[Deathpenalty] death penalty news----USA
Here is the current list of impending executions in the USA through June: ** April 12 Paul Storey Texas 17 Don DavisArkansas 17 Bruce Ward Arkansas 20 Stacey Johnson Arkansas 20 Ledelle Lee Arkansas 24 Jack Jones, Jr. Arkansas 24 Marcel Williams Arkansas 25 Ivan Teleguz Virginia 27 Jason McGeheeArkansas 27 Kenneth Williams Arkansas May 10Ronald PhilippsOhio 16Tilon Carter Texas 17Donald KettererOhio 24Juan Castillo Texas 25Tommy Arthur Alabama June 8Robert Melson Alabama 13Gary Otte Ohio 28Steven Long Texas ___ 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----ALABAMA
April 5 ALABAMA: The Alabama Supreme Court has set 2 execution dates. Thomas Arthur May 25th 2017 Robert Melson June 8th 2017 These dates should be considered serious. (source: Project Hope to Abolish 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
April 5 TRINIDAD: Pritchard warns against death penalty quick fix MARK PRITCHARD, Chairman of the United Kingdom All Party Parliamentary Group on the Abolition of the Death Penalty in Trinidad warned against trying to get a "quick fix" to the local criminal justice system and dealing with the problem of crime and violence facing the country, saying that danger existed both to the families of the victims as well as the defendants. Noting the calls for the restoration of the death penalty, he said fixing the system needs to be done in a calm, objective, evidence-driven way and it is in the national interest as well as the international reputational interest of any country in the world which wants to fast track capital punishment to make sure that this is done in an evidence- driven way. Pritchard was speaking with journalists during a news conference at the residence of the British High Commissioner in Maraval after a day of talks with "key actors" on the death penalty. He said he would "prefer to see an informed debate before any fast-tracking or changes in the law takes place and to see what is the latest data and statistical and academic analysis globally so that at least any changes or any fast-tracking is done in an informed way." He said he was impressed with the calibre of the people in the local criminal justice system as well as with the politicians he had met. He said there were some very able public servants and he believed that the majority of them would like to see any change in the law be an evidence- driven one and any debate be an informed debate and not "a rush to judgement, a rush to headlines and a fast-tracking of a process without due process and without evidence." Asked if he has stressed to the Government the danger of using the death penalty as a quick fix, Pritchard said he had done so but, the Government officials responded that it was the law of the land "but I think they also are conscious that any change in Government policy or fast-tracking of existing legislation would be more carefully and considerably received if those recipients internationally and in-country were to see that the Government had provided an imperical evidence base to that amendment to a law or a change to the law, to going round the law, if you can go around the law, whatever it might be. And I think it is important to listen to retired justices and chief justices and senior judges in this country and to listen to academics." He said while he was visiting from another country, if he were a citizen of this country, he would be pressing for an objective review which would try and understand what people are really thinking as opposed to what they think they are thinking based on data from 2011. He said that in addition to that review the Government should try and have an informed debate based on the best evidence and academic studies available. British High Commissioner, Tim Stew, said that in tackling the backlog in the criminal justice system, a number of legislative measures needed to be put in place but this needed to be done as a package. For one thing, he observed there is no plea bargaining in the system and said there was no reason why someone facing the death penalty would plead guilty and why their attorney would advise them to do so. He added that the mandatory nature of the death penalty also slows down the course of justice because if there were alternative forms of sentencing, perhaps having to do with the length of time the guilty person would spend in prison if that period was appropriate to the nature of the crime, would encourage plea bargaining and this would inevitably shorten the length of court cases and speed up justice. However, he said he would not advocate any one measure as the solution to the country's problems but what was needed was a package of measures and a programme of work which he said was already being developed with help from the United Kingdom to make the changes and speed up justice in Trinidad and Tobago. (source: newsday.co.tt) SAUDI ARABIA: The lucrative business of pardoning death row prisoners in Saudi Arabia Saudi Arabia has one of the highest execution rates in the world. However, in some cases, inmates facing the death penalty are spared if the victim's family agrees to pardon their crimes ... in exchange for a large sum of money. This practice, known as "diya", has become a dirty, if lucrative, business. "Diya" is an Islamic concept that essentially equates to "a blood price", or, the amount of money that a murderer (or his family) must pay the family of the victim in order to obtain a pardon. A video, which was filmed by a passerby on Sunday, March 26, shows an inmate who is on the verge of being beheaded in a public square in Taef, a town located in western Saudi Arabia. Suddenly, however, a wave of excitement goes through the crowd: the execution has been pushed back b
[Deathpenalty] death penalty news----ARK., NEV., USA
April 5 ARKANSAS: All eyes are on Arkansas as executions for 8 people draw nearWorld's media focusing in on upcoming executions Only a few hundred people live in the town of Grady, but actions that may take place there are drawing the attention of millions. 8 inmates are scheduled to be executed there, leading to an unusual level of attention for Arkansas. "Arkansas is not a major media hub, and we're not really connected to any major media hubs, so it's sort of rare to get that national coverage in the state," said Professor Dylan McLemore, an associate professor in the communications department at University of Central Arkansas. "So when it does happen, it sort of stands out." Reporters from both coasts and beyond have traveled to Arkansas to cover the planned executions. Among the publications are the Los Angeles Times and Time Magazine, but journalists have come from as Germany to share details about the justice system in Arkansas. "For [Germans], it is unimaginable," explained David Hammelburg, a producer for the German broadcasting network ARD. "We then think, oh, okay, that's what they do in Iran and Saudi Arabia. I mean, that's how bad it gets." Hammelburg has spent nearly a year covering the execution process. His work grew out of a story about the company that makes one of the drugs frequently used in lethal injections, and then picked up steam when Governor Asa Hutchinson scheduled the 8 executions for a 10-day span. "So it just sort of fell into this perfect little story," Hammelburg added. "I thought it was unique and compelling in every sense of the word." "This is the sort of story that is going to attract national attention, because of just the uniqueness of it, the uniqueness of the time span," McLemore, who studies the media's impact on consumers, mentioned. "I mean, we haven't seen a time span like this for executions since the death penalty was reinstituted. So it's unique in that fact. "There's conflict going on, there's proponents and opponents. There's interest groups that are getting involved in this, as well. There's also the drama of, like, there's going to be court battles up to the final hour. And we might not want to admit it, but that drama is part of what drives news coverage." There is also an interest in the timing of the execution schedule. Of the 3 drugs Arkansas uses, one of them, midazolam, will expire at the end of April, leading some people to believe the state is rushing the process. But Germans have more than 1 reason to care. Hammelburg estimated that nearly 90 % of Europeans oppose the death penalty, so they are fascinated by the fact that so many American states still use it. "And this one in particular, because of the fact that there was such a time rush to use the last 8 vials that were still non-expired to kill the list of 8 people," he stated. "We found that Draconian, insane, and, really, downright scary." Additionally, Germans have economic reasons to learn more about the state of Arkansas. The state's Economic Development Commission opened a special office in Berlin last year to encourage more trade between German and Arkansan companies. "We thought it would be only just and right that the people of Germany could sort of understand who they're doing business with," Hammelburg stated. Deborah Robinson has also spent a long time with this story. She is a freelance journalist who works in both Little Rock and Las Vegas, and has spent most of the last 2 years writing a book about the 8 inmates. "They were in a place where most of us will never go: knowing the day, the time, the place, and how they will die," Robinson said. "They have to go through something emotionally, spiritually, physically, and all of that, and I wanted to be able to tell that story." She has noticed the influx of out-of-town reporters, many of whom have likely never visited Arkansas before. She said she worries that they are likely to bring the values of their hometowns with them, which may hinder their ability to cover the story. "Most of the reports that are going back out are saying, 'What is Arkansas doing,'" she noted. "Most of the op-eds that are out there, most of the letters to the editors, most of the media coverage is anti-Arkansas on this issue." McLemore found that much of the coverage from outlets around the country is 2nd-hand, relying on local organizations to provide the basis of their stories. That can make their coverage less complete than if they had someone at the scene, but he does not share Robinson's fear of bias. "That's possible, but these are also trained professionals," he said, "and you would hope, from the caliber of organizations we're seeing come here, we're seeing some of the best of the best at doing this. "And I'm not a believer in widespread media bias, and out-to-get-everybody. I know that's a common perception, especially now, but I think most of thes
[Deathpenalty] death penalty news----TEXAS, PENN., MD., N.C., FLA., ALA., LA.
April 5 TEXAS: Dallas County district attorney's office to show mercy to 'lost souls' The new Dallas County district attorney and her first assistant view the people who go through the criminal court system as "lost souls or monsters." Faith Johnson says her job as district attorney doesn't always call for toughness; sometimes justice requires mercy. "We're compassionate where compassion is needed. We're merciful when mercy is needed," she said Tuesday night at a community forum at Concord Church in Red Bird. It was the 1st of what Johnson says will be a quarterly forum to answer questions and explain how the local criminal justice system works. Johnson, a Republican and former judge, was appointed in December by Gov. Greg Abbott to replace Susan Hawk, who resigned in September to focus on her mental health. Johnson, the 1st black woman to become Dallas County district attorney, has said she plans to run for the office when her term expires next year. In her first 90 days in office, she has attended more than 140 community events and meetings. She regularly takes her prosecutors to lunch to get to know them and their work. She is often first to the office and last to leave. "I have been getting only 4 hours sleep so I can restore the relationship between the community and the DA's office," Johnson said. Her top priority has been to facilitate an expungement program to clear some criminal records. The crimes must be non-violent and meet other requirements. And for the people whose crimes can't be erased, Johnson wants to help them clear their public criminal records so they don't have trouble getting a job or qualifying for housing. "We want them to get a job," she said. "Share the load of the taxes." She said those efforts are part of being just. It's the same reason she says she wants to boost the DA's office conviction integrity unit, the group that has overseen the reversal of wrongful convictions. And when asked about her approach to the death penalty, Johnson said it's her job to abide the law, and execution is legal in Texas. But, she said, Dallas County prosecutors will pursue the death penalty only when they are "darn sure that that's what we need to do." She said that's part of her oath: to uphold the law for everyone. "I'm going to do what's right by you. I don't care who you are. You could be black, white, purple, green," Johnson said. "You could be rich, poor. You could live in North Dallas, south, east, west. I got you. I got you. I'm here for you." First Assistant District Attorney Mike Snipes called Johnson the "real deal" and said she has a compassionate approach to the job. "We're going to take care of the lost souls. We're going to try to rehabilitate them. We're going to try to reintegrate them into society," he said. As for the monsters: "The judge and I are coming after them." (source: Dallas Morning News) PENNSYLVANIA: Remove restrictions on Pa. death penalty We are still in limbo regarding the death penalty in Pennsylvania, and there is absolutely no light at the end of the tunnel. I would request that Gov. Wolf reinstate the death penalty and, if at some time in the future they decide to make some changes in the law to address it at that time. The Eric Frein trial has started. This man, according to authorities, killed a state trooper in cold blood and wounded another trooper. He caused disruptions in the state for over a month, which cost taxpayers millions and took a huge toll on businesses. His actions caused fear in the public and affected schools and other public services. This is a man who, if convicted, deserves death, and our governor would need to make sure Frein's death is not delayed one second due to some perceived issue with our existing law and death penalty procedures. John Reilly North Whitehall Township (source: Letter to the Editor, Morning Call) MARYLAND: Revisiting the death penalty in Maryland is a bad idea On Wednesday, March 22, The Frederick News-Post???s daily online poll asked readers' opinions on the death penalty. I presume that it was in response to the Feb. 6 introduction of House Bill 881 calling for the death penalty in 1st-degree murder cases where the victim is a law enforcement officer, correctional officer or first responder. Maryland's death penalty was repealed in May 2013 in favor of life imprisonment without the possibility of parole. Given people's inclination to respond to issues emotionally and not always rationally, the desire by some to reinstitute the death penalty is understandable. Though understandable, it is misguided and not based on rational thought, data or sound social science research. I was a proponent of the death penalty for most of my adult life. In more than a few incidents, as a police officer, I was upset when the killer of a law enforcement officer was captured alive and then ineligible for the death p
