[Deathpenalty] death penalty news----worldwide
March 4 JORDANexecutions Jordan hangs 15 convicts at dawn, most in years Jordan hanged 15 death row prisoners at dawn on Saturday, its information minister said, in a further break with the moratorium on executions it had observed between 2006 and 2014. 10 of those put to death had been convicted of terrorism offences and five of "heinous" crimes including rape, Mahmud al-Momani told the official Petra news agency. All were Jordanians and they were hanged in Suaga prison south of the capital Amman. King Abdullah II had said in 2005 that Jordan aimed to become the 1st Middle Eastern country to halt executions in line with most European countries. Courts continued to hand down death sentences but they were not carried out. But public opinion blamed a rise in crime on the policy and in December 2014 Jordan hanged 11 men convicted of murder, drawing criticism from human rights groups. Opinion hardened after the murder by the Islami c State group of captured Jordanian pilot Maaz al-Kassasbeh whose plane had crashed in a jihadist-held region of Syria in December 2014 while serving with a US-led coalition. Grisly footage posted in February the following year of him being burnt alive in a cage outraged the public. Swiftly afterwards, Jordan hanged 2 people convicted of terrorism offences, 1 of them Sajida al-Rishawi. She had taken part in a 2005 suicide attack on luxury hotels in Amman organised by IS's forebear, Al-Qaeda in Iraq, but her explosives failed to detonate. (source: al-monitor.com) VATICAN CITY: Holy See speaks out against death penalty Archbishop Ivan Jurkovic, Permanent Observer of the Holy See to the United Nations and Other International Organizations in Geneva, on Wednesday reaffirmed that life is sacred from conception to natural death in a meeting at the UN Human Rights Council on the death penalty. "In this regard, one should consider that human justice is fallible and that the death penalty per se is irreversible," Archbishop Jurkovic said, "We should take into account that capital punishment always includes the possibility of taking the life of an innocent person. Moreover, we believe that, whenever possible, the legislative and judicial authorities must always seek to ensure the possibility for guilty parties to make amends and to remedy, at least in part, the impact of their crimes." The full statement by Archbishop Jurkovic is below Statement by His Excellency Archbishop Ivan Jurkovic, Permanent Observer of the Holy See to the United Nations and Other International Organizations in Geneva at the 34th Session of the Human Rights Council - Item 3 - Biennial High-Level Panel on 'The Death Penalty' 1st March 2017 Mr. Chairman, The Holy See thanks the High Commissioner and the distinguished panelists for their presentations. My Delegation appreciates the ongoing efforts toward the elimination of the death penalty in many countries. Mr Chairman, My Delegation reaffirms that life is sacred "... from conception to natural death," and recalls the words Pope Francis, that "even a criminal has the inviolable right to life". In this regard, one should consider that human justice is fallible and that the death penalty per se is irreversible. We should take into account that capital punishment always includes the possibility of taking the life of an innocent person. Moreover, we believe that, whenever possible, the legislative and judicial authorities must always seek to ensure the possibility for guilty parties to make amends and to remedy, at least in part, the impact of their crimes. At present, there is insufficient evidence that the death penalty has a deterrent effect on crime. As Pope Francis recently has affirmed, in his letter to the President of the International Commission against the Death Penalty, "for a constitutional state the death penalty represents a failure, because it obliges a State to kill in the name of justice. But justice is never reached by killing a human being". My Delegation believes that more humane measures are available to address crime, ensuring the victim the right to justice and giving the criminal the chance to reform. Moreover, this will facilitate the development of a more just and fair society, fully respectful of human dignity. Mr Chairman, In conclusion, the Holy See is strongly committed to the aim of abolishing the use of the death penalty, and we firmly support, as an interim measure, the moratoria established by the 2014 General Assembly resolution. Moreover, we take this occasion to encourage States to improve prison conditions in order to guarantee respect for the dignity of every person without regard for criminal status, and to ensure the implementation of the right of the accused to a fair trial and due process. Thank you, Mr Chairman. (source: Independent Catholic News) BELARUS: Urgent Action: Kiryl Kazachok At Risk Of Imminent
[Deathpenalty] death penalty news----MO., COLO., WASH., USA
narch 4 MISSOURI: Lethal Injection Drugs at Center of Death Penalty FightThe Latest Chapter in Missouri's Execution History Involves Drug Sourcing Historical accounts peg Peter Johnson as the 1st person executed in Missouri - hanged in 1810 for killing another man in a township southwest of St. Louis. More than 2 centuries later, Missouri is still meting out the death penalty. But now, the method is lethal injection, a process that is ensnaring Missouri and other states in court battles over whether it really is as humane as its proponents claim it to be. Lethal injection has typically involved a series of 3 drugs injected intravenously, with the lethal drug following a sedative and a paralytic. The problem, argues Sean O'Brien, a death penalty expert who teaches law at the University of Missouri-Kansas City, is that lethal injection is a "medical procedure masquerading as an execution, or an execution masquerading as medical procedure, when it's just not good for either one." Spokesmen for the Missouri Department of Corrections and the Attorney General's office declined to comment for this story. O'Brien's experience with Missouri's death penalty dates back to the 1980s, not long after the U.S. Supreme Court reinstated its constitutionality. He recounted the state's move to lethal injection. As Missouri was getting set to resume executions, O'Brien said, the attorney general ordered the warden at the state penitentiary to ready the gas chamber. "So he bought a truckload of cyanide - I mean a ridiculous amount of cyanide - and then he set a smoke bomb off in the gas chamber," O'Brien said. "And as it turned out, the gas chamber, which was made out of a World War I vintage submarine, leaked like a sieve, and so an execution ... also would've been fatal to the witnesses." That glitch led the warden to Fred Leuchter, a Boston-based engineer, who had made a name for himself in the execution business. And that, O'Brien said, is how Missouri followed Texas to become the 2nd state to purchase a lethal injection machine. As it turns out, Missouri has become one of the nation's most active executioners of the 31 states where the death penalty is legal. The Death Penalty Information Center, a Washington, D.C.-based nonprofit, says Missouri has carried out 88 death sentences in the past 3 decades, the last one being Mark Christeson, who was put to death Jan. 31. The seeds of the current litigation were sown in 2011, when the European Union imposed an export ban on sodium thiopental, a key anesthetic in lethal injections. That has led states, including Missouri, to test other lethal injection methods. Missouri has moved to a single, lethal dose of pentobarbital, an anesthetic. Yet state officials have refused to identify the source of the drug, fearing a public backlash against the supplier would cut off its supply of the drug. That argument has prevailed in court, including a Feb. 14 decision overturning an order that the state must reveal the name of the supplier under the open-records act. That decision, issued by the Missouri Court of Appeals for the Western District, said the Department of Corrections was within its rights to include the drug supplier as part of the execution team. And, under the state's so-called "black hood law," the members of the execution team are to remain confidential. Attorneys representing Missouri death row clients have, in fact, used open-records requests for hints about the supplier, such as obtaining information on the volume of drugs the state has in stock. It is all to ensure that their clients do not suffer cruel and unusual punishment in the course of their execution. Kansas City attorney Bernie Rhodes cheered those efforts as the person representing the media organizations seeking the identity of the supplier. He expects to appeal last month's ruling to the Missouri Supreme Court. In 1 sense, Rhodes said, the case is about dollars and cents - allowing taxpayers to know how the state is spending their money. In addition, Rhodes argued, citizens have a right to know whether the state is using a reputable supplier when carrying out the ultimate criminal sentence in their names. Shielding the source from public scrutiny, he argued, is incompatible with the principle of free speech. "We are the people of the United States," Rhodes said. "If we want to protest a supplier, and if we want to convince people not to supply drugs to the government, that is our right. That is the cost of a free society in our country." (source: flatlandkc.org) COLORADO: Lawyers for Aurora death row inmate say juror misconduct requires new trialSir Mario Owens was convicted of killing Gregory Vann in July 2004 at Lowry Park in Aurora and later of gunning down a witness, Javad Marshall-Fields, and Marshall-Fields' fiancee, Vivian Wolfe, so Marshall-Fields couldn't testify about the Lowry
[Deathpenalty] death penalty news----TEXAS, N.C., GA., FLA., ALA., MISS., TENN., ARK.
March 4 TEXASimpending executions Texas Prepares for Execution of Rolando Ruiz on March 7, 2017 Rolando Ruiz, Jr., is scheduled to be executed at 6 pm CST, on Tuesday, March 7, 2017, at the Walls Unit of the Huntsville State Penitentiary in Huntsville, Texas. 44-year-old Rolando is convicted of murdering 29-year-old Theresa Rodriguez on July 14, 1992, in San Antonio, Texas. Rolando has spent the last 21 years of his life on Texas' death row. As a child, Rolando was allegedly abused, which led him to be addicted to drugs and alcohol. Rolando also claims that because of his excessive use of drugs and alcohol, he has difficulty distinguishing between fantasy and reality. Rolando dropped out of school following the 10th grade. He worked as a laborer prior to his arrest. Rolando has previously been arrested and served time for assaulting his ex-girlfriend and stealing her vehicle. While in prison, he assaulted a jailer. In 1992, Rolando Ruiz was hired by Michael and Mark Rodriguez to kill Michael's wife, Theresa. Michael agreed to pay Ruiz $1,000 up front, with an additional $1,000 being paid once the job was completed. Prior to the hiring of Ruiz, Michael took out a $150,000 life insurance policy on his wife and himself, in addition to the $250,000 policy he already had. Michael planned for Ruiz to rob and murder Theresa on July 10, 1992, when she arrived for work at a restaurant. Ruiz called off the attack when he spotted a security guard. Michael then asked Ruiz to kill Theresa when they were leaving the movies later that night. Michael and Theresa never showed up at the movies. On July 14, 1992, Mark told Ruiz that he was to follow Michael and Theresa home from the movie theater and then kill her. When Michael pulled the car to stop at his home, Ruiz ran up to the passenger side door and shot Theresa once in the head as she attempted to exit the vehicle Without robbing her, Ruiz fled the scene and spent the rest of the evening playing basketball. 3 days later, Ruiz received his 2nd payment of $1,000. Mark and Michael were sentenced to life in prison after accepting plea agreements, while Rolando received the death sentence. In December of 2000, Michael broke out of prison as a member of the Texas 7. During efforts to recapture the group, police officer Aubry Hawkins was killed. Michael was sentenced to death and executed on August 14, 2008. 2 other men, Joe Ramon and Robert Silva were also sentenced to life in prison for their part in the murder if Theresa. Joe accompanied Ruiz on the night of the murder, while Robert was responsible for putting the Rodriguez brothers in touch with Ruiz. Since in prison, Ruiz is believed to have joined the Texas Syndicate, a notorious prison gang that causes disturbances and assaults other inmates and officers. Rolando Ruiz was twice scheduled to be executed in 2016. The reasons those executions were halted has not been stated. Please pray for peace and healing for the family of Theresa Rodriguez. Please pray for strength for the family of Rolando. Please pray that if Rolando is innocent, lacks the competency to be executed, or should not be executed for any other reason that evidence will be presented prior to his execution. Please pray that Rolando may come to find peace through a personal relationship with Jesus Christ, if he has not already. Texas Prepares for Execution of James Bigby on March 14, 2017 James Eugene Bigby is scheduled to be executed at 6 pm CDT, on Tuesday, March 14, 2017, at the Walls Unit of the Huntsville State Penitentiary in Huntsville, Texas. 61-year-old James is convicted of the murder of 26-year-old Michael Trekell, Michael's 4-month-old son Jayson Kehler, Calvin Wesley Crane, and Frank "Bubba" Johnson, on December 23-24, 1987, in Tarrant County, Texas. James has spent the last 25 years of his life on Texas' death row. James had a difficult upbringing. His mother allegedly drank while pregnant with him and breastfed him until the age of 7. James' mother also gave away his siblings to be raised by other relatives. He grew up fearing that his mother would abandon him, as his father had. Additionally, his mother and siblings all suffer from mental health issues and have struggled to live successful lives. James had previously been hospitalized multiple times for schizo-affective disorder and depression. He had also received electroshock therapy during one of his stays. James had previously been arrested and served time for various robberies and a sexual assault charge. James dropped out of school following the 9th grade and worked at Frito-Lay prior to his arrest as an auto mechanic. In late December 1987, James Bigby had a pending worker's compensation claim against his employer, Frito-Lay. Bigby was paranoid that several of his friends were conspiring against him to thwart his claim. On December 23, 1987, Bigby bought 2
