[Deathpenalty] death penalty news----worldwide
Feb. 18 PAKISTAN: Christian couple sentenced to death for sending 'blasphemous' texts to an Islamic cleric in Pakistan say they were tortured into confessing to the crime A disabled Christian man and his wife sentenced to death in Pakistan for blasphemy have claimed they were tortured into confessing. Shafqat Emmanuel and Shagufta Kausar, from Gojra, east Pakistan, were found guilty of sending a text message which 'blasphemed' against the Prophet Mohammed to their local imam in 2013. Mr Emmanuel, who is paralysed from the waist down, claims the only reason he confessed to the crime was because he could not stand watching his wife be tortured by police. 'There is no man who can stand to see his wife being tortured by police, so to save my wife, I confessed,' Mr Emmanuel said in an appeal for bail lodged this week. The couple were arrested in July 2013 after their local imam, Maulvi Mohammed Hussain, claimed Mr Emmanuel had used his wife's phone to sent him a text insulting the Prophet Mohammed. The couple, who have 4 children, denies ever sending the text, saying the phone had been stolen from them months before the message was supposed to have been sent. "There was no evidence that the text messages came from a phone owned by the couple," Farukh Saif, an official of World Vision in Progress giving legal aid to the couple, told Christians in Pakistan. In the first place they had lost the phone some months before July 2013 and secondly there was no SIM card in their names. The only evidence police produced was a bill for a SIM card from a shop owner which is unheard of.' Mr Emmanuel and Ms Kausar were initially sentenced to death for blasphemy, but as with nearly all such convictions, it is most likely they will spend the rest of their lives in jail. Pakistan's blasphemy laws are notoriously harsh, and accusations of blasphemy against Islam is taken very seriously in the country. Being found guilty of desecrating the Koran or blaspheming against the Prophet Mohammed is punishable by death or life imprisonment. The laws have long been criticised both in Pakistan and internationally as they are often used to settle personal grudges and accusations are made with little to no evidence. They have lodged an appeal at Lahore High Court on the grounds of Mr Emmanuel's deteriorating condition, claiming lack of treatment in jail has left him with bedsores and life-threatening ill health. Pakistan's blasphemy laws are notoriously harsh, and accusations of blasphemy against Islam is taken very seriously in the country. Being found guilty of desecrating the Koran or blaspheming against the Prophet Mohammed is punishable by death or life imprisonment. The laws have long been criticised both in Pakistan and internationally as they are often used to settle personal grudges and accusations are made with little to no evidence. Last month, the head of a powerful religious body in the country said he is willing to review Pakistan's harsh blasphemy laws, to decide if they are Islamic. Pakistan's religious and political elites almost universally keep clear of debating blasphemy laws in a country where criticism of Islam is a highly sensitive subject. Even rumours of blasphemy have sparked rampaging mobs and deadly riots. But Muhammad Khan Sherani, chairman of a body that advises the government on the compatibility of laws with Islam, told Reuters he was willing to reopen the debate and see whether sentences as harsh as the death penalty were fair. "The government of Pakistan should officially, at the government level, refer the law on committing blasphemy to the Council of Islamic Ideology. There is a lot of difference of opinion among the clergy on this issue," Sherani said in an interview at his office close to Pakistan's parliament. "Then the council can seriously consider things and give its recommendation of whether it needs to stay the same or if it needs to be hardened or if it needs to be softened," Sherani, said. (source: Daily Mail) BURUNDI: Burundi's defense minister requests reintroduction of death penalty Burundian Defense Minister Emmanuel Ntahomvukiye has requested the reintroduction of the death penalty to sanction authors of the May 13, 2015 failed coup plot, the government official said Thursday in a parliamentary session. Defense and War Veterans Minister Emmanuel Ntahomvukiye was speaking in a session at the parliamentary house in Kigobe along with 2 of his colleagues - Security Minister Alain Guillaume Bunyoni and External Relations and International Cooperation Minister Alain Aime Nyamitwe. They had been summoned to answer MPs' questions and to debate on Burundi's political crisis that broke in April 2015 as well as possible solutions. "The death penalty should be reintroduced especially to sanction people who attempted to overthrow institutions on May 13, 2015,"Ntahomvukiye told the Parlia
[Deathpenalty] death penalty news----FLA., ALA., CALIF.
Feb. 18 FLORIDAfemale death sentence overturned Death Sentence Tossed for Florida Mom of 'Baby Lollipops' A Florida mother condemned to die for the beating death of her young son known as "Baby Lollipops" deserves a new trial because of inflammatory and improper statements made by prosecutors during closing arguments, the state Supreme Court ruled Thursday. The justices tossed out the 2011 murder conviction and death sentence for Ana Maria Cardona, 54, marking the second time the court has reversed her case. Cardona's original 1992 conviction and death sentence was overturned because prosecutors failed to disclose key evidence to the defense. This time, the court found that Miami-Dade prosecutors crossed the line in closing arguments during the second trial, repeatedly attempting to stir up juror emotions and sympathy for the 3-year-old victim, Lazaro Figueroa. Testimony showed the boy had been severely beaten and suffered from chronic neglect, weighing only 18 pounds when his body was found in some bushes in Miami Beach in 1990. Police dubbed the boy "Baby Lollipops" because he was wearing a T-shirt with a lollipop image when he was found. The Supreme Court, in a 28-page decision, said the trial judge erred in allowing prosecutors to repeatedly use the phrase "justice for Lazaro" in closing arguments to the jury. Prosecutors were also wrong, the justices added, in describing the defense case as "diversionary" and calling Cardona herself a "drama expert" who belonged on Spanish-language telenovela program. Cardona's lawyers objected 58 times but Miami-Dade Circuit Judge Reemberto Diaz overruled nearly all of them. "As we have stated for decades, we expect and require prosecutors, as representatives of the state, to refrain from engaging in inflammatory and abusive arguments, to maintain their objectivity, and to behave in a professional manner," the justices wrote in a 6-1 opinion. "All of these arguments used by the prosecutor in this case were clearly improper." Justice Ricky Polston dissented but did not issue an opinion. Miami-Dade State Attorney Katherine Fernandez Rundle said prosecutors will try Cardona on murder and other charges a 3rd time in a case that his riveted South Florida for decades. "The cruelty involved in young Lazaro Figueroa's murder deserves our fundamental commitment," Rundle said in a statement. According to testimony at both previous trials, Lazaro's badly beaten and scarred body was found by utility workers in Miami Beach on Nov. 2, 1990. Police did not immediately know the boy's identity and decided to call him "Baby Lollipops" as they distributed fliers door-to-door and held frequent news conferences. Eventually, the investigation led Miami Beach detectives in December to Cardona, who had moved with her other 2 children and her companion to a motel in Osceola County. She initially claimed, police said, that the boy had fallen and hit his head on a tile floor while jumping on a bed. She also claimed her companion, Olivia Gonzalez, had left the boy in front of the Miami Beach home. 2 juries rejected the defense case, finding Cardona guilty of killing her son and of regularly abusing the child. The jury in the 2nd trial recommended the death penalty by a minimal 7-5 vote, which the judge then imposed. Under a recent U.S. Supreme Court decision, Florida judges will no longer have final say in imposing capital punishment. A bill currently proposed in the state Legislature would switch that authority solely to juries and would require a minimum 10-2 vote to impose death. (source: ABC news) ALABAMA: Prosecutors Seek Death Penalty for Murder of Elderly Man Prosecutors are seeking the death penalty for 3 men charged with killing an 85-year old man during a home invasion in Cusseta. A Lee County judge found probable cause to charge all 3 defendants - Robert Jamal Wiggins, Khaleef Javante Marshall and Devonte Travon Mike - with capital murder during a hearing Wednesday. The 3 defendants are charged with the slaying of Bennie Rudd, who was killed by intruders at his home Jan. 19. Rudd's wife told police that armed men wearing ski masks forced open their front door and immediately began shooting at them. The judge sent the case to a grand jury. (source: alabamanews.net) CALIFORNIA: DA to Seek Death Penalty in Mysterious Triple-Killing CaseCarlo Mercado, 30, has pleaded not guilty to killing brothers Salvatore and Gianni Belvedere and Ilona Flint in December 2013 Prosecutors will seek the death penalty against a San Diego man accused in the mysterious slayings of 3 victims that began with a shooting on Christmas Eve 2013 in the parking lot of Westfield Mission Valley mall. Carlo Mercado, 30, appeared in court Thursday and pleaded not guilty in the killings of brothers Salvatore "Sal" Belvedere, 22, and Gianni Belvedere, 24, and Gianni's fianc???e, Ilona Flint, 22. Mer
[Deathpenalty] death penalty news----worldwide
Feb. 18 INDONESIA: Jessica's lawyers file pretrial motion Lawyers of Jessica Kumala Wongso filed a pretrial motion with the Central Jakarta District Court to challenge her suspect status in the murder case of Wayan Mirna Salihin, who died after drinking cyanide-laced coffee. Yudi Wibowo, one of the lawyers, said on Wednesday that having filed the motion, the team would face the 1st hearing on Feb. 23. Meanwhile, the Jakarta Police's general crime director, Krishna Murti, said that he had been informed about the pretrial. "Once we receive a notification letter about the pretrial, the Jakarta Police's legal team will immediately prepare for the hearing," Krishna said on Tuesday as quoted by kompas.com. Nonetheless, Krishna added that his team was optimistic that they could put Jessica behind bars as they had found 2 pieces of evidence that confirmed their allegations. Jessica, the sole suspect in the murder case, was charged under the Criminal Code for premeditated murder. The law carries the possibility of the death penalty, lifetime imprisonment, or a maximum sentence of 20 years in prison. The police suspect her of murdering Mirna, 27, who died after drinking the poisoned coffee at the Olivier restaurant in the Grand Indonesia shopping mall on Jan. 6. However, police have so far been tight-lipped on a motive behind the homicide. (source: thejakartapost.com) UNITED ARAB EMIRATES: Doha court reviews expat's premeditated killing of compatriot A Doha Criminal Court has been reviewing the case of a Bangladeshi man accused of premeditated killing of his compatriot. Local Arabic daily Arrayah reported that the Public Prosecution accused the defendant of murdering his accommodation and work mate. The witness in the case, a police officer, told the court that he received a call about the killing of an Asian man at a workers' accommodation. When he went there, he found the body of the victim on his bed with severe injuries and covered in blood. He also found a sharp knife under the bed. Upon investigation and further search, the defendant was arrested. He told the investigators that he killed the victim after a heated verbal dispute, when the latter insulted and rebuked him harshly. After committing the murder, he fled the accommodation. At night, he slept at a mosque and in the morning, police found him and he was eventually arrested. The defendant justified the killing claiming that the victim used to beat and insult him in front of others at work at the Fish Market. Also, he used to constantly threaten to send him back home, which made the defendant furious, provoking him to kill the other person. A medical report submitted to the court on the condition of the defendant affirmed that he suffered from depression related to the murder, but he is fully accountable for his crime. The court has adjourned the case until the legal heirs of the victim express their wish whether they seek a death penalty for the defendant or accept blood money. (source: Gulf Times) IRAQ: Shocking surge in 2016 death sentences tops 90 as 'terror' trial closes The 40 death sentences handed down today in Iraq after a fundamentally flawed mass trial show a reckless disregard for justice and human life, said Amnesty International and brings the total sentenced in 2016 close to 100. Iraq's courts have imposed at least 52 death sentences since 1 January 2016. Today a further 40 individuals were sentenced to death as the verdict of a high-profile anti-terror trial is delivered in Baghdad. "For Iraqi courts to hand down 92 death sentences in just 6 weeks is a grim indicator of the current state of justice in the country," said James Lynch, Amnesty International's Middle East and North Africa Deputy Director. "The vast majority of the trials have been grossly unfair, with many of the defendants claiming to have been tortured into 'confessing' the crimes. These allegations must be urgently investigated and a re-trial that meets international fair trial standard should be ordered." Today's trial involved 47 individuals accused of involvement in the Speicher massacre, in which at least 1,700 military cadets from Speicher Military camp, near Tikrit, were brutally killed by militants from the armed group calling itself Islamic State (IS) in June 2014. Iraq's Federal Judicial Authority confirmed that 40 people were sentenced to death under the 2005 anti-terrorism law and 7 were released due to lack of evidence. More than 600 arrest warrants were issued by the Iraqi authorities in connection with the Speicher massacre. The Central Criminal Court of Iraq (CCCI) went on to announce that it would consolidate all cases relating to the Speicher crimes into one case - opening the door to mass trials. In July 2014, 24 men were sentenced to death by hanging under the 2005 Anti-Terrorism Law in connection with the massacre. "These mass, expedited
[Deathpenalty] death penalty news----OHIO, COLO., ORE., USA
Feb. 18 OHIO: Jury selection begins in Eric Hendon's triple-murder trial; Hendon faces death penalty Jury selection began - for the 2nd time - in Eric Hendon's triple-murder trial Wednesday. Summit County Common Pleas Judge Amy Corrigall Jones dismissed the 1st jury last October when defense attorneys saw evidence they thought could potentially exonerate Hendon. In the 5 months since, defense attorneys, prosecutors and surviving victim Ronda Blankenship and her attorney have been battling over additional personal information defense attorneys have sought from Blankenship. Jones, however, was determined that the trial would go forward, despite several pending issues. "I'm not going to continue the trial," the judge said Tuesday during the final hearing before jury selection started. Hendon, 33, of Akron, is charged with aggravated murder in the New Year's Eve 2013 shooting deaths of a Barberton man and 2 teenage children in a home-invasion robbery for marijuana and cash. He faces the death penalty. Michael Hendon, 24, his younger brother, is a co-defendant and was convicted in August and sentenced to life in prison without parole. A pool of 149 potential jurors in Eric Hendon's trial answered jury questionnaires Wednesday that asked them about their backgrounds, knowledge of the case and thoughts on the death penalty. Defense attorneys and prosecutors will begin individual interviews with jurors Thursday, a process that is expected to last several weeks. A jury is expected to be seated by March 17, with the trial starting March 22. The trial could last up to a month. A major pending issue is whether Jones will grant a defense request to sanction prosecutors for not providing information and being uncooperative, allegations the prosecutors deny. The defense is asking Jones to not allow Blankenship, who was shot in the head and lost an eye after being stabbed in the face, to testify. If Blankenship is permitted to testify, the case hinges on how well she can remember the events of that night and whether any treatment she received, exposure to media reports or discussion with detectives might have skewed her recollection, said Brian Pierce, 1 of 2 defense attorneys for Eric Hendon. "It comes down to memory and her ability - with this horrible trauma - to be able to accurately and reliably identify someone," he said. Jones denied a request by defense attorneys Tuesday for the court to provide a neurologist to review Blankenship's medical records and determine if her injuries could have affected her memory. The judge, however, granted a defense request for an anesthesiologist to examine the potential impact of the drugs prescribed to Blankenship. The defense's witness list has 48 potential witnesses, which includes Blankenship, numerous police officers, a forensic computer expert and a memory-identification expert. Assistant prosecutors Teri Burnside and Dan Sallerson plan to call Blankenship, a doctor with the Summit County Medical Examiner's Office, police officers, paramedics and crime-lab technicians. Jones recently ordered Michael Hendon transferred from Mansfield Correctional Institution to the Summit County Jail. It is unclear whether he will be called as a witness. He has a pending appeal and could plead the Fifth Amendment against self-incrimination if he takes the stand. Pierce said he and Don Malarcik, his co-counsel, won't decide until the trial is underway whether Eric Hendon should testify. Jones asked prosecutors and defense attorneys during Tuesday's hearing to discuss whether a plea could be reached, but this was unsuccessful. Pierce said Hendon wants a jury to decide his case. "He's not interested in an offer," Pierce said. (source: Akron Beacon Journal) COLORADO: Death penalty sought for inmate charged in fatal attack Prosecutors are seeking the death penalty against an inmate accused of stabbing a correctional officer to death and trying to kill another. Crowley County District Attorney Jim Bullock announced Wednesday he will seek the death penalty against convicted child rapist Miguel Alonso Contreras-Perez in the death of Sgt. Mary Ricard at the Arkansas Valley Correctional Facility on Sept. 24, 2012. Perez also is accused of stabbing Sgt. Lori Gann the same day. The Denver Post reports (http://goo.gl/WsRSXi ) Contreras-Perez has fired his state public defenders and is planning to represent himself. Ricard's daughter, Katie Smith, says she has asked Bullock many times not to seek the death penalty, which she does not agree with. Bullock says he can't comment on his decision because the judge has barred any statements about the case outside of court. (source: Associated Press) OREGON: Trial date nears for 3rd suspect in horrific Eugene murder case Nearly 2 years after a Lane County jury sent David Ray Taylor to Oregon's death row for the 2012 slaying of Eugene resident Cele
[Deathpenalty] death penalty news----TEXAS, CONN., PENN., N.C., FLA., MISS., LA.
Feb. 18 TEXAS: Scalia's Final Order Was To Let This Texas Man Die After 15 years of court battles, Gustavo Garcia became the 6th person put to death in 2016, for the murder of a liquor store clerk. And he's the subject of former Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia???s final legal action. Just 3 days before his own death, Scalia denied Garcia's plea for a stay of execution. Garcia's final words on Tuesday night were: "To my family, to my mom, I love you. God bless you. Stay strong. I'm done." He was 18 years old when he fatally shot 2 store clerks in Plano, Texas: Craig Turski and Gregory Martin. Turski was shot in the abdomen during a liquor store robbery in December 1990. When he tried to run, Garcia shot him in the back of the head. The teenager was caught during a 2nd robbery attempt 1 month later. In January 1991, Garcia and accomplice Christopher Vargas entered the gas station where Gregory Martin worked. Martin was on the phone at the time and asked his girlfriend to call the police, fearing he was about to be robbed. Garcia moved Martin to a separate room and shot him point blank in the head. When police arrived at the scene, they found Garcia hiding near the firearm, which they linked to Turski's murder. Garcia was informed of his Miranda rights while he was in police custody, but he ultimately confessed to both murders verbally and in writing. He went to trial for killing Turski and was sentenced to capital punishment at the end of 1991. In a surprising twist 3 years later, the Texas Court of Criminal Appeals overturned the conviction because the written confession was missing language required by Texas to make the statement valid. The document that Garcia signed and initialed didn't explicitly mention that he was "[knowingly], [intelligently], and [voluntarily]" waiving the right to remain silent during the interrogation process. Garcia was subsequently given a 2nd hearing and re-sentenced to death. Then in 2001, Garcia got another break. John Cornyn, Texas' former attorney general, ordered new sentencing hearings for Garcia and 5 other convicted murderers who were racially profiled in court. In all 6 cases, a psychologist argued that the defendants posed a threat to society because they were Hispanic. Cornyn believed that racial bias should not have played a role in the sentencing, and Garcia was given another chance at a lesser punishment. But he was sentenced to die again. Thereafter, Garcia fought the execution on the grounds that he received deficient counsel. He claimed his lawyer never objected to introducing the confessions in court, and that he was unable to read the confession because he is "legally blind." Scalia denied Garcia's final appeal for a stay of execution last Wednesday. The late justice's order was consistent with his unrelenting stance on capital punishment. Scalia was always a staunch supporter of executions, even in cases where there was strong evidence to suggest a person's innocence or reason to believe that a commonly used lethal injection cocktail causes the sensation of being burned alive. He was the 3rd person Texas has put to death in 2016. The state has executed more people than any other state in the country, and has already carried out 1/2 of the executions this year. (source: thinkprogress.org) CONNECTICUT: Convicted Cheshire Killer Komisarjevsky Heading to Court Seeking New TrialA judge will hold a hearing on Joshua Komisarjevsky's attempt at a new trial focusing on undisclosed police calls in the 2007 triple murder. Convicted Cheshire killer Joshua Komisarjevsky will be back in a New Haven courtroom next week as he attempts to get a new trial for the 2007 home invasion murders of Jennifer Hawke-Petit and daughters Hayley and Michaela, according to the Hartford Courant. Komisarjevsky is claiming that the fact the some previously undisclosed Cheshire police dispatch tapes from the morning of the murders warrants a new trial. The Courant reports that a hearing has been scheduled for Feb. 23 and Superior Court Judge Jon Blue will listen to arguments on whether the recordings of phone calls between officers as the murders unfolded could have aided Komisarjevsky's defense. Komisarjevsky and Stephen Hayes were both convicted, in separate trials, with felony murder and sentenced to death for the 2007 killings of Hawke-Petit and Michaela, 11, and Hayley, 17. State lawmakers got rid of the death penalty in 2012, but made it so that inmates already on death row would be executed. The provision was added after the trials of Hayes and Komisarjevsky. However, the Connecticut State Supreme Court ruled last August that the death penalty violates the state's constitution and barred all executions. Hayes asked a judge in November to vacate his death sentence and to impose a sentence of life in prison without the possibility of parole. (source: patch.com) PEN
