[Deathpenalty] death penalty news----worldwide
Oct. 30 ENGLAND: Recording of electric chair death features in Lincoln art exhibition A recording of officials carrying out a man's death by electric chair is being used to challenge feelings about the death penalty. The Collection and Usher Gallery are showing Freedom Lies, which is a collection of three exhibitions exploring political issues following the 800th anniversary of Magna Carta. One exhibition features a video by artist Jordan Baseman, which uses a sound recording and words on a blank screen to portray the electric chair execution of an American convict in 1984. Visitors hear phrases such as "perspiration has been wiped from the condemned's forehead" as officials talk executioners through the process and administering the electric shocks. Curator Ashley Gallant said it highlights how feelings around the death penalty are coped with by making it less visible. He said the recording is publicly available and was once used on radio. "It is government officials from a condemned man's execution talking to people carrying out the execution," he said. "In making the process visible it allows people to be in discussion about it. "We have got a couple of walls in the space to vote on questions, like does punishment ever stop you doing that act." He said warnings and precautions have been put in place around the installation, and that it is people's imaginations which fill in the gaps. A transcript of the words spoken appears on a black screen, as shown here. "There are members of staff in the space all the time talking to people as they go in and there is a warning sign," he said. "You make a specific decision to go into the space. "One key point is that people were more shocked by how everyday it was. "When people are offended by something it allows them to reconsider why they are offended, and that is the discussion we wanted to start." Copies of archived historical documents about hangings that took place in Lincoln and laws on the death penalty also form part of the first exhibition, in The Collection. Paul Gilbert, cultural service director, said: "I particularly like the historical section about Lincoln Castle and executions there, it is a part of Lincoln. "William Marwood, a shoemaker from Horncastle, actually developed the long drop which meant in theory, and if calculations were correct, that victims died instantly [from hanging]." People can say whether they agree or disagree with corporal punishment using stickers on walls. There will also be a discussion on December 3 led by the Lincoln Law School and the artist Jordan Baseman. Karolina Dworska, who is 17 and from Lincoln, was one of the Usher Young Creatives group who gave opinions as part of the exhibition. Their thoughts have been used as panels on the floor of The Collection. "When you hear the video, the actual executioners are talking about it really casually," she said. "It is not what you expect. They are very desensitised." The rest of Freedom Lies stretches into The Usher Gallery. (source: lincolnshireecho.co.uk) ___ A service courtesy of Washburn University School of Law www.washburnlaw.edu DeathPenalty mailing list DeathPenalty@lists.washlaw.edu http://lists.washlaw.edu/mailman/listinfo/deathpenalty Unsubscribe: http://lists.washlaw.edu/mailman/options/deathpenalty
[Deathpenalty] death penalty news----CALIF., USA
Oct. 30 CALIFORNIA: DAs, police, family of slain push for death penalty reform California prosecutors, police officers and family members of murder victims have launched a campaign to speed up executions for murderers sentenced to death. Members of the group said Friday that the death penalty reform initiative is aimed at the inefficient process that has left hundreds of killers languishing on death row for decades. San Bernardino County District Attorney Mike Ramos says voters who rejected a ballot measure to eliminate the death penalty in 2012 showed they support the punishment. Ramos says appointing appeals lawyers to the process and other proposed reforms could shorten the time from conviction to execution from as long as 30 years to 10 to 15 years. The initiative is likely to duel with another proposed ballot measure that seeks to abolish capital punishment. (source: Associated Press) USA: A potential record Supreme Court term for the death penalty The current U. S. Supreme Court term is barely a month old, but the justices have already heard argument in four death penalty cases - and will hear a 5th on Monday - making the term the most important for capital punishment issues in decades, legal experts say. The justices themselves fueled speculation near the end of last term that the court might finally address the death penalty's viability under the Eighth Amendment, with Justice Stephen Breyer (joined by Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg) opining in Glossip v. Gross that it was "highly likely that the death penalty violates the Eighth Amendment." And Justice Antonin Scalia last week told an audience at the University of Minnesota Law School that he "wouldn't be surprised if the Supreme Court eventually strikes down capital punishment." That question has not yet been squarely put before the high court, but the term is young and with 5 death penalty cases already their collective belt, the justices still have plenty of time to take it on. Monday's case, Foster v. Chatman, raises an issue well known to North Carolinians - racial bias in juror selection in capital cases - and comes at a time when the state Supreme Court itself is grappling with cases arising under the now-repealed Racial Justice Act. As described by Rory Little at SCOTUSblog: Foster, an 18-year-old African American at the time, was convicted of killing an elderly white woman during a burglary in Georgia. During jury selection, the prosecutor struck all 4 black potential jurors, and Foster was convicted and sentenced by an all-white jury. When an objection was raised under the Court's 1986 decision in Batson v. Kentucky, the prosecutor offered "race neutral" reasons for striking the black jurors, while protecting his file from discovery. Some 19 years later, the prosecutor's jury selection notes - produced pursuant to an Open Records Act request - revealed a direct targeting of black jurors, but state courts refused to entertain Foster's request for relief. (source: ncpolicywatch.org) *** Timeline In Federal Death Penalty Appeal Extends Into 2017 Lawyers in the case of a man sentenced to death for killing a University of North Dakota student in 2003 have discussed the timeline for his appeal - and it stretches into 2017. Alfonso Rodriguez Jr., of Crookston, Minnesota, filed a so-called habeas motion in October 2011. It is generally considered the last step in the appeals process. U.S. District Judge Ralph Erickson posted an updated briefing schedule for the appeal following a closed-door meeting with attorneys on Thursday. One of the hearings on forensic issues is not scheduled until January 2017. The 62-year-old Rodriguez was convicted in 2006 of kidnapping and killing Dru Sjodin, of Pequot Lakes, Minnesota. Authorities say Sjodin was raped, beaten and stabbed. (source: Associated Press) ___ A service courtesy of Washburn University School of Law www.washburnlaw.edu DeathPenalty mailing list DeathPenalty@lists.washlaw.edu http://lists.washlaw.edu/mailman/listinfo/deathpenalty Unsubscribe: http://lists.washlaw.edu/mailman/options/deathpenalty
[Deathpenalty] death penalty news----MISSOURI
Oct. 30 MISSOURIimpending execution Missourians for Alternatives to the Death Penalty Vigil information for Tuesday, November 3, unless otherwise noted. Bonne Terre: A candlelight vigil will be held outside the prison where the execution takes place, 2727 Highway K. For more information email stlo...@madpmo.org, or call Margaret at 314-322-5159. Columbia: 5 pm to 6 pm, Boone County Courthouse, in front of the columns, corner of Walnut and 8th. For more information contact 573-449-4585. O-Fallon: Monday, November 2, 7 p.m. Sisters of the Most Precious Blood in O'Fallon. Coordinatior: Sr. Ellen Orf: email: el...@cpps-ofallon.org phone: 636-293-8253 Instructions to the Chapel: I-70 to O'Fallon K--M exit (Main St.). Turn right from the exit ramp and head north to railroad tracks; after crossing tracks, you will see the O'Fallon City Hall complex, the former convent and junior college; go past the entrance to the next right and turn in there. Jefferson City, Capitol vigil: 12 pm - 1pm. A respectful Vigil for Life outside of the Governor's office, Second Floor (Room 216) of the State Capitol Building. Jefferson City: Prayer service, 4:30 pm, in St. Peter's Chapel, Broadway St. 5- 6 pm. Vigil across from the Supreme Court Building at 207 West High Street, 4:30-5:30. For more information contact 573-301-3529. Joplin: Prayer begins at 5:30 pm. St. Peter the Apostle Church, Mass begins at 6 p.m. followed by continued prayer. Contact Fr J. Friedel for more information, at 417-623-8643. Kansas City: Watch to occur at Intersection of 39th and Troost, 4-5 pm. For more info contact 816-206-8692. Kirksville: Time and place TBD, check with Truman State University's Amnesty International chapter. Springfield: Park Central Square, 12 noon to 1 pm. For more information call Donna, 417-459-2960. St. Joseph: 4:30 pm at the intersection of Belt & Frederick. Contact Jean at 816-671-9281 for more info. St. Louis: 3 p.m. - 4 p.m. Vigil on the steps of St. Francis Xavier Church at the corner of Grand and Lindell. A group will carpool from there to reach Bonne Terre before 6 p.m.. For more information email stlo...@madpmo.org, or call Margaret at 314-322-5159. Spread the word! Forward this email to a friend. Get involved in our campaign to end the death penalty! Follow us on Facebook! Support our efforts with a contribution. (source: Missourians for Alternatives to the Death Penalty) ___ A service courtesy of Washburn University School of Law www.washburnlaw.edu DeathPenalty mailing list DeathPenalty@lists.washlaw.edu http://lists.washlaw.edu/mailman/listinfo/deathpenalty Unsubscribe: http://lists.washlaw.edu/mailman/options/deathpenalty
[Deathpenalty] death penalty news----worldwide
Oct. 30 SINGAPORE: Killer's final appeal turned down Convicted killer Kho Jabing has failed in his final bid to be spared the gallows, after his appeal for clemency was turned down by President Tony Tan Keng Yam on the Cabinet's advice. Kho, 31, was informed of the rejection last week, said his lawyer Anand Nalachandran, who visited him in prison on Wednesday with co-counsel Josephus Tan and Keith Lim. Kho has gone through an emotional roller coaster, as he was initially sentenced to death in 2010, then re-sentenced to life and then ordered to face death on appeal to the apex court. The rag-and-bone man from Sarawak had beaten a Chinese construction worker to death with a tree branch in 2008. Mr Cao Ruyin, 40, was robbed of his mobile phone and died from brain injuries 6 days later. In 2010, Kho and his accomplice Galing Kujat, 32, were convicted of murder and sentenced to the then mandatory death penalty. Kho's appeal against conviction was rejected the following year, while Kujat's was allowed. Instead of murder, Kujat - also from Malaysia - was convicted of robbery with hurt and later sentenced to 18-1/2 years' jail and 19 strokes of the cane. But after revised laws came into effect in 2013, making the death penalty mandatory only for the most serious form of murder, Kho's lawyers applied for him to be re-sentenced. In August 2013, the High Court gave Kho a life term instead, but the prosecution challenged this decision before a rare five-man Court of Appeal last year. The court arrived at a split 3-2 decision in January with the majority finding that given the "sheer savagery and brutality" of the attack, they were "completely satisfied" that Kho "exhibited a blatant disregard for human life in the way he attacked the deceased". In essence, the act "outraged the feelings of the community", which justified the death penalty. The minority held that it was unsafe to conclude beyond reasonable doubt that he acted in a way which showed a blatant disregard for human life, despite the gravity of the blows. Lawyers who submitted the clemency petition to President Tan in April said the death penalty was inappropriate, given that the apex court was split in its decision. "Essentially, we proposed that the death penalty should require a unanimous decision. We highlighted that certain jurisdictions require a unanimous decision for capital punishment - failing which, life imprisonment is imposed," said Mr Anand. "Our legislation does not have a similar threshold but clemency could have the same effect." The lawyers also highlighted that the death penalty was imposed on appeal in a 2-tier system and there was no further tier of appeal. Said Mr Anand: "We are in contact with the Malaysian High Commission and arrangements were made for his mother and sister to come to Singapore to see him. "We have requested the Singapore Prison Service to notify us of the execution date when fixed. We met with Jabing on Wednesday and we'll help to fulfil his last wishes." The Court of Appeal's landmark decision on Kho sparked keen discussion earlier this year on how brutal should a murder be to warrant the death penalty. (source: Straits Times) *** 1.2kg of heroin seized, 4 arrested in CNB operationsThe Central Narcotics Bureau seized drugs worth more than S$118,000 in 2 separate stings. 4 suspected drug offenders have been arrested in 2 separate operations, said the Central Narcotics Bureau (CNB) on Friday (Oct 30). Drugs worth more than S$118,000 were also seized, including 1.2kg of heroin, 445g of cannabis, 69g of "Ice" and 183 "Ecstasy" tablets. According to CNB, its officers raided a suspected drug store in a private apartment at Orange Grove Road on Thursday morning. The suspected drug trafficker had just replenished his stock of drugs, CNB added. After entering the unit, officers noticed that the master bedroom window of the unit was broken and saw 2 male suspects at the ground floor. They subsequently entered a vacant unit on the ground floor and arrested the suspects aged between 30 and 32. CNB officers conducted a search of the 2nd floor unit and recovered drugs from the master bedroom. Officers also found drugs in a pouch found on the ledge outside the unit. About 704g of heroin, 445g of cannabis, 59g of "Ice" and 183 "Ecstasy" tablets were recovered in total. CNB also said knives, parangs and a replica gun as well as cash amounting to S$6,024 were found in the unit. Weapons, including a replica gun, were recovered in a CNB operation at Orange Grove on Friday. Separately, in another operation that took place on the same day, CNB said officers were deployed to Boon Lay Drive to nab a suspected drug supplier who was delivering a consignment of drugs to his client. The suspected supplier, a 38-year-old man, had entered a carpark to meet up with the suspected trafficker at the 2nd floor of t
[Deathpenalty] death penalty news----ARK., OKLA., ARIZ., USA
Oct. 30 ARKANSAS: Broken System: Inside Arkansas's Death Row Right now, 34 people on Arkansas's death row are waiting to die. Meanwhile, their victims' families are waiting for justice. Earlier this year, Governor Asa Hutchinson scheduled the executions of 8 men after 10 years with no Arkansas executions. This month, the Arkansas Supreme Court stayed those executions. Amid all the controversy, the one thing that both opponents and proponents of Arkansas's death penalty agree on is that this system of justice is a broken system. (source: nwahomepage.com) OKLAHOMA: Oklahoma prison warden retiring amid execution probe. The Oklahoma prison warden who oversaw a botched execution in 2014 and a 2nd lethal injection this year in which an inmate was given the wrong drugs is retiring, prison officials announced Thursday. Oklahoma State Penitentiary Warden Anita Trammell will no longer report to work and will use accrued leave until her retirement date of March 1, the Department of Corrections said in a statement. "Beginning her career as a case manager and working all the way up to warden of the state's largest maximum security facility is a true testament to her leadership ability and dedication to the state of Oklahoma," Department of Corrections Director Robert Patton said in a statement. Corrections spokeswoman Terri Watkins said Trammell was not asked to step down and that her retirement was not connected to Attorney General Scott Pruitt's ongoing investigation into how the wrong drugs were delivered to the prison for the last 2 scheduled executions. A telephone message left at a listing for Trammell in McAlester wasn't immediately returned. Trammell was inside the execution chamber in April 2014 when a botched lethal injection left inmate Clayton Lockett writhing on the gurney and mumbling in an execution that lasted for 43 minutes. Prison officials lowered the blinds during that execution after a physician member of the execution team noticed problems with the injection site in Lockett's groin. Trammell later described the scene as a "bloody mess" to investigators, who faulted her for ordering that the insertion point be covered up. Both Patton and Trammell appeared last week before a multicounty grand jury that is investigating how the wrong drug was delivered to the penitentiary for the last 2 scheduled lethal injections. Richard Glossip was just hours away from his scheduled execution last month when prison officials realized they received potassium acetate, not potassium chloride, which is the 3rd of 3 drugs the state uses to execute people. After Glossip's execution was put on hold, an autopsy report from Charles Warner's January execution revealed he was administered potassium acetate instead of potassium chloride. That prompted Pruitt to ask the Oklahoma Court of Criminal Appeals to issue an indefinite stay of all scheduled executions "until my office knows more about these circumstances and gains confidence that (the Department of Corrections) can carry out executions in accordance with the execution protocol." Pruitt said he won't request any execution dates until at least 150 days after his investigation is complete, the results are made public and his office receives notice that the prisons agency can comply with the state's execution protocol. A 33-year veteran of the Corrections Department, Trammell was appointed warden of the State Penitentiary in February 2013, becoming the 1st female warden in Oklahoma to oversee a men's maximum-security prison. Deputy Warden Maurice Warrior will oversee the prison's day-to-day operations until Patton appoints an interim warden. (source: Associated Press) ARIZONA: Face the splatter; execute by firing squad We need to stop pretending the state can kill someone in a nice way. There is no such thing as a 'humane execution.' The only reason Arizona uses drugs to execute convicted murderers is because we don't want any mess. We pretend that for the bad guy it's just like going to sleep. No. It's killing someone. If the news reporting on this subject by The Arizona Republic's Michael Kiefer teaches us anything, it's that the time has come to quit the long legal song and dance going on between the Department of Corrections, public defenders, the media and federal courts. On Wednesday federal Judge Neil Wake ordered DOC to tell him exactly what execution drugs the state possesses and how it plans to use them to execute the condemned. Why all the cloak and dagger? Why would DOC actually try to purchase illegal drugs from overseas, as it has, to carry out executions? Basically, it's because without the drugs killing someone might be messy. The truth is, killing someone SHOULD be messy. A while back Chief Judge Alex Kozinski of the Ninth U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals suggested that states implement the firing squad. He wrote, "Using drugs meant for ind
[Deathpenalty] death penalty news----N.J., PENN., DEL., VA., GA.
Oct. 30 NEW JERSEY: Jackson Council Urges State To Pass Death Penalty Bill Council President Barry Calogero strongly voiced his support for bills making their way through Trenton that would establish the death penalty for those convicted of certain crimes. He urged his fellow council members to join him in supporting sister bills S1741 and A2429, which have been sitting in the state Senate and Assembly judiciary committees since last year. The original bill, S2674/A3814 was introduced Jan. 1, 2011, and was motioned to table by Democrat Barbara Buono later that year. The bill was introduced the following year with 11 sponsors in the senate, and only 4 of the original sponsors in the latest round. "I think it is an absolute shame that such an important Bill is not getting the attention it deserves. I wrote this resolution to let Trenton know that Jackson supports it and demands they take action. I am hopeful other municipalities will follow suit and write their own resolutions supporting this bill," Calogero said. The 16-page bill, sponsored by Senators Anthony Bucco, Robert Singer, Steven Oroho and Gerald Cardinale, and Assemblymen Ronald Dancer, Parker Space and Alison Littell McHose, would allow for the death penalty for the murders of police officers, persons under 18 years of age, and persons murdered by the crime of terrorism. Every sentence of death will be automatically appealed all the way to the Supreme Court. Execution would occur by lethal injection. "It is this Council President's desire to ask for the full support of Council to send a message that the Township of Jackson urges the passage of S-1741 / A-2429 to reenact the death penalty for the murder of Police Officers," Calogero said. "It is extremely important to let the brave men and women who protect us 24 hours a day know that we stand behind them and support the most significant punishment possible for this heinous crime. This year, sadly there has been 29 police officers assassinated while performing their sworn duty to serve and protect." The death penalty was reinstated in 1982 by Governor Thomas Kean until December 17, 2007, when Governor Jon Corzine signed into law a bill once again abolishing the practice. Those on death row had sentences commuted to life without the possibility of parole. While the death penalty was legal in the state those years, no one was executed in New Jersey. The state commissioned a death penalty report which was published in January 2007. John Russo, once an Ocean County Prosecutor and Democrat state senator, in that report stated: "My goal in getting the death penalty legislation adopted was not to establish a system of wholesale executions, but rather to make the penalty of death available in cases of extraordinarily vile and heinous crimes." His was a minority opinion, and the majority recommended life in prison without the possibility of parole, and any savings to the state be used to help surviving victims of homicide. A 2005 New Jersey Policy Perspective report broke down the figures and estimated the state spent nearly $11 million annually on capital punishment system. The Jackson Township Council unanimously approved its resolution supporting the bills. "I just want to add, next time you're in Washington, DC, find the time, go find the National Law Enforcement Officers Memorial and look at the thousands of names of police officers that have been killed in the line of duty in this country," Councilman Robert Nixon said. "When somebody is going to assassinate a police officer while they're on duty, or because they know they're a police officer, they will stop at nothing to kill anybody else in society. While you can argue about the legitimacy of the death penalty as a deterrent, you certainly can't question the heinousness of that crime. I think it was a mistake that we abolished the death penalty for law enforcement officers back when we did. We need to reinstate it. I hope the Legislature takes us up on this request." The National Law Enforcement Officers Memorial is on the 400 block of E Street, NW, Washington, DC. (source: micromediapubs.com) PENNSYLVANIA: Judge to rule today on death penalty motion in slayings of East Liberty sisters More of Allen Wade's murder trial started to take shape Thursday, but it remained unclear whether it will start as scheduled next week and whether the prosecution can seek the death penalty if he's convicted. Three marathon hearings Thursday before Common Pleas Judge Edward Borkowski addressed a slew of unresolved motions in the case, in which Wade, 44, is charged with killing Susan and Sarah Wolfe in their East Liberty home in February 2014. The judge will rule Friday on the defense's request for a postponement and a motion that the prosecution be barred from seeking the death penalty because they improperly dug into Wade's personal records. After hours of argument
