[Deathpenalty] death penalty news----worldwide
May 24 INDONESIA: 8 drug suspects handed over to prosecutors The National Narcotics Agency ( BNN ) on Monday handed over 8 drug suspects, who had allegedly attempted to traffic almost 100 kilograms of crystal methamphetamine into the country from China, to the Semarang Prosecutor's Office in Central Java. The BNN also handed over the drug evidence for the case to be brought to trial at the Semarang District Court. "We handed over 8 suspects, including 97 kg of methamphetamine as evidence. The suspects will be detained at the Kedungpane Prison," said chief BNN spokesman Slamet Pribadi on Monday. "Regarding the evidence, of the whole amount confiscated, 2.5 % is for evidence and 97.5 % will be destroyed. It all depends on the prosecutor's office," he said. He added the suspects are accused of violating articles 112 and 114 of the 2009 law on narcotics, which carry either a life sentence or the death penalty. The 8 suspects were arrested at a furniture warehouse in Pekalongan village, Batealit district, in Jepara regency, Central Java, on Jan. 27 when they were allegedly unloading a shipment of crystal meth concealed in Zhouma brand generators from China. The BNN disassembled the 194 generators, 94 of which it said contained drugs. The agency claimed each generator was packed with between 1.5 to 1.9 kg of methamphetamine. The suspects consisted of 4 Pakistanis named Faiq, Amran Malik, Riaz and Toriq. The other 4 are Indonesians named Yulian, Tommy, Kristiadi and Didit. Of the 8 suspects, Didit was the official tenant of the warehouse owned by a local man named Yunpelizar. The warehouse appeared to be a finishing workshop for furniture. However, the BNN claimed that it was a transit place for drugs before they were distributed across Indonesia. During the raid in Jepara, residents in Pekalongan village were unaware of the fact that the CV Jepara Raya International furniture warehouse was possibly used as a drug distribution center. Residents were only aware of the regular presence of a foreign citizen, namely Faiz, in the warehouse. The BNN opened the case when it received information about a shipment of drugs via the sea when it was working together with the local customs and excise office in 2015. At that time, the BNN did not know which port would be used to bring in the drugs from China. It was eventually determined that the drugs would enter through the Tanjung Emas Port in Semarang. (source: The Jakarta Post) SINGAPORE: 2 men charged with murder over Orchard Towers deathMuhammad Daniel Abdul Jalil and Radin Abdullah Syaafii Radin Badruddin, both 22, had their charges upgraded to murder after the death of the victim. 2 men were charged with murder on Tuesday (May 24), following the death of the victim more than a month after being assaulted. Muhammad Daniel Abdul Jalil and Radin Abdullah Syaafii Radin Badruddin, both 22, were previously charged with causing grievous hurt to 34-year-old Navarro Dorian Regis in the early hours of Apr 1 at Orchard Towers. Their charges were upgraded to murder after the victim died of his injuries last week. If convicted of murder, the pair could face the death penalty or life imprisonment with caning. They will next appear in court on May 31. Daniel faces a 2nd charge of causing grievous hurt for punching another victim, Mr Goudal Pierre-Eric Jules, on the same day at Orchard Towers. Mr Jules sustained a nasal bone fracture. For this charge, Daniel faces up to 10 years' jail and caning. (source: channelnewsasia.com) *** Death penalty sought for man accused of beheading girl, 4 Taiwanese prosecutors have indicted a man for murder over the public decapitation of a 4-year-old girl, saying they would seek the death penalty for the "extremely cold-blooded" attack. Wang Ching-yu, 33, is accused of overpowering the mother of the child near a metro station in central Taipei, and beheading the young girl with a kitchen knife. The mother and a number of bystanders tried to intervene but were pushed away and unable to save the child, whom police have identified only by the surname Liu. Prosecutors at the Shihlin District Court in Taipei said yesterday that it was an "extremely cold-blooded" crime which had deeply shocked the generally peaceful island. "It has caused indelible pain to her mother, who witnessed the cruelty," the prosecutors said in a statement at the close of their investigation, which took less than 2 months. "The suspect has never repented... so we suggest the court sentence him to death," they said, adding that capital punishment in this instance was important to maintain society's faith in law and justice. Taiwan resumed capital punishment in 2010 after a five-year hiatus. Executions are reserved for serious crimes such as aggravated murder. Some politicians and rights groups have called for its abolition, but various opinio
[Deathpenalty] death penalty news----worldwide
May 24 GAZA: Hamas announces public executions that will 'take Gaza past Saudi Arabia' The Palestinian militant group Hamas is to carry out a string of public executions in the Gaza strip, the patch of territory it controls. The executions were announced by Hamas's attorney general in Gaza, Ismail Jaber. "Capital punishments will be implemented soon in Gaza," he said. "I ask that they take place before a large crowd." 13 men, most convicted of murder connected to robberies, are currently awaiting execution, another Hamas official, Khalil al-Haya, said on Friday at the main prayers. If all those go ahead, Gaza's execution rate relative to the size of its population will overtake that of Saudi Arabia's in one go. Last year, Saudi Arabia, with a population of 31.5 million, executed 153 people. Though one of the most densely populated territories in the world, Gaza has a population of just 1.8 million. Palestinian law allows the death penalty for collaborators, murderers and drug traffickers. On Sunday, the families of the victims of those on death row protested in favour of the executions outside Gaza's parliament, after the authorities gave a rare permission to stage a public demonstration. The last time Hamas carried out public executions was during the summer 2014 war with Israel, when a Hamas firing squad shot dead 7 people outside Gaza's main mosque following Friday prayers . Bodies were then dragged through the streets. According to a May 2015 report by Amnesty International, Hamas forces also carried out at least 23 extrajudicial killings of Palestinians in Gaza in 2014, with at least 17 people killed on 1 day alone. So far in 2016, approximately 10 people have been sentenced to death in Gaza. Since the creation of the Palestinian Authority in 1994, more than 170 Palestinians have been sentenced to death and around 30 have been executed, mostly in Gaza, according to the Palestinian Centre for Human Rights (PCHR). All execution orders must in theory be approved by the Palestinian Authority president, Mahmoud Abbas, but his legitimacy is not recognised by Hamas in the Gaza strip. In February this year, it was announced that Mahmoud Ishtiwi, a commander from Hamas's military wing, was executed in Gaza by a firing squad. (source: telegraph.co.uk) SAUDI ARABIAexecution Saudi man executed for murder Saudi Arabia put to death a citizen convicted of murder on Tuesday, bringing to 94 the number of executions in the kingdom in 2016. Imad al-Assimi was found guilty of shooting dead a compatriot in a dispute, the interior ministry said in a statement carried by state news agency SPA. Most people put to death in Saudi Arabia are beheaded with a sword. Murder and drug trafficking cases account for the majority of Saudi executions, although 47 people were put to death for "terrorism" on a single day in January, 2016. According to human rights group Amnesty International, Saudi Arabia had the 3rd-highest number of executions last year - at least 158. That was far behind Pakistan which executed 326, and Saudi Arabia's regional rival Iran, which executed at least 977, said Amnesty, whose figures exclude secretive China. Rights activists have raised concerns about the fairness of trials in Saudi Arabia and have been particularly critical of the use of the death penalty for non-violent offences like drug trafficking. The interior ministry has said it is "determined to fight drugs of all kinds due to the serious damage they do to individuals and society". Saudi Arabia has a strict Islamic legal code under which murder, drug trafficking, armed robbery, rape and apostasy are all punishable by death. (source: Agence France-Presse) IRANexecution Man Hanged In Northwestern Iran 1 prisoner was hanged in Qazvin Prison (northwestern Iran) on the morning of Thursday May 19, reports the official website of the Iranian Judiciary in the province of Qazvin. The man, who was identified as "Sepahdar", was reportedly convicted of murdering another man who allegedely had an affair with his sister. * At Least 8 Prisoners Transferred to Solitary Confinement For Execution At least 6 prisoners were transferred to solitary confinement in Karaj's Rajai Shahr Prison (west of Tehran) on Saturday May 20, report close sources to Iran Human Rights (IHR). These prisoners, who are all convicted of murder, are scheduled to be executed on Tuesday or Wednesday of this week. According to reports gathered by IHR, at least 40 prisoners were executed in Iran during the first 3 weeks of May. * 5 Other Prisoners Scheduled to Be Executed in Coming Days 5 prisoners are scheduled to be hanged in the coming days, according to sources of Iran Human Rights. 6 prisoners from Karaj Central Prison were transferred to solitary confinement in preparation for their executions, which were scheduled for Sunday May 22. 1 of th
[Deathpenalty] death penalty news----KAN., NEB., UTAH, CALIF., ORE., USA
May 24 KANSAS: Freed man says Kansas should end the death penalty A man who spent nearly 16 years in prison for a rape and killing to which his brother confessed wants Kansas to pull the plug on the death penalty. The Lawrence Journal-World reports that 39-year-old Floyd Bledsoe shared his story over the weekend in the basement of a Lawrence church. Bledsoe never faced the death penalty himself. But he was sentenced to life in prison after he was convicted of raping and killing 14-year-old Camille Arfmann. He was released in December after a DNA test and suicide notes indicated his brother, Tom Bledsoe, killed Arfmann. Bledsoe says the court system is flamed and questioned what would have happened if he had been sentenced to death. Kansas hasn't executed anyone since it reinstated capital punishment in 1994. (source: Associated Press) ** The Death Penalty in Kansas More than 9 years after the murder of their daughter, the parents of Jodi Sanderholm are speaking out to KSN News, as the execution of the man convicted in her murder, remains very much in doubt. Jodi Sanderholm was 19 years old when she was murdered in Ark City, Kansas.Jodi Sanderholm was 19 years old when she was murdered in Ark City, Kansas. "I'm sure she, Jodi, pleaded for her life and he didn't give it to her," said Cindy Sanderholm, Jodi's mother. "She didn't get a 2nd choice. She didn't get a 2nd chance," she added. Arkansas City-native, Justin Eugene Thurber was 25-years-old when he was sentenced to death in the murder of Sanderholm. Prosecutors said Thurber had a habit of stalking young women. They said Thurber followed the Cowley County College dancer home, abducted her, beat and raped her, then strangled her to death. For Cindy and Brian Sanderholm, life since their daughter's murder has never been the same. "She was just a very smart, talented little girl," said Cindy. Brian and Cindy Sanderholm sat down with KSN's Brittany Glas to discuss the death penalty process in Kansas. Jodi's parents say they feel as though they were robbed of a life with their young daughter, who they said, had a promising future. "To me, she's always 19, and so, when I see her friends and they're getting older, it's like, 'Gosh, what would she be doing?' 'What would she be like?' Lots of ifs," added Cindy. "We suffered through it this long," said Brian Sanderholm, the father of murder victim, Jodi Sanderholm. "It's time for you [Thurber] to suffer." Inmates Serving Death in Kansas Thurber is now 1 of 10 inmates in the state of Kansas serving death sentences. They are all on Kansas' version of "death row" at El Dorado Correctional Facility, where they are housed on 'Administrative Segregation' status. --Justin Eugene Thurber Convicted for 2007 murder of Jodi Sanderholm near Arkansas City. --Frazier Glenn Cross Jr. (aka Frazier Cross) Convicted for 2014 killing of William Corporon, Reat Underwood and Terri LaManno in Kansas City. --Gary Wayne Kleypas Convicted of 1996 raping and killing 20-year-old Carrie Williams in Pittsburg. --James Kraig Kahler Convicted for 2009 murder of Karen Kahler; daughters Lauren and Emily Kahler and Karen Kahler's grandmother, Dorothy Wight in Burlingame. --John Edward Robinson, Sr. Capital conviction for 1999 killing of Izabela Lewicka and the 2000 death of Suzette Trouten. He is accused of killing 7 women. --Scott Dever Cheever Convicted for 2005 shooting of Greenwood County Sheriff Matt Samuels during a drug raid. --Sidney John Gleason Convicted for 2004 murder of Miki Martinez and Darren Wornkey in Great Bend. --Johnathan Daniel Carr The Carr brothers were convicted for the 2000 murders of Brad Heyka, Heather Muller, Aaron Sander and Jason Befort in Wichita. --Reginald Dexter Carr, Jr. The Carr brothers were convicted for the 2000 murders of Brad Heyka, Heather Muller, Aaron Sander and Jason Befort in Wichita. --Kyle Trevor Flack Convicted for 2013 murders of Kaylie Bailey, Lana Bailey, Andrew Stout and Steven White near Ottawa. A KSN Investigation concludes it is very likely that Jodi Sanderholm's killer, along with the nine other inmates on our state's 'death row,' may never be executed in the state of Kansas. This, due to the fact that Kansas' processes are either non-existent, or designed to not carry out the sentence. In fact, it has been so long since Kansas has executed an inmate with a death sentence that it has become clear that the people responsible for carrying out the sentence don't seem to know exactly what to do, or how to do it. Since Kansas reinstated the death penalty in 1994, 22 years ago, no one has been executed. The last time someone was executed in our state was 1965, by hanging. KSN went straight to the Kansas Department of Corrections to find out why. "We haven't executed anyone in that time frame, and there's no time table to have any
[Deathpenalty] death penalty news----N.C., GA., FLA., ALA., LA.
May 24 NORTH CAROLINA: Death penalty doubt The man charged with the brutal killing of Stephen Patrick White can face the death penalty, a judge ruled last week. Guilford County prosecutors say the crime was especially heinous, atrocious and cruel, also involved arson and put other people at risk - all aggravating factors. There's little question about that. White, 46, was beaten and set on fire in a Greensboro hotel room on Nov. 8, 2014. He lived for 8 days, enduring 2 amputations and other surgeries before succumbing to his injuries. Garry Joseph Gupton, 27, a former Greensboro city employee, is charged. If there's no plea deal and the case eventually goes to trial, a jury will consider evidence, attempt to reach a verdict and, if it finds the defendant guilty, recommend a sentence. If that sentence is death, there's very little chance an execution ever will be carried out. It has been nearly a decade since North Carolina put someone to death, although there are 148 men and 3 women on death row. Since Samuel Flippin's execution by lethal injection on Aug. 18, 2006, several death row inmates have died and 29 have been removed by court orders, either released or given lesser sentences. They include Glenn Chapman and Levon Jones, both set free after their sentences were vacated and the charges against them dropped, and Henry McCollum, who was granted a pardon of innocence by Gov. Pat McCrory last year. North Carolina's execution delay frustrates some people - victims' families but also many legislators, who want to speed things up. That's unlikely. Few murderers are sentenced to death in North Carolina anymore. Antwan Anthony, convicted of killing 3 men during a convenience story robbery in Pitt County, was placed on death row last month - the 1st addition in 2 years. Prosecutors and juries generally prefer life without parole. North Carolina Medical Society policy prohibits physicians from participating in executions, as previously required by state law. More recently, the pharmaceutical giant Pfizer announced it won???t allow the use of its products in lethal injections, placing a significant obstacle before states that employ that method of capital punishment. The U.S. Supreme Court also has limited application of the death penalty. And just Monday, it overturned a conviction in a Georgia murder case because of racial bias in jury selection. There are concerns about similar practices in North Carolina. Then there's the gradual turning of public opinion, perhaps best exemplified by the evolving views of former N.C. Chief Justice I. Beverly Lake Jr. "I've always been known as a tough-on-crime, pro-law enforcement individual, and I still am," Lake wrote in The Huffington Post (reprinted in the News & Record's Ideas section Sunday). Lake, a Republican, favored capital punishment as a state legislator, imposed death sentences as a Superior Court judge and upheld them on the N.C. Supreme Court. Yet, he wrote: "After decades of experience with the law, I have seen too much, and what I have seen has impacted my perspective. First, my faith in the criminal justice system, which had always been so steady, was shaken by the revelation that in some cases innocent men and women were being convicted of serious crimes." Mistakes, however damaging, can still be rectified while a wrongly convicted inmate is alive. Not so if he is dead. There are other reasons to end the death penalty, as Lake now advocates. It is administered inconsistently; biases influence sentencing; and it's expensive. North Carolina will never execute the 151 people on death row, let alone Gupton or anyone else who might be added, no matter how terrible their crimes. It will save time and money, and prevent fatal mistakes, to abolish the death penalty. Life in prison is justice enough. (source: Editorial, Greensboro News & Record) Cagle capital murder trial begins After 5 years of preparation, the capital murder trial of a Seagrove man began Monday in Randolph County Superior Court. Randy Steven Cagle, now 39, is accused of the double murder of Davida Shauntel Stancil, 28, of Candor and Tyrone Clinton "Yogi" Marshall, 31, of Biscoe. The bodies of the victims were found on May 8, 2011, in Marshall's 1994 Oldsmobile, parked on the shoulder of N.C. 705 near Ralph Lawrence Road just outside of Seagrove. Both had been stabbed to death, according to autopsy reports. Cagle was arrested at his residence, located about 2 miles from where the bodies were found. A grand jury indicted him on 2 counts of 1st-degree murder on June 11, 2011. A guilty verdict could mean either life in prison or the death penalty. According to affidavits by detectives of the Randolph County Sheriff's Office, blood evidence was found at Cagle's residence at 6644 Mustang Trail, Seagrove. Officers also seized 2 cell phones belonging to Cagle to confirm conversations relate
