[Deathpenalty] death penalty news----OHIO, KAN., MO., COLO., ARIZ.

[Rick Halperin]

Nov. 6



OHIO:

Ohio Supreme Court affirms death sentence for Ashford Thompson in shooting 
death of Twinsburg police officer


The Ohio Supreme Court on Oct. 29 affirmed the death sentence of a man 
convicted in the 2008 shooting death of a Twinsburg police officer.

Justices were in agreement on Ashford Thompson's conviction, but they were 
split, 4-3, on whether he should receive a capital sentence for the crime.

Thompson was found guilty in 2010 of 2 counts of aggravated murder after 
shooting 33-year-old Joshua Miktarian multiple times in the head during a 
late-night traffic stop.

During oral arguments before the state's high court earlier this year, legal 
counsel for Thompson said his death sentence should be overturned due legal and 
procedural errors made during his trial, among other issues.

Prosecutors, however, cited comments made by Thompson at a bar before the 
shooting and other evidence in seeking affirmation of his death sentence.

In her decision siding with the latter, Justice Judith L. French wrote that the 
legal process instituting a death sentence was conducted in proper order, and 
the penalty was appropriate for the crime.

"Thompson's murder of a police officer engaged in official duties and his 
commission of murder to escape detection are both 'grave circumstances.' These 
circumstances clearly outweigh the mitigating factors beyond a reasonable 
doubt. As a result, we find that a death sentence is appropriate."

French was joined by Chief Justice Maureen O'Connor and Justices Terrence 
O'Donnell and Sharon Kennedy in affirming Thompson's death sentence.

Justices Paul Pfeifer and William O'Neill were among the dissenting votes on 
the death sentence portion of the decision.

"... I do not agree that a death sentence is warranted," Pfeifer wrote. "I 
conclude that the mitigating circumstances, particularly Thompson's history, 
character and background, are sufficient to outweigh the aggravating 
circumstances. I would sentence to life without parole."

O'Neill added, "Ohio's system of imposing and reviewing death sentences is 
unconstitutional."

(source: Twinsburg Bulletin)






KANSAS----female may face death penalty

Prosecutors seek death-penalty option for woman in deaths of Valley Center 
couple


Prosecutors filed a court document Wednesday that will allow them to seek the 
death penalty against Kisha Schaberg, 1 of 4 people accused of killing a Valley 
Center couple last year.

Dressed in a colorful blouse and wearing ankle shackles, Schaberg sat 
impassively as Sedgwick County District Attorney Marc Bennett announced during 
her arraignment that he wanted an option to ask for Schaberg's execution if she 
is convicted of capital murder in the Nov. 15, 2013, shootings of her son's 
adoptive parents, Roger and Melissa Bluml.

The document, called a Notice of Intent to Request Separate Sentencing 
Proceeding, reserves that option but does not state whether prosecutors 
actually will ask for the death penalty. In an e-mail after the hearing, 
Bennett said a final decision has not yet been made.

The document also gives notice that prosecutors at Schaberg's sentencing 
hearing may present evidence relevant to any of 4 aggravating circumstances 
alleged in the case: That the defendant "knowingly or purposely killed" 
multiple people; committed the crime to receive money or other valuables; 
authorized another person to commit the crime; and/or that the crime was 
"especially heinous, atrocious or cruel."

"By filing the notice, the law allows me to seek the death penalty in the 
future," Bennett said by e-mail. "I am not required to do so and am free to 
seek it or not seek it in the future."

Such notices must be filed within 5 days of an arraignment, he added.

Schaberg's attorney, Jeffrey Wicks, could not be reached for comment after the 
hearing. He is a member of the Kansas Death Penalty Defense Unit.

In Kansas, a defendant can be charged with capital murder if 2 or more people 
are killed as part of the same felony act. If convicted, Schaberg, 36, could 
face the death penalty or life in prison without parole eligibility.

Also charged in Roger and Melissa Blumls' killings is their adoptive son, 
19-year-old Anthony Bluml, and 2 of his friends, Braden Smith and Andrew 
Ellington. Anthony Bluml is Schaberg's biological son.

All 4 defendants have been charged with capital murder or, in the alternative, 
2 counts of 1st-degree murder. They also face 2 counts of aggravated robbery, a 
burglary charge and a theft charge.

Melissa and Roger Bluml were shot in the head as they sat in a car outside 
their rural Valley Center home. The shootings were part of a plot to gain life 
insurance money and also because of resentment of the couple, according to 
testimony given by Smith during a July court hearing.

Melissa Bluml, 53, died at a Wichita hospital the next day. Her husband, 
48-year-old Roger Bluml, succumbed to his injuries about 5 weeks later.

Schaberg allegedly pulled the trigger, Smith testified in July.

In addition to hearing the district attorney's sentencing announcement 
Wednesday, Schaberg waived a formal reading of the charges and her right to a 
speedy trial.

Because of the severity of the charges and possible punishment, it could take a 
year or longer for her case to go before a jury, according to a court document 
filed by her attorney.

"Do you understand that by waiving your speedy trial right you are waiving your 
right to have this matter brought to trial within 150 days?" District Judge 
Jeffrey Goering asked.

"Yes, sir," Schaberg quietly replied.

"And you're OK with that?"

"Yes, sir," she said.

Goering entered a not-guilty plea on Schaberg???s behalf and set her next court 
date - a status conference - for Jan. 13.

At the conference, the judge will receive an update on the case's progress from 
attorneys. A trial date will be set later.

Of the other 3 defendants charged in the case:

-- Anthony Bluml pleaded not guilty last month. Prosecutors in October said 
they may ask that Bluml be executed if convicted. He is set for jury trial Nov. 
17, though the date likely will be postponed.

-- Andrew Ellington, 19, is scheduled for arraignment Nov. 20.

-- Braden Smith, 19, has pleaded not guilty and is set for jury trial Monday, 
though the date will likely be postponed.

This summer he struck a plea deal with prosecutors that would reduce his 
capital murder charge to 2 counts of 2nd-degree intentional murder in exchange 
for his testimony against the other 3. Prosecutors will ask that Smith be 
sentenced to 24.5 years in prison, but the judge does not have to abide by 
terms of the plea deal.

Schaberg, Anthony Bluml, Ellington and Smith are being held in Sedgwick County 
Jail in lieu of $2 million bond each.

(source: kansas.com)






MISSOURI----execution date set for Human Rights Day

Execution Set For Missouri Man Who Killed Neighbor


The Missouri Supreme Court has set an execution date for a man convicted of 
sexually assaulting a 63-year-old woman and beating her to death with a hammer.

The state Supreme Court on Thursday scheduled the execution of 47-year-old Paul 
Goodwin for Dec. 10. Missouri has executed 8 men already in 2014, with the 
execution of Leon Taylor scheduled for Nov. 19.

Joan Crotts of St. Louis County was killed March 1, 1998, at her home. Goodwin 
lived in a boarding house next door.

Court documents show that Goodwin sexually assaulted her, threw her down a 
flight of stairs and attacked her with a hammer.

(source: Associated Press)


COLORADO:

DA talks about death penalty at open forum----Lewton: It's something that 
should be utilized, because it's the law


Northeastern Junior College continued its look at the death penalty Wednesday, 
with an open forum sponsored by the Criminal Justice Club, featuring Brittny 
Lewton, District Attorney for the 13th Judicial District. She spoke about how 
prosecutors decide to seek the death penalty in the 32 states where it is an 
available sentencing option.

"In any case, whether it's a theft case, a drug case, a sex assault case, I 
have a lot of factors I have to consider, to determine, 'okay, what charges do 
I file? Do I make a plea out first?' And then what sentencing do I seek, either 
through the plea offer or through the judge," Lewton said.

She pointed out the same analysis goes into death penalty cases as any other 
cases. Prosecutors have to decide if they're going to file on all the possible 
charges or just some. If it's a homicide case, they say, "Alright, is this even 
one that we would consider to be on the death penalty sort of track?"

Those sentenced to death must be adults. They also cannot be mentally ill, 
which she said makes it "a little bit more complicated because the question is 
what is mentally ill? What does it mean? Who makes that determination?"

"Short of those 2 things, it's basically an individual that's committed all or 
part of a crime, in the state of Colorado, that constitutes 1st degree murder," 
Lewton said.

She also noted there are aggravating factors to consider - Was there more than 
one person killed? Was the person who committed the murder trying to cover up a 
crime? Were the victims at risk - old or young?

"There's a whole list of statutory things that you can say, 'alright, my crime 
fits into these or it doesn't," Lewton said.

There are other factors prosecutors must look at as well - What kinds of proof 
issues are there? What does the community want? What does the family want?

"If I've got a victims' family, who of course, have the greatest say, who says, 
'yes, we absolutely want this' or 'no, we absolutely don,' that isn't the 
deciding factor in any case - whether it's a sex assault or the death penalty - 
but it certainly matters," Lewton said.

Additionally, prosecutors must look at whether their office has the resources, 
do they have the attorneys that have the knowledge to do it. Lewton noted in 
Colorado, the Attorney General's Office has a Violent Crimes Unit that will 
assist any DA's office with major crimes, not necessarily death penalty.

Money is also an issue.

"It's not like you have to have sort of cash on hand to do a death penalty 
case, that's not what it is. It's more that you have to hire additional 
investigators and additional legal assistants or staff to file papers," Lewton 
said.

She pointed out that while district attorneys take an oath to uphold law, 
whether they like the law or not, they will have different opinions on 
different things.

"Some people will have much different opinions on sex assaults versus drugs 
versus death penalty. For instance, the DA in Boulder would never seek the 
death penalty, even though he's been sworn to uphold that, he won't, he won't 
because the people in his jurisdiction, very much so, would not support it," 
Lewton said.

In her opinion, if the death penalty fits, "it's something that should be 
utilized, because it is the law."

She pointed out that death penalty cases take a long time - years - and her 
part is just the beginning.

"I charge the defendant, I give notice that I'm going to seek death, we go 
through normal procedures, motions and we have a jury trial, and then the jury 
must decide whether or not to impose death, not the judge," Lewton said, adding 
that a jury trial can last 12-16 weeks. "Once (the death sentence is) imposed, 
then (the case) goes on to Denver, to the Court of Appeals, the Supreme Court, 
maybe up to the United States Supreme Court, but that's all done by appellate 
lawyers."

Additionally, she talked about the challenges that judicial districts with 
prisons, like the 13th, face when an offender that's in prison for life murders 
another offender or a guard.

"What's the punishment for that? It's a bit of a quandary, because on one hand, 
you're thinking they're in there for life, whatever, there's nothing more we 
can do. So, you go through the motions and have them take another guilty plea, 
take another life sentence. But, then sometimes you say, 'well, that doesn't 
seem fair, that doesn't send the right message.'"

After her presentation, she took time to answer questions, including whether 
she believes the death penalty is a deterrent to crime.

"I'm not sure how you directly link the 2; deterrence is a very difficult thing 
to track," Lewton said, adding that they "have recidivism or repeat offenders 
all the time, for all kinds of crimes."

"The prosecutor in me believes there's got to be some deterrence, especially in 
smaller communities like ours, where people know more about things and people 
and stuff and what goes on, I do think that there is a little more deterrence."

She was also asked about the role of DNA testing and the reliability of eye 
witnesses

"DNA is a wonderful tool that we have, both to test old cases, but also for new 
ones," Lewton said, adding that it's a huge help when looking at any proof 
issues there may be with the case.

She pointed out that the Innocence Project has only had one case that was found 
to be a wrongful conviction based on DNA evidence.

"I think that the exoneration stuff, the DNA stuff is a good sort of project 
and should be something that is looked into and funded, but I don't know that 
it's necessarily intertwined with the death penalty as much as maybe the media 
would have you believe it is," Lewton said.

As for eyewitness testimony, she noted that it's flawed like everything else 
and while in some states it carries much more weight, in Colorado there is 
nothing that says eyewitness testimony is given greater weight.

"To me, it's one more factor," Lewton said, adding "I don't give that extra 
weight; I don't give anything extra weight. I look at the case as a totality."

(source: Journal-Advocate)

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

Long list of witnesses in Fero's murder trial


Investigators, family members and prison officers are among the witnesses 
prosecutors plan call to persuade a jury to hand down the death penalty to a 
man accused of stabbing 5 people to death in a Denver bar.

Dexter Lewis faces the death penalty for the attack at Fero's Bar and Grill 
that left 5 people dead in October 2012. The 24-year-old faces 16 counts, 
including first-degree murder, arson and robbery.

If jurors convict Lewis on the murder charges, they will then be asked to 
decide whether to sentence him to death.

In a filing made public last week, prosecutors provided Lewis' attorneys with a 
list of more than 250 witnesses they may call during the sentencing phase. It's 
unlikely prosectors will call all of the witnesses listed, but the filing shed 
some light on what the witnesses will be asked to testify about.

Lewis' co-defendants, brothers Joseph and Lynell Hill, will be asked about 
events leading up to the attack, what happened inside the bar and the group's 
actions after they left the bar. Lynell Hill may also testify about letters he 
received from Lewis while he was in jail, describing an alibi and urging 
everyone to "stick together to fight the case."

The Hill brothers accepted plea agreements in the case. In January, Lynell Hill 
was sentenced to 70 years in prison and his brother, Joseph, was sentenced to 
life in prison without the possibility of parole.

A 4th man, Demarea Harris, was also at the bar with the group. Harris was an 
informant for the U.S. Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives on 
an unrelated investigation at the time of the attack. He was never arrested or 
charged in the case.

The list of witnesses includes dozens of law enforcement officers, including 
Department of Corrections officers and sheriff's deputies who encountered Lewis 
while he was jail and prison.

Jefferson County Sheriff's deputies may describe injuries they suffered after 
Lewis attacked them in February 2009 while he was in jail. Corrections officers 
from Sterling Correctional Facility may be called to testify about Lewis' 
involvement in a 2011 attack of a rival gang member and how Lewis allegedly 
bragged about it.

Denver Sheriff Department deputies may also be called to talk about Lewis' 
alleged assault on another inmate in March 2013.

Victims' family members and Lewis' family are also on the list. A jury pool of 
at least 600 people will be assembled for the case. Jury selection is scheduled 
to begin on Jan. 20. Opening statements are scheduled to begin on March 16.

(source: Denver Post)






ARIZONA:

Jodi Arias Death Penalty Retrial Put On Hold As She Appears With Possible Signs 
Of Injury


Courtroom secrets have delayed the Jodi Arias death penalty trial for a week 
and RadarOnline.com has all the details.

The halt comes after Arias demanded that the public and media be booted from 
court while a "mystery" witness testifies. The judge told jurors to report back 
to the Maricopa County Courthouse next Wednesday, when the controversy over 
making the trial secret should be resolved by higher courts.

Adding to the intrigue, Arias worse a black brace on one wrist as she watched 
lawyers and the judge meet in a series of secret sidebar conferences Wednesday 
morning.

A Maricopa County Sheriff's spokesman told Radar exclusively that he can't 
comment on anything related to Arias because of an order from the judge.

An appeals court ruled Monday that Judge Sherry Stephen was wrong to toss 
spectators and reporters from court during the testimony of a secret witness 
last Thursday. They issued a stay that halted that testimony. The secret 
witness told the court keeping the courtroom private was required before he or 
she would testify.

The appeals court concluded that Judge Stephens has less restrictive ways of 
achieving that, including turning courtroom cameras off and limiting 
journalists to the overflow room.

Arias defense lawyer Kirk Nurmi objected to the judge's suggestion that the 
trial continue this week with other witnesses while the privacy decision makes 
its way through the appeals process.

"Miss Arias should not be made to suffer because of what the media has done," 
Nurmi argued. The delay could extend the penalty trial which was expected to 
end in December, into early next year, Nurmi said.

Jurors must decide if Arias will be put to death or serve life in prison for 
killing ex-boyfriend Travis Alexander.

The jury that originally convicted her of the murder couldn't reach a verdict 
on her punishment.

(source: showbizspy.com)

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

Death penalty sought in death of girl, 8


A notice to seek the death penalty was filed Wednesday in the prosecution of a 
Bullhead City man charged in the death of his friend's 8-year-old daughter.

Justin Rector, 26, faces kidnapping, 1st-degree murder and other charges in the 
early September strangulation death of Isabella "Bella" Cannella-Grogan.

Prosecutor Greg McPhillips alleges 4 aggravating factors necessary for the 
state to pursue capital punishment, including that the homicide was committed 
in an "especially cruel, heinous and depraved" fashion.

Early police reports indicated Rector admitted smoking methamphetamine for much 
of the day leading up to the time that Bella was discovered to be missing from 
her home on Lakeside Drive late in the evening of Sept. 1. The girl's body was 
found a day and a half later on Sept. 3, buried in a shallow grave about a half 
mile from her home.

Police said Rector's shoe prints were discovered at the burial site and that he 
shoplifted a change of clothes from a nearby Wal-Mart within a few hours of 
Bella's disappearance. Police reports said Rector had been playing hide and 
seek with Bella and her 10-year-old sister and that he was the last adult to be 
seen with her before she went missing.

During a Wednesday afternoon hearing Mohave County Superior Court Judge Lee 
Jantzen ordered that the county secure a 2nd "death penalty qualified" 
attorney, as the law requires, to assist Public Defender Harry Moore in 
representing Rector.

The hearing had been set earlier this week to consider Rector's request to 
serve as his own lawyer in legal proceedings.

Judge Jantzen said he would have to consider the pro per motion later because 
Moore asked the court to order a mental health examination for the defendant. 
Jantzen explained he couldn't consider allowing Rector to represent himself 
until it is determined if he's competent to assist current counsel in his own 
defense.

Jantzen appointed Dr. Mark Harvancik to conduct a mental health examination and 
complete his report by Dec. 3. That report will be considered when Rector next 
appears in court on Dec. 10.

Moore said the exam is necessary because Rector's thought processes could be 
impaired by historic drug abuse. "There seems to be lingering effects from 
intense use of methamphetamine," Moore said.

Rector is being held without bond in the same Mohave County jail that is 
currently housing Bella's mother, Tania Grogan, 29, Grogan's husband Ralph 
Folster, 28, and Folster's mother Freddie Nicholson, 59. Grogan, Folster and 
Nicholson were arrested Oct. 15 in a drug case that evolved from the murder 
investigation.

Each member of the trio is charged with conspiracy to sell dangerous drugs and 
possession of drug paraphernalia. Police records reveal that an informant 
purchased drugs three times from Folster, and once from Folster and Grogan 
together, between Oct. 1 and Oct. 15.

Nicholson was not charged with an actual drug sale.

(source: Las Vegas Review-Journal)

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

Officials seek death penalty for man accused of killing Bullhead City girl


Arizona officials have filed a request to pursue the death penalty for the 
Bullhead City man accused of killing an 8-year-old girl.

Justin Rector is charged in the murder of Isabella Grogan-Cannella in 
September.

Rector has filed a motion to represent himself in court, but that request won't 
be granted until a mental evaluation is performed on him to see whether he's 
competent to assist in his defense.

(source: KTNV news)