Nov. 20
OHIO:
Pike County massacre: Lawmakers want state taxpayers to foot bill for costly
death penalty cases
Pike County simply can't afford to prosecute 4 death penalty cases so lawmakers
and Ohio's next top cop want the state's tax money to foot the bill.
Ohio's Attorney General-Elect Dave Yost and Pike County lawmakers Sen. Bob
Peterson and Rep. Shane Wilkin proposed a new way of paying for the prosecution
and defense of death penalties cases involving multiple suspects or multiple
victims.
The impetus for the proposed legislation, which is still being drafted, was the
arrests of Angela Wagner, 48, her husband George "Billy" Wagner, 47, and their
two sons, George Wagner IV, 27, and Edward "Jake" Wagner, 26.
The Wagners are accused of killing Christopher Rhoden Sr.,40; his older
brother, Kenneth, 44; his former wife, Dana Manley Rhoden, 38; and their three
children, Clarence "Frankie" Rhoden, 20, Hanna Rhoden, 19, and Chris Rhoden
Jr., 16, on April 22, 2016. Frankie Rhoden's fiancee, Hannah Gilley, 20, also
was killed.
The Wagners are facing the death penalty for the execution-style killings and
multiple other charges related to planning and covering up the homicides. The
case appears to center around a custody battle for the 5-year-old daughter of
suspect Jake Wagner and victim Hanna Rhoden.
Under the proposal, the Ohio attorney general and state public defender would
ask a 7-member panel called the Ohio Controlling Board to pay for death penalty
cases that involve multiple suspects or multiple victims. It would come from
unspent money from the state's general fund, which comes from Ohioans' taxes.
The joint application would estimate how much money is needed for the initial
case and appeals. The attorney general and state public defender would then
distribute that money to the county prosecutor and local defense attorney as
needed.
"These cases can very quickly be hundreds of thousands of dollars," Yost said
Monday. "Justice should not be a matter of affordability."
Prosecuting the Wagners could take years, and the bill could be steep: between
$3 million and $5 million for the initial prosecution and appeals, estimated
Hamilton County Prosecutor Joe Deters, who has handled multiple death penalty
cases over his career.
Pike County, with a population of 28,270, has an annual budget of about $34
million. The southern Ohio county is already facing a budget crunch, forcing
the Pike County Sheriff's Office to freeze hiring and abandon its costlier SUVs
for more fuel-efficient Crown Victorias. The cost of investigating the deaths
has surpassed $600,000, Wilkin estimated.
"If you are looking at a couple million bucks to prosecute this, it's just
devastating to a county of that size," said Wilkin, a former commissioner in
nearby Highland County. "This could be devastating to them financially."
Some scenarios could make the case even more expensive, including paying for
four different defense teams, sequestering a jury and moving a trial to another
county, Yost said.
There is a precedent for spending state money on big, local cases. Ohio
lawmakers approved money to pay for the cost of prosecuting those involved in
the 1993 Lucasville prison riots that left 9 inmates and 1 guard dead.
Ohio's current attorney general Mike DeWine, who was elected governor on Nov.
6, said he supports finding a way to help Pike County with the cost.
"Capital cases are very expensive. They are very difficult for a small county
to carry out," DeWine told The Enquirer last week.
Peterson and Wilkin plan to introduce the bill in the coming weeks.
(source: cincinnati.com)
****************
Proposed Ohio Law Could Make Abortion Punishable By Death Penalty
After passing a bill through the House that would ban abortion at 6 weeks, Ohio
Republicans are considering legislation that would ban abortion completely in
the state and make the procedure punishable by life in prison or even the death
penalty.
House Bill 565 allows for no exceptions for abortion in cases of rape, incest,
or danger to a woman's life. Under the law, fetuses would be classified as
"unborn humans," making abortion punishable under the Ohio criminal code. This
means that a woman who receives an abortion and doctors who perform the
procedure could face criminal penalties, ranging from a prison sentence to
capital punishment.
WOSU notes that the bill is being considered by the Ohio House's health
committee and that it is unlikely to be voted on this year. HB 565 is just the
latest in a string of anti-choice bills drafted by Ohio Republicans.
Republicans' "heartbeat" bill - which passed the House last week - was
previously vetoed by Gov. John Kasich, who instead signed a 20-week ban into
law.
"Ohio just took us one step closer to becoming a forced-birth nation,"
#VOTERPROCHOICE cofounder Heidi Sieck said in a statement to Refinery29 Monday.
"Legislators in Ohio are banning abortion before women even know they're
pregnant - and we must stand up and speak out against this dangerous bill."
After Brett Kavanaugh's contentious confirmation, the Supreme Court now has a
conservative majority, meaning it is possible for Roe v. Wade to be overturned.
Ohio is far from the only state attacking women's reproductive rights: Alabama
and West Virginia have added language into their state constitutions that
curtails public funds for abortion and gives fetuses the same rights as people.
Despite the assault on abortion from Republican legislatures, polls show most
Americans are in favor of keeping Roe v. Wade. “This November, voters
overwhelmingly saw the important role lawmakers serve in stopping attacks on
their health and rights," Dr. Leana Wen, president of the Planned Parenthood
Action Fund, said in a statement to Refinery29. "People in states like Ohio
that do not have this critical backstop face a heightened threat to abortion
access. We must fight harder than ever to protect every woman's right to
control her own body, life, and future. We know the majority of Americans want
access to safe, legal abortion. It’s time politicians listen to us - access to
safe, legal abortion is a human right."
(source: refinery29.com)
KANSAS:
Johnson County DA to seek death penalty in killing of pregnant Olathe woman
Johnson County prosecutors said Monday they will seek the death penalty for a
man charged with killing his pregnant girlfriend and her unborn child.
Devonte Wash is charged in Johnson County District Court with capital murder in
the fatal shooting of 23-year-old Ashley Harlan inside her Olathe townhouse in
January.
She was about 20 weeks pregnant, and Wash was the father of the baby boy who
also died as a result of the shooting.
Wash, 26, of Kansas City, Kan., was arraigned on the charge Monday, and his
attorney entered a not guilty plea on his behalf.
District Attorney Steve Howe then filed written notice that a jury will be
asked to sentence Wash to death if the case goes to trial.
The premeditated killing of more than 1 person during the same incident is one
of the handful of crimes that carry a potential death sentence under Kansas
law. Life in prison without parole is the only other sentencing option for
capital murder.
Wash was the one who called 911 to report finding Harlan dead, according to
testimony in a September preliminary hearing.
Investigators later found that Wash bought a 9mm handgun about a month before
the killing.
Shell casings found in a yard where he had been seen firing it in the air
matched shell casings from the murder scene, according to testimony.
Wash is scheduled to be in court again Feb. 6 for a hearing on pretrial
motions.
(source: kansascity.com)
COLORADO:
Life in prison, no death penalty, for man who killed pregnant wife, 2
daughtersLife in prison, no death penalty, for man who killed pregnant wife, 2
daughters
A Colorado man was sentenced Monday to life in prison for killing his pregnant
wife and their 2 young daughters and dumping their bodies on an oil work site.
Prosecutors have said they agreed not to seek the death penalty in exchange for
Christopher Watts' guilty plea, after seeking approval from Shanann Watts'
family.
Watts had pleaded guilty to 3 charges of murder in the deaths of his wife,
Shanann Watts, and their young daughters. He also pleaded guilty on Nov. 6 to 2
counts of killing a child, 1 count of unlawful termination of a pregnancy and 3
counts of tampering with a deceased human body.
The 33-year-old will not be eligible for parole.
A friend asked police to check on Shanann Watts on Aug. 13 after not being able
to reach her and growing concerned that the 34-year-old expectant mother had
missed a doctor's appointment. Officers initially handled the search and soon
sought support from Colorado investigators and the FBI.
Meanwhile, Christopher Watts spoke to local television reporters from the front
porch of the family's home in Frederick, a small town on the plains north of
Denver where drilling rigs and oil wells surround booming subdivisions. Watts
pleaded for his family safe return, telling reporters their house felt empty
without 4-year-old Bella and 3-year-old Celeste watching cartoons or running to
greet him at the door.
Within days, he was arrested and charged with killing his family.
Court records revealed that Watts acknowledged to police that he killed his
wife. Watts told investigators that he strangled her in "a rage" when he
discovered she had killed their daughters after he sought a separation.
Prosecutors have since called his account "a flat-out lie."
Police learned that Christopher Watts was having an affair with a co-worker. He
had denied that before being arrested.
Authorities have not released autopsy reports or any information about how the
mother and daughters died. Prosecutors have said the reports would be released
after Watts was sentenced.
The girls' bodies were found submerged in an oil tank, on property owned by the
company Watts worked for until his arrest. Shanann Watts' body was found buried
nearby in a shallow grave.
The killings captured the attention of media across the country and became the
focus of true crime blogs and online video channels, aided by dozens of family
photos and videos that Shanann Watts shared on social media showing the smiling
couple spending time with their children.
But courts records showed the couple's lifestyle caused financial strain at
times. They filed for bankruptcy in June 2015, six months after Christopher
Watts was hired as an operator for the large oil and gas driller Anadarko
Petroleum at an annual salary of about $61,500. At the time, Shanann Watts was
working in a children's hospital call center for $18 per hour.
They reported total earnings of $90,000 in 2014 but $70,000 in unsecured claims
along with a mortgage of nearly $3,000. The claims included thousands of
dollars in credit card debt, some student loans and medical bills.
(source: Associated Press)
WASHINGTON:
Prosecutors confirm they won’t seek death in Talbott case----The state Supreme
Court found the death penalty unconstitutional. Trial expected in 2019 in
slayings.
1 month after the state Supreme Court set aside the death penalty in
Washington, Snohomish County prosecutors confirmed for a judge Monday that they
won't try to get around the ruling in a decades-old double murder cold case.
The confirmation was largely a formality during a pretrial conference.
Until the October decision, prosecutors had been considering whether to seek
the death penalty in the case against SeaTac truck driver William Earl Talbott
II, 55, who is charged with the aggravated murders of Jay Cook, 20, and Tanya
Van Cuylenborg, 18. The Canadian couple were on an errand to the Puget Sound
area to pick up furnace parts for Cook's father when they were abducted and
killed more than 30 years ago.
Superior Court Judge Linda Krese asked deputy prosecutor Matthew Baldock Monday
if the state didn’t intend to file paperwork seeking the death penalty.
"That is correct your honor," he said. Use of capital punishment effectively
ended in Washington when the Supreme Court ruled last month that the state's
death penalty law is unconstitutional. Justices concluded the law is imposed in
an arbitrary and racially biased manner, and converted all death sentences to
life imprisonment.
Even so, the court did leave open the possibility for lawmakers to revise the
law in a way that's constitutional.
Monday's hearing was a chance to check on the status of the case with
prosecutors and defense attorneys.
The plan at the moment is for trial to begin in early April with pretrial
motions March 29.
Preparations have been challenging, given that there are more than 11,000 pages
of investigative reports from 2 law enforcement agencies to comb through,
Baldock told the judge.
"Discovery is voluminous," he said.
The time-consuming task is making it hard to quickly come up with a final
witness list to send to defense lawyers, he said. Even so, that should be done
by mid-December.
The trial is expected to last a month with the bulk of the 1st week spent
choosing a jury, defense attorney Jon Scott told the judge.
Cook and Van Cuylenborg were killed in 1987 while on a road trip from their
hometown of Saanich, B.C., on Vancouver Island, to Seattle's industrial area.
Days later, a passerby found Van Cuylenborg's body off a road 80 miles north,
near Alger in Skagit County. She had been sexually assaulted, shot in the head
and dumped in the woods.
The body of Cook was discovered beneath a blanket that week, near a bridge
south of Monroe. He appeared to have been beaten with rocks and strangled.
Talbott's parents lived 6 miles from the bridge, according to charging papers.
The case went unsolved for 3 decades. Talbott's name never made a list of more
than 300 potential suspects, according to the Snohomish County Sheriff's
Office.
This year a new analysis of DNA evidence led a genetic genealogist and cold
case detectives to identify him as the suspected killer, by way of 2nd cousins
who had uploaded their DNA to public genealogy sites. The cousins were
searching for relatives. If convicted, Talbott faces life in prison.
(source: heraldnet.com)
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