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Tag: death penalty

  • Licho Escamilla: Texas Man Guilty of 2001 Police Killing Executed

    Licho Escamilla, a Texas man who shot and killed a Dallas police officer in 2001, was executed on Wednesday.

    He was 33.

    Escamilla shot Officer Christopher Kevin James in November of 2011, as James was attempting to break up a fight he was involved in. Escamilla was already wanted for another murder.

    A particularly brutal crime, CBS News has more of the story:

    James and three other uniformed officers were working off-duty when the brawl started. Escamilla pulled out a gun and opened fire on the officers as they tried to end the fight.

    The bullets from his 9 mm semi-automatic handgun struck James twice, knocking him to the ground. Escamilla then calmly walked up to the officer and fired three more shots into the back of his head before running and exchanging shots with other officers, witnesses said. A second officer wounded in the shootout survived.

    A wounded Escamilla was arrested as he tried to carjack a truck.

    His last words were “Pope Francis, God’s children has asked the state of Texas to switch my death sentence to life in prison,” he said. “But the state of Texas has refused to listen to God’s children. They will have to take that up with God.”

    He also reportedly turned to James’ daughter and said “God bless your heart.”

    This is Texas’ 12th execution of the year. It’s the 24th overall in the US.

  • Susan Sarandon Fails To Delay Death Penalty For Man Convicted Of Murder In Oklahoma

    Oklahoma governor, Mary Fallin, is not planning to delay the execution of a man convicted of murder despite claims by anti-death penalty advocates that the accused is innocent.

    Actress Susan Sarandon and anti-death penalty advocate Sister Helen Prejean are making efforts to delay the execution of Richard Glossip. Now 52, Glossip is scheduled to die by way of lethal injection on Sept.16.

    Glossip was the manager of a Budget Inn in Oklahoma City. In 1998, he was convicted of first degree murder for the killing of his boss Barry Van Treese at the motel.

    According to prosecutors, Glossip paid Justin Sneed, a coworker, to kill Van Treese. Sneed admitted he beat the victim to death, but pointed out Glossip wanted Van Treese dead because he thought the two were going to be fired.

    However, anti-death penalty advocates claim that Glossip is innocent and that there is not enough evidence to prove that Glossip was behind the murder.

    Sarandon wants the governor to hear their plea to delay the execution so that Glossip’s camp can gather new evidence to prove his innocence.

    The actress used social media to share her views about the execution. Sarandon in an interview with Sky News shared her observation, “Once a mistake is made in a judicial system, people just do not want to admit that a mistake has been made, so it becomes impossible case, after case, after case to readdress them.”

    “Both trials — nobody saw the video of the confession where police are practically spoon feeding him [Sneed] what he should say?” Sarandon added.

    However, Oklahoma governor is convinced that Glossip is guilty of the crime committed in 1997. Actress Susan Sarandon’s portrayal of anti-death penalty advocate Sister Helen Prejean in the film Dead Man Walking, won her an Academy award back in 1995.

  • Jodi Arias Ordered to Pay $30,000 to Travis Alexander’s Family

    Jodi Arias was convicted of shooting and stabbing ex-boyfriend Travis Alexander to death back in 2008. Now the convicted killer has been ordered by an Arizona judge to pay $30,000 to Alexander’s family.

    It was Monday when Arizona Judge Sherry Stephens ordered Jodi Arias to pay the $30,000 to help cover the expenses incurred by five of Travis Alexander’s siblings, as part of a restitution hearing at the Maricopa County Superior Court in Phoenix.

    Sadly, this money will come in what will no doubt amount to insignificant amounts, as she will pay them just 20 percent of her jail funds until the debt is paid off. It’s likely the family will never see much of the $30,000.

    Reuters reports that Jodi Arias waived her right to appear at the restitution hearing. She was sentenced to life in prison in April, without the possibility of parole.

    None of Travis Alexander’s family members appeared in court for the restitution hearing. An attorney for the family has yet to comment on the restitution decision handed down by the judge.

    Jodi Arias claimed she killed Travis Alexander in self-defense. She said she was fighting for her life. Prosecutors insisted she killed him in a jealous rage instead.

    Two juries in the Jodi Arias case were deadlocked on whether she should be sentenced to death for the murder.

    Jodi Arias is presently held at a state prison outside of Phoenix. Court records show she has appealed her conviction.

  • Nikki Haley: Charleston Gunman Dylan Roof Deserves Death Penalty

    Nikki Haley, the governor of South Carolina, believes the Charleston church shooting that left nine people dead was a hate crime. As a result, she also believes the shooter, 21-year-old Dylan Roof, deserves the death penalty.

    “This is an absolute hate crime,” Governor Nikki Haley, a Republican, said in an interview Friday with the Today show. “And when I’ve been talking with investigators as we’ve been going through the interviews, they said they looked pure evil in the eye yesterday. Without question this is hate.”

    Dylan Roof was captured in Shelby, North Carolina on Thursday morning–just 14 hours after he gunned down nine people at the Emanuel AME Church in Charleston. Roof waived extradition and was flown back to South Carolina where he faced a hearing on Friday.

    “We absolutely will want him to have the death penalty,” Nikki Haley said on Friday. “This is the worst hate that I’ve seen and that the country has seen in a long time.”

    South Carolina carries out the death penalty by lethal injection. The state has not put an inmate to death since 2011.

    If the Charleston shooting is determined to be a hate crime, it will become a federal case.

    What are your thoughts on South Carolina Governor Nikki Haley’s belief that Dylan Roof committed a hate crime and should be sentenced to die?

    How do you think others–both those who lost loved ones in the Charleston church shooting, as well as those who live nearby–will react to her opinion?

  • Jodi Arias Verdict 2015: Judge Declares Mistrial

    The Jodi Arias verdict for 2015 is the same as the last time around. Within the past hour, the judge declared a mistrial, meaning Jodi Arias won’t be sentenced to death.

    According to a report from ABC News, the jury couldn’t reach the unanimous decision needed to either sentence Jodi Arias to life behind bars or to the death penalty, thus forcing the judge’s hand.

    Now Judge Sherry Stephens must determine whether or not Jodi Arias–who was convicted back in 2013 for the 2008 murder of her boyfriend Travis Alexander–will spend the rest of her life in prison, or have the possibility of parole following a 25-year sentence.

    The Jodi Arias verdict 2015 is no doubt heart wrenching for the family of Travis Alexander. Some of those family members were heard sobbing in the courtroom on Thursday when the judge declared the mistrial. Jodi Arias, however, appeared ‘stoic,’ and expressed no emotion at all.

    During the 2013 verdict, it was no problem for the jury to determine that Arias was guilty of murdering Travis Alexander–stabbing him multiple times, shooting him, and slitting his throat almost to the point of decapitation–while he was in the shower. It was whether or not to sentence her to death that stumped them.

    The Jodi Arias verdict 2015 might not surprise those who didn’t watch the initial trial. It gained national attention for being live-streamed, during which time Arias described in great detail the sexual she reportedly experienced with Travis Alexander.

    The Jodi Arias verdict 2015 was read by Judge Sherry Stephens, as per a note she received from the jury, as follows.

    “In my assessment, we are hung, and additional time will not change this.”

    It is uncertain when Judge Stephens will hand down her sentence to Jodi Arias.

    Are you surprised that the Jodi Arias verdict for 2015 mirrors the same one from 2013?

  • Jodi Arias: Judge Rules Against Live Broadcast Of Death Penalty Trial

    Jodi Arias’ penalty retrial will not broadcast live, unlike the first trial which provided endless cable TV and tabloid fodder.

    The live broadcast of the first trial was the reason cited by the nearly two dozen potential jurors who were dismissed on Monday. Out of the pool of 300 potential jurors, around 20 said they had followed the media coverage of the case and therefore could not be impartial.

    The judge ruled that no video footage can be broadcast until after the jury gives a verdict for the penalty retrial, which is expected to last until mid-December. Arias admitted to killing boyfriend, Travis Alexander, in 2008 in his Phoenix residence, claiming self-defense. He suffered nearly 30 knife wounds, had his throat slit and was shot in the head. Arias, a former waitress, was found guilty last year but the jury deadlocked on whether to condemn her to death. The murder conviction will stand while the prosecution tries to convince a new jury that she should die for the crime.

    If the new jury cannot come to a unanimous decision on the death penalty, Arias will automatically be sentenced to life in prison, with the possibility of parole after 25 years.

    Experts say that if the defense wants to spare Arias’ life, they should probably keep her off the stand in the retrial. William Zervakos, the foreman of the jury that convicted Arias, met with her legal team after the first trial and told them Arias “was her own worst enemy” and was a “terrible defendant.”

    Arias and her legal team apparently do not get along well. Kirk Nurmi, the lawyer charged with her defense, has tried to quit the case, but the court has refused to let him off. Arias had also tried to fire Nurmi, complaining that he was “curt, rude and condescending” in a handwritten motion to the court.

    She later asked for and was granted permission to represent herself, when the court would not assign her new defense. She later changed her mind as the court date neared and again accepted Nurmi as her lawyer.

  • Jodi Arias Stares Down Death Penalty All Alone

    With Jodi Arias, it has been antic after antic throughout her highly publicized trial.

    Is she mentally unstable or was it all one elaborate attempt to get away with murder?

    This was the question on the minds of many onlookers, especially after her rather bizarre attempt to get a restraining order against Nancy Grace of all people.

    If it was a sincere demonstration of someone not responsible for her own actions, then Arias failed to move the trial jury.

    She was found guilty of first-degree murder last year.

    That jury was unable to come to a unanimous decision as to whether or not the 34-year-old should be put to death.

    The prosecution decided to pose to question to a new jury.

    For Arias, this may be her last chance to save herself from the death penalty. The controversial figure is figuratively putting her own life in her hands.

    It was announced on Monday that a judge had accepted Arias’s request to represent herself during the sentencing phase of her trial.

    Given her previously erratic behaviors, some consider it a masterstroke by the defendant.

    Daniel Horowitz, a defense attorney based in San Francisco, told the Associated Press that it was “probably a good idea [for Arias] to represent herself”.

    According to Horowitz, Arias “looks like a vicious psychopath with a ridiculous defense” and the jurors “may find her pathetic”.

    “If she can get just one juror to bond with her on some level,” said Horowitz, “[then] they’re getting to know her, and it’s harder to kill someone you know.”

    This may be easier said than done.

    Arias has quite possibly established herself as a calculating and manipulative personality who killed in cold blood and is not to be trusted. If this is the sentiment of the jurors going into the sentencing, then getting any members of the jury to bond with her could prove difficult.

    The question now becomes whether or not Arias has enough scruples to erase the narrative created during the first part of her trial and start over.

    Image via YouTube

  • Jodi Arias Representing Herself in Court

    Convicted killer Jodi Arias will be allowed to represent herself in the sentencing phase of her capital murder trial.

    On June 4, 2008, Arias attacked her boyfriend Travis Alexander, and ended up stabbing him repeatedly, slitting his throat and shooting him in the forehead at his Mesa, Arizona home.

    Admitted killer Arias, 34, claimed she was acting in self-defense, but prosecutors were successful in convincing a jury that it was premeditated murder, brought on by a jealous rage after Alexander tried to end the affair.

    The case was adapted for a 2013 Lifetime made-for-TV Original entitled Jodi Arias: Dirty Little Secret, starring actress Tania Raymonde. Here is a teaser trailer:

    The murder received extensive media coverage, and there are hours of court proceedings, commentaries, interviews and other various detritus available surrounding the lurid case. Arias has clashed with her legal team throughout her trial, and her lawyers were denied after asking Judge Sherry Stephens to be dismissed from the case.

    Arias, who received her GED in prison, will have her lawyers on hand in an advisory capacity, to help her traverse whatever ideas and concepts she might conjure in time for what will surely be a virtuoso performance as she takes the stand.

    Apparently, Jodi has access to social media in prison, and had some words of wisdom:

    Other Twitter commentary regarding the latest courtroom development:

    Arias also set up the JAA Appellate Fund website, which accepts donations to pay for her appeals.

    The sentencing trial is scheduled to begin Sept. 8. If the second jury is unable to make a unanimous decision, the death penalty would be off the table. The judge would then sentence Arias to life imprisonment, or to be eligible for release after 25 years.

    Image via YouTube

  • Arizona Botches Execution, Inmate Gasps

    Arizona Botches Execution, Inmate Gasps

    Arizona death row inmate Joseph Wood died nearly two hours after his execution commenced Wednesday, and his attorney said that he gasped for breath for much of that time.

    Wood was convicted of murder in 1989, after killing his estranged girlfriend and her father. Arizona Governor Jan Brewer said she was concerned with the amount of time it took for Wood to die, and ordered the Department of Corrections to review their process.

    In a statement, Brewer commented, “One thing is certain, however, inmate Wood died in a lawful manner and by eyewitness and medical accounts he did not suffer. This is in stark comparison to the gruesome, vicious suffering that he inflicted on his two victims – and the lifetime of suffering he has caused their family.”

    Wood’s execution began at 4:52 p.m. ET, and he was pronounced dead at 6:49 p.m. ET.

    Wood’s lawyer, Dale Baich, commented, “It took Joseph Wood two hours to die, and he gasped and struggled to breathe for about an hour and 40 minutes. We will renew our efforts to get information about the manufacturer of drugs as well as how Arizona came up with the experimental formula of drugs it used today.”

    Jeanne Brown, a relative of Wood’s victims, doesn’t share the same sympathy or concern as Baich. “I don’t believe he was gasping for air; I don’t believe he was suffering. It sounded to me like was snoring,” Brown said, adding, “You don’t know what excruciating is. What’s excruciating is seeing your dad laying there in a pool of blood, seeing you sister laying there in a pool of blood. This man deserved it. And I shouldn’t really call him a man.”

    The incident in Arizona comes after a similar mishap which occurred in Oklahoma in April. Condemned inmate Clayton Lockett died of a heart attack roughly 20 minutes after waking up during his execution mid-injection, due to faulty equipment. The scheduled execution of a second inmate for the evening was subsequently postponed.

    Baich commented, “Arizona appears to have joined several other states who have been responsible for an entirely preventable horror – a bungled execution.”

    Image via Wikimedia Commons

  • Missouri Executes Man for Murdering 3

    Missouri Executes Man for Murdering 3

    Former small time methamphetamine dealer John Middleton, 54, was executed by lethal injection Wednesday for killing three people in rural northern Missouri in 1995, due to fear his victims would report his drug activities to authorities.

    Middleton died after being injected with pentobarbital, marking the sixth execution in Missouri so far this year. The execution was initially scheduled for Wednesday at 12:01 a.m., but a federal judge granted a stay of execution late Tuesday, to allow time to assess if Middleton was mentally competent. The stay was overturned by a federal appeals court, and the U.S. Supreme Court and the Missouri Supreme Court wouldn’t halt the injection. Middleton’s claim that he is innocent and his request for clemency from Governor Jay Nixon were also denied.

    After several drug suspects were arrested on June 10, 1995 in rural northern Missouri, Middleton allegedly told a friend, “The snitches around here are going to start going down.” He was eventually convicted of killing Randy “Happy” Hamilton and Stacey Hodge, and then Alfred Pinegar several days later.

    Middleton and his girlfriend met Hamilton and Hodge on a gravel road, where Middleton shot and killed the two and placed their bodies in the trunk of Hamilton’s car. Fellow meth dealer Pinegar was shot in the face on June 23, 1995. Middleton left his body in a field near Bethany. Middleton then told acquaintances that he shot the three, and eyewitnesses saw him buying ammunition just hours before Pinegar’s death.

    Middleton was convicted of triple homicide in 1997, and his girlfriend and accomplice, Maggie Hodges, is serving life in prison after pleading guilty to second-degree murder in all three deaths.

    An anonymous criminal informant had said in February that Middleton accused him of being a snitch, and drove him out to see Pinegar’s corpse, and told him, “there’s already been three people killed. You want to be number four?” The witness signed an affidavit stating that he was then beaten unconscious with a baseball bat and his girlfriend was raped.

    Image via Wikimedia Commons

  • Sierra LaMar DNA Evidence Found on Rope

    Sierra LaMar DNA Evidence Found on Rope

    Over two years after Morgan Hill, California teenager Sierra LaMar disappeared, grand jury transcripts have been released detailing evidence against murder suspect Antolin Garcia-Torres.

    The court in Santa Clara County forwarded a 1,900 page document to the San Jose Mercury News on Friday, which revealed that Garcia-Torres left behind a substantial amount of evidence regarding 15-year-old LaMar’s vanishing, and that the suspect mentioned details surrounding the disappearance to investigators before being asked. LaMar’s body has yet to be recovered.

    Legal expert Steve Clark commented, “They (authorities) believe she was tied up, bound, dragged, placed in the trunk. This was not an innocent encounter.” Clark added, “The fact that Sierra Lamar’s hair was found on a rope inside of Garcia-Torres’ trunk, there is no innocent explanation for that.”

    The transcript also revealed that Garcia-Torres’ DNA was found on LaMar’s pants, and that dirt was found on LaMar’s clothing, indicating that the teen may have been dragged.

    The grand jury had written that Garcia-Torres tried to explain the evidence, “But he volunteered that information before anyone ever brought up [the topic of] sperm to him, or before anyone said that that was found,” Clark commented. “That’s very damaging, why he would try to immediately initiate that kind of a conversation. [It’s] very peculiar, and I think it will prove to be very damaging.”

    Garcia-Torres has pleaded not guilty to kidnapping and murder charges, and the prosecution might have a hard time pushing for the death penalty without a body. “Is it going to be a death case? Hard to say without a body but the DA did show us a lot of their cards,” Clark remarked.

    The Mercury News sued the court for the release of the transcripts, despite opposition from Garcia-Torres’ attorneys, who believed the extra media attention would diminish chances of a fair trial.

    David J. Butler, editor and senior vice president for news at the Bay Area News Group, commented, “It’s vital for the public to understand what occurred during the secret grand jury proceeding, particularly since the prosecution is seeking the death penalty in this case.”

    Image via Youtube

  • Jodi Arias Could Get Death Penalty at Sentencing

    Jodi Arias could get the death penalty when she is sentenced for murdering her ex-boyfriend Travis Alexander. An Arizona judge has once again turned down Arias’s bid to be spared the death penalty during her sentencing retrial. Judge Sherry Stephens dismissed claims made by attorneys who believed the case was compromised when a member of Arias’ defense team was temporarily barred from visiting Maricopa County jails.

    “The defendant has failed to establish she suffered any prejudice as a result of the incident involving the mitigation specialist,” Stephens said in a written ruling on Friday.

    Jodi Arias was convicted last year of the murder of her ex-boyfriend Travis Alexander in his Phoenix-area home in what authorities have described as an especially brutal murder. Alexander was found dead in his shower. He had been stabbed multiple times and his throat was slashed. He had also been shot in the face. The jury that convicted Arias of murder also found her eligible for execution, but they couldn’t decide if she should actually be sentenced to death. This is what prompted a penalty phase mistrial.

    On September 8th a new jury will be chosen and will be given the task of determining whether or not Jodi Arias should be sentenced to death. Now that the death penalty is a very real possibility she is no doubt shaking in her shoes. If, however, this new jury is deadlocked as well it is quite likely that the judge will sentence Arias to either life in prison or life with the possibility of parole after serving 25 years.

    The latter of those two options sounds rather lenient seeing how Travis Alexander died–don’t you think? Even if one is dead set against the death penalty, most people will likely agree that Jodi Arias should never again see the light of day–or be given the opportunity to harm another person again.

    Image via YouTube

  • Julie Schenecker Guilty of First-Degree Murder

    A Tampa, Florida jury deliberated for less than two hours Thursday evening before finding Julie Schenecker guilty of first-degree murder for the shooting deaths of her two teenage children in 2011.

    Schenecker’s attorneys had been pitching an insanity defense, which the jury of eight men and four women rejected, and the defendant was handed a mandatory life sentence. A red-eyed Schenecker reacted to the ruling apathetically, before being shackled by bailiffs and lead from the courtroom.

    The Schenecker double homicide occurred on January 28, 2011, when Calyx and Beau Schenecker were found dead in their Tampa home by police. Julie Powers Schenecker was arrested on suspicion of their murder after an alleged confession. At the scene of the crime, the teens were found with gunshot wounds to their heads and covered in blankets, and Schenecker herself was found covered in blood on the back porch of the house.

    Schenecker had initally admitted to police that she shot her children because they “talked back and were mouthy,” and proceeded to describe the murders in detail. Police arrested Schenecker at the scene.

    Schenecker, 53, who has been diagnosed with bipolar disorder, made a statement to the court after being found guilty.

    “I apologize. I apologize to everybody in this courtroom … the lives I have destroyed,” Schenecker said in a wispy, almost childlike voice, adding, “I take responsibility. I was there. I know … I know I shot my son and daughter. I don’t know why.”

    After praising the U.S. court system, Hillsborough Circuit Judge Emmett L. Battles and the public defenders appointed to her during the trial, former U.S. military member Schenecker went on to describe herself as being akin to a “battle-tested soldier about to receive the Purple Heart.”

    The convicted then apologized again for the shooting, “I understand that there are people who are affected by this who may have just read about it in the paper. Or maybe a child looked at their mommy and said, ‘Mommy, are you ever going to shoot me?’ I know this could happen and I apologize for what happened, what I did.”

    Judge Battles then addressed the court, “It’s almost too much for us to comprehend what brings us here. Regrettably, there’s nothing this court can say or do to bring comfort to all those touched by this tragedy.”

    After the verdict was read, former Army Col. Parker Schenecker, Julie Schenecker’s ex-husband and father of the deceased, gave a brief statement to a slew of reporters. “Today’s decision, for many reasons, gives my family a great sense of relief,” he said. “As I have consistently mentioned for the past three years, the most important thing in all of this is Calyx and Beau, my lovely children, my smart, beautiful, loved and missed children.”

    Prosecutors were initially seeking the death penalty in the case, though Schenecker’s history of mental illness spared her from capital punishment.

    Image via Twitter

  • Jodi Arias Will Face A Death Penalty Hearing For A Second Time

    Jodi Arias, the 33-year-old woman who was convicted of first-degree murder last year for killing her boyfriend in 2008, is slated to appear in court this week.

    Last year, the jurors were not able to a unanimous decision on her case.

    Arizona law states that prosecutors for the case have the option to put a second penalty case forward with a jury in order to secure a death sentence.

    In the event that the second panel still fails to reach a decision, the death penalty will be removed from consideration. The judge will then sentence Arias to life imprisonment, wherein she will be eligible for release after 25 years in jail.

    Arias, a former waitress, admitted to killing Travis Alexander, her then boyfriend. However, she said that she did it in self-defense. Alexander had a slit throat, a shot to the forehead, and almost 30 knife wounds. According to prosecutors, Arias killed Alexander in a fit of rage after Alexander said that he wanted to end their relationship. Medical examiners say that the murder was over in less than 2 minutes.

    Due to failing to reach a unanimous decision on last year’s trial, a retrial has been scheduled for September 8. However, Arias will be appearing in court on Friday, May 16, because of some issues raised by both the prosecution and the defense. They will also be arguing whether mitigation specialist Maria De La Rosa’s investigation will be accepted as evidence for the trial. According to reports, De La Rosa was banned from visiting Arias for a while, as she was said to have  taken one of Arias’ drawings out of the Estrella jail, where Arias is being held.

    Arias’ first trial stirred controversy, as it gained a lot of media attention. This time, however, Judge Sherry Stephens stated that media coverage will be limited in order to control publicity. Cameras and other electronic devices will also be banned from the upcoming trial.

    Image via YouTube

  • Oklahoma Governor Holds After Botched Execution

    “If we are to have executions at all, they must not be conducted like hastily thrown together human science experiments.”

    On Tuesday evening, two executions were scheduled to take place in McAlester, Oklahoma: Clayton D. Lockett, who was convicted in 1999 of shooting a teenage girl and watching as two accomplices buried her alive, and Charles F. Warner, who was convicted in 1997 of raping and murdering a toddler.

    During the first procedure, the administrating doctor announced that “the line has blown” and the drugs were no longer flowing into Lockett’s vein. This came after Lockett violently convulsed and tried to lift his head, although the doctor declared him unconscious just 14 minutes earlier.

    Prison officials immediately halted the execution, but Lockett continued to convulse and twitch until he died from a heart attack 30 minutes later.

    Witnesses, who were quickly shielded from the scene when officials pulled a curtain after the mistake, described it as chaotic and unsettling.

    “This was botched, and it was difficult to watch,” said David Autry, one of Mr. Lockett’s lawyers.

    Dean Sanderford, another lawyer for Mr. Lockett, said, “It looked like torture.”

    Warner, the second inmate, was granted a 14-day stay of execution while governor Mary Fallin calls for a “full review” of the state’s execution procedures.

    “Last night’s botched execution was nothing less than state-sanctioned torture,” said Antonio Ginatta, U.S. advocacy director at Human Rights Watch.

    Governor Fallin still stands by her state’s decision.

    “I believe the death penalty is an appropriate response and punishment to those who commit heinous crimes against their fellow men and women,” she said. “However, I also believe the state needs to be certain of its protocols and its procedures for executions and that they work.”

    But questions still remain concerning the 3-drug cocktail used in Oklahoma’s lethal injection procedure. Lawyers for both Lockett and Warner have previously contended that the serum goes against the constitutional ban on cruel and unusual punishment.

    Recently, after running out of its usual lethal injection drug, Oklahoma had a new batch sourced from a pharmacy, declining to give its name. This isn’t he first time an execution was botched with this new combination, either. At the first of the year in Ohio, the first inmate injected with this particular serum appeared to suffocate to death.

    Although the U.S. Supreme Court has refused to hear any cases from states regarding the legality of lethal injection drugs from secret sources, the New York Times states that Tuesday’s Oklahoma case could indeed help get the controversial issue before the court.

    Governor Fallin has announced that she will extend Warner’s 14-day stay of execution if the independent review into the case is not completed by that time.

    Image via Youtube

  • Oklahoma Execution Was Inhumane, Says White House

    In a press conference held earlier today, White House spokesman Jay Carney said that the botched execution of Oklahoma inmate Clayton Lockett “fell short of the humane standards required when the death penalty is carried out,” according to the AP.

    He went on to say that everyone could see that this was the case.

    On Tuesday evening, Lockett died of a heart attack after waking up mid-execution.

    According to the timeline, Lockett’s execution began at 6:23 pm. Ten minutes later, he was determined to be unconscious. A few minutes after the paralytic was administered, Lockett began moving and attempting to speak.

    “Lockett grimaced and tensed his body several times over a three minute period before the execution was shielded from the press. After being declared unconscious ten minutes into the process, Lockett spoke at three separate moments. The first two were inaudible, however the third time he spoke, Lockett said the word ‘man,’” says one eyewitness account.

    By 7:06, Lockett was declared dead due to an apparent heart attack.

    The news flooded Twitter, and shortly after Oklahoma Governor Mary Fallin issued a stay of execution for another death row inmate, who was set to be executed later that evening.

    “I have asked the Department of Corrections to conduct a full review of Oklahoma’s execution procedures to determine what happened and why during this evening’s execution of Clayton Derrell Lockett,” said Fallin. “I have issued an executive order delaying the execution of Charles Frederick Warner for 14 days to allow for that review to be completed.”

    For anti-Death Penalty advocates, the botched execution is another cruel example of a broken system. As supplies of lethal injection drugs become more and more scarce (mostly due to hesitant pharm companies), states like Oklahoma have been forced to adopt alternative drugs–drugs that are oftentimes held from pubic knowledge. There are worries that these drugs are unable to provide a humane death, although some would argue that there is no such thing even with the standard cocktail.

    On Twitter, death penalty advocates pointed to the fact that Lockett’s crime, for which he was sentenced to death, involved the brutal death of a young woman whom he shot and then watched as she was buried alive.

    There’s no doubt that this latest incident will spur fierce debate–even more so now that the White House has weighed in on it. It’s worth noting that the White House and President Obama’s official position on the Death Penalty is that it should be allowed, but only reserved for the most heinous of crimes. He does, however, feel that the Death Penalty has been proven to do little to deter crime.

    Image via Wikimedia Commons

  • Oklahoma Botches Execution, Postpones Another

    An Oklahoma death row prisoner died of a heart attack roughly 20 minutes after waking up during his execution mid-injection, due to faulty equipment. The scheduled execution of a second inmate for the evening was subsequently postponed.

    Corrections Director Robert Patton stopped the delivery of the three drug combination used in Oklahoma, after realizing inmate Clayton Lockett had regained consciousness after being sedated at the start of his execution. Patton attributed the botched procedure to a vein failure which prevented all three chemicals from efficiently entering Lockett’s system.

    An eyewitness described the scene – Lockett grimaced and tensed his body several times over a three minute period before the execution was shielded from the press. After being declared unconscious ten minutes into the process, Lockett spoke at three separate moments. The first two were inaudible, however the third time he spoke, Lockett said the word “man.”

    Those against the death penalty took to Twitter:

    Lockett, 38, convicted of shooting 19-year-old Stephanie Neiman and having her buried alive in 1999, died of cardiac arrest 43 minutes after the first drug was administered. The press was shielded from the event after Lockett woke up and began speaking, 16 minutes after the execution began. Lockett died roughly 20 minutes later. “It was extremely difficult to watch,” Lockett’s attorney, David Autry, said afterward.

    A second death row inmate, Charles Warner, was scheduled to be executed at 8 p.m. Tuesday evening, which will be rescheduled due to the equipment error. Warner, 46, was convicted of raping and killing an 11-month-old in 1997.

    There has been some controversy in Oklahoma regarding a policy to not reveal the source of the drugs used for lethal injections.

    Both Lockett and Warner had sued the state for failing to disclose details regarding the source of the execution drugs, which resulted in the Supreme Court issuing a stay of execution for Lockett. This stay was eventually revoked, then replaced by another extension issued by Governor Mary Fallin, which is the reason why Lockett and Warner ended up being scheduled to die on the same day.

    Image via Wikimedia Commons

  • Julie Schenecker Murder Trial Starts Jury Selection

    The jury selection phase of the murder trial of Julie Schenecker began Monday in Tampa, and is expected to take several days, as the prosecution and defense assess over 100 potential jurors. Schenecker, of New Tampa, Florida is accused of killing her two teenage children in 2011.

    The Schenecker double homicide occurred on January 28, 2011, when Calyx and Beau Schenecker were found dead in their Tampa home by police. Julie Powers Schenecker was arrested on suspicion of their murder after an alleged confession. At the scene of the crime, the teens were found with gunshot wounds to their heads and covered in blankets, and Schenecker herself was found covered in blood on the back porch of the house.

    Schenecker had initally admitted to police that she shot her children because they “talked back and were mouthy,” and proceeded to describe the murders in detail. Police arrested Schenecker at the scene.

    Prosecutors were initially seeking the death penalty in the case, though now the trial will decide if Schenecker, 53, will spend her life behind bars or be admitted to a psychiatric hospital. Schenecker had been diagnosed with biopolar disorder, and suffers from extreme clinical depression. Circuit Court Judge Emmett L. Battles has set aside three weeks for the trial.

    Both the prosecution and defense are searching for jurors who have had little or no exposure to the extensive media coverage surrounding the homicides. Prosecutors will likely emphasize the premeditated nature of the crime, as Schenecker purchased the .38 revolver she’d used to shoot her children 5 days before the act. The defense will surely highlight her mental health status.

    Schenecker, the ex-wife of an Army colonel, is having her legal assistance paid for by the state, as her husband quickly filed for divorce as well as a wrongful death suit after the shootings.

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  • Florida Execution Leaves ‘Old Sparky’ Unemployed

    Florida executed a man on Wednesday who was convicted of murdering two relatives in 1990, marking the 85th instance of capital punishment for the state, and the fourth so far this year.

    Robert Hendrix, 47, was pronounced dead at 6:21 p.m. at Florida State Prison in Starke, shortly after a lethal injection procedure began. He remained silent, offering no final words.

    Hendrix was convicted of killing his cousin Elmer Scott and his wife Michelle, to prevent them from testifying against him the following day during a burglary trial. Scott had been an accomplice of Hendrix, but reached a plea deal in exchange for his testimony. Hendrix shot, beat and stabbed his cousin, and then cut the throat of Scott’s wife, before shooting her.

    Florida was the first state to reintroduce the death penalty after the Supreme Court of the United States struck down all capital punishment statutes nationwide in the 1972 Furman v. Georgia decision. All Floridian executions are carried out at Florida State Prison, which houses the sole remaining death chamber statewide. At present, 396 inmates are awaiting execution in Florida, and sixteen inmates have been administered lethal injections since Governor Rick Scott took office in 2011.

    While lethal injection has been the preferred method of execution in Florida since 2000, inmates can still request the use of “Old Sparky,” the nickname of the electric chair in the states of Arkansas, Connecticut, Florida, Georgia, Illinois, Kentucky, Nebraska, Ohio, Oklahoma, New York, South Carolina, Texas, West Virginia and Virginia. Hendrix opted to stay clear of Old Sparky, as botched execution attempts in this manner are not unheard of, and have a chance of becoming an extremely gruesome form of cruel and unusual punishment.

    Last June Governor Rick Scott signed the Timely Justice Act of 2013. The statute is designed to accelerate the capital punishment process. The law forces death row inmates to be quicker about making appeals and post-conviction motions.

    Image via WIkimedia Commons

  • Missouri Execution: Fourth Inmate Executed in 2014

    Death row inmate William Rousan was executed on Wednesday; the execution is the fourth for Missouri in 2014. Rousan was sentenced to death after being found guilty of murdering a couple in 1993.

    After being denied clemency by Missouri Governor Jay Nixon on Tuesday evening, 57-year-old William Rousan was put to death by lethal injection just after midnight on Wednesday. Rousan was injected with the drugs at 12:01 a.m. and pronounced dead just nine minutes later at Eastern Reception, Diagnostic and Correctional Center in Bonne Terre.

    Rousan, his brother Robert Rousan, and his 16-year-old son Brent Rousan were found guilty in the 1993 slaying that took the lives of Charlie and Grace Lewis. The Rousans shot the couple to death in a plot to steal two cows, a VCR, and some other small items. William Rousan was arrested almost a year after the murders and was the only Rousan to be sentenced to death. Robert Rousan was sentenced to seven years in prison and Brent Rousan is serving life without parole.

    “My trials and transgressions have been many,” Rousan said, starting his last words. “But thanks be to my Lord and savior, Jesus Christ, I have a new home in his heavenly kingdom.”

    Rousan’s execution was Missouri’s fourth execution in 2014. The state has executed six inmates total over the past six months.

    Of the states that still carry out capital punishment, Missouri has the fifth most executions. Missouri has carried out a total of 74 executions since 1976, when the death penalty was reinstated in the U.S. Seven inmates have been executed in Missouri since 2010, with six of those executions occurring over the past six months.

    Missouri’s increase in executions has certainly drawn criticism from some. Michael Lewis, who is the son of the victims, spoke about Rousan being put to death and said that he draws no satisfaction from the execution.

    “I draw no real satisfaction from Mr. Rousan’s incarceration or execution, for neither can replace or restore the moments lost with my parents or give my sons back the grandparents they never got to know,” Lewis said. “Nor can it fully heal the broken hearts and lives of our family, or his family who my heart also goes out to.”

    Lewis also spoke briefly about his view on capital punishment and says that he thinks it takes too long to carry out the sentence. “As for the death penalty, I think the delay from sentencing to finalization is too long. I have never thought of it as revenge or justice served in terms of an ‘eye for eye,’ so to speak,” Lewis said. “Nor do I see it as a big deterrent to would be criminals. But I still believe it is a humane and permanent prevention of further criminal activities by the convicted inmate.”

    Watch Lewis’s statement after the execution below.

    Image via Wikimedia Commons

  • Ray Jasper, Aspiring Rapper, Executed In Texas

    Former San Antonio rap artist Ray Jasper was executed by the state of Texas on Wednesday for a murder that took place 16 years ago. In 1998, Jasper was convicted of robbing and killing studio owner David Alejandro. Up until the moment he received his pentobarbital shot, Jasper maintained his innocence. He was pronounced dead at exactly 6:31 p.m., moments after he delivered his final statement.

    Before the execution, Jasper wrote a letter addressed to his family asking them to look after one another, have faith in God, and “stay strong”. He also told his daughter that he loved her and advised her to be strong and positive so that she may “have a great life”. Jasper expressed his gratitude to his supporters, after which he prayed to God that he might see his “spirit”.

    Neither Jasper nor Alejandro’s family were present to witness the execution. The victim’s family reportedly chose to spend time together in San Antonio instead.

    Jasper was 18 years old at the time of the crime, which he committed with two other individuals named Steve Russell and Douglas Williams. The three men had scheduled a recording session with Alejandro, but instead attacked the victim and stole his expensive equipment. While Jasper acknowledged slitting Alejandro’s throat, he insisted that the real cause of death was a fatal stab delivered by accomplice Steven Russell. The two cohorts were sentenced to life imprisonment and are currently serving time.

    Jasper became the third Texas inmate to be executed this year. Texas, which is the most active enforcer of the death penalty in the United States, is executing another prisoner next week before it starts using a new batch of pentobarbital obtained from a different supplier. Thirty minutes before Jasper was brought to the death chamber, the Supreme Court rejected an argument that Jasper lawyers made, claiming that a black potential juror was disqualified from participating in Jasper’s San Antonio trial in 2000.

    The Death Penalty Debate


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