April 15
ARKANSAS:
Trial date set for man charged in fatal Springdale drive-by
A Springdale man police say was 1 of 4 involved in a fatal shooting last year
has been set for a 5-day jury trial in September.
3 men were standing near a car when 4 men in a blue Ford Focus pulled up and
demanded to know their gang affiliations, according to police. 1 of the 3 said
he was in a gang, and one of the people in the car opened fire, killing Jimmy
Rodriguez, 20, on April 11, 2015, in Springdale.
Rodolfo Martinez, 18, who police believe to be the gunman, is charged in
Washington County Circuit Court with accomplice to capital murder and
accomplice to the unlawful discharge of a firearm from a vehicle. Circuit Judge
Mark Lindsay this week set Martinez' trial for Sept. 16.
Accomplice to capital murder is punishable by life in prison without the
possibility of parole or the death penalty.
Martinez' attorney has filed motions challenging the constitutionality of the
state's capital murder and death penalty statutes but Prosecutor Matt Durrett
said Thursday he has decided not to pursue the death penalty.
Jose Delatorre, 18, believed to have been a passenger, is charged with
accomplice to capital murder.
Giovanni Vasquez-Sanchez, 17, who police believe was the driver, is charged
with accomplice to capital murder and accomplice to the unlawful discharge of a
firearm from a vehicle.
All 3 men pleaded not guilty in May. Each will be tried separately.
Delatorre, like Martinez, faces life in prison without parole or the death
penalty if convicted. Vasquez-Sanchez, because of his age at the time, isn't
subject to the death penalty. Unlawful discharge of a firearm from a vehicle is
a felony punishable by 10 to 40 years or life in prison.
A 13-year-old boy, believed to be a passenger, was arrested on preliminary
charges of accomplice to capital murder and engaging in continuing criminal
enterprise. His case is being handled in Washington County Juvenile Court.
Information about his case is, therefore, unavailable.
(source: nwaonline.com)
MISSOURI:
Boone County jury to decide convicted killer's fate
Regardless of what happens during a jury trial next week, Mark A. Gill will die
in prison. The jury simply will decide whether his demise should be from
natural causes or if he should be put to death.
Gill, 45, was convicted in 2004 of 1st-degree murder, armed criminal action,
1st-degree robbery, kidnapping and 1st-degree tampering for the 2002
execution-style murder of Ralph Lape Jr. in rural Cape Girardeau County.
Sentenced to death for murder, life for robbery and consecutive sentences of
30, 15 and 7 years for the other charges, his death sentence was vacated in
2009.
The Missouri Supreme Court affirmed Gill's convictions but remanded the penalty
phase, ruling his attorneys were ineffective because they failed to discover
the presence of child pornography and illicit message exchanges on Lape's
computer. That evidence could have been used to rebut good character evidence
the state offered in regards to Lape, the court ruled.
Once the case was sent back to New Madrid County, where it was tried on a
change of venue, the venue was changed again to Boone County. It has been
scheduled and rescheduled several times. On Thursday, 90 Boone County residents
began the screening process for potential inclusion in the jury.
Attorneys have Thursday and Friday to pick the jury, and the 2nd penalty phase,
to determine Gill's fate, will last all next week. The jury will be sequestered
throughout the trial, the 1st time since 2012 that has been done in Boone
County.
Lape's death might have occurred because of happenstance. Gill, who was staying
on Lape's land, and his friend Justin Brown learned Lape had a substantial
amount of cash in the bank and concocted a scheme to kill him and take his
money. They kidnapped Lape, bound him with duct tape and plastic ties and took
him to a cornfield near Portageville. They then shot and killed Lape and took
all of his jewelry and clothing before burying him.
The pair then went to the St. Louis area, where they spent nearly $1,000 at
strip clubs and later used Lape's computer to transfer $55,000 to an account
they could access via an ATM.
Gill and his girlfriend went to Las Vegas, where he spent about $1,600 of
Lape's money. He was eventually arrested in New Mexico and admitted to taking
part in the scheme, but he claimed Brown was the one who shot Lape.
Brown, 36, is serving a life sentence for 1st-degree murder and kidnapping.
Christopher Limbaugh, Cape Girardeau County prosecuting attorney, declined to
comment on the case. One of Gill's attorneys, public defender Thomas Jacquinot,
did not respond to a message seeking comment.
The case is an outlier in that it was sent back because of ineffective
assistance of counsel over character evidence, said Paul Litton, associate dean
for faculty research at the University of Missouri School of Law. Character
evidence isn't typically permitted in trials, he said, and good character
evidence as it pertains to Lape already has been omitted in the retrial of the
penalty phase. Litton said it's hard to determine whether it would have made a
difference the 1st time around.
Attacking a murder victim's character, Litton said, is risky for a defense
attorney. "You're worried that the jury might find the argument not in good
taste."
In Missouri, there are 17 aggravating factors in 1st-degree murder cases that
can qualify the defendant for the death penalty, including if the slaying was
done during the commission of another felony or if it was done for money.
Litton said the state will have to prove "not only that the aggravating factors
exist but that they warrant death."
On the other side, Litton said Gill's defense could try one of a number of
common arguments of mitigating factors to avoid the death penalty. Gill's
lawyers could introduce evidence that he is remorseful, that he has been
productive and nonviolent in prison.
Gill's defense also might argue that he wasn't the triggerman and was simply an
accomplice, Litton said.
Robert Koffman, a Pettis County judge assigned to the case, last week denied
several motions from Jacquinot that would have spared Gill's life, including
motions to dismiss the state's intention to seek death because of prosecutorial
misconduct at trial.
(source: Columbia Daily Tribune)
OKLAHOMA:
A conservative appeal against death penalty
This election year, Republican and Democratic voters in records numbers agree
on something: They distrust political leaders and the political establishment.
That same distrust applies to ambitious prosecutors, who are part of the
political establishment. Too many have been caught cheating to win convictions,
withholding exculpatory evidence and using coerced confessions.
The bipartisan distrust of the political establishment is certainly increasing
with regard to the death penalty.
The government's troubling track record of exercising its life-ending authority
provides ample reason for concern. Since 1973, more than 155 people have been
released from death row because they were wrongfully convicted. Ten were from
Oklahoma. As an anti-abortion, pro-law enforcement conservative who believes in
the sanctity of life and society's duty to protect the innocent, I find this
unacceptable.
Oklahoma's well-documented wrongful convictions and failure to adhere to
established execution protocols have shown that it cannot be trusted with
properly carrying out the solemn responsibility of executing inmates. Oklahoma
officials might soon compound these known problems by attempting again to
execute Richard Glossip, a man who may well be innocent.
Glossip was convicted in 1997 of murdering Barry Van Treese. Justin Sneed, a
19-year-old with a documented criminal history and drug problem, was
apprehended and admitted to law enforcement that he murdered Van Treese. After
the police repeatedly suggested that he should implicate Glossip, Sneed
eventually claimed he was hired by Glossip to kill Van Treese. As a result,
Glossip was convicted and sentenced to die despite the fact that there was no
physical evidence linking him to the murder. Sneed was rewarded with a life
sentence in a medium-security state prison.
The bulk of the prosecution's case against Glossip is based on Sneed's
statements, but his story has changed at least eight times. Nevertheless, he is
the only person who connects Glossip to the crime. Furthermore, as state
authorities tried to execute Glossip last summer, lawyers working pro bono for
him uncovered at least three witnesses who cast considerable doubt on the
guilty verdict.
Conservatives are the leaders against government abuse and lawlessness. We
understand that government can be callous about its errors, which are costly
and cause harm to the innocent. When government tries to execute a man who may
well be innocent, I believe we have an even higher calling to speak out.
Oklahoma's systemic failures and Glossip's case in particular are emblematic of
what is wrong with America's death penalty. The death penalty's problems are a
confluence of things that all Americans loathe: a big, broken, costly and
dangerous government program prone to mistakes, and with questionable positive
benefits.
It was recently announced that a bipartisan group of eminent Oklahomans would
be donating their time to a first-of-its-kind review of the Oklahoma death
penalty system. I urge all Oklahomans, and especially conservatives, to support
the call for a moratorium on the Oklahoma death penalty until this commission
has finished its task and made its recommendations.
The death penalty system, where errors are gravest, is prone to flaws and
lawlessness like any other government program.
Viguerie, a conservative activist, is chairman of ConservativeHQ.com.
(soruce: The Oklahoman)
NEBRASKA:
'Making a Murderer' lawyer speaks on Nebraska's death penalty
"Thank you for welcoming a Badger into the heart of Husker territory," lawyer
Dean Strang said after being announced by Lincoln senators Adam Morfeld and
Colby Coash at University of Nebraska-Lincoln's Teacher's College Thursday.
Although the Wisconsin attorney from the Netflix series "Making of a Murderer"
began cheerfully, he and the senators quickly sobered as they began to discuss
the death penalty.
Morfeld and Coash have been a part of the effort to rid Nebraska of the death
penalty. In 2015, the Nebraska legislature voted overwhelmingly to eliminate
the death penalty in Nebraska. Gov. Pete Ricketts vetoed this effort, a veto
which Morfeld said was overridden by 14 progressives and 16 conservatives.
"It was a majority of conservatives that decided to override the governor's
veto," Morfeld said, "and that's pretty momentous. We're the 1st conservative
state to do this since the 1970s."
Now the death penalty is on the November 2016 ballots, so Nebraskans can decide
if the senators continue their fight or if the state should continue to utilize
capital punishment.
As a part of Retain a Just Nebraska's anti-death penalty movement, Strang
visited UNL to give his insights on capital punishment. Strang was the attorney
for Steven Avery, a man many believe was wrongly imprisoned for the murder of
Theresa Halbach in 2005. Netflix produced "Making of a Murderer," a series
detailing Avery's trial. With his role as Avery's attorney, as well as his
involvement in the Wisconsin Coalition Against the Death Penalty and the
Wisconsin Innocence Project, Strang is a prominent opponent of capital
punishment.
"I'm not here to try to talk you into opposing the death penalty," Strang said.
"I do want to disclose my point of view, and you can weigh what I have to say
in making your decision."
Strang admitted he has not always been an unwavering opponent of the death
penalty. But, he said, his opinion became "crystalline" when he was assigned
his 1st and - so far only - death penalty case as a 29-year-old attorney.
He was defending a man on death row in Alabama. The man had been on death row
for 11 years and had been sentenced the week Strang graduated from high school.
When Strang made the trip to Alabama, he had only been practicing law for 4
years and felt "inadequate," as he was challenging an assistant attorney
general and appealing to a judge that had told him he would see his guy "fry."
Despite these odds, Strang said this case helped him realize the gravity of the
death penalty.
"I remember flying home, quite looking forward to going home to Wisconsin,"
Strang said. "And I remember having this sort of realization, that 'Dean, if
you turn out to be the 2nd-best lawyer in this case, you will kill your
client.'"
This sobering moment helps Strang to now say, "I am firmly against the death
penalty." However, through representing the accused and contact with families
of victims, he believes there are people of "real good faith" on both sides of
the issue.
His experiences have also taught him how fallible the justice system really is.
He said he understands humans are all prone to mistakes, but the consequences
of the justice system's mistakes pale in comparison to every day mistakes.
"These have repercussions on real people's lives," he said, "the defendant's,
their kids, their families, the jurors, the witnesses."
Strang believes the fallibility of the justice system means professionals in
the field need to carefully consider their charges and sentences and take a
step back from their absolute certainty.
"We just need a dose of humility," Strang said.
Morfeld said this humility is especially necessary considering the large amount
of innocent people who have been on death row that were later exonerated. He
asked the audience to consider what it would be like to be on death row,
knowing you???re innocent of any crime.
"This was particularly stark for me while I was watching 'Making of a
Murderer," Morfeld said. "Innocent people are sometimes charged and convicted
of crimes they didn't commit. And with the death penalty, you can't reverse
that."
Even with his background and strong beliefs as an opponent of the death
penalty, Strang said he could see the arguments of both sides.
"If you take a life, you forfeit the right to your own," Strang said. "That's a
powerful argument."
And yet, he believes the judicial system can be better than that. And he said
it must be better than that, due to its inherent flaws and bias.
"We do not have an infallible system here," he said. "It is not perfect, and we
can not trust it because of that."
Strang, Morfeld and Coash all believe Nebraska is making great steps in the
death penalty.
"The whole country is optimistic about what Nebraska is doing," Coash said.
Strang responded, nodding. "Yes, that's absolutely true."
(source: The Daily Nebraskan)
ARIZONA:
Death penalty cases require more money: Supervisors asked to approve up to
$344,000 to cover court costs
The county supervisors on Monday will discuss using contingency funds to pay
for additional court costs.
The board will be asked to authorize up to $344,000 to cover the cost of two
death penalty cases that are pending in Mohave County, additional jury trials
and the process serving costs for the North Canyon constable, finance director
Coral Loyd said.
Of the total amount, $330,000 will be needed to cover the cost of 2 death
penalty cases plus additional defense costs. The 2 death penalty cases alone
have cost the county $239,000 so far in the current fiscal year, Loyd added.
Justin James Rector of Bullhead City and Darrell Bryant Ketchner of Kingman are
charged in separate cases with 1st-degree murder and face the death penalty if
convicted of that charge. Rector's trial is set for October, while Ketchner's
trial has not been set.
Rector, 27, is charged with 1st-degree murder, kidnapping, child abuse and
abandonment of a dead body in the Sept. 2, 2014, kidnapping and death of
Isabella Grogan-Cannella, whose body was left in a shallow grave near her
Bullhead City home.
Ketchner, 57, is charged with 1st-degree murder and burglary in the death of
18-year-old Ariel Allison at her Kingman home on the night of July 4, 2009. His
1st murder conviction was overturned by an Arizona appellate court.
Another $12,000 will be needed to cover the cost of additional jury trials for
the 2015-16 fiscal year. There were 38 jury trials in 2012 and 76 jury trials
in 2015. The current budget includes costs for 66 jury trials, however, the
$12,000 shortfall is projected.
Also, $2,000 is needed for the additional travel costs for the North Canyon
constable because of the increased volume of service for the constable in the
Arizona Strip.
The supervisors will meet at 9:30 a.m. Monday at the county administration
building, 700 W. Beale St. in Kingman.
(source: Mohave Daily News)
CALIFORNIA:
Mercy and Hope----Bryan Stevenson, author of the UCSB Reads 2016 selection,
"Just Mercy: A Story of Justice and Redemption" to speak at UCSB
Students in UC Santa Barbara sociology professor Elena Skapoulli-Raymond's
"Social Inequalities" class used the book to creatively explore topics of
racial inequality in prisons, false confessions and a history of the death
penalty.
One student read an original poem. Another showed a clip of rapper Kendrick
Lamar's "The Blacker the Berry" performance at this year's Grammy Awards. A
trio of students shared a diorama with cutouts of shadowy figures and barbed
wire (i.e., tinsel), but also lots of green leaves and vines, "representing
mercy and hope."
The book is Bryan Stevenson's award-winning "Just Mercy: A Story of Justice and
Redemption." The UCSB Reads selection for 2016, it has generated wide-ranging
discussions on campus well in advance of author-attorney Stevenson's visit to
UCSB Monday, April 18, when he will discuss the book and the Equal Justice
Initiative, a nonprofit organization he founded to offer support to defendants
and prisoners who have confronted injustice in the U.S. legal system.
Stevenson's talk, which will begin at 8 p.m. in Campbell Hall and is free and
open to the public, will wrap up nearly 4 months of UCSB Reads activities. Now
in its 10th anniversary year, UCSB Reads brings the campus and local community
together for a common reading experience. The program is led by the UCSB
Library and supported by the Office of the Executive Vice Chancellor and other
campus and community partners, with the book selected by a panel of faculty,
students, staff, and community representatives.
"'Just Mercy' has inspired the campus and Santa Barbara community to contribute
to the timely dialogue in our nation about racial injustice," said University
Librarian Denise Stephens. "The Library is proud in this 10th anniversary year
of UCSB Reads to provide a forum for academics, students, community
representatives, local officials and Santa Barbara residents to read, to share
expertise, to listen, and to engage in significant conversations inside and
outside of the classroom."
Activities for UCSB Reads 2016 have included a roundtable discussion with local
law enforcement about community policing, a panel on activism and social
change, a screening of the documentary "White Like Me: Race, Racism & White
Privilege in America," and 4 public library panels featuring UCSB faculty and
local organizers.
During the winter and spring quarters, 13 UCSB courses featured "Just Mercy" as
part of the coursework. The UCSB Library provided 1,043 free copies of the book
to students in these courses, and the chancellor distributed thousands of free
books to students during a giveaway in January.
A combination of memoir and reporting, "Just Mercy" chronicles Stevenson's own
life as well as the stories of defendants he has helped, most notably Walter
McMillian, a prisoner on death row whom he helped exonerate. The book has
earned Stevenson numerous honors and awards, including the Andrew Carnegie
Medal for Excellence in Nonfiction, Dayton Literary Peace Prize and a NAACP
Image Award. Time magazine named the book one of the top 10 nonfiction titles
of 2014. In addition, actor Michael B. Jordan is set to portray Stevenson in a
film adaption.
Stevenson, who grew up poor in a racially segregated neighborhood in Delaware,
has represented capital defendants and death row prisoners since 1985, argued 6
cases before the Supreme Court, and won a ruling on behalf of juveniles in the
justice system.
He is a graduate of Harvard Law School, and in addition to his work as
executive director of the Equal Justice Initiative he is a professor at the New
York University School of Law.
Stevenson's talk is co-sponsored by UCSB Arts & Lectures. More information
about the talk and UCSB Reads 2016 can be found at
www.library.ucsb.edu/ucsbreads2016.
(source: news.ucsb.edu)
******************
Panel recommends parole for ex-Manson follower Van Houten
Leslie Van Houten stood before the California panel that would soon recommend
her parole as a slight woman with shoulder-length gray hair, a wrinkled face
and glasses, a far cry to from the rebellious teen she was when she joined the
cult of Charles Manson more than 40 years ago and helped kill a wealthy grocer
and his wife.
At a 5-hour hearing she described in detail how she descended from an idyllic
childhood into psychedelic drug use and eventually found Manson, whom she
described as a "Christ-like man that had all the answers" for an angry young
girl whose parents' divorce had left her feeling abandoned and angry.
On Thursday she convinced the state panel that the murderous young women she'd
been was a long-distant memory and that she was now fit to be paroled. She has
completed college degrees and been a model inmate.
"Your behavior in prison speaks for itself. 46 years and not a single serious
rule violation," Commissioner Ali Zarrinnam told Van Houten at the close of her
20th parole hearing.
The decision will now undergo administrative review by the parole board. If
upheld it goes to Gov. Jerry Brown, who has final say on whether Van Houten is
released.
The now-66-year-old Van Houten was "numb" after the panel announced its
decision, said her attorney Rich Pfeiffer.
"She's been ready for this for a long time," Pfeiffer said outside the prison.
"It really should have happened a long time ago."
Van Houten participated in the killings of Leno La Bianca and his wife Rosemary
a day after other so-called "Manson family" members murdered pregnant actress
Sharon Tate and 4 others in 1969.
Thursday's decision makes her the first Manson follower involved in the Tate or
La Bianca killings to reach this stage in the parole process. Family member
Bruce Davis, who was not involved in those killings, has been recommended for
parole, but it was blocked by the governor.
Van Houten was the youngest Manson follower to take part in the killings after
she joined the cult in the 1960s.
At the hearing, she described in graphic detail for the panel how she helped
secure a pillow over the head of Rosemary La Bianca with a lamp cord and hold
her down while another member of the "Manson family" began stabbing the woman
in her home.
Van Houten said she had looked off into the distance until another Manson
follower told her to do something and she joined in the stabbing.
"I don't let myself off the hook. I don't find parts in any of this that makes
me feel the slightest bit good about myself," she told the panel.
The La Biancas were stabbed numerous times and the word "WAR" was carved on the
stomach of Leno La Bianca.
After her arrest, she said at the hearing, Van Houten heeded Manson's calls to
disrespect the court during trial, and took LSD on death row in the early
1970s, imagining she was breaking down her molecules so she could exit the
building.
The Los Angeles County District Attorney's office vehemently opposed Van
Houten's release. After the decision, District Attorney Jackie Lacey said in a
statement she would evaluate how to proceed.
Louis Smaldino, nephew of Leno La Bianca, pleaded with the panel not to release
Van Houten after the horror she and the others inflicted by taking a carving
knife used at annual Thanksgiving dinners to mutilate his family.
"The Manson family are terrorists, albeit homegrown," he said. "They're long
before their time. What we're seeing today, these people were back in the 60s."
Van Houten did not participate in the Tate killings but went along the next
night when the La Biancas were slain. She was 19 at the time.
During the penalty phase of her trial, she confessed to joining in stabbing
Rosemary La Bianca after she was dead.
Van Houten's conviction was overturned on appeal. She was retried twice and
convicted in 1978 of 2 counts of murder and conspiracy.
Manson, 81, and other followers involved in the killings are still jailed.
Patricia Krenwinkel and Charles "Tex" Watson have each been denied parole
multiple times, while fellow defendant Susan Atkins died in prison in 2009.
(source: Associated Press)
OREGON:
Executions don't bring closure, say advocates for life
The parish hall at All Saints Church in Portland was filled with laughter,
tears, and love earlier this month.
Oregonians for Alternatives to the Death Penalty, OADP, sponsored the evening
event which focused on the death penalty and its impacts. The night marked the
tenth anniversary of a local family's tragedy.
What began as a gathering of people drinking wine, eating refreshments, and
joking about the party at the wedding of Cana evolved into a heartfelt
discussion on human dignity and the pain and healing associated with violent
crime.
Becky O'Neil McBrayer grew up at All Saints, along with her 4 brothers. Her
parents were active in the community and all of the children attended the
parish school.
As time passed, it became obvious that her youngest brother had a mental
illness. But the family didn't know how to help. 10 years ago, that illness
morphed and filled him with rage. At 25 years of age, her brother brutally
murdered her mother and stepfather and then attempted to take his own life.
"It's a horrifying experience that leaves permanent scars on the heart,"
McBrayer said.
While facing this shock, the O'Neil family was encouraged to seek the death
penalty as a punishment for their brother. They were told it would bring them
closure. The family was divided.
"Capital punishment divides families at a time when they need each other most,"
McBrayer continued.
She said that their mother had always taught them that 2 wrongs don't make a
right. And closure? McBrayer called that a false promise made by prosecutors.
McBrayer's brother was sentenced to life in prison without parole.
"Reconciliation means accepting that you can't undo the murder, but you can
decide how you want to live afterwards," McBrayer told the crowd.
McBrayer enumerated the consequences of capital punishment. She asserted the
death penalty divides communities, distracts from real needs for healing,
delays justice and damages the families of the executed.
Years passed before McBrayer and her brothers could talk about their parents'
deaths and their brother's illness.
"Families need time," said McBrayer. She stressed that her brother needs time
to work toward redemption, while the rest of her family needs time to work
toward forgiveness. "The death penalty steals people's time."
She also argued that resources spent on capital punishment should instead be
spent on preventing crime, improving mental health programs, and aiding victims
of crime.
"I don't want to give up on a single human being," said McBrayer, who serves as
the director of community programs at St. Andre Bessette Church in downtown
Portland.
With many emotional moments, well placed jokes, and loving remarks, the
audience members were captivated by McBrayer's family story.
"I used to believe in the death penalty as something that would actually bring
closure," said one attendee, Jessica Arnold. "But she's right. I just never
thought of it from another perspective."
Another of the event's speakers was Father Timothy Mockaitis, the pastor at
Queen of Peace Catholic Church in Salem.
He once heard the confession of a murder suspect. After this confession was
nearly used in that suspect's case, Father Mockaitis went to court to protect
the seal of confession.
Quoting the parable of the prodigal son, Father Mockaitis spoke of the dignity
of the human person and the treatment of the the guilty. "Now is the time that
we can make a difference. Now is the time that we can welcome the son back and
celebrate his healing and allow the freedom of God's grace to work," he
declared.
Throughout all of the speeches, the evening's message was clear.
"The death penalty leaves so many negative ripples throughout our culture,"
said Ron Steiner, chairman of the board of directors for the death penalty
organization. "There are alternatives."
(source: Catholic Sentinel)
USA:
Sampson seeks to move new death penalty trial
Lawyers for admitted serial killer Gary Lee Sampson have again asked a federal
judge to move his death penalty trial outside of Boston, citing a recent
appeals court decision that set a new standard for cases involving heavy
pretrial publicity.
Lawyers for Sampson argued that the consistent publicity surrounding his case
since he was first sentenced to death in 2003, and since his successful appeal
of his death sentence in 2011, will make it impossible to pick a fair and
impartial jury in Boston.
"One is hard-pressed to think of anything more damning to an accused than
information that a jury had previously convicted him for the crime charged,"
Sampson's lawyers argued in a motion that was unsealed Thursday.
Prosecutors did not immediately respond to the request, but have opposed
Sampson's previous efforts to relocate his trial.
Sampson, 56, admitted to carjacking and killing three people within a week in
2001. A federal jury sentenced him to death for 2 of those killings in 2003,
but a judge vacated that decision in 2011, after finding that 1 of the jurors
lied during the juror screening process. A federal appeals court upheld that
decision, and prosecutors are now seeking the death penalty in a new sentencing
trial.
Last year, a federal judge rejected Sampson's request to have the trial moved
to another district, saying the area has a jury pool large enough to find
suitable jurors. He also ruled that enough time had passed since Sampson's
crimes, lessening the impact of pretrial publicity.
Sampson's new motion is based on a December decision by the US Court of Appeals
for the First Circuit. In that decision, the court granted a new trial for a
Puerto Rico man who had asked that his trial be relocated to a district outside
Puerto Rico, out of concern that pre-trial publicity would influence jurors in
his case.
The defendant, Pablo Casellas-Toro, was a son of a well-known judge on the
island, and had been convicted of murder and sentenced to 109 years in prison.
A week later, he appeared in federal court on charges of lying to federal
investigators. He had asked that the federal trial be moved because of the
media coverage of the murder case, but a federal judge refused, saying he could
screen jurors for potential bias.
In its decision, the appeals court found that in some cases, a local jury pool
can be so saturated by pretrial publicity that it would be impossible for
prospective jurors to put aside any bias, even if they said they could. The
decision was one of the first to find that even a proper screening process
could be insufficient to identify impartial jurors.
Sampson's lawyers have now made a similar claim, saying potential jurors in
Boston are bound to know about and be prejudiced by Sampson's previous death
sentence.
"The jury will be answering the same questions as the jury who previously
sentenced Mr. Sampson to death," the lawyers argued. "Knowledge of such a
previous verdict, which has been and continues to be widely publicized, invites
prejudgment and will be difficult if not impossible for a jury impaneled in
Massachusetts to disbelieve or forget."
Legal analysts have told the Globe that Boston Marathon bomber Dzhokhar
Tsarnaev is likely to make the same claim in his appeal of his 2015 death
sentence. Tsarnaev had also unsuccessfully asked to have his trial relocated.
(source: Boston Globe)
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