[Deathpenalty] death penalty news----TEXAS, CONN., GA., MD., S.DAK., NEV.
Oct. 27 TEXASexecution Convicted Cop Killer Executed in Huntsville Former San Antonio street gang member Frank Garcia has been put to death for fatally shooting a veteran police officer who was trying to resolve a domestic dispute. Garcia was condemned for killing 48-year-old Officer Hector Garza, a father of 5 who had 25 years on the San Antonio police force when he was gunned down March 29, 2001. Garcia's wife also was killed in the gunfire. The 39-year-old Garcia shouted "Thank you, Yahweh," over and over until he lost consciousness. He was pronounced dead at 7:02 p.m. CDT Thursday. A half-hour before, the U.S. Supreme Court refused to block the punishment. Garcia's lawyers argued in appeals he was mentally impaired and ineligible for the death penalty under high court rulings. Garcia becomes the 12th condemned inmate to be put to death this year in Texas, and the 476th overall since the state resumed capital punishment on December 17, 1982. Garcia becomes the 237th condemned inmate to be put to death in Texas since Rick Perry became governor in 2001. Garcia becomes the 39th condemned inmate to be put to death this year in the USA and the 1273rd overall since the nation resumed executions on January 17, 1977. (sources: Assoicated Press & Rick Halperin) ** Man convicted of killing cop, wife put to death in Texas A Texas man convicted of murdering a San Antonio police officer before turning his gun on his wife was put to death Thursday evening, soon after the U.S. Supreme Court rejected his last-minute appeal. The time of death for Frank Martinez Garcia was 7:02 p.m. CT (8:02 p.m. ET), said Texas Department of Criminal Justice spokeswoman Becky Blanton. Garcia was 28 on March 29, 2001, when San Antonio police officer Hector Garza responded to a call about a domestic disturbance at the home Garcia shared with his parents, his wife, Jessica, and their children. Garza, 49, died first after being shot 3 times by Garcia, the Texas Department of Criminal Justice said on its website. Garcia's wife died after he shot her 6 times. He also fired several shots at others outside the home, wounding his wife's uncle, according to authorities. The couple's 5-year-old daughter witnessed the murders, according to the Department of Criminal Justice. The office of Texas Attorney General Greg Abbott stated, on its website, that Garcia -- who had been arrested with gang members in 1992 -- also fired his weapon at the vice principal of a nearby elementary school, hitting the front door of the school. Garcia eventually surrendered to police, later admitting in a formal written statement that he had intentionally killed both the police officer and his wife, according to the attorney general. A Bexar County grand jury indicted him in September 2001 for capital murder. During his trial, jurors saw photos from inside Garcia's home showing him and his wife brandishing weapons. Prosecutors also noted that his wife Jessica sought help from a battered women's shelter in 1994, after alleging physical and emotional abuse, while her co-workers had seen marks and bruises on her. In February 2002, Garcia was convicted and sentenced to death. The Texas Court of Criminal Appeals affirmed his conviction 2 years later. And in 2007, the same court denied his application for habeas corpus relief -- in other words, claiming the state didn't have a right to hold him -- according to the attorney general. A U.S. district court turned down a similar petition in 2009, and a U.S. Circuit of Appeals court rejected his appeal the following year. In March 2011, the U.S. Supreme Court denied his writ of certiorari review, a legal term related to a higher court reviewing a lower court's decision. (source: CNN) ** Rival hits Perry on death penaltyDark horse Johnson contends innocent may have been executed Former New Mexico governor and current Republican presidential hopeful Gary E. Johnson said he saw the dangers of the death penalty up close during his 2 terms in office - and says he is convinced Texas has executed innocent people. In a wide-ranging interview with editors and reporters at The Washington Times this week, Mr. Johnson, who is mounting a long-shot bid for GOP nomination, said his current opposition to the death penalty stems from having once pushed a bill to curtail appeals that he modeled on Texas law, but which, he now says, would have led in at least one case to the execution of innocent persons in a gang-murder case. “If my legislation would have passed, they would have been put to death, and they would have been innocent. And I believe Texas has done the same,” he said, pointing to the neighboring state run by Gov. Rick Perry, who is also running for the presidential nomination. He said he does not know for certain Texas has executed innocent people, but is convinced it has happened “just because of how many
[Deathpenalty] [SPAM] death penalty news----worldwide
Oct. 27 MOROCCO: Verdict in Morocco blasts case expected Friday The trial of 9 people accused over an April bomb attack that killed 17 in Marrakesh neared closure Thursday as a lawyer for the alleged mastermind insisted his client was innocent. Prosecutors say Adil al-Atmani and eight accomplices orchestrated the April 28 blast at a cafe packed with European tourists, but defence lawyer Hassan Mouhib told the court in Sale, near the capital Rabat, that the government had not proved its case. A final hearing is set for Friday with a verdict expected later in the day against the suspects who all deny guilt in the case. Mouhib asked the tribunal to be "fair" in judging his client Atmani, who initially admitted to his role in the bombing but later retracted his confession, claiming he had been set up. Prosecutors last week said Atmani and co-accused Hakim al Dah should be sentenced to death. But lawyers representing the victims' families previously asked the court to sentence the accused to life in prison and not death, partly to deprive them of boasting that they will die as martyrs. Mouhib invoked Morocco's new constitution, which was massively backed in a July referendum, which guarantees the "right to life." Morocco has not enforced its death penalty provision since 1992. Atmani has said he made trips to Libya, Mauritania, Mali and Algeria, which prosecutors have pointed to as proof of his links to global jihadist organisations, including Al-Qaeda. But his lawyer dismissed those arguments, saying his client had travelled in pursuit of trade opportunities. According to co-defendant Mohamed Njim, Atmani previously expressed a desire to practice jihad (holy war) in Chechnya. Moroccan authorities had initially blamed Al-Qaeda's north African branch for the bombing but AQIM, seen behind a series of attacks and kidnappings in north Africa, denies responsibility. (source: Yahoo.com) TAIWIAN: Taiwan pays compensation for wrongful execution President Ma Ying-jeou has apologised to the family of the executed man Taiwan's defence ministry says it will pay $4.4m (£2.7m) in compensation to the relatives of an air force private who was wrongly executed in 1997. Chiang Kuo-ching was found guilty of raping and killing a 5-year-old girl, but in September this year a military court overturned the conviction posthumously. The court said Mr Chiang was innocent and had been tortured into confessing. The case has reignited debate in Taiwan about the death penalty. Mr Chiang was working at a military base in 1996 when the girl, whose mother also worked there, was found dead. After he was executed, his parents spent years campaigning to clear his name. 'Lessons learned' The case was reopened earlier this year and investigators found no evidence that Mr Chiang had been at the scene of the crime. Another man with a history of sexual abuse has since been arrested.M A lawyer for Mr Chiang's mother said the family accepted the compensation offered. Taiwan's President, Ma Ying-jeou, has apologised to the family. The island's defence ministry says it has learned lessons and will not allow such miscarriages of justice to happen again. However, campaigners against the death penalty say Taiwan's justice system cannot guarantee that mistakes will not be made in future. In 2003, three men sentenced to death were acquitted on appeal after a court said there was no evidence linking them to the crime. They were also found to have been tortured into confessing. Taiwan's Supreme Court this year asked for a retrial. No executions were carried out in Taiwan between 2006 and 2009 due to a moratorium, but the government revived the death penalty last year under pressure from the families of murder victims. Since then, 9 death row inmates have been executed. * Death penalty policy remains unchanged: justice minister Minister of Justice Tseng Yung-fu reaffirmed Thursday that there has been no change in the government's policy of minimizing rather than abolishing capital punishment. "Our policy remains unchanged -- the death penalty will be used as little as possible, but will not be scrapped for the time being," Tseng said during a Legislative Yuan session. While death-row inmates will definitely be executed once all legal proceedings are completed, prosecutors have been asked to minimize recommendations of capital punishment, he said. Tseng's statements came after the United Daily News (UDN) said in a front-page story the same day that Taiwan had reversed its policy on capital punishment. The Ministry of Justice (MOJ) has suggested in its first-ever human rights report that prosecutors refrain from recommending the death sentence for defendants or criminal suspects, the paper said. "The suggestion aims to minimize and even avoid death sentencing," an MOJ official was quoted as saying. The newspaper cited the example o
[Deathpenalty] death penalty news----TEXAS, S.DAK., CALIF., FLA.
Oct. 27 TEXASimpending execution Appeals court rejects condemned Texas cop killer The Texas Court of Criminal Appeals has refused to halt the execution of a San Antonio man for fatally shooting a veteran police officer trying to resolve a domestic dispute. Frank Garcia faced lethal injection Thursday evening for the 2001 slaying of 48-year-old San Antonio police Sgt. Hector Garza. Attorneys for the 39-year-old Garcia argued he was mentally impaired and ineligible for the death penalty under U.S. Supreme Court rulings. They also contended his earlier attorneys were deficient in failing to address those mental impairment issues. Garza was shot responding to a call about a man trying to keep a woman from leaving a home with 2 children. Garcia later told authorities he aimed for Garza's head and opened fire, then "went crazy" and killed his wife. (source: Associated Press) * Clock Ticks Down Toward Execution Of Convicted Texas Cop Killer -- A 39-year-old Texas death row inmate is scheduled to die Thursday evening for the murder of a police officer a decade ago. Frank Garcia, 29, the convicted killer of a San Antonio police sergeant, is headed to the Texas death chamber Thursday evening. Garcia would be the 12th Texas prisoner executed this year if his lawyers aren't able to convince a court the former street gang member should be spared from lethal injection. Garcia was sentenced to die for gunning down San Antonio Police Sgt. Hector Garza, 48, in March 2001 after the officer responded to a domestic violence call. Garcia shot Garza 3 times, records show. Garcia also killed his 21-year-old wife as she was trying to leave home with their 2 children after years of abuse. She was shot 6 times. The couple’s 5-year-old daughter witnessed both murders. The San Antonio Police Officers Association chartered buses so officers can be outside the prison in Huntsville to show support for their slain colleague as his killer was to be put to death. (source: KWTX News) SOUTH DAKOTAnew death sentence Inmate in SD guard killing sentenced to death He tells judge that his one regret was that he did not kill another officer and that he will kill again A South Dakota inmate was sentenced to death Thursday for killing a prison guard by bashing him with a pipe, covering his mouth with plastic wrap and then wearing the dead man's uniform during an attempt to escape. Eric Robert, 49, had pleaded guilty in September to killing Ronald "R.J." Johnson on April 12 — Johnson's birthday — as he tried to sneak past other security. Robert waived his right to a jury trial and had asked the judge to sentence him to death, saying his one regret was that he did not kill another officer and that he will kill again. Second Circuit Judge Bradley Zell said Thursday that Robert's attack on Johnson went beyond trying to incapacitate him and Robert showed "extreme anger to the point of hatred." Robert nodded when the judge said he was not likely to be rehabilitated, and that his need for control would lead him to kill again. He had told Zell during his pre-sentencing hearing that he was so full of anger and hungry for freedom the day of the escape attempt that he would have killed anyone who stood in his way. "Brad Zell, if you stood between me and the door of freedom, I would kill you," Robert said. Robert said he was sorry he did not bring the pipe with him to the gate to kill the officer who stopped him. Once he realized his plan was going to fail, Robert said he began climbing up the wall of the prison — not to escape but to try to reach for the rifle of an officer on the lookout. "I would have shot that weapon until it was empty," he said. South Dakota Attorney General Marty Jackley had said during pre-sentencing that the state was seeking the death penalty based on five aggravating factors. They were: the death of a correctional officer, the manner of death, where and why it occurred, and the defendants' criminal background. Zell had to find at least one was present during the killing to sentence Robert to death. Jackley, standing in front of Johnson's family while speaking to reporters, said the case shows that the death penalty is reserved for the most heinous crimes. "It is my position justice has been served in this case," Jackley said. Mark Kadi, Robert's attorney, said Robert will not take any additional steps to delay the execution, but the state Supreme Court will look over the sentence as part of a mandatory process. "It's a situation where you see everyone gets what they want, but everyone is miserable," Kadi said. During the sentencing, Robert was at first stone-faced, but his demeanor began to shift as the judge described in detail how he had been a good student, a diligent worker and a dedicated son to his mother. Robert's face turned red and he clenched his jaw as he appeared to cry as the judge
