Jan. 22 CALIFORNIA: Death penalty sought against Marines accused of murder----District attorney: Decision 'wasn't a close call' Calling the murder of a Marine and his wife in their Winchester home last year brutal and savage, District Attorney Rod Pacheco on Wednesday said he will seek the death penalty for 4 Marines accused of killing the couple. "They each played their own horrific part in the savagery that occurred in that house," Pacheco said. "These 4 guys crossed the line between life without parole and the death penalty. It wasn't a close call." Lance Cpl. Emrys John, 19; Lance Cpl. Tyrone Miller, 21; Lance Cpl. Kesaun Sykes, 21; and Pvt. Kevin Cox, 21, each have been charged with fatally shooting Marine Sgt. Jan Pietrzak, 24, and his wife, Quiana Faye Jenkins-Pietrzak, 26, at their home Oct. 15. Riverside County sheriff's homicide investigators have said both victims were bound, gagged and shot at least twice in the head. All 4 men are charged with 2 counts of murder, each with special-circumstance allegations of committing multiple murders, committing the crime during a robbery, and rape by instrument, according to Riverside County Superior Court records. Investigators believe the defendants targeted the couple to rob them. Parts of the 2-story home had been ransacked and belongings, including jewelry, were stolen from the Pietrzaks, authorities said at the time. Each of the men has pleaded not guilty to all charges. A hearing to determine if the four should face trial is tentatively scheduled for February. Their attorneys could not be reached for comment Wednesday on Pacheco's decision to seek the death penalty. The 4 defendants were assigned to Camp Pendleton and 2 of them, Miller and John, worked directly for the Marine they are accused of killing. They all remain in custody, held without the possibility of bail, jail records state. Pacheco said many factors were involved in making his decision, including the pleas of about 20 family members and close friends of the Pietrzaks, a majority of whom called for the ultimate punishment when they met with the district attorney Wednesday. The parents of the slain couple could not be reached for comment Wednesday, but Pacheco said that during his meeting with their family and friends, much of the conversation dwelled on the kindness of the Pietrzaks and their deep love for each other. "They had this tremendous love for each other and they were so young," he said. "On the other hand, I know what these 4 guys did, the brutality of it, the savagery of it, the horrific nature of their actions. You couldn't have 2 things further apart." The Pietrzaks were a mixed-race couple and all 4 men accused are black, causing some to allege the crime was racially motivated. But homicide investigators dismissed that notion, saying that even though a racial slur was found spray-painted inside the Pietrzaks' home after the murders, it was done to throw off the investigation. "The official motive is borne out by the special circumstances," Pacheco said. "Financial gain, double murders, robbery, burglary, and rape with a foreign object. That is a fair description of the motives that we will be able to prove." In a recent New York Daily News article, Henryka Pietrzak-Varga, the mother of Jan Pietrzak, called for the death penalty. "They will get as much sympathy from me as they gave my son and my beautiful Quiana, which is none," Henryka Pietrzak-Varga told the Daily News on Monday. "I will ask for the highest punishment possible, and that's the death penalty. For what they did, for what they took from us, let them pay with their lives." She said she wrestled with her decision. "I had problems with this as a Catholic," said Pietrzak-Varga, who lives in Bensonhurst. "But death is death, murder is murder, and for this they deserve punishment. They didn't give them a chance to say goodbye, to say a final 'I love you.'" Court records indicate that authorities believe John fired the fatal shots, but Pacheco said all of the men played major roles in the crimes. There will be no plea bargains available, either, he said. "We don't plea bargain death penalty cases," Pacheco said. "I made that very clear to family members. We are going to do the right thing here." Currently, the death penalty is under scrutiny in California as lawmakers and judges grapple with whether lethal injection is cruel and unusual punishment and other issues. The last time someone was executed in the state was 2006. "The death penalty is broken right now, but we intend to fix it," Pacheco said. "Our office is leading the way for an initiative to be on the ballot in 2010 to expedite the death penalty, to make it work more efficiently and fairly." (source: North County Times) NEBRASKA: Prosecutors Drop Death Penalty Against Man Accused In Double Slaying Prosecutors dropped 8 charges against a man accused in a double murder in Lincoln last year as part of a plea deal. They also won't seek the death penalty for Brandon Crago, 34, who pleaded no contest to 2 counts of 1st-degree murder. Crago is accused in the shooting deaths of Carolyn and Steven Bailey in their rural Lancaster County home. Deputy County Attorney Joe Kelly said the deal is partly a result of the uncertainty over the death penalty in Nebraska. Last February, the Nebraska Supreme Court ruled the use of the electric chair unconstitutional. Next week, lawmakers have scheduled a public hearing on changing the state's method of execution to lethal injection. Crago is set to be sentenced on Feb. 27. (source: KETV News) NEW HAMPSHIRE: Lawmaker Shoots to Expand Death Penalty House lawmakers heard testimony on legislation today to expand the state's death penalty. It's one of a few bills this year that deals with capital punishment. Compared to other states, the list of crimes that warrant the death penalty in this state is pretty narrow right now. It includes the murder of judges and law enforcement officials, as well as murder for hire, murder connected to certain drug offenses and murder before during or after rape. Keene Representative Delmar Burridge wants to add murder by firearm while engaged in a felony like a robbery. Burridge told Criminal Justice Committee members that murders continue to rise and police solve fewer and fewer crimes. He believes threatening would be murderers with a firing squad would be a more effective deterrent than lethal injection. TAPE: we have anesthetized the idea of killing to make it seem more palpable. First we had a rope, then we had a guy be far away, throw the switch, AC or DC. Then we had the gas chamber, picture it there....urgh, urgh, urgh. For folks who use a gun, they know what that's about....they think they are going to get the same thing back, that might just work. New Hampshire ACLU Executive Director Claire Ebel admitted she was surprised by the legislation. TAPE: I had to read it 2 or 3 times to make sure I wasn't imagining things. Ebel- who on principle opposes the death penalty- says she can't figure out the rationale for the measure. TAPE: strangulation. Stabbing, cutting someone's throat and watching them bleed to death, torturing them to death. I would find all of those equally reprehensible. And so I don't see any reason to consider that more heinous than any of the other ways we could kill someone. Undoubtedly, if this measure passed state costs would soar. Over the past 30 years the state has averaged about 19 murders a year. The Public Defender says it takes about $50,000 dollars to defend a homicide case. To put the potential price tag in context, the public defender has already spent about 1 million dollars to defend Michael Addison...and that doesn't include forthcoming appeals. Given the state's budget problems, bills that require new spending dont have a great shot this session. Defense Attorney Michael Iacopino says if lawmakers want to take action on the death penalty they should support one of the study bills that have been filed. He says given Addison's verdict and John Brooks life in prison sentence, there's increased urgency to address the policy. TAPE: NH went the same way, if you read the studies from all over the country, was predictable. A rich white guy, eh would escape with his life. Whereas a young black male would get the death penalty...I am not attributing any bad notions to anybody, but thats the way the death penalty works. 13-term state Representative David Welch- who long headed up the House Criminal Justice Committee- is a co-sponsor of one of the study bills. Welch supports the death penalty as is, but believes it should be thoroughly considered given the punishment's severity. He says just because a jury has sentenced someone to death for the first time in almost 50 years doesn't mean the system is broken. TAPE: If we have an execution here in this state. It will put a whole new spin on it....those who are opposed to the death penalty will feel energized and a lot of people who are neither here nor there would get caught up in that. Welch's study bill will likely be heard in the next several weeks. As for the firing squad bill, the Committee chair says it's safe to say the measure will die a quick death. (source: Dan Gorenstein, NHPR) ARIZONA----new death sentence Man gets death penalty for killing step-daughter A Glendale man who shot and killed his 13-year-old step-daughter in 1998 was given the death penalty last week. County Attorney Andrew Thomas announced that Wayne Benoit Prince, 37, was found guilty Aug. 24, 1999 of one count of 1st-degree murder and 1 count of attempted first degree murder, and last week, a jury returned the verdict of death. The charges were a result of a March 25, 1998 domestic violence argument that turned deadly. The defendant shot his step-daughter, Cassandra Parker, and his wife, Christie Prince. Christie survived, but has residual problems from the wound to the back of head and jaw. Cassie died. The jury returned its verdict Jan. 15 following an earlier trial to consider the aggravating factors for the death penalty. The new trial was prompted by the Arizona Supreme Court's Ring vs. Arizona ruling. The prosecution had requested the death penalty because of 2 aggravating factors. One, the murder was committed in an especially heinous, cruel, or depraved manner, and 2, the defendant was an adult at the time of the crime and the victim was under 15 years of age. According to court records, Prince and his wife were having a violent verbal argument that turned physical, when he punched her in the head and rammed her head into a wall. He then picked up a gun that the couple kept in their Glendale townhouse and threatened to kill her, the children, and then himself. When his 13-year-old step-daughter attempted to flee the apartment, Prince locked the door and prevented her from leaving. His wife tried to reason with him, but was punched in the face again. Prince then covered the gun with a pillow, walked up to Cassie, put the gun against her head, and shot her. When his wife broke a window to call for help, he shot her on the side of the face. Prince then fled and hid in a vacant apartment, where he was arrested by police. "This verdict represents a just punishment for the defendant," Thomas said. "It is unfortunate that the victim's family had to wait so long for this case to come to a close." Deputy County Attorney Cleve Lynch prosecuted the case. (source: Glendale Star) TENNESSEE: Court upholds Dellinger death penalty on appeal In Nashville, the Tennessee Supreme Court has rejected an appeal from a death row inmate who claimed he had ineffective counsel. James A. Dellinger, who was convicted in the 1992 shooting death of Tommy Griffin, had identified a number of issues on which he said his conviction and sentence should have been reversed, claiming problems with imposing the state's death penalty law among his points. The court, which filed the ruling Thursday upholding an appeals court judgment, said Dellinger's death sentence shall be carried out June 3. Griffin's body was found with a shotgun wound at the base of his skull. Shells found at the scene matched fired shells found in Dellinger's yard. Another Tennessee death row inmate, Steve Henley, is scheduled to be executed next month. (source: Associated Press) _______________________________________________ DeathPenalty mailing list DeathPenalty@lists.washlaw.edu http://lists.washlaw.edu/mailman/listinfo/deathpenalty Search the Archives: http://www.mail-archive.com/deathpenalty@lists.washlaw.edu/ ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ A free service of WashLaw http://washlaw.edu (785)670.1088 ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
