[Deathpenalty] death penalty news----worldwide
Feb. 23 SOUTH SUDANnew death sentence South Sudan court sentences former SANDF colonel to death A South Sudan court on Friday sentenced a South African ex-colonel to be executed by hanging, a Reuters witness said, after he was convicted of conspiracy and attempting to overthrow the government. Retired colonel William Endley (55) had been providing advice to former-vice-president-turned-rebel-leader Riek Machar, whose forces have been fighting a civil war since 2013. South Sudan, the world's newest country, has been embroiled since 2013 in a civil war between the SPLA-IO and government forces loyal to incumbent President Salva Kiir. Endley was arrested in August 2016 and first appeared in court on February 13. According to his defence which has argued against the charges, Endley was only performing his duties as a security contractor to help Machar's forces integrate into the South Sudanese Army prior to being arrested. His lawyer Gardit Abel Gar said that 6 witnesses had been served with a notification to testify, including a government minister. Dramatically none of the witnesses called by the defence appeared culminating in presiding judge Ladu Eriminio Sekwat to state that the defence case was closed. Endley also worked in Iraq as a private military contractor doing demining following his retirement from SANDF engineers. James Gatdet Dak, Machar's former spokesman, has also been sentenced to death for incitement and conspiracy against Kiir's government. South Sudan won independence from the north in 2011, however, in the subsequent civil war tens of thousands of people have been killed and 1/3 of the population displaced many of them to refugee camps in neighbouring Uganda - creating Africa's biggest refugee crisis.M The future is not looking promising either with recent talks on power sharing in the Ethiopian capital, Addis Ababa, stalling and ongoing clashes erupting despite a ceasefire signed in December. The ceasefire agreement was intended to revive a 2015 peace deal, which lasted less than a year before collapsing. (source: enca.com) EGYPTnew mass death sentences Egypt sentences 21 to death on 'terrorism' charges 21 Egyptians were given the death sentence Thursday by a Cairo court for bomb making, planning attacks and alleged membership to a "terrorist cell linked to the Islamic State group". 16 of the 21 sentenced to death were tried in absentia, Reuters reported. The court also charged 4 others with life sentences - capped at 25 years in Egypt - and another 3 with 15-year jail terms. Thursday's verdict can still be appealed within 60 days before the court of cassation, Egypt's highest appellate court. Earlier in the day, 6 suspected members of the Muslim Brotherhood were detained for 15 days, pending investigation over joining a "terrorist" group. The Muslim Brotherhood is outlawed in Egypt. The 6 were arrested on a farm allegedly belonging to Abdel-Monaem Abul Fetouh, a former presidential candidate now in jail. Egypt has been carrying out a wide-ranging crackdown on dissent since the 2013 military overthrow of President Mohamed Morsi, a leading Brotherhood figure. Hundreds of Islamists have received death sentences since then, with authorities carrying out dozens of executions. Earlier this month, the European Parliament called on Egypt to "halt all imminent executions" and condemned the government for its frequent use of the death penalty. (source: alaraby.co.uk) JAPAN: Urgent Action RISK OF EXECUTIONS AFTER FINAL SENTENCE CONFIRMED The execution of 13 members of Aum Shinrikyo could be carried out any moment following the completion of the trial for the final two other cult members who turned themselves in after 17 years on the run. Write a letter, send an email, call, fax or tweet: * Halt any planned executions and commute the death sentences of the 13 members of Aum Shinrikyo and all other prisoners, without delay; * Explain that you consider all executions to be a violation of the right to life but are not seeking to excuse violent crime or downplay the suffering caused; * Establish a moratorium on executions with a view to abolishing the death penalty and to encourage an informed national debate on the use of this punishment; * Pending that, end the secrecy that surrounds the use of the death penalty in Japan and provide the prisoners, their family and lawyers and the public with notification of any scheduled executions. Friendly reminder: If you send an email, please create your own instead of forwarding this one! Contact these 2 officials by 5 April, 2018: Minister of Justice Yoko Kamikawa 1-1-1 Kasumigaseki Chiyoda-ku Tokyo, Japan 100-8977 Ministry of Justice Fax: +81 3 3592 7008 / +81 3 3592 7393 Twitter: @MOJ_HOUMU Salutation: Dear Minister Ambassador Kenichiro Sasae, Embassy of Japan 2520 Massachusetts Ave. NW Washington, DC 20008
[Deathpenalty] death penalty news----TEXAS, FLA., ALA., UTAH, WHO., WASH.
Feb. 23 TEXAS: Governor Abbott commutes death sentence of Thomas Bartlett Whitaker Texas Gov. Greg Abbott announced on Thursday that he has commuted the death sentence of Thomas Bartlett Whitaker. Whitaker was set to be executed Thursday night for the 2003 murders of his mother and brother in their Sugar Land home. He admitted to running a murder-for-hire plot to have them killed in order to collect inheritance money. A gunman also shot Whitaker as an attempt to cover up his involvement. His father, Kent Whitaker, was also shot but survived. Thomas "Bart" Whitaker attended Baylor University for several semesters. Baylor's Assistant Vice President for Media Communications Lori Fogleman said Whitaker was a Baylor student from the fall semester of 1998 to the spring of 2001. He did not graduate. Kent Whitaker was instrumental in getting his son's case before the Texas Board of Pardons and Paroles which on Wednesday unanimously recommended that Governor Abbott commute Whitaker's sentence from death to life in prison. Gov. Greg Abbott released the following statement: "As a former trial court judge, Texas Supreme Court Justice and Attorney General involved in prosecuting some of the most notorious criminals in Texas, I have the utmost regard for the role that juries and judges play in our legal system. The role of the Governor is not to second-guess the court process or re-evaluate the law and evidence. Instead, the Governor's role under the Constitution is distinct from the judicial function. The Governor's role is to consider recommendations by the Texas Board of Pardons and Paroles, and view matters through a lens broader than the facts and law applied to a single case. That is particularly important in death penalty cases. "In just over three years as Governor, I have allowed 30 executions. I have not granted a commutation of a death sentence until now, for reasons I here explain. "The murders of Mr. Whitaker's mother and brother are reprehensible. The crime deserves severe punishment for the criminals who killed them. The recommendation of the Texas Board of Pardons and Paroles, and my action on it, ensures Mr. Whitaker will never be released from prison. "The decision of the Texas Board of Pardons and Paroles is supported by the totality of circumstances in this case. The person who fired the gun that killed the victims did not receive the death penalty, but Mr. Whitaker, who did not fire the gun, did get the death penalty. That factor alone may not warrant commutation for someone like Mr. Whitaker who recruited others to commit murder. Additional factors make the decision more complex. "Mr. Whitaker's father, who survived the attempt on his life, passionately opposes the execution of his son. Mr. Whitaker's father insists that he would be victimized again if the state put to death his last remaining immediate family member. Also, Mr. Whitaker voluntarily and forever waived any and all claims to parole in exchange for a commutation of his sentence from death to life without the possibility of parole. Moreover, the Texas Board of Pardons and Paroles unanimously voted for commutation. The totality of these factors warrants a commutation of Mr. Whitaker's death sentence to life in prison without the possibility of parole. Mr. Whitaker must spend the remainder of his life behind bars as punishment for this heinous crime." (source: KXXV news) ** Executions under Greg Abbott, Jan. 21, 2015-present30 Executions in Texas: Dec. 7, 1982present-548 Abbott#scheduled execution date-nameTx. # 31--Mar. 27Rosendo Rodriguez III--549 32--Apr. 25Erick Davila---550 33--May 16-Juan Castillo--551 (sources: TDCJ & Rick Halperin) FLORIDAnew death sentence Jury recommends death for man who raped, killed Florida girl Cherish Perrywinkle Jurors who took less than 15 minutes to convict a Florida man last week of abducting, raping and killing an 8-year-old girl have now decided he should be executed. The Jacksonville jury voted unanimously Thursday after about 2 hours of discussion that 62-year-old Donald Smith should receive the death penalty. If just 1 of the 12 jurors had voted against execution, Smith would have instead faced life in prison. During a 2-day sentencing phase, experts testified that Smith is a psychopath who lacks control over his impulses. Doctors also described Smith as callous, uncaring, manipulative and lacking empathy. Smith was convicted last week in the 2013 death of Cherish Perrywinkle, who was abducted from a Walmart store in Jacksonville after he befriended her mother. In tearful testimony during his trial, Rayne Perrywinkle said she thought Smith was a good Samaritan because he had offered to buy her children clothing. Multiple jurors were crying as they
