[Deathpenalty] death penalty news-----TEXAS, IND.

[Rick Halperin]

June 11



TEXAS:

New evidence delays woman's execution


A TEXAS court has called off the execution of a woman convicted of killing
a baby after a coroner said it was possible the three-month-old died in an
accidental fall.

Cathy Henderson, 50, was due to be executed on Wednesday but has always
maintained her innocence in the January 1994 death of 3-month old Brandon
Baugh.

She was babysitting Brandon, along with 2 other toddlers.

In her 1995 trial, prosecutors shot down her claim that she accidentally
dropped the baby through coroner Roberto Bayardo, who testified it was
"impossible'' the baby's skull fractures were caused by a fall.

Prosecutors prevailed in proving the baby had been killed by heavy blows
to the head, and also noted that afterward, Henderson fled and buried the
child's body in another state.

But Mr Bayardo revisited his testimony in light of new medical knowledge
on infant cranial injuries and recently issued a new statement:

"Based on the physical evidence in the case, I cannot determine with a
reasonable degree of medical certainty whether Brandon Baugh's injuries
resulted from an intentional act or an accidental fall.''

The Texas Court of Criminal Appeals ordered the Henderson case back to
trial court to examine the new evidence.

Only 11 women have been put to death in the US since the Supreme Court
allowed state governments in 1976 to reinstate capital punishment.

51 women are on death row awaiting execution, about half for having
murdered their husbands or children.

(source: Associated Press)

**************************

Ex-husband may face death penalty after Plano mom's murder


The ex-husband of a Plano woman will be tried for the death penalty after
allegedly beating and stabbing her to death and leaving her remains in a
highway median.

Collin County District Attorney John Roach announced Monday he plans to
seek the death penalty in the capital-murder case of Curtis Lee Armstrong,
37, of Dayton.

Armstrong was indicted last week for allegedly stabbing and beating his
ex-wife, Jennifer McCallum, 35, to death with 1 or more objects, including
a knife, while robbing her apartment May 3, according to Collin County
Court records.

Murder committed during a kidnapping, burglary, robbery, aggravated sexual
assault or arson; multiple murders; and murder of an individual under 6
years of age are considered capital offenses in Texas and the death
penalty can be sought, according to the Texas Department of Criminal
Justice.

Armstrong was declared indigent by the court, and Attorney Tom D'Amore was
appointed Armstrong's public defender.

D'amore  who has prosecuted almost a dozen capital murder cases in his 19
years with the Dallas County District Attorney's office, before starting a
private practice  said he has met with Armstrong and is reviewing the
state's evidence. "At this point we are just trying to gather
information," D'Amore said. "In this case or any other case, there are
always 2 sides. I have been in death penalty cases before as a prosecutor,
so I know what they entail."

D'amore said his lack of experience as a defense attorney in capital
murder cases may become an issue as the case proceeds.

"In a case like this, it has been my experience that judges appoint very
experienced lawyers to act as lawyers in a capital murder case because of
the seriousness of the charges," D'Amore said.

Armstrong and McCallum had an ongoing custody battle over their 6-year-old
daughter after their divorce in 2003, according to court records.

While in custody, Armstrong passed a note to a jailer detailing where
McCallum's remains could be located, according to a Freestone County
Sheriff's report.

Police found McCallum's body covered in lime and brush in Freestone County
near mile marker 187 in the median of Interstate 45.

Armstrong is being detained at Collin County Jail on $500,000 bail.

(source: McKinney Courier-Gazette)






INDIANA----impending execution

Execution Scheduled for Friday


A man who shot a Muncie police officer to death more than 16 years ago is
scheduled to be executed early Friday.

36-year-old Michael Lambert was arrested for public intoxication and
placed in the back seat of Officer Gregg Winters' police car. He pulled
out a gun and shot Winters 5 times in the back of the head. The policeman
died 11 days later.

Last week, the Indiana Parole Board recommended no clemency, and Governor
Mitch Daniels is reviewing the case.

Besides the clemency request, Lambert's attorneys also filed an appeal in
the federal courts.

If the execution proceeds as scheduled, Lambert would be the second person
executed in Indiana this year. David Leon Woods was executed last month
for killing a 77-year-old neighbor in Garrett.

(source: Associated Press)