[Deathpenalty] death penalty news----N.Y., ILL.

[Rick Halperin]

May 27



NEW YORK:

Senate passes death penalty bill for cop killers


The New York State Senate Tuesday passed legislation, sponsored by Senator
Martin Golden (R-C, Brooklyn), that would establish the death penalty for
criminals who kill police officers.

"As a former New York City Police Officer, I know there is evil walking on
the streets of the City and State of New York, endangering the lives of
every single police officer," Senator Golden said. "It is our
responsibility to pass this legislation and send it to the Governor -- we
can no longer sit back and watch ruthless murderers take the lives of
police officers. New York needs the death penalty to protect our society
and our police officers who risk their lives every day for our safety and
well-being. We must not let danger rule our streets."

The legislation, which has yet to be addressed by the Assembly, would
establish the death penalty for the intentional murder of a police
officer, peace officer or an employee of the Department of Correctional
Services.

In 2004, the Court of Appeals overturned death penalty sentences, saying
that judges were improperly required to instruct jurors in capital cases
that if they deadlocked and failed to reach a verdict during the penalty
phase of a trial, the judge would impose a sentence that would leave the
defendant eligible for parole after 20 to 25 years.

This bill addresses those concerns with respect to the murder of a police
officer, peace officer, or correctional officer by mandating the sentence
of life without parole if the jury is deadlocked and unable to agree on
the death penalty sentence.

(source: Empire State News)






ILLINOIS:

Court rejects appeal by ex-Illinois Gov. Ryan


Former Illinois Gov. George Ryan on Tuesday lost a Supreme Court appeal
that sought to overturn his corruption conviction on the grounds his right
to a fair trial by an impartial jury had been violated.

Without comment, the justices declined to hear the appeal by Ryan, 74, a
Republican who began serving a 6-1/2 year sentence in November at a
federal prison in Wisconsin.

Lawyers for Ryan and another man convicted in the case argued their
constitutional rights had been violated when the trial judge dismissed,
after deliberations had already begun, 2 jurors who lied about their
arrest records on their jury questionnaires.

The judge replaced the 2 jurors with alternates and ordered deliberations
to resume.

Ryan, who in 1998 won a single 4-year term as governor, had been nominated
several times for a Nobel Peace Prize because of his opposition to the
death penalty.

In 2000, Ryan ordered a moratorium on executions in Illinois after 13
death row inmates were found to have been wrongly convicted. Before
leaving office, he emptied the state's death row, commuting the sentences
of 167 inmates to life in prison.

The jury convicted Ryan and lobbyist Larry Warner on 18 counts of
racketeering, fraud and other offenses involving favoritism and kickbacks
for state contracts and property leases that enriched Ryan and his
friends.

A federal appeals court in Chicago upheld their convictions. In November,
Supreme Court Justice John Paul Stevens turned down Ryan's bid to stay out
of prison while he appealed his conviction to the nation's high court.

Lawyers for Ryan and Warner argued the jury's composition had been
manipulated, its deliberations were flawed and the trial judge had erred
in allowing the verdict when a number of jurors had been questioned during
deliberations about their own possible misconduct.

The U.S. Justice Department urged the Supreme Court to reject the appeal.
It said Ryan and Warner received a fair trial and the 2 jurors had been
properly replaced.

(source: Reuters)