[Deathpenalty] death penalty news----GA., ALA., ARK., MO., NEB.
August 25 GEORGIA: Defense asks to delay capital trial of man accused of killing girlfriend, infant son The trial in Columbus' only pending death-penalty case could be delayed again. Accused of killing his girlfriend and their infant son before setting their home afire in 2014, Brandon David Conner so far is set for trial Oct. 1 before Superior Court Judge William Rumer, but his attorneys have asked for that to be postponed. Attorneys J. Mark Shelnutt and William Kendrick say they have not received crucial discovery evidence related to quality control and other administrative procedures at the Georgia Bureau of Investigation crime lab conducting DNA tests for the prosecution. The prosecution, led by District Attorney Julia Slater with the aid of Senior Assistant District Attorney Don Kelly and Assistant District Attorney Wesley Lambertus, counters that the information the defense seeks is not covered under law governing pretrial discovery, and must be obtained by other means, such an open-records request. Judge Rumer has asked both sides to file proposed court motions and any legal arguments by Monday, saying he will rule later. The case had been delayed before. It was set to go to trial in late January, but had to be postponed because some of the same attorneys were involved in another prominent case coming to trial in Judge Gil McBride's court, the brutal murders of a grandmother, son and granddaughter, found dead Jan. 4, 2016, in Columbus' Upatoi area. In that case, Rufus Burks, Raheam Gibson and Jervarceay Tapley were charged in the slayings of Gloria Short, 54; her son Caleb Short, 17; and granddaughter Gianna Lindsey, 10; found dead in the Shorts' 3057 Bentley Drive home. Police said Gloria Short and her granddaughter were beaten and stabbed to death, and the son was fatally bludgeoned. After Gibson and Tapley agreed to plead guilty, only Burks went to trial. He was found guilty of felony murder and other charges. Conner is accused of fatally stabbing girlfriend Rosella "Mandy" Mitchell, 32, and killing their 6-month-old son Dylan Ethan Conner before setting their 1324 Winifred Lane home afire on Aug. 21, 2014. Attorneys in a series of court hearings in the years since have been arguing about the evidence, most recently debating which photographs the jury should see. Shelnutt and Kendrick say some of the images are so graphic they only will prejudice the jury against their client. During a hearing on July 6, the defense had narrowed its objections to 18 of the 144 photos related to the case, 2 showing the charred bodies at the crime scene. A new motion Now Shelnutt and Kendrick argue they need more time because the crime lab has not provided information on its administrative procedures, data a defense expert needs to review to judge the lab's performance. In a hearing Tuesday, Shelnutt outlined some of the information they want: -- Administrative documentation, meaning all documents related to anyone who worked on the Conner case, and noting any variance in crime-lab procedures. -- Any corrective action reports noting unexpected test results, any reports that were amended for reasons other than typographical errors or other minor issues, and any reports on the reliability of test results. -- The laboratory's accreditation documentation related to the quality of its management. -- Laboratory personnel reports regarding disciplinary actions or other issues. -- Reports related to quality control, including qualifying tests on equipment, studies, and the "performance parameters" of the lab's DNA testing. The defense expert will need all of that information, and sufficient time to review it, to assist the attorneys in defending Conner, Shelnutt said. "This is not discovery," Kelly told Rumer, arguing the courts have ruled a crime lab's internal documentation related to its operation is not subject the law on disclosing prosecution evidence, and the district attorney's office does not collect or maintain such records. The defense is supposed to get that information on its own, Kelly said. "The answer to this is they need to file an Open Records Act request with the GBI," Kelly said. The act covers all government records subject to public disclosure on demand. The prosecution is opposed to any further delay, Kelly said, noting the trial date still is 6 weeks away. The evidence The fire at Mitchell's Winifred Lane home was reported at 12:35 a.m. About 30 minutes later, Officer Jason Swails saw Conner's blue 2001 BMW turn from Wynnton Road onto Cedar Avenue in midtown before Conner parked near Davis Broadcasting, where he worked. Conner then sat in the car for 10 minutes, the officer said. Because of recent business burglaries in the area, Swails questioned Conner and saw the suspect was shaking and sweating, and apparently had blood on him, the officer said. Conner told Swails he had just left work,
[Deathpenalty] death penalty news----COLO., UTAH, IDAHO, CALIF., USA
August 25 COLORADO: Louisiana man convicted of murdering homeless Denver man living in tent by South Platte RiverConvicted man also a suspect in 2 other killings, scheduled for sentencing Oct. 19 A Louisiana man suspected in 2 homicides and an attempted homicide could face the death penalty or life in prison after a jury convicted him Thursday of murdering a homeless man in 2016. Makhail Purpera, 30, was found guilty of 1st- and 2nd-degree murder after 7 days of trial, according to a news release from the Denver District Attorney's office. Purpera shot and killed 54-year-old Wayland Busby on Nov. 5, 2016, while trying to steal Busby's marijuana and other possessions, officials said. Busby was living in a tent by the intersection of South Platte Drive and Dartmouth Avenue in Englewood when he was killed. A Denver Park Ranger found Busby's body during a routine check of the area. Busby collected scrap metal and possibly panned for gold. Purpera's sentencing for the murder is scheduled for Oct. 19. He faces maximum penalties of life imprisonment or the death penalty. Prosecutors also charged him with murder and aggravated robbery on suspicion of the killing another man. In February 2017, a passerby found the remains of Patrick Murphy in a pond near the intersection of South Broadway and West Jefferson Avenue. Police said the body could have been in the pond since November 2016. Murphy had been shot in the head. Purpera was arrested on suspicion in Murphy's death while he was in jail for Busby's killing. He is expected to appear in court in October for a hearing on the 9 charges he faces in connection to Murphy's killing. Prosecutors previously said Purpera was also wanted in Gonzales, Louisiana, for 2 counts of attempted murder. (source: Denver Post) UTAH: Man accused of murdering WVC code enforcement officer pleads not guilty to 13 felonies A man has pleaded not guilty to 13 felony charges that include aggravated murder and aggravated arson in connection with the death of a West Valley City code enforcement officer. Kevin Wayne Billings, 64, made his initial court appearance Friday and pleaded not guilty to 13 felony counts. Billings appeared before a judge via closed circuit TV from the Salt Lake County Jail, and he didn't say a word as his attorneys entered the not guilty pleas. The 2 most serious of the counts Billings faces are aggravated murder and aggravated arson, both of which make this eligible to be a capital case with the possibility of the death penalty. Billings allegedly lured Jill Robinson, a code enforcement officer, to his home on August 9 under the guise of an inspection to resolve ongoing issues with his yard but instead shot and killed the woman before setting her work vehicle on fire and igniting a blaze at a neighbor's home. Several animals were killed in that fire. Bail was not addressed in Friday's hearing, so Billings remains behind bars without bail. His next appearance is scheduled for September 4, and at that scheduling conference a date will be chosen for a preliminary hearing. (source: Fox News) IDAHO3, including 1 female, face death penalty Owyhee County could seek death penalty against 3 suspects in the killing of a hitchhiker 3 people in Owyhee County still await trial in the random, brutal killing of a teenage hitchhiker, after Prosecutor Douglas Emery in November filed notices of his intent to pursue the death penalty against all 3 defendants. On Aug. 13, District Judge Christopher Nye denied a request to dismiss suspect Nicolas Vandenberg's indictment after police say he plotted Hunter Smith's death. Vandenberg, 28, is accused of fatally shooting Smith in June 2017. Vanderberg's 2 co-defendants, Willie Rabey, 35, and Montanna Reed, 21, could also get the death penalty if convicted in the case for their alleged roles in Smith's death. Emery said Friday that the pleadings and/or allegations in one or more of the suspects' cases could be amended, removing the death penalty as an option. "Typically in case negotiations, the potential removal of the death penalty ... is a focal discussion," Emery wrote in an email to the Statesman. Vandenberg is accused of luring Smith, 18 - who was hitchhiking from Junction City, Oregon, to Boise - and shooting him in the head in the Bruneau Desert in Owyhee County. The group is accused of inviting him to go shooting at Vandenberg's residence. His body was found in October 2017. The trio did not know Smith personally, and law enforcement has said they believe the suspects planned to kill him, and could have killed again in the future. Rabey is accused of witnessing the killing, knowing about the plan to kill Smith and helping move his corpse. Reed is also accused of witnessing the killing, helping in the removal of Smith's body, knowing about the plan and helping to destroy his clothing. Vandenberg was indic
[Deathpenalty] death penalty news----worldwide
August 25 GHANA: Death penalty should be scrapped - Justice Dzordzie A nominee for the position of the Supreme Court Justice, Justice Agnes Mercy Abla Dordzie, is urging the judicial service to scrap death penalty as a sentence in the country's courts. According to her, Ghana's position as a signatory to some international conventions that are against death penalty as a sentence makes it pertinent that it be abolished. "I think it should be scrapped off our statute books because Ghana has been a signatory to some other international conventions that have abolished the death penalty." Mrs. Dordzie, during her vetting on Friday, August 24 further noted that the inability of the sentence to be executed though it is given in some cases by the court is enough indication that Ghanaians want a change in that regard. "We don't even execute anymore. For over 20 years, I don't think any execution has been done, so though, the courts pass the sentence, we don't execute it so it means that as a people we have come to recognise that we cannot go that way anymore." "If the law says that is what should be done, I have passed these sentences though I am a Christian, that is the law and I must interpret it but I think we are getting to a point now with our relations internationally and what pertains so far as fundamental human rights are concerned, it???s about time we changed". On death penalty in Ghana Death penalty is a sentence given by the court as punishment for very serious crimes. The last time Ghana recorded an execution of a convict, was in 1993 when then-president John Rawlings ordered the execution of 12 convicts via a firing squad. According to Amnesty International Ghana, as of September 2016, there were 137 prisoners on death row, who have not been executed. As a result, many have pushed for Ghana to do away with the death penalty from Ghana's legal system since it is not enforced. Those opposed against the death penalty have argued that it is not the right punishment for a convicted murderer but retributive. Death penalty has been in the country's statute books since the application of the English common law in 1874, but in practice, no execution has been recorded since July 1993. According to the proponents, much as the sentence may be seen in a wider sense as fairness, it doesn???t deter people from committing such crimes. (source: ghanaweb.com) SAUDI ARABIA: Stories Of Executions Undermine Saudi Push To Modernity Reports that detained activists will likely face the death penalty come after the Saudi government's crackdown on women's rights activists under the pretext of 'maintaining national security' Responding to reports that Saudi Arabia's Public Prosecution is seeking the death penalty against 5 human-rights activists, a Saudi political analyst has told The Media Line that no information had been released from the authorities and that "all information is fragmentary, politicized and propagated by media or hostile sources that have fallen into the trap." Sulaiman al-Oquily explained that many media outlets, as well as human rights organizations, believed the "propaganda" that was created regarding the arrest of the activists, who include Shia Muslim Israa al-Ghomgham from the kingdom's Eastern province. "The attorney-general has the right to request the maximum sentence by law," he said, emphasizing that at trial the judge would rule according to evidence. The death penalty reports come after a recent crackdown on women's rights activists in the kingdom which has led to the arrest of at least 13 women under the pretext of "maintaining national security." Authorities in the ultra-conservative Sunni Muslim nation have accused several of them of "serious crimes," including "participating in protests in the Qatif region," "incitement to protest," "chanting slogans hostile to the regime," "attempting to inflame public opinion," "filming protests and publishing on social media," and "providing moral support to rioters." "Any execution is appalling, but seeking the death penalty for activists like Israa al-Ghomgham, who are not even accused of violent behavior, is monstrous," Middle East director at Human Rights Watch (HRW) Sarah Whitson stated in a report. "Every day, the Saudi monarchy's unrestrained despotism makes it harder for its public relations teams to spin the fairy tale of 'reform' to allies and international business," she continued. Saudi authorities have held all 6 activists in pretrial detention and without legal representation for over two years, HRW stated. Their next court date has been scheduled for October 28. Al-Oquily claimed that activists like al-Ghomgham, who was arrested in 2015 during the "waves of terrorism," endangered "the safety of Saudi civilians, including clerics who were opposed to terrorism," which, he added, also targeted security personnel who were assigned t
