[Deathpenalty] death penalty news----TEXAS, MINN., TENN., MD., KAN., FLA., CALIF.

[Rick Halperin]

Feb. 23


TEXAS:

Doil Lane May Leave Texas Death Row


The man convicted of one of Wichita's most notorious killings is a step
closer to dodging death row. Doil Lane could be removed from death row on
the grounds of mental retardation.

He was found guilty in the deaths of 9-year-old Nancy Shoemaker and a
young Texas girl, but the Texas Clemency Board voted this week to remove
Lane from death row.

Texas Governor Rick Perry has the final say on lane's sentence.<>P>
Prosecutors at the Sedgwick county courthouse say lane isn't retarded.
They also say this decision could have ramifications.

Nancy shoemaker was just 9 years old when she went to buy a soda and
disappeared. her body was found near Belle Plaine 6 months later.

Doil lane was one of the men convicted of her murder

The clemency board vote comes after a Supreme Court ruling that the
mentally retarded cannot be executed. However, in Kansas Lane was found to
be slow - not retarded.

"He was functional," said Sedgwick County District Attorney Nola
Foulston.P> "He could hold a job down, he could drive a car. He made money
and he worked and he was considered functional."

Her office has been in contact with authorities in Texas for years about
this case.

She believes that Lane is not only functional but also dangerous. She
worries if Texas commutes his sentence he could be eligible for parole
there.

But if that happens, Lane still needs to serve 65 years for Nancy
Shoemaker's death.

Nancy's father is organizing a letter writing campaign in hopes of keeping
lane on death row.

Shoemaker encourages anyone who has concerns about lane's sentence being
commuted to write a letter to the Texas governor.

(source: KAKE News)






MINNESOTA:

Ray Krone, wrongfully convicted of murder and sentenced to death row, to
speak at Mitchell Seating limited. Students, faculty, and staff have
priority registration until March 7


Ray Krone, who was sentenced to death row for a murder he did not commit,
will be speaking at William Mitchell from noon to 1:30 p.m. on Wednesday,
March 14, in Room 323. This event has limited seating. Registration will
be available to students, faculty, and staff on a first-come, first served
basis until March 7. After March 7, registration will be open to the
public. To reserve a seat for this event, e-mail or call Meg Daniel:
meg.daniel at wmitchell.edu or (651) 290-6425.

Ray Krone In 1991, Krone's world was turned upside down when he was
arrested for the murder of a woman named Kim Ancona. Krone refused to
believe that our legal system would convict him. He told his parents not
to worry. When faced with the choice of selling his house to pay for a
lawyer, he opted to be represented by a public defender instead. "I was
thinking, 'Why should I sell my house when they're going to know its not
me as soon as they investigate?'"

But Krone, who was a customer of the Phoenix bar in which Ancona was
murdered, was convicted on circumstantial evidence and the testimony of an
"expert" witness who asserted that bite marks found on Ancona matched
Krone's teeth. In 1992, he was sentenced to death.

In 1994, after two years and eight months on death row, Krone was granted
a retrial, convicted again, and sentenced to 46 years in prison. In 2002,
attorney Alan Simpson was able to convince an appeals court that DNA found
at the murder scene pointed to another man. When prosecutors dropped the
charges that April, Krone became the 100th person exonerated from death
row in the United States since 1973. Krone had spent 10 years and 4 months
in prison for a crime he had not committed. He had never surfed the
Internet, didn't know how to use a cell phone, and had never heard of gel
deodorant.

Today, Krone works to avoid bitterness about his experience. I have the
ability to be angry, but Ive tried to avoid the anger," he says. "I sat in
prison all that time, and I watched people who were so bitter and angry
that they became victims. At some point youve got to take control of your
life and rise above things. I hope I won't ever get to the point where I
am so overwhelmed with grief and tragedy that I would actually give in."

Krone now serves as director of communications and training for Witness to
Innocence, an organization that brings to light the crisis of wrongful
convictions in death sentencing in the United States. He has traveled
throughout the United States and Europe, telling his story. He has spoken
to hundreds of groups, including numerous universities and law schools
across the country, as well as to state legislatures and governmental
bodies in England, Sweden, Italy and France. He has been featured in
numerous publications and on many radio and television programs, including
People and Parade magazines, USA Today, the Los Angeles Times and Good
Morning America.

The program is co-sponsored by the William Mitchell American Civil
Liberties Union (ACLU) student organization.

(source: William Mitchell College of Law)






TENNESSEE:

Man accused of double homicide passes state mental evaluation


Calvin A. Bennett, 26, the man accused of the Oct. 30 double-homicide of
an elderly Nashville couple, has passed a state mental evaluation which
found him fit for trial, but his attorneys motion to have their own
psychiatric evaluation conducted was granted by the court.

Bennett pled not guilty Jan. 3 to 2 counts of capital murder in the
shooting deaths of Pierce "Ben" and Mary Odell because of a mental defect.
If convicted he could face the death penalty.

Howard County Circuit Judge Charles Yeargan told Bennett Wednesday in a
brief court appearance that his mental evaluation has been completed by
the state and the state found him to be competent.

Bennett's attorney, Tammy Harris with the Arkansas Public Defender
Commission, immediately asked the court to allow the defense to conduct
its own mental evaluation and the request was granted.

Judge Yeargan set April 25 for Bennett's next court appearance.

Wednesday's procedure took only about 5 minutes. Bennett, who is being
held without bond in the Howard County Jail, appeared wearing an orange
jail jump suit and was shackled with leg irons. He was not handcuffed in
court, but when he was escorted to and from the courtroom by Howard County
Sheriff Butch Morris and deputies he was handcuffed.

Odell family members filled the first 2 rows on the right side of the
courtroom facing the judge, otherwise the courtroom was mostly empty.

Bennett faces two counts of capital murder in the deaths of the Odells, a
popular Nashville couple who were found shot to death about 100 yards from
their home.

Bennett was the subject of a 3-week manhunt. He was captured outside of a
residence in Rothschild, Wis., Nov. 19, after he was profiled the night
before on the television show, "America's Most Wanted."

(source: The Nashville News)






MARYLAND:

Governor opposes death penalty, committee divided----O'Malley says capital
punishment 'unjust,' expensive and not a deterrent


Despite an unusual plea from Gov. Martin O'Malley to end Maryland's death
penalty, a bill to repeal the increasingly controversial practice faces an
uncertain future.

Death penalty opponents descended on Annapolis yesterday to urge two key
committees to end a punishment they believe is costly, ineffective and
immoral.

The Maryland Court of Appeals has issued a moratorium on the death penalty
because of its procedural flaws. The state now faces 3 choices: fix the
regulations ordered by the court, let the moratorium stand, or repeal the
death penalty.

Mr. O'Malley spoke before the House Judiciary Committee and the Senate
Judicial Proceedings Committee, which is divided on the bill. It's rare
for a governor to testify for bills that aren't part of his own
legislative agenda.

In 2005, murder rates were 46 % higher in states that had the death
penalty, Mr. O'Malley said. Besides the possibility of putting an innocent
person to death, Maryland has spent nearly $22.4 million extra since 1978
for executions rather than life imprisonment, he said.

"So if the death penalty as applied, my friends, is inherently unjust and
without the deterrent value, we are left to ask whether the value to
society of partial retribution outweighs the cost of maintaining the death
penalty," Mr. O'Malley said.

"Very mindful of and sensitive to the closure, and in some cases the
comforts, that it brings to the unfathomable pain of families who have
lost loved ones to violent crime, I believe it does not."

The death penalty has been a recurring debate in the General Assembly
since 2002, when then-governor Parris Glendening imposed a moratorium on
the punishment. His successor, Robert L. Ehrlich Jr., reversed that
decision.

Since 1923 the state has executed 83 men, 4 of whom were from Anne Arundel
County.

Other speakers at the committee hearings included former death-row inmates
from across the nation who had been exonerated before their executions,
including Kirk Bloodsworth.

In 1993 Mr. Bloodsworth, a Maryland resident, was the 1st in the nation to
have a capital conviction overturned through DNA testing.

"I am living proof that our capital punishment system is broken," he said.

Not all those who testified at the hearings were against the death
penalty. Even if it doesn't deter future criminals, it prevents known
murderers from being able to kill again, said Scott Shellenberger, the
prosecutor for Baltimore County.

"I believe in a deterrence of one," he said. "This is merely an extension
of a justifiable homicide in order to protect others."

Sen. Bryan Simonaire, R-Pasadena, a member of the 11-person Senate
Judicial Proceedings Committee, said he favors keeping the death penalty
"just for the simple fact of justice."

"Who's standing up for the victims of these heinous crimes?" he asked.
"Common sense says that it has some (deterrent value)."

It's still not clear whether the repeal can get out of the Senate
committee, with 5 votes lined up on each side.

"It's close. This is a very passionate issue," Mr. Simonaire said. "Where
that 6th vote goes is open to discussion."

Sen. Alex Mooney, R-Frederick County, a staunch conservative and Catholic,
was still on the fence, Mr. Simonaire said.

"He's got the tension," he said. "On each side they have compelling
arguments."

During the hearing, Mr. Mooney said he was wrestling with whether taking
away the death penalty would endanger correctional officers because
criminals already imprisoned could kill without fear of greater
retribution.

Other members of the committee against the repeal had the same concern
that prisoners serving life sentences would no longer face a deterrent
against murdering again.

"Can we really protect ourselves with the prison system?" Mr. Mooney
asked. He didn't return a call seeking further comment.

Meanwhile, the question seems less of a dead heat on the House side.

Del. Don Dwyer, R-Glen Burnie,a member of the House Judiciary Committee,
said his "gut feeling" is that the bill will get the go-ahead, "but it
won't be with (his) vote."

With further advancements in technology such as sophisticated DNA testing,
the court system should reach a point where executing an innocent person
is almost impossible, he said.

"We certainly should be able to use DNA as a positive proof," Mr. Dwyer
said. "It is incumbent upon the state to make sure we are not executing an
innocent person."

House Speaker Michael E. Busch said he has voted for the death penalty in
the past but is still weighing the decision.

"I'm torn on the issue," he said. "I do believe there's a lack of
functionality."

Unlike other issues, positions on the death penalty are very intractable
and hard to change, he said.

"It really comes down to people's gut instincts," he said.

Last week, Anne Arundel State's Attorney Frank Weathersbee told the county
delegation that the death penalty is a failing system. Mr. Busch said
statements like that will factor into any vote he takes.

"There's a part of me that wants to be convinced life without parole has
taken (away) the need for the death penalty," he said.

(source: Hometown Annapolis)




KANSAS:

State intends to seek death penalty in Cheever case


Greenwood County Attorney Ross McIlvain served the legal notice this
afternoon that he would seek the execution of Scott Cheever, should a jury
find the 23-year-old defendant guilty of killing Sheriff Matt Samuels.

Ron Evans of the Kansas Death Penalty Defense Unit received the papers for
Cheever, required by law if the state intends to seek a separate
sentencing hearing in front of a jury in a capital murder case.

Earlier, Cheever remained silent during his arraignment, as Butler County
District Judge Mike Ward entered a not-guilty plea and set trial for Oct.
9.

It's still uncertain where the trial will be in a case that's already
traveled from state to federal court and back.

Ward said he expects to entertain a motion for change of venue.

The case, officially filed in Greenwood County, could not be heard there,
because all of the judges knew Samuels, who Cheever is accused of shooting
to death in January 2005.

Cheever originally faced federal capital murder charges in Wichita,
because Samuels was killed a month after the Kansas Supreme Court ruled
the state's death penalty law unconstitutional.

The case then came back to Butler County, after the U.S. Supreme Court
reinstated the death penalty in Kansas this past spring.

Ward arraigned Cheever on 7 of the 8 counts which he was charged. The
judge dismissed a charge of conspiracy to manufacture methamphetamine.
Ward ruled the prosecution hadn't provided sufficient evidence for that
particular charge during a preliminary hearing last month.

Cheever's next court date is May 14, where the judge expects to hear the
1st round of pretrial motions. Capital murder cases involving the death
penalty usually include numerous motions prior to trial.

(source: WIchita Eagle)






FLORIDA:

Panel finding answers elusive


In tampa, a panel reviewing Florida's execution procedures over the last
few weeks has heard testimony that is part spy novel and part horror film.

Anonymous executioners have testified over speakerphone with their voices
electronically disguised. Some have refused to say much about their
backgrounds out of fear they will be identified.

Doctors have revealed details of lethal injection executions gone awry,
including 1 expert who showed grisly photos of inmates whose deaths did
not appear to come smoothly.

Former Gov. Jeb Bush formed the commission to study Florida's lethal
injection protocols after the Dec. 13 execution of Angel Diaz took more
than twice as long as usual.

The 11-person commission is not questioning whether to put inmates to
death, but only how best to do so. In several meetings over the last few
weeks, the commission has heard conflicting testimony over how well lethal
injection works and how badly the Diaz execution was botched.

The commission will meet perhaps for the final time Saturday in Tampa to
discuss recommendations that are due by March 1 to Gov. Charlie Crist.

Here are some of the key questions the group has confronted, and the
answers that have emerged:

What went wrong with the Diaz execution?

While most condemned Florida inmates stop moving within a few minutes
after an execution begins and are pronounced dead within 15 minutes, Diaz
moved for about 26 minutes and was not pronounced dead until after 36
minutes.

An autopsy showed that needles inserted into Diaz's left arm pierced
through the vein, causing chemicals to spill into Diazs flesh. The
execution team realized something was wrong and switched to the right arm,
but that needle also passed through the vein.

The execution team injected a rare 2nd dose of chemicals into Diaz, and he
eventually died. Foot-long chemical blisters or burns were found on Diazs
arms at his autopsy the next day.

Had the chemicals gone directly into the vein, Diaz quickly would have
stopped moving and died. But the chemicals were absorbed much more slowly
through the flesh.

The medical examiner who performed the autopsy and several medical experts
testified that the needles tore through the vein early in the process -
probably when they were inserted by a staff member.

This was rebutted by a medically trained member of the execution team who
testified that he believes the veins were compromised after Diaz was dead,
perhaps when his arms were moved.

He declined to offer any other explanation for the extended time it took
Diaz to die.

This man, whose voice was disguised, said he had participated in 84
executions in several states.

But at least some members of the panel weren't convinced by his testimony.

"It's hard for me to believe that," Dr. Peter Springer, a member of the
panel, said after the last hearing Monday. "I think we all know what went
wrong."

Immediately after the execution, the Department of Corrections attributed
Diaz's slow death to liver problems. The autopsy didn't support that, and
doctors have dismissed that explanation as preposterous.

An important question for the panel will be whether the Diaz case was an
anomaly that can be avoided in the future; or whether the protocols are so
flawed that it allows the possibility of this happening again.

Did Diaz feel pain? And why is that important?

The question of whether Diaz felt pain is important because the
Constitution forbids the government from inflicting unnecessary pain or
suffering onto anyone - even the worst of criminals. That notion is
designed to prevent society from stooping to the level of its worst
offenders.

The panel likely will discuss whether they think Diaz felt pain because if
he did, Florida's lethal injection protocols may have constitutional
problems.

Ultimately, the only person to know whether Diaz felt pain is Diaz
himself. And the panel obviously can't ask him the question.

The panel could rely on witness accounts of the execution, but they vary
substantially.>{? News accounts written by reporters who witnessed the
execution seem to indicate Diaz was in distress or pain.

The newspaper stories said Diaz grimaced, winced, squinted and tried to
talk for several minutes.

Those accounts closely match the testimony of Neal Dupree, a capital
defense attorney who sat in the front row of the witness room. Dupree's
office represented Diaz.

One doctor, Mark Heath, testified that he believes Diaz did feel pain.

But Department of Corrections officials who participated in the execution,
along with a Florida Department of Law Enforcement agent who witnessed it,
testified that they saw no signs of distress or pain.

Some panelists have suggested witnesses' recollection may vary based on
their beliefs about capital punishment or their affiliations.

"Perception is not lying," said Circuit Judge Stan Morris, a member of the
panel. "You have to consider if there is an institutional bias. But whats
the institution? Is it the Department of Corrections? Is it journalism? Is
it Neal's commitment to his client?

"I have a sinking feeling there are some unanswerable questions in this,"
he said.

Doesn't the Department of Corrections have records of what happened?

Not really. The execution team marks off a checklist of steps, but the
only people who write detailed notes are the news reporters in the witness
room.

No recordings are made of Florida executions.

Some panelists have expressed frustration that the DOC doesn't record more
information. The commission also may scrutinize whether more of the
execution process should be open to public record. Currently, much is not.

"Open government is a right too essential to be ignored on an issue of
this importance," Mary Berglund of the League of Women Voters of Florida
urged the panel during public remarks. "All your efforts here will be for
nothing if the curtain of secrecy again descends on state executions."

Why do we use lethal injection in the first place?

Lethal injection was adopted in Florida in 2000 after electric chair
executions caused inmates to bleed and catch fire.

The procedure calls for a 3-drug cocktail. The 1st drug is a powerful
sedative designed to put the inmate to sleep.

The 2nd drug causes paralysis, which some experts believe is used only for
aesthetic purposes so witnesses will not be disturbed by shuddering that
would naturally occur upon death.

The 3rd drug causes a fatal heart attack.

If the first drug is not properly administered, experts say, the second
drug can cause the inmate to feel he is suffocating; the third drug can
cause a severe burning pain.

What is the role of medical professionals during executions?

Some experts say that if the state wants lethal injection to go more
smoothly, doctors need to be more involved. But ethical guidelines forbid
doctors from any involvement in capital punishment.

The practice is so frowned upon within the medical community that doctors
and other medical professionals who participate in executions usually
demand steps to keep their identities a secret - thus the disguised voices
during testimony.

The belief from the American Medical Association and other professional
organizations is that doctors should not participate in anything that
harms a patient because it erodes the trust people can have in their
physicians.

"The doctor that does this not only defiles himself but the whole medical
community," said Dr. Jonathan Groner, an associate professor of surgery at
Ohio State University who has testified in death penalty cases. "Because
he's anonymous it could be anyone. It could be the anesthesiologist who
treats your for your gall bladder surgery. You don't know and it reflects
bad on all of us."

(source: St. Petersburg Times)






CALIFORNIA:

Released from death row: ---- Cleared inmate to speak at Congress


Juan Roberto Melendez Colon endured 17 years, 8 months and 1 day on
Florida's death row for a crime he did not commit. On Jan. 3, 2002, he
became the 99th death-row inmate in the United States since 1973 to be
cleared of wrongdoing and released from prison.

Melendez now spends part of each year speaking at conferences and law
schools and offering living testimony to the pervasive problems of the
death penalty system. A captivating and dynamic speaker, Melendez will be
telling his story at Congress March 2 at 1 p.m. in English and on March 4
at 10 a.m. in Spanish.

"The death penalty is cruel, unnecessary, costs too much and doesn't deter
crime," Melendez, 55, told The Tidings during a recent phone interview.
"And there's always a risk that an innocent person is going to be
executed."

The father of 3 daughters was convicted of first degree murder in Central
Florida in 1984 based on the false testimony of 2 questionable witnesses,
including one who recanted his story 16 years later.

"There was no physical evidence against me whatsoever," said Melendez. The
trial started on a Monday, he was convicted that Thursday and sentenced to
death on a Friday.

The former migrant farm worker still marvels at how swiftly the courts can
condemn someone --- usually a poor person --- to death.

Even though he was innocent, Melendez's conviction and death sentence were
upheld on appeal 3 times by the Florida Supreme Court. Then in 2000, a
long-forgotten transcript of a taped confession by the real killer was
discovered in a box of legal papers.

Judge Barbara Fleischer overturned Melendez's conviction and death
sentence. She wrote a long opinion highlighting the injustices endured by
Melendez and chastising the prosecutor for withholding crucial evidence
about the credibility of the witnesses.

What sustained Melendez during the many years he languished in prison?

"My faith in God. Every time I felt suicidal, God sent me a beautiful
dream," he said. He also counted on the support of his family --- his
mother and 5 aunts. From Puerto Rico, the women wrote many letters.

Anti-death penalty pen pals around the world wrote to inmates. "They let
us know we're not alone. They bring a lot of compassion and make you feel
like a human being," he said.

However, Melendez cut off communication with his three daughters. "I
didn't want them to go through all the pain," he said.

While in prison Melendez learned to read, write and speak English. His
teachers? "The condemned. The worst of the worst taught me how to do
that," he said.

What turned out to be most painful, reflected Melendez, were the 51 fellow
inmates executed during his time on death row --- men he had gotten to
know personally.

"You are next door to him for so many years, 10, 15 years. And then one
day they snatch him out of there, and put him in an electric chair," he
said.

"Some of them were innocent," he added, rattling off names. "They most
likely didn't commit the crime. I couldn't do anything about it. All I
could say is, 'I'll see you soon.'"

After Melendez was exonerated and released from prison, he reestablished
contact with his daughters. Today he splits his time between the U.S. and
Puerto Rico, where he works on a plantain field and counsels troubled
youth.

Is he bitter?

"Oh, no. I have no time for that. I don't let the anger dominate me. I'm
very happy to be free," said Melendez. "I use my anger to educate people,
to let them know that the death penalty is a bad government policy that
only brings suffering and pain. We don't need it."

(source: The Tidings)