Oct. 24 OHIO----execution Ohio executes cult leader who killed family of 5 Ohio executed a religious cult leader this morning for murdering a family of 5 of his followers whom he thought were not enthusiastic enough about his teachings. Jeffrey Lundgren, 56, died by injection at 10:26 a.m. at the Southern Ohio Correctional Facility. Lundgren told a jury in 1990 that he was prophet of God and therefore not worthy of the death penalty. "It's not a figment of my imagination that I can in fact talk to God, that I can hear his voice, he had told the jurors. "I am a prophet of God. I am even more than a prophet." The evidence against him was compelling: Lundgren, upset by what he thought was the Avery family's lack of faith, arranged a dinner hosted by cult members. Afterward, he and his followers led the Avery family members one by one to their deaths in a barn. Each was bound and shot. A chain saw was used to muffle the gunfire while remaining Avery family members cleaned up after dinner. "I cannot say that God was wrong. I cannot say that I am sorry I did what God commanded me to do in the physical act," Lundgren, now 56, told a jury in 1990 in a bid to spare his life. Over the years 40 judges have reviewed Lundgren's appeals. The most recent claimed lethal injection would be cruel and unusual punishment, particularly since Lundgren is overweight and diabetic. He was convicted of killing Dennis Avery, 49; his wife, Cheryl, 46; and their daughters, Trina, 15, Rebecca, 13, and 7-year-old Karen. "I profess my love for God, my family, for my children, for Kathy. I am because you are," Lundgren said in his final statement. Kathy is his wife. The 6th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in Cincinnati issued an order late Monday allowing the execution to go forward, overturning a lower court ruling that would have delayed the sentence to allow Lundgren to join a lawsuit challenging Ohio's use of lethal injection as cruel and unusual punishment. Lundgren argued his execution had a more of a chance of being painful because he was diabetic and overweight at 275 pounds. The U.S. Supreme Court refused a last-minute request to stop his execution, and Gov. Bob Taft denied clemency. Lundgren was careful to make sure no one would be looking for the Averys. Before the murders, he directed Cheryl Avery to write to her family and inform them that they were moving to Wyoming and would provide contact information when they got settled. The case was cracked 8 months later when a dissident cult member, upset that his wife had been selected to become Lundgren's second wife, tipped off authorities. On Jan. 4, 1990, the bodies were found. 13 cult members were charged in the case, including Lundgren's wife, Alice, now 55, and their son, Damon, now 35, both serving life prison terms. Police Sgt. Ronald Andolsek, who as a patrolman led the investigation into the cult killings, said the crime was personalized for him three days after the bodies were dug up when, for the first time, he saw a group photo of the Avery family. "It hit me right then," he said. Andolsek compared Lundgren's mind-control tactics to that used by other cult leaders such as David Koresh, Jim Jones and Charles Manson. "They used the same methods on their followers," Andolsek said. "Jeff wasn't the first. He won't be the last." Lundgren formed the cult with about 20 members in the northeast Ohio town of Kirtland after he was dismissed in 1987 as a lay minister of the Reorganized Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints, an offshoot of the main Mormon church. Lundgren said God commanded him, through interpretation of Scriptures, to kill the Avery family, who had moved from Missouri in 1987 to follow his teachings. Lundgren becomes the 5th condemned inmate to be put to death this year in Ohio and the 24th overall since the state resumed capital punishment in 1999. Lundgren becomes the 46th inmate to be put to death this year in the USA and the 1050th overall since the nation resumed executions on January 17, 1977. (sources: Associated Press & Rick Halperin) **************** Death penalty case to start In Warren, a predominantly female jury hearing the death penalty case against Jermaine McKinney will be on the road early this morning to see the Newton Township home where 2 grisly deaths occurred last winter. Opening statements are scheduled to begin sometime before lunch in the courtroom of Common Pleas Judge W. Wyatt McKay. Before that, the 8-woman, 4-man jury will be boarding a bus about 8 a.m. to travel to 3754 Newton Bailey Road, where on Dec. 22, the charred bodies of a mother and daughter, Wanda Rollyson, 70 and Rebecca Vargo Cliburn, 43, were found by a family member. Jury selection wrapped up late Monday afternoon. 4 male alternate jurors also were selected from the pool that was narrowed down to 34 Friday. McKinney faces penalties of execution, life without the chance of parole, or parole after 25 or 30 years if convicted in the murders. 3 other female co-defendants in the case have either pleaded guilty or have been indicted and have agreed to cooperate with prosecutors and testify against McKinney, whose nickname is Maniac. One of the women tried unsuccessfully to get $2,500 in a wire transfer from Western Union drawn on an account from Rollyson. Cliburn, an acquaintance of McKinneys, pointed out her mothers home, and according to prosecutors, McKinney was allowed in the house to wait to rob Rollyson after she arrived home from church. Cliburn and Rollyson were shot, and the house was set afire causing the victims to be burned so badly officials werent able to identify the bodies until 2 days later. (source: Tribune-Chronicle) NEW JERSEY: Death-penalty study begs the real question A study commissioned by the state Supreme Court has found that a large number of Central Jersey counties, including Middlesex, are more likely to pursue the death penalty than counties in either the north or south. The study found that these mid-state counties seek the death penalty in half of all eligible cases, a number far higher than in either Essex or Camden counties, the counties with the highest number of eligible capital cases. The Supreme Court commissioned the study because it is trying to determine whether the job of deciding to pursue the death penalty ought to be given to the state Attorney General's Office rather than individual county prosecutors. The unevenness with which the death penalty is applied is one of the primary arguments against using it. Ironically, no one who argued in front of the justices in light of the study even the Attorney General's Office itself thought that handing the decision to the state was the answer to the problem. Neither does this page. The study seems to point to the ongoing problems with the death penalty, rather than to elucidate a solution. Individual prosecutors certainly are an instrument of unevenness; but while a centralized authority erases individual idiosyncrasies, it cannot guarantee objectivity. State officers also are human and therefore subject to the same passions, prejudices and blindness as their county counterparts. The problem with the death penalty is that the severity and finality of the sentence demands perfection; as humans, we are unable to guarantee that level of certainty. (source: New Brunswick News Home Tribune) FLORIDA----impending execution Big death-penalty rallies for both sides expected Gainesville resident Bonnie Flassig said the crimes of Danny Rolling struck close to home, but that won't stop her from protesting his execution. Flassig lived near Rolling victim Christa Hoyt and said the killings were a nightmare for the neighborhood. But she said she'll protest Rolling's execution just the same, showing her consistent opposition to the death penalty. "I feel like I should have a sign placed on me saying that I remember Christa, but not with this killing," she said. Rolling's execution is scheduled for 6 p.m. Wednesday at Florida State Prison near Raiford, about an hour's drive from Gainesville. A pasture across from the prison is divided into sections for death penalty opponents and supporters to gather. While Flassig and several dozen other opponents have been a familiar sight at recent executions, supporters have been rare. Law enforcement officials say they expect larger than usual crowds this time, possibly attracting more supporters because of the prison's proximity to Gainesville and the notoriety of the crimes. The number of people who may be heading to Florida State Prison because of the execution has the Florida Department of Transportation concerned. The agency put out an advisory telling motorists to avoid a 2-mile section of State Road 16 west of the prison. The stretch, from State Road 121 to the Bradford-Union county line, is being resurfaced, and construction could cause delays for people going to the prison, the agency reported. Flassig said she fears the scene will resemble the "tailgate party" atmosphere of Ted Bundy's 1989 execution. More than 100 supporters gathered outside the prison then, which she said included people who wore T-shirts reading "Burn, Bundy, Burn" and popped champagne corks after the execution. Some subsequent high-profile executions, including that of serial killer Aileen Wuornos, attracted just a handful of protesters. But the execution of Paul Hill, who killed an abortion doctor and his guard in 1994, brought more security and attention. Phil Egitto, a Daytona Beach priest and protester, said Hill's 2003 execution was unusual in that there were three separate groups outside the prison. In addition to death penalty opponents and execution supporters, there was a 3rd group who believed Hill was a martyr for the anti-abortion cause and released balloons to signify his death. As he regularly does with executions, Egitto plans to bring to Rolling's execution a busload of opponents from his and other parishes in Daytona Beach. He said the group holds a prayer vigil as a counter to the execution. "It's about trying to bring peace to a very violent act," he said. Two Gainesville pastors are also planning to protest. The Rev. Larry Reimer, pastor at the United Church of Gainesville, has long been a vocal opponent of Rolling's execution and others. Reimer was part of a group that took out an ad in The Gainesville Sun in 1994, calling for Rolling to get a deal for life in prison to spare the community the experience of a trial. Rolling ended up pleading guilty before the trial and was sentenced to death. Reimer said he opposes the death penalty for many reasons, including the fact innocent people have been executed. While Rolling has admitted his guilt, Reimer said there are other reasons to protest. "We oppose his execution because it continues to add violence to violence," he said. The Rev. Glenn Dickson of Gainesville's Westminster Presbyterian Church said he personally knows one family member of a Rolling victim, whom he wouldn't identify, so he has mixed feelings about the execution. But he said that won't stop him from protesting. "I just oppose all executions by the state," he said. "I do that as a Christian." He said death row's location near Gainesville makes the biblical call to "love your neighbor" even more pertinent. "Those guys are our neighbors in a sense," he said. (source: Gainesville Sun) ******************************** Rolling's Upcoming Execution 'Reopens Wounds' He's one of the most notorious killers in Florida history, and on Wednesday, Danny Rolling will be put to death for the murders of five Gainesville college students. It is a day that families of the victims have waited for for 16 years. "It really does reopen wounds," said Mario Taboada, whose brother was among the five killed. "The pain comes back, the anger." Manny Taboada was an American Senior High School graduate who planned to study architecture at the University of Florida. His older brother, Mario, is a radio account executive and described hearing about the murders in Gainesville in the summer of 1990. "My words were, 'You want to talk about something sad? Can you imagine what those families of the victims in Gainesville must be feeling right now?' I said that," Mario said. Mario did not know at that moment on a Tuesday in August 1990 that his brother was a victim of Rolling's rampage. He said he found out 20 minutes later while listening to a radio bulletin as he drove down Interstate 95. "We've got news that 2 more bodies have been found in Gainesville, and there is a South Florida connection," Mario said, describing the radio announcement. He said the announcer then began to describe Tracy Paules, Manny's roommate. "And that is all I needed to hear," Mario said. Police said Rolling stabbed and raped 3 of the 4 women he attacked in their apartments and then mutilated them. Manny, who was a husky, strong young man, tried to fight back. Mario went to his brother's Gatorwood apartment a month later to pick up Manny's belongings. "So I was in that room and although they had cleaned up the blood on the wall, you could see signs of the struggle," he said. Mario said that Manny had died trying to save himself and his friend. "Someone very close to the prosecution 1 day came up to me in tears and said Manny fought and almost saved Tracy's life in the process," Mario said. The University of Florida and Gainesville residents remained on edge for months until the break in the case. Rolling was arrested on unrelated robbery charges and his DNA matched evidence found at the Gainesville murder scenes. "You realize 5 individuals with an incredible future and this one loser decides to take out his lifelong frustrations on people he didn't even know," Mario said. "They didn't provoke this. I talk about when evil crosses the path of good. It is mind-boggling." Rolling, 52, has exhausted all his appeals. He is scheduled to die by lethal injection at Florida State Prison in Starke at 6 p.m. on Wednesday. (source: NBC News) ********************************* Killer of Lake deputy headed for death row----Although remorseful, shooter acted in cold blood, judge says As Jason Wheeler was sentenced Monday to die, Amber Koester did something she wished her father's killer had done before he squeezed the trigger. She thought of his kids. "I honestly wanted life," said Amber, the 15-year-old daughter of slain Lake County Deputy Sheriff Wayne Koester. "No child should lose their dad. No child should ever have to go through what my brother and I have had to go through -- losing our dad." But Circuit Judge T. Michael Johnson sent Wheeler, 31, a father of 2, to death row for the ambush and shotgun slaying of Koester, 33, in Lake Kathryn last year. The deputy's daughter was nearly alone in her wish for life in prison. Koester's widow, Ashley, said she was not yet able to forgive Wheeler for killing the man she loved. "The pain of living without Wayne is always going to be there," she said. Johnson imposed the recommendation of a jury that voted 10-2 for death. The judge said State Attorney Brad King and Assistant State Attorney Bill Gladson had proved the death penalty was proper punishment for Wheeler, who also wounded two other deputies in the shootout Feb. 9, 2005, on Hilda Avenue . Koester's father, James, said he wanted death for Wheeler, too. "He would have taken four people's lives if he could have," he said. Wheeler opened fire on deputies Koester, Bill Crotty and Tom McKane as they escorted Wheeler's live-in girlfriend, Sara Heckerman, who had accused him of sexual battery. Wheeler nodded at Johnson as the judge ordered death. "We've generally expected this," said Assistant Public Defender William Grossenbacher, who argued that life in prison in a wheelchair would have been ample punishment. Wheeler was paralyzed from the chest down when shot during his capture. Grossenbacher said he hoped Wheeler's life could be saved on appeal because the jury's recommendation was divided. "If it takes a unanimous jury to convict a person of petty theft, how can we put somebody to death when the jury doesn't agree?" he said. With a freshly shaved head, Wheeler was rolled into the courtroom in orange jail togs by a bailiff. Again, he said nothing. He did not testify at trial in May and passed up a final chance to explain himself to the judge and Koester's family at a hearing last month. He apologized in a Scripture-quoting letter to the judge in July. Wheeler's aunt, Vicky Thornsburry, said she believed her nephew was remorseful and hoped the Koester family could one day find forgiveness in their hearts. Johnson said he, too, believed Wheeler was sorry for the killing, and the judge imposed the death penalty "regretfully." He justified his decision with a 34-page document rejecting a defense theory that Wheeler "snapped" under the influence of drugs and stress. He said Wheeler acted with cold calculation. Before his decision, the judge also noted the absence of Sheriff Chris Daniels, who died Oct. 14 in an accident during a charity race at New Smyrna Speedway. Acting Sheriff Gary Borders said Daniels wanted justice. "Sheriff Daniels had a passion for this case," Borders said. "He gave comfort to the Koester family and would have wanted to be here today to see this sentence carried out." Amber Koester said she hoped she could console Daniels' children the way the sheriff had consoled her family. She said she sent Daniels' daughter Lindsey a consoling message. "It will always hurt, but it does get better," she said. Koester is also survived by a son, Ryan, and 2 stepdaughters, Jamie and Jordan. Wheeler joins 10 others on death row for crimes committed in Lake County. (source: Orlando Sentinel) NORTH CAROLINA: Federal appeals court denies death row appeal for Durham man In Raleigh, a federal appeals court rejected to grant a new hearing Monday to a Durham man convicted of kidnapping and beating his girlfriend to death 13 years ago. Attorneys for Isaac Jackson Stroud, 52, who was sentenced to death, had argued the state's short indictment form wasn't constitutional because it didn't specify death as a possible sentence. But the 3-judge panel unanimously ruled the indictment used by North Carolina was sufficient. Stroud was convicted in 1995 for killing Jocelyn Mitchell in a beating that lasted 7 hours on May 1, 1993. Mitchell was an art teacher and track coach at Durham High School. Mitchell, 35, had large bruises over 80 % of her body and 5 broken ribs that punctured her lung and caused a slow death. At his trial, Stroud said the beating wasn't intentional. (source: Associated Press) WISCONSIN: Dont approve death penalty I am writing to advocate that Wisconsin preserve its 155-year tradition of using life imprisonment for its most serious offenses, and avoid the temptation of allowing capital punishment. The death penalty is about revenge. Wishing to kill the person who commits murder is a natural first reaction. But many of those whose families have lost loved ones realize that ending the murderers life is not likely to bring any meaningful closure, and certainly does not heal the wound of losing a loved one. Allowing a prisoner an early end to suffering in this life is a way to lighten the earthly penalty, rather than making it more severe. 12 states use life imprisonment as the ultimate penalty; 6 of them, including Wisconsin, are among the 10 safest in the country, and 10 of the 12 are safer than average. (For a listing, go to www.morganquitno.com). Voters have an opportunity to help preserve Wisconsins wise 155-year policy of barring capital punishment, by voting no on the death penalty advisory referendum on Nov. 7. (source: Letter to the Editor, La Crosse Tribune)
[Deathpenalty] death penalty news-----OHIO, N.J., FLA., N.C., WIS.
Rick Halperin Tue, 24 Oct 2006 10:14:53 -0500 (Central Daylight Time)
