[Deathpenalty] death penalty news----VA., GA., FLA., ALA., OHIO

[Rick Halperin]

April 8



VIRGINIA:

Hundreds of faith leaders call for veto of "electric chair" bill


3 local faith leaders are among more than 300 who are calling on Governor Terry 
McAuliffe to veto the "electric chair" bill.

House Bill 815 says that if lethal injection cannot be used to execute an 
inmate because of a lack of the necessary drugs, then the inmate shall be 
executed by electrocution.

According to a release, the group of interfaith clergy says it believes "the 
death penalty is wrong, ineffective, born of a mistaken conception of justice."

Reverend Eric Liles, Reverend Joshua Andrzejewski and Reverend Diana Brawley 
are among the hundreds of faith leaders calling on McAuliffe to veto the bill.

"At the heart of the Christian faith is a belief in redemption and a rejection 
of cruelty. Resurrecting a brutal killing machine such as the electric chair 
violates these values," said Richard Cizik, President of the New Evangelical 
Partnership for the Common Good in Fredericksburg. "Gov. McAuliffe has no moral 
choice but to veto this bill."

Pope Francis has spoken on the Catholic Church's opposition to the death 
penalty, saying it shouldn't be used no matter how serious the crime that was 
committed.

He also proclaimed 2016 the Year of Mercy.

The faith leaders are urging McAuliffe to honor the teachings of his Catholic 
faith, which says execution by the state would violate the sanctity of life.

(source: newsplex.com)

*******************

Turner Ashby alum's case goes to US Supreme Court


Right now, Rockingham County death row inmate, Ivan Teleguz, is on his last 
resort in avoiding the death penalty. Teleguz's execution has been essentially 
paused as his defense works his final shot at an appeal.

The U.S. Fourth Circuit Court of Appeals granted Teleguz's stay just a week 
from his scheduled execution. That's because he's appealed to the U.S. Supreme 
Court. His defense argues that Teleguz was not correctly advised during trial.

Now, he's got 2 options left. He's hoping either Gov. Terry McAuliffe 
intervenes or that the Supreme Court will listen to his concerns.

McAuliffe has only had 1 opportunity for offering clemency before, and that was 
with former convicted murderer Alfredo Prieto. That request was denied and 
Prieto was executed in October.

There's another twist in Teleguz's execution process: it's not clear whether 
it's even possible. Prison leaders claim they don't have enough lethal 
injection drugs to carry executions out.

This Sunday marks the deadline for McAuliffe to sign off on House Bill 815. It 
would make the electric chair the default option if lethal injection is not 
possible.

Should the state run out of the drugs --and McAuliffe veto the bill-- it could 
put a stop to executions until another option is found.

Teleguz was convicted of hiring a man to kill his former girlfriend in 2006. 
Since then, 2 key prosecution witnesses have recanted.

Death penalty petitions are expedited within the Supreme Court.The defense 
expects to hear on whether the high court will look at the case by October.

A number of Teleguz advocates are questioning what they say are holes in 
evidence and the key witnesses. Non-profit group Virginia Capital 
Representation Resource Center started the Ivan's Prayer for Justice movement.

Their Change.ORG petition already has nearly 65,000 signatures.

--------

ORIGINAL STORY (April 6): By Terry Ward


In 2006, Ivan Teleguz was convicted of hiring a man to kill his past 
girlfriend. Stephanie Sipe died in Harrisonburg in the alleged murder-for-hire. 
Teleguz was sentenced to death and scheduled for execution on April 13 of this 
year.

However, the U.S. Fourth Circuit Court of Appeals has intervened and postponed 
the execution while the U.S. Supreme Court examines the Teleguz case.

2 witnesses for the prosecution have apparently withdrawn parts of their 
statements. There is also uncertainty about whether the state would have 
sufficient amounts of lethal injection drugs on hand at the scheduled time.

As the originally-scheduled execution date approached, a call for Governor 
McAuliffe to grant Teleguz clemency gained a large social media following, and 
has attracted the attention of journalists across the U.S. and internationally. 
Many have used the case as an example of a broken system and a reason to 
question the death penalty.

Marsha Garst, who has been the commonwealth's attorney for Rockinham County and 
Harrisonburg since 1999, was the key prosecutor in the 2006 case. 
Ukrainian-born Teleguz attended Turner Ashby High School in Rockingham County, 
Va.

(source: WHSV news)






GEORGIA----new execution date and impending execution

Authorities say an April 27 execution date has been scheduled for a man 
convicted in the 1998 triple murders of a trucking company owner and his 2 
children in Georgia


A late April execution date has been set for man convicted in the 1998 triple 
murders of a central Georgia trucking company owner and his 2 children, 
authorities said Thursday.

Daniel Anthony Lucas is scheduled to be executed at 7 p.m. on April 27 at the 
state prison in Jackson, said a statement from Commissioner Homer Bryson of the 
Department of Corrections. Georgia executes inmates using an injection of the 
barbiturate pentobarbital.

Lucas, 37, received the death sentence in 1999 for the killings of Steven Moss, 
37, his 11-year-old son Bryan and 15-year-old daughter Kristin, who interrupted 
a burglary at their home near Macon in central Georgia.

Another man convicted in the murders, Brandon Joseph Rhode, was put to death in 
September 2010. His execution was delayed by about a week after Rhode tried to 
kill himself by slashing his arms and throat just hours before he was initially 
set to be executed.

Lucas and Rhode were searching the Moss home for valuables in April 1998 when 
Bryan Moss saw them through a front window, and entered through a back door 
armed with a baseball bat, prosecutors have said. They say the 2 then wrestled 
Bryan to a chair and Lucas shot him in the shoulder.

Lucas then led the boy to a bedroom and shot him multiple times, prosecutors 
have said.

Rhodes met Kristin as she got home from school and forced her to sit on a chair 
and shot her twice with a pistol, according to court records. Rhode then 
ambushed Steven Moss when he arrived home, shooting him 4 times with the same 
pistol. Lucas later shot the 2 children again to make sure they were dead, 
according to the records.

Moss' wife, Gerri Ann, discovered the bodies when she returned home from work.

Several witnesses saw Rhode's vehicle as the pair fled the house and one of 
them identified Lucas as the passenger, prosecutors have said. Damage to the 
vehicle's front and rear bumpers matched damage to a propane tank and a cinder 
block at the Moss home.

Georgia has already executed 3 inmates this year and a 4th is scheduled to die 
Tuesday.

(source: Associated Press)

****************

Murderer Kenneth Fults requests steak dinner for last meal


Kenneth Fults, who is scheduled to be executed Tuesday, has asked for a steak 
dinner on his last day.

Fults, 47, is to be put to death for the 1996 murder of his 19-year-old next 
door neighbor.

Fults pleaded guilty to killing Cathy Bounds 20 years ago and only went to 
trial to be sentenced.

Fults went on a week-long crime spree, breaking into houses in Spalding County 
so he could steal guns, planning to use them to kill his ex-girlfriend's new 
boyfriend. He tried to shoot his rival from afar but the stolen gun jammed, so 
he wanted to get a more reliable gun to finish his plan, according to 
prosecutors.

The next morning, Fults broke into Bounds' trailer just moments after her live 
in boyfriend left for work. Fults wrapped 6-feet of electrical tape around her 
eyes, led her to the bedroom and placed her face down on the bed. As Bounds 
begged for her life, offering him the rings on her fingers, he placed a pillow 
over the back of her head and shot her 5 times.

Investigators canvassing the trailer park after the Jan. 30, 1996, murder found 
the stolen .22-caliber handgun used to kill Bounds, items taken in previous 
burglaries and a letter Fults had written in gang code describing how he 
murdered his neighbor.

Fults is scheduled to die by lethal injection at 7 p.m. Tuesday at the Georgia 
Diagnostic and Classification near Jackson.

If he is put to death, Fults will be the 4th person Georgia has executed by 
lethal injection this year. A 5th man, Daniel Anthony Lucas, was scheduled 
Thursday to be put to death on April 27 for killing a Jones County father and 
his 2 children, 1 by 1, on April 23, 1998.

The only other time Georgia has executed as many as 5 people in a year was last 
year and in 1987.

(source: Atlanta Journal Constitution)






FLORIDA:

Convicted killer in Altamonte Springs double murder could return to trial


A 2006 double murder in Altamonte Springs could soon go back to trial with the 
convicted killer going free. The man's attorneys are asking the Florida Supreme 
Court for a new trial, and new death penalty rules could be a factor.

Clemente Aguirre-Jarquin was sentenced to death in 2006 for the double murder 
of his neighbors Sheryl Williams and her mother Carol Bareis in Seminole 
County.

His attorneys told the Florida Supreme Court Thursday that Agiurre-Jarquin is 
an innocent man and deserves a new trial. They said new evidence shows 
Williams' daughter, Samantha, killed her own mother and grandmother. Tests 
found her DNA at the scene, but the tests weren't done until after the 
conviction.

Samantha Williams reportedly admitted to killing her family in a police report 
in 2010. She has a history of mental illness.

"The reality is that with the new DNA evidence, the confessions, with the new 
forensic evidence, all of that evidence demands Mr. Aguirre be given a new 
trial," said attorney Lindsey Boney.

But Assistant Attorney General Jim Riecks said there are holes in the argument.

"It is important to know that Samantha was never violent towards anyone 
individually," Riecks said. "She only hurt herself."

Riecks told the court Aguirre-Jarquin had his neighbors' blood on his clothes 
after the murders.

"He told an interpreter, 'I did it,'" Riecks said.

There's still a chance that Florida's new death penalty sentencing laws come 
into play. A 9-3 and 7-5 recommended death for Aguirre-Jarquin for the 2 
murders, but the U.S. Supreme Court ruled the old system unconstitutional.

"If the Supreme Court releases their opinion and denies the appeal, he could 
get relief through Hearst if it's retroactive, which it should be."

Florida's new law requires at least 10 jurors in agreement.

(source: news4jax.com)

******************

Triple-murder defendant won't seek insanity defense


The defense for Andres "Andy" Avalos Jr. will not use an insanity defense but 
will seek to move the trial outside of Manatee County because of pretrial 
publicity.

Avalos is charged with killing his wife, neighbor and a local pastor.

The Bradenton Herald (http://goo.gl/IwJLBU) reports Avalos appeared before 
Circuit Judge Diana Moreland Thursday as attorneys for both sides argued 
multiple issues surrounding the death penalty. Defense attorney Andrew Crawford 
indicated to the court that he would not be seeking an insanity defense, 
despite his intention to enter some psychological evidence as it relates to 
medication.

Avalos is charged with 3 counts of 1st-degree murder for the 2014 slayings of 
Amber Avalos, Denise Potter and the Rev. Jason "Tripp" Battle.

If convicted, Avalos could face life in prison or the death penalty.

(source: Associated Press)






ALABAMA:

Death row inmates could make innocence claim under Senate bill


The Alabama Senate today passed a bill to set up an Innocence Inquiry 
Commission that could review new evidence of innocence in some death penalty 
cases.

Sen. Dick Brewbaker, R-Montgomery, said his bill came in response to the case 
of death row inmate William "Bill" Kuenzel.

Kuenzel was convicted in the 1987 shooting death of a Sylacauga store clerk.

Kuenzel's lawyers say grand jury testimony from a key witness, a 16-year-old 
girl, contradicts her court testimony that she saw Kuenzel at the store.

The discrepancy was discovered in 2010 and Kuenzel's lawyers missed a court 
filing deadline to raise the issue.

Last week, the Alabama Supreme Court declined to review Kuenzel's innocence 
claim.

"It's almost incredible that when no one is disputing that there's exculpatory 
evidence that no one's ever seen and for the court to reject that on the basis 
of a missed appellate deadline," Brewbaker said.

The court ruling was 7-2, with Chief Justice Roy Moore and Justice Glenn 
Murdock dissenting.

Brewbaker read from Moore's dissent on the Senate floor today. The Senate 
passed the bill by a vote of 20-6.

Brewbaker said he was optimistic the House would pass the bill and that the 
commission would be established and hear Kuenzel's claims.

The commission's jurisdiction would be limited to death penalty cases in which 
"credible, verifiable evidence of innocence" not previously considered by a 
court is found.

The commission would have 9 members and employ a director. It could subpoena 
witnesses and evidence.

If 5 of the 9 members determine there is sufficient evidence of innocence to 
warrant a court review, the case would go before a 3-judge panel in the circuit 
court where it originated. All 9 members would have to agree in cases in which 
the defendant pleaded guilty.

The chief justice would appoint the 3-judge panel, which would not include any 
trial judge who had substantial previous involvement.

After an evidentiary hearing, if all 3 judges on the panel determine there is 
clear and convincing evidence that the convicted person is innocent, charges 
would be dropped.

If the vote is not unanimous, the convictions would stand.

Kuenzel, who has been on death row since 1988, has gained support for his 
claims of innocence from a group of lawyers, former district attorneys, 
ministers, and actors, including Law & Order actor Sam Waterston.

(source: al.com)

*********************

Convicted killer could get released because of proposed bill


$30 million. That's the average amount the Death Penalty Information Center 
says is spent on an inmate on death row.

That's for appeal after appeal, which they're entitled too, and taxpayers foot 
the bill.

But what if they're innocent? Are they entitled to another trial?

A bill that just passed the senate Thursday afternoon would take a look at some 
potentially wrongful convictions. Under this bill, the Innocence Commission 
would take a look at any capital murder cases where new evidence has been 
found.

The bill is sponsored by Montgomery Senator Dick Brewbaker, who says an inmate 
currently on death row is the reason behind it.

"Because there's nobody in there who wants to take a chance on executing 
somebody who's in fact innocent," says Senator Brewbaker.

Billy Kuenzel was sentenced to death in 1988, for the murder of a woman during 
a robbery. He's appealed his conviction multiple times.

His last appeal was denied by the State Supreme Court just a few days ago.

In his dissent, Chief Justice Roy Moore said that Kuenzel wants to present new 
evidence that a witness who put him at the scene of the crime couldn't possibly 
have positively identified him.

But that evidence was discovered in 2010, and Kuenzel's court filings weren't 
filed until 2013, long past the 6 month deadline.

"We've seen in Kuenzel's case, people have known for a good while that there's 
new evidence, but there hasn't been any way to get it before court because of 
misfiling deadlines,??? says Senator Brewbaker.

Brewbaker's bill would create the Innocence Commission, a group of nine judges, 
attorney's, advocates, sheriff's, and members of the public.

"The innocence commission can only hear cases where there's new evidence that's 
never been heard by any court," says Senator Brewbaker.

Those 9 members would then vote, and if there's 5 votes, it would send that 
case down to the court where it was heard the 1st time around.

Kuenzel's lawyer, who took the case pro bono, spoke with WAAY 31 back in 
October.

"The most important thing is for my innocent client who is in a 5 by 8 cell 23 
hours a day, for him to know there's a reason for him to remain hopeful and to 
fight," says David Kochman.

The bill was approved in the senate. It now heads to the house for a vote.

(source: WAAY)




OHIO:

Man found guilty for triple murder in Barberton, could face death penalty


Eric Hendon was found guilty on Thursday for a triple murder in Barberton that 
happened more than 2 years ago.

He was charged with Aggravated Murder, Attempted Murder, Aggravated Robbery, 
Felonious Assault, and Having a Weapon Under Disability. He could possibly face 
the death penalty.

His brother, Michael Hendon was convicted in the murders late last year and 
received 3 life sentences to be served consecutively without the possibility of 
parole.

Barberton triple murderAccording to officials, the brothers broke into John 
Kohler's house on New Year's Eve 2013 to rob him. The Hendons killed Kohler and 
his kids, 18-year-old Ashley Carpenter and 14-year-old David Kohler Carpenter.

Kohler's girlfriend was also shot, but survived.

Eric Hendon's trial began back in October 2015.

Sentencing will begin on April 19.

(source: Fox news)