[Deathpenalty] death penalty news----worldwide
Jan. 7 ISRAEL: Chief Rabbi speaks out against death penalty for terroristsRabbi Yitzhak Yosef says death penalty to terrorists law is against halakha, would endanger Jews. The Chief Sephardic Rabbi of Israel, Rabbi Yitzhak Yosef, on Saturday night spoke out against the death penalty for terrorists law being promoted by Defense Minister Avigdor Liberman (Yisrael Beytenu). According to the Kikar Shabbat website, Rabbi Yosef warned in his weekly shiur (Torah lesson) that if the law is approved, it would endanger Jews, not just in Israel but around the world as well, as it would mean that Jews who carried out terrorist attacks would also be put to death, which would be against halakha (Jewish law). "Top religious figures were once at a meeting with the president, and there was 1 person - the president of the Sharia court - who started to speak against the Jews because of the one who burned the family in Duma," recalled the Rabbi. "Later on, I got up to speak and told him, 'You brought one example (of a Jewish terrorist - ed.). There are examples of Arabs committing attacks every day, thousands and tens of thousands, how can you compare? There was one [Jew who carried out an attack] and everyone denounced him, the chief rabbis issued a condemnation, did you issue a condemnation of the [Jewish families] who were slaughtered on a Friday night?'" "If there was a law stipulating capital punishment, then what would have to be the sentence of that Jew who burned [Arabs in Duma]? He would have to be sentenced to death, he deserves death, but death by heaven. Let him catch a disease or be involved in a car accident, but can you kill him? Are we the Sanhedrin?" said the Rabbi, who also expressed concern over what the reactions to the death penalty in Israel would be around the world. "From the verdict to the execution, what kind of noise will there be in the world? The Jews in France, Spain, everywhere - will be in danger," he warned. Rabbi Yosef also mentioned the opposition of the defense establishment to the proposed legislation. "All the security people say that there is not much point in this. That's why the great sages, the real ones, were always against this law, it's not about left or right, it's connected to the judgment of a great rabbi." The law imposing death penalty on terrorists was approved in a preliminary reading last Wednesday by a majority of 52 to 49. If it passes its 2nd and 2rd readings, the law will allow army courts to sentence terrorists found guilty of murder to death with only a simple majority. Under current law, the death penalty may only be imposed by unanimous decision. However, so far there appears to be opposition to the law, even from members of the coalition, and it is unclear whether it will be promoted further. (source: israelnationalnews.com) MALAYSIA: Easy access to synthetic drugs, high relapse rates key factors behind Malaysia's failing drug war The ease of obtaining synthetic drugs and a high relapse rates among addicts are why Malaysia is sounding the alarm over its losing battle against narcotics, experts say. Malaysia's anti-narcotics war centres on education, rehabilitation as well as harsh penalties for drug abuse, but the country's national anti-drug agency (AADK) says the main challenge lies in eradicating synthetic drugs like methamphetamine, ecstasy and ketamine, which can easily be produced in homes factories. "Most addicts nowadays are hooked on synthetic drugs because it is easily available," AADK's director-general Abdul Halim Hussein told TODAY. The agency comes under the purview of the Home Affairs ministry and is tasked with tackling the drug menace in the country. Unlike heroin and marijuana addicts who tend to get their fix in back alleys and well-known haunts across the country - making it easier for authorities to nab them - users of synthetic drugs typically use the Internet and encrypted apps such as WhatsApp to obtain their illicit goods. This makes it harder for the authorities to trace and nab both the suppliers and users, said Mr Abdul Halim, adding that abusers of synthetic drugs are also not necessarily from the lower rugs of society, with many being successful professionals and even students. The country's drug menace has alarmed the country's leaders, with deputy prime minister Ahmad Zahid Hamidi publicly admitting last month that the government had failed in its war on drugs due to the rising number of addicts, which went up from 26,668 in 2015 to 30,847 last year in 2016. In the same period, the number of new addicts has also risen from 20,281 to 22,295. Also, random tests conducted in 2015 on 36,675 schoolchildren found that 1,475 of them tested positive for drugs. Of these, 1,075 children, or 73 %, tested positive for amphetamine-type stimulants, while the rest were for cannabis-related drugs. Additionally, between January
[Deathpenalty] death penalty news----TEXAS, VA., GA., FLA., OHIO, KY.
Jan. 7 TEXAS: Jury selection in long-delayed Delacruz capital murder trial to begin next week Jury selection is around the corner in the trial of a San Angelo capital murder suspect who stands accused of killing his ex-girlfriend's daughter in 2014. Some 350-400 residents are set to appear at the McNease Convention Center on Thursday morning to serve in the process of impaneling 12 jurors. Typical jury pools are 50-100 people. Potential jurors will then be divided into panels that will undergo individual examinations by attorneys for a duration of 6 to 7 weeks at the Tom Green County Courthouse. 119th District Judge Ben Woodward will preside over the case. Isidro Miguel Delacruz is accused in the slaying Naiya Villegas, 5, after he allegedly broke into her mother's home in the 2700 block of Houston Street on Sept. 24, 2014. Villegas died at Shannon Medical Center from a neck wound. The case stretched more than 3 years because 5 continuances were granted. Trial had been slated to begin July, but Woodward granted a continuance because of some last-minute disclosures of evidence by local law-enforcement agencies. Defense attorneys are court-appointed from the Regional Public Defender for Capital Cases: lead counsel Robert R. Cowie and William P.H. Boyles. 51st District Attorney Allison Palmer is seeking the death penalty in Delacruz's trial. Delacruz has been held at the Tom Green County Jail in lieu of $1 million bail since his arrest the day of the girl's slaying. (source: San Angelo Standard-Times) ** Houston murders drop 11 % in 2017Acevedo says focus on domestic violence, assaults helped lead to dip Houston rang in the new year logging 33 fewer murders in 2017 than it recorded in 2016, an 11 % decrease the city's top cop credited in part to an intense police focus on assaults and domestic violence. "The way you reduce murders is to solve attempted murders," Houston Police Department Chief Art Acevedo said in a recent interview. "If you think about people who shoot people, frequently it's not the 1st person they've ever shot, and in many cases it won't be the last person they will shoot." Acevedo is already putting potential violent criminals on notice in the new year with this warning: "You may end up beating the charge later on, but you ain't gonna stop from taking a ride to jail," he said during a presentation to City Council. HPD's preliminary estimates put the number of murders in 2017 at 269 - down from 302 during the previous year. Using the U.S. Census Bureau's most recent population estimates, that would equate to about 11.7 murders for every 100,000 city residents. That's a significant upswing from the city's 25-year low of 9.2, set in 2011, according to data from the FBI's Uniform Crime Reporting program. But while some of those numbers are preliminary, they're nonetheless consistent with a 2-decade nosedive in the city murder rate, as well as decadeslong drops in crime in most American cities - trends that have forged together an unlikely cohort of right- and left-wing activists and researchers in their calls to end mass incarceration. New year, same issues Despite fewer murders, Houston's year end was punctuated by a spate of horrific violence: In a 3-day period in late December, a 13-year-old boy and 3 others were killed in 2 separate shootings, and a woman was "nearly" decapitated by her samurai sword-wielding boyfriend, officials said. Hours after the 13-year-old boy was killed on Dec. 28, Acevedo wrote on Twitter that "we need to come together to hold anyone who commits aggravated assault especially with firearms accountable." "We have shootings in our city almost nightly," he wrote. "Too many lives are being cut short." Acevedo cited the Thanksgiving's day death of Texas Department of Public Safety trooper Damon Allen, who was fatally shot during a traffic stop on Interstate 45 in Freestone County. Allen's alleged killer, Dabrett Black, had 2 previous arrests for assaulting a police officer and was out on a $15,500 bond at the time. "We're starting to find a myriad of cases where individuals that have committed aggravated assaults are out on relatively low bonds, and while out on relatively low bonds they are committing other aggravated crimes," Acevedo said. Officials with the HPD union have voiced similar concerns, with its new president saying last month that "we can't have predators out here preying on people of this community." "I understand the justice system wants to be fair to folks," said Joseph Gamaldi, president of the Houston Police Officer's Union."But you have to be fair to the victims, to the community. You can't just keep letting people out." It's an issue that is central to HPD's relationship with the Harris County District Attorney's Office under Kim Ogg, who like Acevedo is a reform-minded leader entering her 2nd year at her agency's helm.
