[Deathpenalty] death penalty news----CALIF., VA., MO., FLA., ILL.

[Rick Halperin]

May 28



CALIFORNIA:

William Noguera creates art on death row


Every day for hours on end, William Noguera huddles over paper propped on
his steel bed, stippling thousands on thousands of dots that form the
images in his fine photo-realist ink drawings.

"I have a sense of urgency when I work, a drive that's inside me. Because
I don't know how much time I have," said Noguera, who's been on Death Row
at San Quentin State Prison since 1988. "When the rhythm and flow are
going, there's no stopping me. I go for 2 to 3 days."

Convicted of murdering his girlfriend's mother in 1983 when he was 18,
Noguera has had a quarter century to contemplate his life and develop the
remarkable technique that lets him express himself in dreamlike montages
whose style he calls "hyperrealistic, neo-cubism." There's an intensity to
these subtly shaded black-and-white pictures, a batch of which are on view
at the Braunstein/Quay Gallery in San Francisco.

"Someone told me this was the most unbelievable use of black-and-white
they'd seen in years," said longtime gallery owner Ruth Braunstein, who
saw the work and wanted to show it. She'd heard Noguera was in prison but
didn't know why.

"He's an unbelievable draftsman, and I like this kind of storytelling
art," said Braunstein, standing before Noguera's "Voices Carry." It's a
montage of images that speak of loss and loneliness: a little girl seen
from behind, gazing out a window (Noguera was thinking of his little
sister at the time of their parents' divorce), empty bar stools and
tables, a pair of calla lilies, a curtain blowing in an empty room, an
ice-chilled cross.

"I don't know what the story is, but I can use my imagination. What I love
is that he's using a very old form of mark-making, stippling, and making
it work."

Braunstein was intrigued by Noguera's story - his appeals are exhausted at
the state level but will be heard in federal court - "but I think the work
holds up in and of itself."

Taught to draw as a child

A surfer and martial artist from the Southern California town of Hacienda
Heights, Noguera, who's of French Colombian ancestry, learned to draw from
his parents, both artists. From his father, a mechanic who sculpted in
marble, wood and titanium, "I learned the art of patience," said Noguera,
sitting in a tiny visiting room at San Quentin.

A fit, charismatic man with a graying goatee, intelligent brown eyes and a
polite, proud manner, he was brought into the room handcuffed and then
released before greeting a reporter and Cassandra Richardson, his friend
and art agent. Scott Peterson, the infamous star of Death Row, sat in the
next glass birdcage.

"I'm a fundamentalist when it comes to art," said Noguera, 43, who speaks
passionately about Rembrandt, Titian, Rubens, modernists like Rothko and
contemporary figures like Brice Marden and Christopher Wahl. He studies
their art in journals and prison library books. "Da Vinci said, 'Learn to
imitate the masters, and whatever else you do, people will accept it,' "
he said.

Art "is not a luxury for me, it's a necessity," Noguera said. "There's a
transcendence. I rise above the situation. As soon as I pick up the pen,
I'm gone from this place. Art gives me the freedom I crave. The only thing
I have is my imagination. Art for me is about childhood, going back to
when things were simple and innocent. The man before you is just a vehicle
for that little boy."

Drawn freehand mostly from photographs, the work may look beautiful, "but
there's a lot of pain. If I draw a beautiful woman, I miss that woman." He
wants to "trigger an emotion for you, whatever it might be - love, hatred,
passion. I'm not concerned if people understand my work. My intentions are
irrelevant," added Noguera, who calls his 4-by-10-foot cell his studio.

By law, Noguera can't profit financially from his work. Forty percent of
the proceeds from the sale of his drawings - which fetch between $5,000
and $12,000 - goes to Richardson's company, Camorra Fine Art, and the rest
goes to Noguera's family (his parents, 2 sisters and a son live in
Southern California). Richardson, who picks up the work at the prison
hobby shop, first met Noguera in 2004, when she worked for the San
Francisco-based Institute for Unpopular Culture. He'd written asking for
help getting his work out there.

Richardson fell in love with Noguera's art. But knowing he'd killed
somebody - Jovita Navarro, a La Habra woman whose then-16-year-old
daughter was also convicted of murder - she was leery about speaking with
him. When they finally did talk by phone, she said, she was struck by his
candor and sincerity, and eventually began visiting him in San Quentin.

Case is on appeal

He'd been sent up by a jury that believed he killed for financial gain
because Dominique Navarro stood to inherit some insurance money and the
home of her mother, who'd been brutally beaten and choked. The more she
learned about it, Richardson said, she came to agree with Noguera's
appellate lawyer, Robert R. Bryan, that Noguera deserved a new trial.

"What I'm comfortable saying is that he was in love with this girl and he
never had a good relationship with her mother," Richardson said. "The
girlfriend got pregnant and the mother basically forced her to get an
abortion. William is a devout Catholic. He walked in and lost it and
killed her."

Noguera said he can't discuss the case because it's on appeal. "I live
with it every day," he said. "I have regret, remorse, and I'm terribly
sorry for what happened."

Does he think about being executed? "It crosses my mind," he said. "Any
man who told you he wasn't scared would be a liar."

The other night, about 20 people came by the Braunstein/Quay gallery to
preview his show and hear from Noguera via speaker phone from San Quentin.
A taped voice informed them that the collect call would be monitored.
Painter Wilma Parker had been dazzled by the drawings that afternoon, not
knowing the backstory. Hearing it, she was intrigued.

"I wanted to hear his voice and how he feels about his art," said Parker,
who told the artist: "I was blown away by your work. It's very beautiful.
Could you elaborate a little more on your technique? It looks like
pointillism."

Noguera, who expressed thanks and gratitude - he'd told the crowd he had
"100 butterflies in his stomach" - replied: "It is a form of pointillism.
Basically, all these thousands of dots cling together to form a realistic
image." He recounted how he'd been thrown in the hole for 27 days when
first arrested, read "The Count of Monte Cristo" - which inspired his "A
Stone for Edmund Dantes" - and began drawing all over the walls. "It
poured out of me like water, and I haven't stopped since."

Touched, Braunstein, 84, told Noguera: "This is a unique experience for
me. I've never done anything in the gallery like this in my life. Your
work just talked to me when I first saw it."

A few days earlier, during a phone interview, Noguera said he hoped to be
seen as an artist, not an inmate doing art.

"This place where I must live is irrelevant to my art," he said. "It has
no bearing on it. However, I realize your audience finds it interesting.
But I would ask them to transcend this, and use their capacity to feel and
truly see my work as an entity of its own, judged in isolation from me."

William Noguera: Drawings. Through June 21. Braunstein/Quay Gallery, 430
Clementina St., San Francisco. (415) 278-9850, www.braunsteinquay.com.

To see more art by William Noguera, go to sfgate.com/entertainment.

(source: San Francisco Chronicle)

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

Man charged in notorious unsolved Orange County murder


In Santa Ana, a Hawaii man was charged Tuesday in one of Orange County's
most famous unsolved killingsthe execution-style shooting of topless bar
owner Jimmy Casino.

Richard C. Morris Jr., 54, was extradited to Orange County following his
arrest last week in Honolulu for investigation in the 1987 shooting death
of Casino.

Superior Court Commissioner Vickie L. Hix on Tuesday postponed Morris'
arraignment to July 13 and ordered him held without bail.

Morris was also charged with 2 special circumstance allegations: murder
for financial gain and murder during the commission of a robbery, making
him eligible for the death penalty.

Casino's death was the 1st in a series of mob-style executions linked to
the lucrative Mustang Topless Theater. One of the club's financial backers
was blinded after being shot in the head and a bouncer was killed
execution-style in an Irvine parking lot in 1988.

Prosecutors did not reveal what led them to Morris.

(source: Associated Press)






VIRGINIA:

Va. Executes Man, Ending De Facto Moratorium----Killer of Store Owner Is
First to Die Since Supreme Court Put Cases on Hold


Convicted killer Kevin Green was put to death by lethal injection last
night, becoming the first inmate executed in Virginia's normally busy
death chamber since 2006.

Green, who killed a southeastern Virginia convenience store owner in 1998,
was strapped to a gurney, administered a succession of three drugs and
pronounced dead at 10:05 p.m., said Larry Traylor, a spokesman for the
Virginia Department of Corrections. The execution came after an unusual
hour-long delay as Green's attorneys tried to persuade a federal judge in
Richmond to issue a last-minute reprieve, even though the U.S. Supreme
Court and Virginia Gov. Timothy M. Kaine (D) had declined to intervene.

U.S. District Judge James R. Spencer refused, clearing the way for Green
to die at the Greensville Correctional Center in Jarratt.

The execution signaled the resumption of capital punishment in the state
after it was effectively put on hold in the fall because the Supreme Court
was debating the constitutionality of lethal injection. Kaine also twice
delayed the execution of another inmate in 2006.

Virginia has executed 99 people since the U.S. Supreme Court reinstated
capital punishment in 1976, second only to Texas, which has executed 405.
The last inmate executed in Virginia was John Yancey Schmitt, who died by
injection in November 2006.

"Tonight justice has been served," Virginia Attorney General Robert F.
McDonnell (R) said after Green's death.

But Timothy M. Richardson, an attorney for Green, said that even though
Green's victim "suffered a horrible loss as a result of Mr. Green's crime
. . . we just executed a man with the IQ of an 11-year-old child."

Green's attorneys had argued to Kaine that their client could not be
constitutionally put to death because, with an IQ of 65, he is mentally
retarded. The Supreme Court outlawed the execution of mentally disabled
people in 2002 but left it up to states to define mental retardation.

Kaine denied the clemency petition, saying he had carefully reviewed the
case but found "no compelling reason to set aside the sentence that was
recommended by the jury." And the Supreme Court rejected a stay of
execution, though Justices John Paul Stevens and Ruth Bader Ginsburg said
they would have granted the stay.

Although the Supreme Court upheld the constitutionality of lethal
injection last month, a federal appeals court in Richmond is weighing a
challenge to the three-drug method of lethal injection. Attorneys for
convicted killer Christopher S. Emmett are arguing that Virginia's
protocol is unconstitutional, saying that prisoners are not fully
anesthetized before being administered drugs that can cause excruciating
pain.

State attorneys say Virginia's lethal injection protocol is "virtually
identical" to the procedures in Kentucky that the Supreme Court upheld.

Green was convicted in the killing of Patricia L. Vaughan, who owned a
small grocery store with her husband in Brunswick County. A jury convicted
Green and sentenced him to death in 2000. The Virginia Supreme Court
ordered a new trial in 2001. Green was again convicted and sentenced to
death later that year.

Green requested a last meal yesterday but did not want it disclosed,
officials said. He did not offer any last words.

3 executions are scheduled in Virginia over the next 2 months, including
that of Percy L. Walton, who pleaded guilty in 1997 to killing an elderly
Danville couple and his neighbor. Kaine twice delayed Walton's execution
in 2006 so his condition and competence could be evaluated.

(source: Washington Post)

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

Execution puts Va. Sen. Webb in an uneasy political position


Virginia's 1st execution in almost two years highlights an awkward
political stance for Sen. Jim Webb, whose near-total opposition to the
death penalty runs counter not only to majority opinion in the state, but
also to his image as a leading Southern moderate.

Webb, a Democrat, opposes capital punishment except in some "significantly
severe cases," said spokeswoman Jessica Smith, who refused to elaborate on
whether Tuesdays execution of convicted murderer Kevin Green fell within
those exceptions.

The stance puts Webb the furthest to the left of the states three
Democratic vice presidential prospects: Gov. Tim Kaine said he is opposed
to the death penalty but has presided over 5 executions since taking
office and former Gov. Mark Warner, who is running for the Senate, saw 11
executions during his term.

"[Warner] supports Virginia's existing death penalty statutes and in fact
enforced them when he served as governor," said Warner campaign spokesman
Kevin Hall.

Webbs image as a tough, conservative Democrat helped propel him to a
narrow victory in November 2006. He has done little to broadcast his
opposition to capital punishment, instead focusing more on prison reform
and combating high incarceration and recidivism rates. The issue was not
prominent when he faced off against incumbent Republican Sen. George
Allen, despite Allens staunch support of the death penalty.

Polls have consistently shown that a majority of Virginians support the
punishment, and Virginia is second only to Texas in the number of
executions it has performed. University of Virginia political science
professor Larry Sabato said he remembers Webb "being in favor of it, to
some degree," during the 2006 campaign.

"I honestly do not believe that a candidate could be elected statewide in
Virginia being completely opposed to the death penalty, that's just not
where public opinion is in the state," Sabato said. "That may change one
day, but thats certainly true today."

(source: Washington Examiner)






MISSOURI:

Gerald Carnahan doesn't face death penalty


The Greene County prosecutors won't seek the death penalty if Gerald
Carnahan is convicted for killing a young woman 23 years ago. Prosecuting
Attorney Darrell Moore filed that notice on Wednesday morning.

Carnahan was charged last summer for the rape and murder of Jackie Johns
of Nixa in 1985. Investigators long suspected Carnahan but said they
didn't have enough to charge him until modern DNA analysis linked him to
the murder scene.

Moore said he made the decision after consulting with Johns' relatives,
who he says support the death penalty. Moore said her father, Les Johns,
is elderly and in poor health and would like to see the case resolved in
his lifetime.

The decision not to seek the death penalty likely will speed up the time
it takes to end the case. Death penalty cases often take 2 years or more
to come to trial because of the greater importance of their outcomes. They
also include years of repeated appeals as defendants seek to overturn or
delay their executions.

Moore's decision could also mean a plea agreement would eliminate the need
for a trial. Defendants who face a death penalty can't plead guilty
because U.S. Supreme Court and Missouri Supreme Court rulings say a jury
has to recommend a death penalty before a judge can impose it.

If a jury convicts Carnahan or he pleads guilty for 1st-degree murder, he
would receive a life prison sentence with no possibility of parole. If he
pleads guilty for 2nd-degree murder, the 50-year-old defendant likely
would receive a 30-year (life) prison sentence with a possibility of
parole.

Carnahan's attorneys, Dee Wampler and Joe Passanise, issued a written
statement.

"We respect the Prosecutor's well-reasoned decision to not seek the death
penalty . . . The decision of what charge to file, how to present the
evidence, and what punishment to seek is within the sole discretion of the
elected Prosecuting Attorney," the statement says.

"This cold case is 23 years old and there are serious chain-of-custody
issues on dozens of pieces of physical evidence. Seeking the death penalty
would delay the trial another year and, even if convicted, appeal delays
could extend another 10 years."

(source: KY3 News)






FLORIDA:

Prosecutors Won't Seek Death Penalty Against Onstott


Prosecutors will not seek the death penalty against David Lee Onstott, who
is charged in the death of 13-year-old Sarah Michelle Lunde.

On Friday, the Hillsborough County State Attorney's Office filed notice
with the court withdrawing its intent to seek execution, should a jury
convict Onstott.

"That's good news for Mr. Onstott," said Assistant Public Defender John
Skye. "Other than that I have no comment."

Prosecutors declined to comment.

The case against Onstott is expected to be difficult for prosecutors at
trial, scheduled to start Aug. 11. They have no physical evidence linking
him to the crime, and the majority of Onstott's statements to law
enforcement were thrown out by a judge.

Onstott had asked for an attorney but was not provided one, Circuit Judge
Ronald Ficarrotta previously ruled. Last month, the 2nd District Court of
Appeal backed up Ficarrotta on that ruling.

David Parry, a private defense attorney not affiliated with the case, said
prosecutors might be thinking that jurors will hold the evidence to a
higher standard if the death penalty were a possibility. When the evidence
is not as solid as prosecutors would like, jurors might be more willing to
convict if they do not think it will result in execution, he said.

On April 9, 2005, Sarah had just returned from a church trip. She briefly
spoke with her brother and his friend, who went out to get food. Two days
later, her mother reported Sarah missing.

Her body was found in a muddy pond near her Ruskin home, anchored with
concrete blocks.

Investigators immediately focused on Onstott, a sometime boyfriend of
Sarah's mother. Sarah's brother said Onstott was at their mobile home the
night Sarah disappeared.

Over several days, detectives interrogated Onstott, who had signed forms
agreeing to speak to them without a lawyer present. Then, on April 14,
2005, Onstott told a detective that he would not sign any more forms
without speaking with his attorney.

Minutes later, Onstott made a statement to another detective. The
detectives continued to interview him over the next two days without a
lawyer.

Ficarrotta ruled that Onstott's statements could not be used. The first
detective had an obligation to tell the 2nd detective that Onstott asked
for a lawyer. They also could not initiate anymore conversations with him.

At trial, prosecutors will use Sarah's brother as a witness that Onstott
was at their home.

They will also be able to use statements Onstott made to a nurse and a
jail deputy.

After Onstott spoke with detectives, he was sent to the jail infirmary on
suicide watch. There, he made an incriminating statement to a nurse and a
detention deputy, sheriff's officials have said. Ficarrotta has ruled that
those statements could be used at trial. The appeals judges agreed.

Those statements have not been released publicly.

(source: Tampa Tribune)






ILLINOIS:

Library, Turow want town to talk about death penalty


This summer Antioch students and the community are invited to read a book
discussing the death penalty under Antioch Community High School's "One
book, one community" initiative. The program for students and parents
culminates with the author leading a discussion of his book at the school
in August.

The school selected "Ultimate Punishment: A lawyer's reflections on
dealing with the death penalty" by Chicago lawyer-turned-author Scott
Turow, because the topic is relevant in Illinois which has a moratorium on
capital punishment, said Principal Michael Nekritz.

Although some school athletic teams and the drama club have all read a
book together, this is the 1st time that the high school has attempted a
"One book, one community" program. It partnered with the Antioch Public
Library. The library has more than 40 copies of Turow's book, on loan from
the high school, and will also hold 2 separate presentations on the death
penalty over the summer.

In the book, Turow takes the reader through his changing attitude towards
sentencing convicted killers to die. Turow will lead a 40-minute
discussion of the death penalty and his book on Aug. 28 at 7 p.m. in the
high school auditorium.

Afterward students will lead smaller groups of people to discuss the book.

2 additional presentations will take place at the Antioch Public Library.
Jeff Pavletic, chief deputy for the Lake County State's Attorney's Office,
will give his perspective on when the death penalty is necessary on July
24. Bill Jenkins and Jennifer Bishop Jenkins from the Illinois Coalition
to Abolish the Death Penalty will speak on Aug. 21. Both programs begin at
7 p.m.

(source: Suburban Chicago News)