[Deathpenalty] death penalty news----worldwide
June 2 PHILIPPINES: Int'l group of jurists tells Duterte, reinstating death penalty is a huge setback An international organization of judges has written an open letter addressed to President-elect Rodrigo Duterte to express their concern over his plan to reinstate death penalty. The International Commission of Jurists (ICJ) based in Geneva, Switzerland said the Philippines has obligations under an international law to prohibit the implementation of the death penalty, even calling it an example of global best practice on its abolition. The Philippines abolished death penalty in 2006. "Reinstating capital punishment in the Philippines would constitute a huge setback not only for the promotion and protection of human rights in the country, but also for the Philippines internationally," a letter penned by ICJ Asia and the Pacific regional director Sam Zarifi stated. "Reinstating the death penalty would contravene international commitments that the Philippines has voluntarily entered into," the group also said. The ICJ said the country is the only ASEAN member-state that has ratified the 2nd Optional Protocol to the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR). Article 1 of the said document, obliges the Philippines not to execute any person within its jurisdiction. The said protocol has no provision on renunciation. Also, a state may not withdraw from their obligations unless other member-states agree to the move. "The resumption of executions in the Philippines would therefore constitute a violation of international law and represent an alarming disregard for the international human rights system," the letter added. ICJ also pointed out that the Philippines will be placed at odds with the United Nations General Assembly and their repeated calls for the abolition of the death penalty. No empirical evidence Aside from pointing out the country's predicament if the death penalty is reintroduced, the group added that there is no empirical evidence that by crime is suppressed if criminals are killed. In the letter, they asked Duterte to focus on evidence-based approaches to crime prevention. "On the other hand, research indicates that improving crime detection and investigation, increasing the effectiveness and efficiency of the justice system, and addressing underlying causes, is far more likely to reduce serious crime," Zarifi wrote. With this, ICJ tells Duterte that there are no benefits for the country if death penalty will be brought back. "We therefore hope that, under your presidency, the same strength of leadership can be applied in maintaining the current prohibition of the death penalty, and instead preventing crime in a manner that conforms to international human rights law and standards," the group said in closing. (source: gmanetwork.com BANGLADESH: Kishoreganj's Shamsuddin appeals against death penalty for 1971 war crimes His lawyer Masud Rana filed the appeal at the Supreme Court on Thursday. He told bdnews24.com: "Shamsuddin has sought acquittal, citing 28 reasons in the 475-page appeal." The war crimes tribunal, on May 3, handed down the death sentence to four collaborators, including Shamsuddin of Kishoreganj, and imprisonment until death to another. Among the convicts, Shamsuddin alone was present in the dock when the judgment was read out. The others are absconding. Shamsuddin, his brother retired army captain Md Nasiruddin Ahmed, Razakar Commander Gazi Abdul Mannan and Hafiz Uddin were given the death penalty. Ajharul Islam was sentenced to imprisonment until death. (source: bdnews24.com) PAKISTAN: Pakistani teacher held over 'baseless' blasphemy claim Muzaffargarh: A Muslim teacher in Pakistan could face the death penalty after being accused of blasphemy, sparking anger from school officials and activists who said the law is being abused to carry out personal vendettas. Arabic teacher Gibreel Ahmed was arrested at a government school in southern Punjab province on May 14 after allegedly beating 2 brothers in the 6th grade for not coming to class on time. The students' parents complained to the Government High School Gurmani in Muzaffargarh district, whose head told AFP the 40-year-old teacher had been suspended after an inquiry. But 4 days after the original complaint, the parents went to police to accuse Ahmed of blasphemy, according to local authorities. The school said no mention of blasphemy had been made before the police complaint. Blasphemy is a hugely sensitive issue in conservative Muslim Pakistan, where even unproven allegations can stir beatings and mob violence. Rights groups have said the laws are routinely abused to seek vengeance. Multan-based lawyer Shahbaz Ali Gurmani, who said he has spoken with the father of the accused, said this was one of those cases. "The case of this Arabic teacher seems fake and lodged to take revenge from him," he
[Deathpenalty] death penalty news----KY., ARIZ., CALIF., USA, US MIL.
June 2 KENTUCKY: Competency of man accused in 6-year-old's stabbing death questioned The family of a central Kentucky boy who was killed during a home invasion was back in court Wednesday to face his accused killer. Ronald Exantus, 32, is accused of killing 6-year-old Logan Tipton in December 2015. His competency to stand trial was addressed Wednesday in court. The Indianapolis man was arrested after police said he broke into a home in Versailles and stabbed Logan to death while he sleeping. Exantus said he had a psychotic break and doesn't remember stabbing the 6-year-old. "Ronald Exantus murdered our beloved boy randomly in cold blood and for his own disgusting reasons. We do not believe he is insane and we will be waiting patiently for the evidence to prove this in his inevitable trial," Logan's mother, Heather Tipton, said. The judge will review the state's psychiatric evaluation in August to determine whether he understands the charges against him and is able to help his attorneys defend him. Exantus' attorney said that after his psychotic break, it took doctors months to snap him out of psychosis. "That's a tired defense," Heather Tipton said. Tipton's family filled 2 rows in the courthouse, wearing the young football player's number. His father said that if he could, he would take his son's place. "I miss everything about my son. Everything," Dean Tipton said. The family said that if anything good has come out of Logan's death, it has been the generosity of the community. They said a donation of more than $110,000 allowed them to move into a new home with their 4 children. If Exantus is found competent to stand trial, attorneys said it could be at least another year before the death penalty case goes to trial. (source: WLKY news) ARIZONA: U.S. Supreme Court rules against Maricopa County judge in death penalty case Jurors deciding whether to sentence someone to death are entitled to be told that in Arizona the only alternative is life behind bars, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled Tuesday. 6 U.S. Supreme Court justices said it was a mistake for a Maricopa County Superior Court judge to block the defense attorney for Shawn Patrick Lynch from telling jurors that if they did not sentenced him to death he would be sentenced to life behind bars with no possibility of parole. Denied that information, the jurors sentenced Lynch to death. The court issued an unsigned opinion. The ruling is important, not only in this case but other murder trials. In essence, the high court is saying that jurors, told someone would never get out - and never pose a risk to anyone else - might decide not to impose the death penalty. Maricopa County Attorney Bill Montgomery, whose office prosecuted the case, had no comment. Justice Clarence Thomas, in his dissent, acknowledged that Arizona had abolished parole as an option in these kinds of cases. But he pointed out that, at least technically speaking, there was a possibility, albeit remote, that Lynch could be released: He could get a recommendation after 25 years from the Board of Executive Clemency, with the governor having the final word. And Thomas dismissed as "nonsense" requiring a trial judge to tell a jury that Lynch is ineligible for early release, at least at this point. Thomas also said requiring Lynch to be resentenced, this time with jurors having new information, ignores that is was the "sheer depravity" of the crime that resulted in the death penalty rather than any specific fear by jurors that Lynch would get out in the future. According to court records, Lynch and Michael Sehwani met James Panzarella in March 2001 at a Scottsdale bar. All 3 went to Panzarella's residence early the next morning. The victim's credit cards were used during the next 2 days. Panzarella was eventually found in his home tied to a chair with his throat slit. Police also found credit card receipts from purchases made that morning at a supermarket and convenience store. Lynch and Sehwani were arrested later that day. Sehwani had Panzarella's credit cards and checks in his wallet. And in the truck and motel room he and Lynch were using they found the keys to Panzarella's car, a pistol belonging to the victim and a sweater with Panzarella's blood on it, Blood on Lynch's shoes matched the victim's DNA. During sentencing, prosecutors argued that jurors should consider Lynch's future dangerousness when determining proper punishment. But the trial judge refused to let defense counsel tell the jury that under Arizona law, the only alternative sentence was life without parole. The majority, in Tuesday's ruling, conceded that there was a chance Lynch could be released after 25 years. But the justices said that was not enough of a possibility to let jurors think if they did not sentenced Lynch to death that he might be released. Sehwani separately pleaded guilty to 1st degree murder
[Deathpenalty] death penalty news----TEXAS, CONN., GA., LA., OHIO
June 2 TEXAS: Coryell will seek death penalty in child's death A Gatesville man with a history of arrests for sexually abusing children was indicted on a capital murder charge Wednesday in the January death of a 2-year-old boy. Chet Shelton, 27, of Gatesville, was arrested and booked into the Coryell County Jail. Coryell County District Attorney Dusty Boyd confirmed his office will be seeking the death penalty in any upcoming trial. According to an arrest affidavit, Shelton was tasked with babysitting the Gatesville toddler, Makai Brooks Lamar, for most of the day while the boy's mother worked a double shift at a local restaurant. The child's mother came home for a break from work and reported the child was fine at that time, the affidavit said. While the mother was back at work, Shelton said he found the child not breathing and took the child to a neighbor's home where a Coryell County deputy sheriff lived, according to the affidavit. The child died a few hours later at Coryell Memorial Hospital. Police almost immediately began treating the 34th Street home in Gatesville as a crime scene and began investigating the child's bedroom where they found bloody bedding and pillows. In the arrest affidavit, police highlight several inconsistencies with Shelton's story regarding what happened in the hours before Lamar's death, saying the child's mother ensured police Lamar always slept clothed and in a diaper. "When Shelton took the infant child to the neighbor's house for medical assistance, the infant was wearing no clothing, not even a diaper," the affidavit said. Perhaps most troubling are the injuries to Lamar confirmed by an autopsy in Dallas. The preliminary cause of death was labeled as blunt force trauma as the child had numerous injuries to his head and internal organs. The affidavit said the child had also been sodomized, causing "severe, distinct trauma" to the child. Shelton's criminal history includes 3 counts of aggravated sexual assault of a child in May 2007, 3 counts of aggravated sexual assault of a child in December 2007, 2 counts of aggravated assault causing serious bodily injury in October 2010 and 4 counts of indecency with a child by sexual contact in May 2007. However, in exchange for his plea of guilty, many of Shelton's most serious sexual charges against children were eventually downgraded to injury to a child, which does not carry a sex offender registration requirement, according to Boyd. Shelton is currently in the Coryell County Jail where he awaits his trial on at least $500,000 in bonds. According to Boyd, Shelton's case is Coryell County's only death penatly case. (source: Killeen Daily Herald) CONNECTICUT: Killers deserved death sentences I pay tribute to the late Detective Michael Malchik, whose alertness and persistence caught the disgusting creeper that was Michael Ross. Unfortunately, he and the families of Ross' victims waited an eternity for the state of Connecticut to put Ross down like the animal he was. With news that the state's liberal Supreme Court has made the death penalty disappear, vermin such as the cowardly Cheshire killers, who deserve to be nameless, and the pathetic Russell Peeler Jr. will escape the fate they so richly deserve. Detective Malchik understood that people like this had no place in society, unlike our leaders in Hartford who happily coddle perpetrators rather than help the victims. My idea for those on the now-defunct death row is to put them into the general prison population. Jailhouse justice would prevail I am sure, with the inmates themselves knowing that the crimes these individuals took part in deserved a death sentence, which they would mete out the 1st chance they had. Detective Malchik, may you rest in peace knowing you saved lives; as for Ross, I hope you turn on an infernal spit in hell for the rest of time. JOHN LINDELL Moosup (source: Letter to the Editor, Norwich Bulletin) GEORGIA: District attorney draws heat over toy electric chair "Death Row Marv" is a battery-powered toy electric chair that produces an electric buzzing sound with Marv's eyes glowing red under a helmet attached to electrodes. After his "electrocution," Marv asks, "That the best you can do, you pansies?" Because the toy was on display in District Attorney Layla Zon's office, it now figures prominently in a recently filed court motion that seeks to overturn a Newton County death sentence. The motion contends Zon is "pathologically enthralled" with the death penalty and has pursued it with a fervor and zeal unmatched by any other district attorney in the state. Zon is DA of the Alcovy Judicial Circuit, which consists of Walton and Newton counties. On Wednesday, Zon said she seeks the death penalty only in cases that warrant it. As for "Death Row Marv," it was already in her office when she became district attorney in 2010 and she recently removed
