Aug. 11 TEXAS----impending execution Leon David Dorsey Scheduled For Execution Tuesday Night >From July 31st through August 21st, 7 men have either been executed or are scheduled to be executed in the State of Texas. On Tuesday night, August 12, 2008, Leon David Dorsey is scheduled to be executed after 6 p.m. In May 2000, Dorsey was convicted of capital murder and sentenced to death for the robbery and slaying of James Lloyd Armstrong at a video store in Dallas. Two employees at a Blockbuster Video store in Dallas were robbed and murdered around midnight on April 4, 1994. Employee James Armstrong was shot twice and employee Brad Lindsey was shot once in the back. The robber took several hundred dollars from the business. The in-store video camera recorded the crime and shows that the killer was a black male with short hair. Later that day, Dorsey admitted committing the robbery and murders to his girlfriend and to an acquaintance. Later that week, the girlfriend reported Dorseys admissions to the police. At the time, police erroneously believed that Dorsey was too tall to be the killer, and he was not charged with the crime, which remained unsolved until the case was reopened in 1998. During the 1998 investigation, police sent the videotape of the robbery-murder to the F.B.I. for an analysis of the robbers height. Based on the new estimate of the perpetrator's height and accurate information about Dorseys height, police questioned Dorsey again, and he confessed. 5 months after committing the Blockbuster killings, Dorsey killed a convenience store clerk during a robbery in Ennis, Texas. Dorsey pled guilty to the murder and was sentenced to 60 years in prison. While in prison, Dorsey attempted to stab another inmate. During an interview with the Dallas Morning News, Dorsey admitted to "possibly" killing as many as 9 people, "more or less." At fourteen, Dorsey took a gun to school and discharged it in a classroom. At fifteen, Dorsey lived on an Air Force base and committed several property crimes, including a residential robbery, a theft from a vehicle, and a theft of some items from lockers at the base gymnasium. When police investigated and found the stolen items at Dorsey's home, they also discovered 20 to 25 bullet holes in the basement wall of his house and numerous spent shells. At sixteen, Dorsey fired a gun at a young couple in another car and verbally threatened to kill them. At eighteen, five months after the double slaying at the Blockbuster store, Dorsey was arrested for unauthorized use of a motor vehicle. He was convicted, and his sentence was probated. (source: Forney Post) ************** Fort Worth man accused of killing Bedford store clerk faces death penalty if convicted Jeff and Theodis Dodson entered D&S Food Mart in Bedford last year, walked around the store, then strolled up to the counter, one of the brothers carrying a can of beer, according to arrest warrant affidavits and store surveillance video. One minute, clerk Gaurab Rajbanshi stood behind the counter, facing a cash register. An image from the store surveillance camera then shows Rajbanshi gone. Those were the last few minutes before Rajbanshi was shot in the face. Prosecutors say Jeff Dodson fatally shot the 28-year-old college student from Nepal just after 4:30 p.m. on June 11, 2007. Today, Jeff Dodson goes on trial for his life. Prosecutors are seeking the death penalty against the 39-year-old Fort Worth man. Testimony is scheduled to begin today in Criminal District Court No. 1. The clerk: Rajbanshi had worked at the store for 2 years. He had a bachelor's degree from Bangladesh University of Engineering and Technology in Dhaka, Bangladesh. The robbery: After Rajbanshi was shot, one of the Dodson brothers stood behind the counter and was either stomping Rajbanshi or kicking at the cash register, according to an arrest warrant affidavit. The other brother tugged on a cash register cord, trying to pull it away from the counter, the affidavit states. The images were captured on the store surveillance camera. The arrests: Several people identified the brothers in the video surveillance footage that was released to the news media. The brothers were arrested a few days after the holdup. A cousin, Fredrick Hughes, 39, who waited in a Suburban outside of the store, was also arrested and charged. What's happened to others arrested: Theodis Dodson, 41, pleaded guilty to capital murder in March and was sentenced to life in prison. In July, a Tarrant County jury found Hughes not guilty of capital murder. Hughes' attorneys had argued that he was in a Suburban outside of the store, but that he didn't know his cousins plans. (source: Fort Worth Star-Telegram) NORTH CAROLINA: DA will pursue death penalty for Atwater The Orange County District Attorney announced today he intends to pursue the death penalty for the man charged with killing UNC-Chapel Hill's student body president. District Attorney Jim Woodall said there are potential aggravating factors that would justify the death penalty for Demario Atwater, 22, should he be convicted of murder. Last month, a grand jury indicted Atwater and Laurence Lovette with more charges of armed robbery, 1st-degree kidnapping, felonious larceny and possession of stolen goods, in addition to Carson's murder. If Atwater is convicted of murder, some of the new charges could translate into aggravating factors to support a death sentence. Woodall said during today's hearing prosecutors believe that Atwater and Lovette were on foot on Rosemary Street in the Chapel Hill area, looking to rob people. There were varying statements made about whether Carson was taken from her home or if the two men pretended their car was broken down and then took her, Woodall said. Most likely, they abducted Carson just outside her home, Woodall said. Carson was shot 4 times with a hand gun and once in the head with a shotgun, Woodall said. The weapons had been discarded, but have since been recovered by law enforcement, Woodall said. Woodall said Atwater most likely had possession of the sawed off shotgun. There were attempts to break that weapon, but it was recovered, Woodall said. Atwater attended the hearing, wearing blue short sleeve dress shirt and gray pants, but did not say anything. He smiled at his mother as he left the courtroom. After the hearing, Woodall said he had talked to Carson's parents, and that they would support his decision. Orange County has not sent anyone to death row since 1970; no offender in Orange County has been executed since 1948. Lovette, 17, is not eligible for the death penalty because of his age. Lovette is charged also with first-degree murder in the death of Abhijit Mahato, a Duke University engineering student from Bengal, India, shot in a robbery in January. (source: News & Observer) ************** Death penalty sought against Christopher Boyd Rowan District Attorney Bill Kenerly says he will pursue the death penalty for Christopher Boyd and not for Jonathan Barnett, both of whom are accused of killing Salisbury dentist Dr. James David Boyd. The 2 men appeared in Superior Court Monday for a rule-24 hearing to determine if the prosecutor would seek the death penalty. Kenerly said similar statements last week when he did not pursue the death penalty against co-defendant Candice Jo Drye, 23. He told visiting Superior Court Judge James E. Hardin Jr., of Durham, even though he felt there were enough aggravating factors to seek the death penalty against Barnett, he would not. All 3 are said to have gone into the dentist's home. He was found June 26 strangled and tied. Both Christopher Boyd, 21, and Barnett, 18, stood with their attorneys and pleaded not guilty to 1st-degree murder, 1st-degree burglary, felonious larceny and armed robbery. (source: Salisbury Post) ***************************** Suspect In Salisbury Dentist's Death To Face Death Penalty 1 of a trio of suspects in the slaying of a Salisbury dentist will face the death penalty. Prosecutors said on Monday that Christopher Boyd should be executed if convicted because investigators believe he's the one who actually strangled Dr. David Boyd. The judge quickly accepted District Attorney Bill Kennerlys request. Christopher Boyd, Jon Barnett and Candice Drye are all charged in the dentist's death. Investigators said early June 26, the trio robbed the man of electronic equipment at his Country Club neighborhood home and then strangled him with a belt. They're all charged with murder, burglary, larceny and armed robbery. The district attorney did not ask for the death penalty for Barnett, who is Christopher Boyd's cousin. Barnett's attorney, Larry Hewett, said that was the right decision. "I would say Mr. Barnett, myself and his family are relieved that a decision has been made that he will under no circumstances face the death penalty," he said. Salisbury detectives said they found electronic equipment stolen from the dentist at the house in Concord where Christopher Boyd was staying. The suspect was not related to the doctor. Prosecutors decided last week not to pursue the death penalty against Drye. The district attorney said there is enough evidence to seek the death penalty against her, but he has chosen not to pursue it. (source: WSOC News) ************************ Death penalty to be sought in NC student slaying Prosecutors plan to seek the death penalty against a man charged in the kidnapping and fatal shooting of University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill student body president Eve Carson. Orange County District Attorney Jim Woodall told a judge during a court hearing Monday that he plans to seek the execution of Demario James Atwater, 22. Jurors in Orange County haven't sentenced anyone to death since North Carolina resumed executions in 1984. Atwater and Laurence Alvin Lovette, 17, are charged with 1st-degree murder in Carson's death. The death penalty can't be sought against Lovette because of his age. Carson, 22, of Athens, Ga. was found dead March 5 in a residential street near campus. She was shot 5 times, including once in the head, according to an autopsy. Woodall said Monday that Atwater shot Carson in the head with a 12-gauge shotgun after he and Atwater kidnapped Carson and drove her to several ATMs. Woodall said about $1,400 was taken from her account. Atwater also is charged with 1st-degree kidnapping, felonious larceny, armed robbery and felonious possession of stolen goods. After his arrest in Carson's death, authorities charged Lovette in the death of Duke University graduate student Abhijit Mahato. Mahato was found dead Jan. 18 in his apartment near the university's campus in Durham, about a 20-minute drive from Chapel Hill. Stephen Oates, 19, of Durham, also is charged with murder in Mahato's death. An autopsy report found that Mahato was shot once in the forehead. (source: Associated Press) OHIO: Former death row inmate to hear his fate, again A former death row inmate is going before a panel to determine if he should be sentenced to death. Frederick Dickerson, 52, was convicted more than 20 years ago for the shooting deaths of Nichole McClain, 15, and Kevin McCoy, 31, in a Pinewood Avenue apartment. A 6th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in Cincinnati sent Dickerson from death row back to Lucas County after deciding he needed to be re-sentenced. The 3 judges who decided Dickerson's case in 1985 will preside over his re-sentencing. An appellate court had upheld the murder convictions but said Dickerson's attorney did not adequately raise issues that should have been considered for his sentencing. (source: WNWO News) IDAHO: Duncan's death-penalty sentencing hearing scheduled for Wednesday----A federal judge has scheduled opening statements for Wednesday in the death penalty sentencing for Joseph Edward Duncan III. In Boise, a federal judge has scheduled opening statements for Wednesday in the death penalty sentencing for Joseph Edward Duncan III. The scheduling order follows a productive day for lawyers picking the jury responsible for imposing a punishment on Duncan, who pleaded guilty to 10 federal counts in the 2005 kidnapping of two north Idaho children and the murder of one of them. By the end of the day today, 62 potential jurors had been approved by prosecutors and Duncan, who is acting as his own attorney. Court rules require a minimum of 59 qualified jurors before lawyers can begin whittling down the list. Duncan faces the death penalty for kidnapping Shasta Groene and her brother Dylan from their Coeur d'Alene home, and the torture and slaying of Dylan at a Montana campsite. (source: Seattle Times) CALIFORNIA: Death row plans deserve rethinking STATE Sen. Gloria Romero says that estimates that put the cost of building a new death row at San Quentin State Prison at $395.5 million is another example of the "giant black hole" California's prison system has become for the state's troubled budget. There is little debate that the state needs more modern, safe and secure housing for the growing ranks of inmates who face the death penalty. But the cost is approaching $400,000 per cell, not to mention an estimated cost of $58.8 million per year to staff and run the maximum-security complex. In fact, the estimated operational costs are so great that a recent report says the state could save money by delaying construction. The San Quentin cost estimates are budget-busting, even though state auditors conclude that the proposed plan is, at this point, the state's "least expensive" option. The huge cost highlights the growing expense of California's death penalty. It takes years - and significant expense - for inmates to exhaust their right to appeal sentences. Since the death penalty was reinstated in 1977, 14 inmates have been executed. Meanwhile, death row's population steadily grows. There are 674 condemned inmates, 635 of them on death row at San Quentin, where executions are carried out. The proposed new death row is designed to hold 1,152 inmates, some of them sharing cells with other inmates. Marin Assemblyman Jared Huffman is right to question the state's plans and to push for the state to consider other options. 2 options were tested by state auditors and determined to be much more expensive than the San Quentin plan. Sending condemned inmates to California's other prisons is too costly and building a new death row at another site almost makes the San Quentin plan look like a bargain. The state already has $19 million invested in its San Quentin plan and could begin construction later this year, the report points out. The analysis also concludes the state could cover some of the construction cost by selling a piece of the prison's property. Huffman and Marin Supervisor Steve Kinsey have urged Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger to consider sale of 40 acres at the southwest side of the prison. This land could be used for a new ferry port, housing (including for prison staff) and commercial development. That option would require the state to relocate its new death row to another portion of the prison. Despite prison officials' contention that there is no other suitable location, Huffman maintains it is possible. One clear conclusion: The death penalty, as currently enacted, is costly. Legislators should consider either ending executions or reducing the length of the appeals process. Either alternative will lower the cost of housing and keeping condemned inmates and will reduce "a giant black hole" in the state budget. (source: Marin Independent Journal)
[Deathpenalty] [POSSIBLE SPAM] death penalty news----TEXAS, N.C., OHIO, IDAHO, CALIF.
Rick Halperin Mon, 11 Aug 2008 19:44:34 -0500 (Central Daylight Time)
