
is not known. The investigator said Sheley was a methamphetamine addict
with a history of arrests and fights with police.
The couple found dead in Festus were in the Missouri town for a
graduation, authorities said, and were last seen at a Comfort Inn there.
Sheley is not believed to have had a prior relationship with the couple,
police said.
During the hunt for Sheley, the St. Louis County Police Department issued
a bulletin describing him as "extremely dangerous."
"He has stated to his ex-wife that he has more killing to do," the
bulletin said.
Sheley's capture ended an intensive manhunt, which included a $25,000
reward offer.
Authorities said he gave up without a fight July 1 when police confronted
him as he smoked outside a bar in Granite City, Illinois.
According to an affidavit by FBI Special Agent Susan Hanson, Sheley
invaded a home in Sterling, Illinois, on June 14. A woman inside the home
told police the man was Sheley, the affidavit said.
Police conducting a welfare check June 29 at an apartment in Rock Falls,
Illinois -- a mile from Sterling -- found 4 people dead, including the
child. Sheley was a "known associate" of at least one of the Rock Falls
victims, state police said.
The following day authorities found the body of Ronald Randall, 65, behind
a grocery store in Galesburg, Illinois, about 80 miles south of Rock
Falls, and obtained an arrest warrant naming Sheley. Sheley has been
charged with 1st-degree murder in Randall's death. Randall's truck was
recovered in Festus, Missouri.
Sheley also is charged with 1st-degree murder in the death of Russell
Reed, 93, of Sterling, whose body was found in the trunk of his car on
June 23, The Associated Press reported.
(source: CNN)
OKLAHOMA:
More Action Requested - Pardon and Parole Board recommends
clemency for Kevin Young (first update to UA 187/08)
Kevin Young is scheduled to be executed in Oklahoma on July 22 for a
killing during a robbery that went "amiss", despite the absence of
proof that he actually fired the fatal shot. The Oklahoma Pardon and
Parole Board voted 4-1 to grant him clemency. Urge Governor Brad
Henry to accept this recommendation and grant clemency to Kevin
Young. Click here to take action online.
URGENT ACTION APPEAL
- From Amnesty International USA
To read the current Urgent Action newsletter, go to
http://www.amnestyusa.org/urgent/newslett.html
----------------------------------
For a print-friendly version of this Urgent Action (PDF):
http://www.amnestyusa.org/actioncenter/actions/uaa18708.pdf
Note: Please write on behalf of these persons even though you may not
have received the original UA when issued on June 27, 2008. Thanks!
10 July 2008
Further information on UA 187/08 (27 June 2008) Death penalty
USA (Oklahoma) Kevin Young (m), black, aged 42
On 8 July, the Oklahoma Pardon and Parole Board voted 4-1 to
recommend clemency for Kevin Young, who is due to be
executed on 22 July. The recommendation goes to Governor
Henry, who can accept or reject it. Since taking office in
2003, he has granted clemency once from three previous
clemency recommendations.
Kevin Young was sentenced to death in Oklahoma County in
1998 for the murder of Joseph Sutton during an armed
robbery. According to the states evidence, in the early
hours of 14 May 1996, two African-American men entered the
Charles Steak House in Oklahoma City and walked into the
back room where Joseph Sutton ran a gambling operation. The
two men pulled out guns and announced that they had come to
rob the place. One of the men in the room grabbed the gun of
one the attackers and held it in the air while the gunman
fired it until it was empty. At the same time, Joseph Sutton
pulled out his own gun. One of the two robbers shot at
Sutton. Sutton was shot four times, and he died from a
gunshot wound to the stomach. The gunmen fled the scene.
Shortly thereafter, Kevin Young arrived at a hospital with
three gunshot wounds, and was arrested.
Kevin Young and his co-defendant Antwuan Jackson were
charged with first-degree murder and brought to trial
separately. Jackson was acquitted on all counts. Young was
convicted. The appeal courts have rejected arguments that
Youngs jury should have been able to convict him on charges
of less than first-degree murder, although the state Court
of Criminal Appeals characterized the crime as one in which
things went amiss when [Youngs] intended robbery victim
tried to thwart the robbery and defend himself with his own
weapon. The Court also found that the evidence did not
conclusively establish which intruder fired the fatal
gunshot.
At the 8 July clemency hearing, Kevin Young spoke via a
video link from the Oklahoma State Penitentiary. He
expressed remorse for his role in the crime, and said that
he had never intended to shoot anyone, but that he had fired
when he himself was shot by Sutton. He reportedly told the
Board: When I got inside, things didnt go as planned. To
tell you the truth, I don't know if it was my bullet that
killed Mr. Sutton. Among those who have agreed with the
Boards decision to vote for clemency is the pro-death
penalty state newspaper, The Oklahoman. In a 10 July
editorial, it wrote that We support the death penalty and
its application in a narrow range of cases. Youngs case
appears to be outside that range--Young is guilty of armed
robbery--But if he didn't enter the restaurant with the
intent of killing Sutton, he isn't guilty of premeditated
murder Young's crime is punishable by the death penalty if
the most liberal interpretation of state law is applied. We
dont often question the decision of juries, but here we
question whether the law was correctly applied. The
editorial urges Governor Henry to give strong weight to
the boards recommendation.
The death penalty in the USA is supposed to be reserved for
the worst crimes and worst offenders. Only a small
percentage of murders result in a death sentence, and an
even smaller percentage in execution. As the US Supreme
Court has said, the culpability of the average murderer is
insufficient to justify the most extreme sanction available
to the State. Selecting who shall live and who shall die
for their crimes is something of a lottery, with issues of
race, prosecutorial discretion and conduct, and the quality
of legal representation among the factors that determine who
receives a death sentence and who does not. Kevin Youngs
lawyer attempted to argue to the jury that the death penalty
was reserved for the worst of the worst murderers, and
that Kevin Young was not such a defendant. The prosecutor
responded with the argument that there was nothing worse
than first-degree murder, and if this was an inappropriate
case for the death penalty, we wouldnt be here. She urged
the jurors to pass a death sentence, arguing that Young did
not deserve to live in a prison environment, not have to
go to work every day, get his meals prepared, have a nice
clean place to live while the victim lies dead in his
grave. As Amnesty International found in a report on
Oklahomas death penalty in 2001, encouraging jurors to vote
for execution out of a sense of vengeance appeared to be a
favored tactic of Oklahoma County prosecutors. The state
Court of Criminal Appeals has repeatedly condemned such
inflammatory misconduct, but has routinely failed to provide
any remedy. In Kevin Young's case the appeal court once
again condemned the prosecutions conduct, saying that the
prosecutor clearly should have known better, but upheld
the death sentence.
On appeal, it has been argued unsuccessfully that Young
received inadequate representation at trial, from a lawyer
who failed to present evidence of the impact on the mental,
emotional and moral development of children raised in the
inner-city ghetto of south-central Los Angeles in
California, where Kevin Young grew up, the youngest of 16
children in his family. The Oklahoma Court of Criminal
Appeals found that trial counsel could well have utilized
this evidence and it may have been prudent for him to do
so, but that the lawyer had not been ineffective for
having failed to present such mitigation evidence. It noted
at the same time that there was evidence that several
jurors felt there was little information about [Youngs]
past and they did not perceive remorse on [his] part, a
perception emphasized by the prosecutor in seeking a death
sentence. Studies show that perceived lack of remorse is a
highly aggravating factor in the minds of US capital jurors.
Under US law, citizens are excluded from capital jury
service if they are opposed to the death penalty, rendering
capital juries non-representative of the community (and more
conviction-prone, studies show). In Kevin Youngs case,
three potential jurors were removed during jury selection by
the prosecution because they were opposed to capital
punishment on religious grounds (another two were excluded
because they were opposed for other personal or
philosophical reasons). While religious beliefs caused the
removal of jurors, it has been alleged that religion also
played a part in the sentencing deliberations of the jury.
At a post-trial hearing, one of the jurors testified that a
Bible had been consulted in the jury room. This juror had
previously told a defense investigator that she herself had
originally wanted a life sentence but that verses read from
the New Testament book of Romans during deliberations had
swayed her into voting for a death sentence (the text in
question included If thou do that which is evil, be
afraid; for he beareth not the sword in vain: for he is the
minister of God, a revenger to execute wrath upon him that
doeth evilRender therefore to all their dues.). After the
hearing, the judge found that although a New Testament Bible
might have been present in one of the jurors briefcases
during the sentencing phase, there was no credible evidence
that the Bible had been brought into the jury room or used
during the deliberations. The Court of Criminal Appeals
upheld the death sentence, saying that although the jurors
may have discussed the Bible in general or even specific
Bible verses, four of the five jurors testified no one
read from a Bible during sentencing deliberations.
RECOMMENDED ACTION: Please send appeals to arrive as quickly as
possible:
- expressing sympathy for any family of Joseph Sutton, and
explaining that you are not seeking to excuse the manner of
his death or to downplay the suffering caused;
- welcoming the decision of the state Pardon and Parole
Board to recommend clemency for Kevin Young;
- noting that the killing took place during a robbery that
went amiss, in the words of the state appeals court;
- noting that Kevin Young is facing execution for a crime
committed by two people, that no one else has been
convicted, and noting the absence of proof about which of
the two attackers actually fired the fatal shot;
- calling on the Governor to accept the Boards
recommendation, and commute Kevin Youngs death sentence.
APPEALS TO:
Governor Brad Henry, State Capitol Building,
2300 N. Lincoln Blvd., Room 212, Oklahoma City, OK 73105
Fax: 1 405 521 3353
Email, via: http://www.gov.ok.gov/message.php
Salutation: Dear Governor
PLEASE SEND APPEALS IMMEDIATELY.
Check with the AIUSA Urgent Action office if sending appeals after 22
July 2008.
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This Urgent Action may be reposted if kept intact, including
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Phone: 202.544.0200
Fax: 202.675.8566
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END OF URGENT ACTION APPEAL
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[Deathpenalty] death penalty news-----TEXAS, FLA., ILL., MO., OKLA.
Rick Halperin Thu, 10 Jul 2008 16:19:44 -0500 (Central Daylight Time)
