[Deathpenalty] death penalty news----TEXAS, WASH./MONT., USA, ARIZ.
June 30 TEXASnew death sentence Stanley Lamar Griffin gets death penalty in Hailey murder A Brazos County jury gave the death penalty Friday to Stanley Lamar Griffin for murdering a 29-year-old mother and violently assaulting her 9-year-old son. Jurors deliberated for about 4 1/2 hours to reach a verdict in the sentencing phase of Grififn’s 10-day capital murder trial. On June 20, the third day of the trial, the jury spent 68 minutes behind closed doors before finding Griffin guilty of strangling Jennifer Marie Hailey and kidnapping her son inside their College Station apartment on Sept. 19, 2010. More than a dozen of Hailey’s family members — including her parents and son — and friends packed into the courtroom, along with Griffin’s mother, brother, sister, niece and 2 nephews. Having been warned by the judge against showing any reaction to the verdict, family members on both sides remained composed as the jury’s decision was read. Several of Hailey’s family members had planned on giving victim impact statements once sentencing was completed, but changed their minds and left the courthouse without comment. “This case was successful because a 9-year-old boy had courage to go into that courtroom, overcome his fears and seek justice for himself and his mother,” District Attorney Bill Turner said, referring to the testimony Hailey’s son gave about what he recalled from that night. The now 11-year-old told jurors he remembers waking up shortly after 10 p.m. that Sunday to find Griffin laying on top of his mother with his hands around her in the living room. He said he asked the man — whom he’d met several times before and called by name — what he was doing. But Griffin insisted his name wasn’t Stanley and sent the boy to his room, according to his testimony. About 15 minutes later, Griffin strangled Hailey’s son before grabbing a garden trowel and stabbing him several times in the face, neck and back. He woke up at about 4:40 a.m. on the floor near his kitchen, covered by a comforter. In closing arguments, Turner urged jurors to keep Hailey’s son in mind as they sorted through evidence brought by the defense against the death penalty. “Soon I’m going to have a conversation with someone who will ask what happened to the man that killed my mother,” he told the jury. “This is not a drive-by shooting, this is getting up close to another human being and feeling the life draining out of them, then going to another and trying the same thing.” Turner said Griffin’s trial was the 1st time in Brazos County that defense attorneys had attempted to use the mental retardation issue as a defense against the death penalty. Defense attorney Lane Thibodeaux — who worked alongside Steve Gustitis — said he was disappointed by the outcome, but respected the jury’s verdict and appreciated the time they’d dedicated. “This was an emotional case,” he said. “Of course my heart goes out to the Hailey family, but I think it’s important as criminal lawyers that we take on and deal with these kinds of cases — the worst kind of cases.” Along with mental retardation, the defense spent significant time exploring the defendant’s background, particularly his childhood. “This idea of moral culpability – it’s not about whether somebody had a choice, it’s about what shaped those choices,” Gustitis said. He argued that a lack of nurture from birth combined with Griffin’s low intellectual functioning were reasons to find that mitigating circumstances existed that decreased his moral responsibility — a factor jurors had to consider when assessing punishment. Prosecutors said while they were pleased with the outcome and grateful to jurors for their thoughtful service, success in a death penalty case isn’t something they celebrate. Baker said Hailey’s family was glad Griffin had been held accountable but also recognized that justice for their case meant grief for another family. “I think the jury went a long way toward starting the healing process for Jennifer’s family,” he said. As Griffin was being escorted out of the courthouse, he turned toward his family to say, “Love y’all,” flashing a quick smile. (source: The Eagle) WASHINGTON/MONTANA: Execution fight could come to Wash., Mont. A federal appeals court ruling requiring that executions be fully open to public witnesses - including the insertion of IVs for lethal injection - could still have ramifications in two Western states that have kept part of their inmate executions from public view. A federal appeals court ruling requiring that executions be fully open to public witnesses - including the insertion of IVs for lethal injection - could still have ramifications in 2 Western states that have kept part of their inmate executions from public view. Washington state officials are still reviewing the ruling and say they have no immediate plans to change their execution procedures
[Deathpenalty] death penalty news----worldwide
June 30 SAUDI ARABIA: Saudi execution caught on video The execution of a man convicted of raping and murdering a teenage boy in the Saudi Arabian desert has been caught on film and published by the Sharq newspaper. Emirates 247 reported that the execution by beheading of a murdering rapist was caught on video and published by the Saudi Sharq newspaper, in spite of the Kingdom's ban on executions being filmed. The rapist had lured his victim to the desert and raped him, before forcing him to lie in the sand and crushing him with his vehicle. The video posted below contains graphic content. In 2009 RT ran a piece on Saudi Arabian executioners, noting the job is a respected profession in the Arab world. During a debate on debate on Abu Dhabi TV three Arab executioners agreed there is nothing traumatic – or even distasteful – in executing those condemned to the sword or noose. Human rights organizations meanwhile condemn the number of public executions carried out in Saudi Arabia. http://www.digitaljournal.com/article/327703#ixzz1zIJcm5B (source: Digital Journal) PAKISTAN: Behram Khan’s hanging would prove to be a bad omen The European Union, Amnesty International and international human rights organisations term death penalty an unacceptable denial of human dignity and integrity. Today 139 countries are abolitionist in law or practice. Of the 58 countries and territories retaining the death penalty, 18 were known to have carried out executions in 2009 (China, Iran, Iraq, Saudi Arabia and the US top the league) while Pakistan has made no execution since 2008 and Brundi, Togo and the US state of New Mexico have abolished death penalty in their law and practice in 2010-11. Despite a marked trend towards abolition and restriction of the use of capital punishment in most countries, the numbers and manner of death penalty applications worldwide remain alarming. International human rights organisations are working to achieve universal abolition of death penalty. While 139 countries — more than 2/3 of the countries of the world — are abolitionist in law or practice, still at least 8,679 executions were carried out in last 2 years. And wherever capital punishment remained in force, there are serious problems with regard to the respect of international norms and standards. This makes abolitionist initiatives the more important. UNO is also playing pivotal role to abolish death penaly. However, while figures of death penalty application around the world are decreasing, they remain much too high where capital punishment remains in force. There are serious problems with regard to the respect of international norms and standards, notably in the limitation of the death penalty to the most serious crimes, the exclusion of juvenile offenders from its scope, and guarantees of a fair trial. In countries like Pakistan justice is delayed and the influential elite try to overshadow the justice system by unfair and underhand methods. In statute laws of Pakistan there are 32 different crimes for which the death penalty is awarded, though at the time of creation of Pakistan capital punishment was specified for only 2 different crimes. It means 30 more categories are included in capital punishment laws. The death penalty envisaged in the fundamental documents of Islam is not for more than two or three crimes. The current democratic government of Pakistan has been trying to make some initiatives to abolish this punishment. No execution since 2008, is also a part of the policy to abolish this law. For this both government and human rights organisations of Pakistan have to play a vital role. Death sentence causes psychological trauma and many death row inmates suffer from mental illness and mental disabilities because of abominable conditions in prisons. It is beyond any shadow of doubt that death penalty is a cruel, inhuman and debasing punishment. In Pakistan, justice is delayed and, furthermore, our justice system at lower courts is blemished and unfair methods are used. Knowing all these facts and figures, Pakistan’s govt has had a moratorium on the death penalty since October 2008. Measures taken by the government are truly praiseworthy but only one case of Behram khan, who, after spending 9 years in jail for killing a lawyer in court, is waiting for the day the executioner will tighten the noose around his neck, will prove stigma to govenment’s positive measures. In my opinion, government ought to abolish the death penalty in both law and practice forever. (source: Dr. Saif Ur Rehman, blog, The News Tribe) GERMANY: 'Witches' pardoned 400 years after executions Cologne City Council has pardoned 38 women nearly 400 years after they were sentenced to death for suspected witchcraft, a newspaper reported on Saturday. Katharina Henot - Germany's most notorious witch - stood accused of having entered into a pact with
[Deathpenalty] news postings
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