[Deathpenalty] death penalty news----ARK., CALIF., USA

[Rick Halperin]

Nov. 22



ARKANSAS:

Arkansas death-case jury found factors met; Torres transferred to prison in 
Grady----Benton County Circuit Judge Brad Karren followed the jury's 
recommendation and ordered Mauricio Torres be sentenced to death by lethal 
injection. Karren set the execution date for Nov. 15, 2017, but an automatic 
appeal will be filed and the execution date will be set aside.


A Benton County jury decided prosecutors proved all of their aggravating 
factors in Mauricio Torres' death penalty case last week.

Torres, 45, of Bella Vista was sentenced to death Tuesday for killing his 
6-year-old son. The jury found Torres guilty of capital murder and 1st-degree 
battery. He also was sentenced to 20 years in prison for the battery 
conviction.

Maurice Isaiah Torres, 6, died March 30, 2015, at a Bella Vista hospital. A 
medical examiner testified the boy's death was caused by a bacterial infection 
as a result of being sodomized with a stick. The medical examiner also 
testified chronic child abuse contributed to the child's death.

Mauricio Torres admitted placing a stick in his son's rectum but claimed his 
wife, Cathy, shoved their son down on the stick. She is charged with capital 
murder and 1st-degree battery. Her trial is set for May.

Nathan Smith, Benton County's prosecuting attorney, listed three aggravating 
factors for seeking the death penalty, and the jury found all existed: Torres 
previously committed another violent felony; the murder was committed in an 
especially cruel and depraved manner; and the murder was committed against a 
victim Torres knew was especially vulnerable because the boy was 12 years or 
younger.

Torres' defense team provided the jury with about a dozen mitigating 
circumstances, or reasons, why he should not receive the death sentence.

The jury did not think the following circumstances existed: Torres committed 
the murder while under extreme mental or emotional disturbance or while he was 
acting under unusual pressure or domination of another person; the murder was 
committed by another person and Torres was an accomplice playing a minor role; 
and Torres had no significant history of criminal activity, had a difficult 
relationship with his family, has skills that would help him to contribute to 
society in prison and he attempted to revive his son and is remorseful for his 
son's death.

5 times all jury members found that a mitigating circumstance existed: He was a 
hardworker, he was an occupational therapist assistant, he helped other people 
recover from injuries, he suffered from obesity and other associated medical 
problems, and he was abandoned as a child by his mother and grew up without 
her.

Twice a juror agreed a circumstance existed -- Torres was exposed to civil war 
during his childhood in El Salvador, and he did not intend to cause the death 
of his son.

Jurors did not write down any of their own mitigating factors.

The jury then had to decide whether the aggravating factors outweighed the 
mitigating circumstances. The 7 men and 5 women decided that beyond a 
reasonable doubt the aggravating factors justified a death sentence, and all 12 
signed the form recommending the death sentence.

"It makes sense that the jury found that there were some mitigating 
circumstances since the law requires them to consider that," Smith said Monday. 
"Ultimately, the jury concluded that the aggravating circumstances were of such 
gravity to justify a death sentence as the law directs. I am grateful for the 
care the jury took in reaching their decision and for their service."

Kim Anderson of Springdale was an alternate juror in the trial. Anderson sat 
through the trial with the other jurors but didn't vote or take part in any 
deliberations.

"The law took the emotion out of the process," she said after the trial. "I saw 
a system work as it was intended to. I personally think it was a very tough 
decision, but one that would have to be made. If we were to follow the law it 
was the only decision that could be made. It was tough but right."

Mauricio Torres was transferred from the Benton County jail to Varner Supermax 
in Grady on Friday.

(source: arkansasonline.com)






CALIFORNIA:

Father of murdered 3-year-old girl: 'She was brain dead - there was no way of 
surviving' -- Christopher Cheary has been convicted in the death of Sophia 
Acosta. A Tulare County jury is now deciding if he should receive the death 
penalty.

The father of 3-year-old Sophia Acosta testified Monday that the loss of his 
daughter still haunts him 5 years after she died from injuries suffered at the 
hands of her mother's live-in boyfriend.

Obie Acosta, Sophia's father, was among the witnesses called to testify in the 
penalty phase of the Tulare County murder trial against Christopher Cheary, who 
could be sentenced to death.

Cheary, 25, was found guilty Nov. 14 of 1st-degree murder in the death of his 
girlfriend's child, who was living with the couple in an Exeter apartment. The 
jury also found true 2 special circumstances of sexual penetration with a 
foreign object and torture.

On May 11, 2011, the girl was taken to Kaweah Delta Medical Center in Visalia 
and later Valley Children's Hospital. She died a few days later. A coroner 
ruled that blunt-force trauma was the cause of death.

Because of the special circumstances, Cheary faces either the death penalty or 
life in prison without the possibility of parole.

The Tulare County Superior Court jury of 5 women and 7 men that found him 
guilty has been hearing witnesses called by both the prosecution and the 
defense for the penalty phase.

Acosta, the girl's father, who had split from the child's mother, testified 
that he went to the hospital to see his daughter.

"I just remember sitting by her side, just holding her hand," he said. "Later 
on they called me, said she was brain dead - there was no way of surviving it."

Her organs were used in transplants.

5 years later, the death of his first-born child weighs on him, he said.

"It affects me a lot," he said. "There are nights I can't sleep ... I have to 
keep myself busy ... so I don???t get stuck on it."

After the girl's father testified, defense attorneys called Cheary's mother, 
Laura Campanur, to the stand. She testified that her son was hyperactive as a 
child and took Adderall and Zoloft to calm him down so he could sit still in 
class, and other medications when he was older.

She said her husband used illegal drugs and went to rehab twice. Their rocky 
marriage failed and she filed for divorce when her son was in 8th grade, she 
said.

Her son got failing grades in junior high and did not graduate from high 
school, she said.

He started smoking marijuana, and after he moved into an apartment as a teen 
with his older brother she learned he was using heroin, she said. At the time, 
she did not have custody, so it was hard to help him, she said.

Campanur said she loves her son and has stayed in steady contact with him for 
the 5 years he has been in jail, by telephone and visits.

"He so affectionate," she said. "I get a lot of my strength from him."

Prosecutor David Alavezos read from a transcript of a telephone call that 
Cheary made from jail.

"I'm tired of sitting here with my hands crossed, looking like a scared little 
puppy," Cheary said in the transcript.

A former teacher testified in his favor.

Jerrie Ogden of Stanislaus County said she was his teacher in Denair when 
Cheary was in 8th grade.

"Chris was always respectful and he was a very sweet person, always smiling, 
always a good sense of humor," she said.

(source: Fresno Bee)






USA:

Gary Lee Sampson Trial: Defense Begins Follow Up----The defense continues with 
its case Tuesday, then jurors will take a break until after the Thanksgiving 
holiday.


As Gary Lee Sampson fights for his life in his federal death penalty retrial, 
the government rested its case in chief Monday and the defense took over, 
presenting its first witness.

Retired Terre Haute federal penitentiary warden and defense team correctional 
consultant Mark Beezy testified about the conditions Sampson could face in 
prison if he is given a life sentence.

This video of Sampson allegedly attempting to assault a corrections officer 
with a broom handle sharpened into a shank was central to the testimony. The 
government arguing it shows how dangerous Sampson is while in custody, even in 
the Special Containment Unit on death row.

Beezy testified that even the current warden believes Sampson's bark is worse 
than his bite.

He said on the stand, "I see him as a cell warrior. As long as he's in 
restraints he knows he can't do it, so he throws wolf tickets out to show 
everyone how big and bad he is."

Beezy also testified that Sampson told him that if he was able to get off death 
row, his goals for the future would be to spend time in the prison library, 
explore his artistic side by painting more, and visit with his brother.

Beezy has testified for the defense in 16 death penalty cases, including on 
behalf of Boston Marathon bomber Dzhokhar Tsarnaev.

The defense continues with its case Tuesday, then jurors will take a break 
until after the Thanksgiving holiday.

(source: necn.com)

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

Dylann Roof competency hearing will continue Tuesday


A federal judge's closed-door competency hearing to discuss a new psychiatric 
evaluation of church shooter Dylann Roof stretched through Monday and will 
resume Tuesday, a court official said.

U.S. District Judge Richard Gergel is presiding over the hearing to determine 
if the self-avowed white supremacist is competent to face his looming death 
penalty trial.

Last week, Gergel banned the public from the hearing despite pleas from many of 
the 9 Emanuel AME Church shooting victims' families and the survivors who 
wanted to observe the proceedings. Several media outlets, including The Post 
and Courier, also objected to the closure.

Gergel said that once the competency hearing is completed, he would release a 
public order stating whether he has found Roof competent to stand trial, 
although he did not say when he would do so.

The judge also pledged to review a transcript of the hearing and release 
portions that don't need to be kept confidential. His staff, he added, will 
work through the Thanksgiving holiday to complete those tasks.

At the competency hearing, attorneys had planned to discuss a new 
court-appointed psychiatric examiner's report, which relied heavily on 
interviews with Roof. Gergel said last week that the report contains sensitive 
details that, if revealed, could threaten Roof's rights to a fair trial and 
impartial jury, particularly given the jury hasn't been selected.

New questions about Roof's mental state arose 2 weeks ago, just minutes before 
jury selection was set to begin. After defense attorneys filed a sealed motion, 
Gergel found reason to believe Roof might suffer a "mental disease or defect" 
that rendered him unable to assist properly in his defense or to grasp the 
nature and consequences of the proceedings against him, as the law requires. 
Gergel ordered an evaluation, which was completed last week.

Roof, 22, is accused of gunning down nine worshipers during the Charleston 
church's Bible study in June 2015. Authorities say he targeted his victims 
because they were black. In all, the Eastover man faces 33 federal charges, 
including violations of hate crime laws and religious freedoms.

If Gergel finds Roof competent to stand trial, jury selection is scheduled to 
begin Nov. 28. If Gergel finds the killer incompetent, he could send Roof to a 
prison psychiatric facility. The staff there would work to restore Roof's 
competency so he could face his trial.

Roof has offered to plead guilty and serve life in prison, but federal 
authorities are seeking the death penalty.

Meanwhile, he also faces the death penalty in state court. That trial is 
scheduled to begin in mid-January.

(source: The Post and Courier)

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

The cost of the Dylann Roof trial


With the death penalty on the table, the federal murder trial for accused 
Charleston church shooter Dylann Roof could be the most expensive trial ever 
held in Charleston County.

The average cost of a federal death penalty trial is more than $600,000 
according to the Office of Defender Services. That is 8 times more expensive 
than a federal murder case when death is not considered. Every trial is 
different and so are the costs associated with them, but a few factors could 
send the price tag soaring. Roof is facing 33 charges including murder and 
civil rights violations for the shooting at Emanuel AME church June 17, 2015.

High profile death penalty cases have been known to skyrocket in price, costing 
taxpayers millions of dollars.

For example, in July 2014, a Colorado jury found James Holmes guilty on 24 
counts of first-degree murder for the Aurora theater massacre. According to the 
Denver Post, it cost at least $3 million to prosecute the capital case against 
Holmes. This includes $1.2 million for victims advocacy services and travel for 
family, $775,000 for expert witnesses and other costs associated with the 
District Attorney's office. Another $612,000 was spent on two state-appointed 
psychiatric evaluations. The total doesn't include unreleased costs related to 
Holmes's defense. Holmes faced the death penalty but was sentenced to life in 
prison.

Ten years earlier, the capital murder trials against Beltway Snipers John Allen 
Muhammad and Lee Boyd Malvo both cost more than a million dollars according to 
the Associated Press. Muhammad and Malvo were tried separately in 2004 and both 
trials were relocated from Northern Virginia. Muhammad's trial cost $1.4 
million, including $886,000 for his defense. Malvo's trial cost the state of 
Virginia $1.3 million with more than $1 million to pay for his defense. The 
defense paid $59,000 for one expert witness alone according to the Associated 
Press. Both Muhammad and Malvo were convicted, but only Muhammed received a 
death sentence. He was executed in 2009.

"If you're going to be exacting the ultimate punishment, you need to make sure 
you got it right," Summerville attorney Robert Robbins said.

Robbins has practiced law in the Lowcountry for almost 30 years and worked on 
both sides of murder cases. He helped prosecute several capital cases while 
working in the Solicitor's office in Summerville from 1997 to 2004.

"I think it is the amount of work involved in these cases that drives the cost 
up," Robbins said.

That work includes the investigation of the crime scene and investigation into 
the defendant. This can include hundreds of hours of preparation from the 
prosecution and the defense.

We filed nearly a dozen Freedom of Information Act requests to local, state and 
federal agencies but were denied the costs associated with the trial. Each 
agency told us the records were either unavailable at this point in the process 
or releasing them could interfere with the judicial proceedings.

Some associated costs are already available due to fixed payments by the court 
system. The cost of the jury in federal court could be at least four times 
higher than a state murder trial. Anyone summoned for federal jury duty is paid 
$40 per day plus expenses, compared to a state juror who is paid $10 plus 
expenses.

The cost of picking a jury in the Dylann Roof federal trial has already 
exceeded $30,000 during the initial summons. Almost 800 jurors were called in 
during the last week of September. The voir dire process of questioning 
individual jurors could a few weeks, costing an additional $15,000 to finally 
seat a jury.

Costs will continue to rise each day of the trial, and one expensive part for 
the prosecution or defense could be the testimony of an expert witness.

"If their rate is $300 an hour and if they're not local, then you probably have 
to fly them in, house them in a hotel and then they're here for whatever period 
of time at that rate," Robbins said. "Yeah, it could be several thousand 
dollars just to secure their testimony."

The cost of security around the trial must also be considered. The Boston 
Police Department reported it spent almost $750,000 in overtime during the 
5-month trial of Boston Marathon bomber Dzhokhar Tsarnaev.

In our FOIA requests, we reached out to the Federal Bureau of Investigation, US 
Marshals, Charleston County Sheriff's Office and the Charleston Police 
Department, but were told costs were not available at this time.

"We don't talk about specific numbers assigned because that's not appropriate 
for us in terms of our security planning," Charleston Police Chief Greg Mullen 
said.

A technology cost associated with the trial was paid for by a federal grant. 
Charleston County received $61,000 to provide live streaming of the trial to 
overflow courtrooms provided to family and media.

The total cost of the trial may not be known until all legal proceedings are 
done, but it is expected to carry a price tag higher than any other trial in 
Charleston County.

(source: WCSC news)

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

Bo Dietl: Cop Killers 'Should Be Put Up for Execution'


The murder of a police officer should be a federal crime, and anyone breaking 
that law should be sentenced to death, New York media personality and ex-NYPD 
detective Bo Dietl said Monday, a day after 4 police officers were shot, 1 
fatally, on Sunday.

"This is a plague across our country," Dietl told Fox News' "Fox & Friends" 
program, while also noting he plans to challenge New York City Mayor Bill de 
Blasio, as a fellow Democrat, for mayor.

"This is 129 killed this year. What I'm calling out to our new president-elect, 
it should be a federal crime when you kill a police officer and you should be 
open for the death penalty."

4 police officers were shot dead in separate incidents across the nation, and 
police are saying 2 of them were specifically targeted, with one of those 
officers dying of his wounds.

In San Antonio, Detective Benjamin Marconi, 50, a 20-year department veteran, 
was shot to death in his squad car, while he was parked outside police 
headquarters writing a traffic ticket. Also on Sunday, a police sergeant is in 
critical condition after being shot twice in the face during in an ambush 
shooting while he was sitting in traffic in his police cruiser.

Officers were also shot on Sunday in Gladstone, Missouri, and Sanibel, Florida, 
while they were making traffic stops, but it's not known if they were targeted 
for being police officers.

Dietl said he's been involved with President-elect Donald Trump since the 
beginning, and Trump is "one of the greatest supporters of the police. You are 
not going to see none of this nonsense going on which has been the last 8 years 
across the country."

President Barack Obama, said Dietl, says nothing when police officers are shot, 
but "when there's a questionable shooting of a black man, all of a sudden he 
goes and opens his big mouth. Why isn't he say anything about these poor police 
officers? When those 5 officers were killed in Dallas and others in Louisiana?"

But with Trump in office, "he should make it a federal crime and he can if you 
kill a police officer, you should be put up for execution," said Dietl.

Also on Monday, Dietl said he agrees with Trump's stance on banning federal 
funding from sanctuary cities, and the issue will come into play for his 
mayoral campaign, as de Blasio disagrees with Trump.

"My feelings are if you commit a crime, you are illegally in this country," 
said Dietl. "Bye-bye, you get them out of the United States of America. Nobody 
should be able to commit a crime who is illegal in this country and stay."

He said he also believes immigrants need to be identified.

"What is the problem with knowing who is in our city, whether they are illegal 
or legal?" said Dietl. "I want to know where, who they are. I'm not sitting 
here saying I want to deport 11 million people. I'm saying we must identify the 
people who are here."

Also on Monday, Dietl commented on the extra money being spent to protect 
Trump, who has been conducting a series of high-profile transition meetings at 
Trump Tower in Manhattan.

De Blasio has said he will seek reimbursement for the NYPD, and Dietl agrees 
that the federal government should pick up the tab.

"This is the president of the United States and we must protect him and his 
family and the costs should be picked up by the federal government and 
shouldn't be pushed upon the New York City Police Department," said Dietl. 
"That's the only thing I agree with de Blasio on."

(source: newsmax.com)