[Deathpenalty] death penalty news----TEXAS, PENN., MISS., OHIO, IND.

[Rick Halperin]

Nov. 30



TEXAS----impending exeuction

Texas To Execute Scott Panetti Despite Mental Illness, According To Panetti's 
Attorneys


Scott Panetti dies on Wednesday.

The convicted killer murdered his in-laws, Joe and Amanda Alvarado, in 1992. 
This is a fact that he and his attorneys don't dispute.

However, according to NBC News, there are serious questions as to whether the 
state of Texas should follow through with the lethal injection.

For starters, Panetti has been diagnosed as a paranoid schizophrenic. He was 
sentenced to die in 1995 after a disastrous defense in which he represented 
himself, dressed as a cowboy, believing that only the insane could pull off an 
insanity defense, the news site notes.

Since that time, his attorneys describe increasingly delusional behaviors and 
believe that the execution should be called off and reverted to life in prison, 
or at the very least it should be postponed until more mental evaluation can 
occur.

"He cannot appreciate why Texas seeks to execute him," said attorney Kathryn 
Kase, who represents Scott Panetti. "You have to have a rational as well as 
factual understanding of why you're being executed."

Still, the state isn't buying it, stating that the defense had almost 2 decades 
to get the kind of testing they're wanting to get for Panetti.

The crime, described in vivid detail by the Christian Science Monitor, noted 
that Panetti, "heavily armed, head shaved and wearing camouflage - shot and 
killed his in-laws at their Texas Hill Country home, showering his estranged 
wife and 3-year-old daughter in blood."

But the horrific nature of the crime, the report states, doesn't tell the whole 
story. Panetti, prior to taking that deadly action, had been placed in a 
hospital close to a dozen times in the years leading up to the double murder. 
Michael Graczyk of the Associated Press notes a Supreme Court review of the 
Scott Panetti case in 2007 "tweaked the criteria for executing those with 
severe mental disorders by requiring inmates to not only know that they are 
being punished, but to also have a 'rational understanding' of their 
punishment."

"Providing little guidance other than requiring a 'fair hearing' for 
presentation of psychiatric evidence to consider insanity claims," Graczyk 
notes, "the justices returned Panetti's case to lower federal courts, which 
ultimately found him competent."

(source: inquisitr.com)

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

Community braces for ex-Kaufman County JP's murder trial

For nearly 2 years, JR McLelland and his family have tried to focus on healing 
after the slayings of his father - the Kaufman County district attorney - his 
stepmother and another prosecutor.

The capital murder trial of Eric Lyle Williams, which begins Monday, will 
reopen those wounds. But McLelland says they are prepared to deal with the 
painful memories the trial will certainly bring.

"We're happy it's here. We're happy to get it over with," said McLelland. "We 
went through what we went through and did our best to get back to normal. Now, 
we have to live it all over again and then get back there again."

Williams, a former Kaufman County justice of the peace, is accused of the fatal 
January 2013 shooting of Assistant District Attorney Mark Hasse, 57, in a 
parking lot near the courthouse. Authorities say 2 months later, on Easter 
weekend, Williams gunned down District Attorney Mike McLelland, 63, and his 
wife, Cynthia, 65, in their Forney home.

Williams' now-estranged wife, Kim, also has been charged with capital murder in 
the deaths. Her trial is pending.

12 jurors and 2 alternates will hear special prosecutors Bill Wirskye and Toby 
Shook's belief that Williams, 47, killed out of revenge. They will hear and see 
an avalanche of evidence in the case: 2 crime scenes, getaway cars, computer 
searches about the victims, guns and shell casings. "We look forward to 
presenting our evidence to jurors," Wirskye said.

Defense attorney Matthew Seymour declined to comment on his plans for the case.

Eric Williams faces 3 counts of capital murder. But on Monday, prosecutors will 
go forward with the charge accusing him of killing Cynthia McLelland in the 
course of committing burglary and the murder of her husband. Prosecutors are 
seeking the death penalty.

The high-profile nature of the case led state District Judge Mike Snipes to 
move the trial from Kaufman to Rockwall at the request of the defense.

Earlier trial

The case against Eric Williams is unusual for many reasons: the status and 
profile of the victims, the stealthy way the killings were carried out, the 
massive amount of evidence and the fact that prosecutors believe they can show 
jurors a clear-cut motive for the slayings.

Wirskye and Shook - appointed because of the conflict for the Kaufman County 
DA's office - will attempt to show that Williams killed because he was 
prosecuted by Hasse and Mike McLelland for stealing county computer monitors.

During that 2012 trial, Hasse and McLelland portrayed Williams as a thief with 
a violent streak. McLelland told the judge that Williams was "bereft of honor" 
and asked for prison time.

Williams received probation. But he lost his spot as justice of the peace and, 
eventually, his law license.

"The murder of a prosecutor is a rare event. When that prosecutor is murdered 
outside the courthouse, there is no shortage of suspects - including the likely 
list of defendants from the same murdered prosecutor's past docket," Wirskye 
wrote in a previous court filing. "When another prosecutor from the same office 
and his wife are then murdered only 2 months later, it is an unprecedented 
occurrence. ... The list of common defendants, consists of only one defendant - 
Eric Williams."

Much of that evidence that will be used in the trial has been detailed in court 
records, including that Eric Williams sent a message confessing to the murders 
to Crime Stoppers.

Some evidence was found because Kim Williams is cooperating with authorities; 
she is expected to testify against her husband. Authorities have said she was 
in the car during the murders and was the getaway driver for one of them.

Kim Williams' attorney, Paul Johnson, declined to comment about what his client 
will say on the stand. "We have tried to be cooperative and continue to do so," 
he said.

Kim Williams will likely be asked by attorneys to disclose whether she has made 
a deal for her testimony. Even if she answers "no," the defense will want 
jurors to question whether her testimony is tainted because she hopes for 
leniency from prosecutors.

Johnson said "there's nothing on the table at this point."

Prosecutors - with the help of Kim Williams - found the gun linked to the 
slaying of Hasse, as well as a mask that the killer is believed to have worn 
during the murder. Eric Williams dumped the items in Lake Tawakoni on the day 
the McLellands were slain, according to court records.

The gun used in the McLellands' slayings hasn't been found.

Anxious times

When the defense is faced with overwhelming evidence in capital murder cases, 
sometimes lawyers don't offer a vigorous defense in the guilt or innocence 
portion of a trial. Instead, they focus on saving their client's life in the 
punishment phase.

If Seymour goes that route, he must convince jurors of two things: that 
Williams would not be a future threat, even in prison. And, if he would be, 
Seymour must show that there are things in his client's past - mitigating 
circumstances - that warrant a sentence of life without parole instead of 
death.

Among potential witnesses for prosecutors during a possible punishment phase 
are current District Attorney Erleigh Norville Wiley and former judge Glen 
Ashworth. Included in the evidence expected to be presented at trial is that 
Eric Williams also plotted to kill Wiley and Ashworth.

County Judge Bruce Wood said the county is ready to move forward but will 
always remember Hasse and the McLellands.

"Everyone is anxiously awaiting the trial," said Wood. "People are ready to let 
justice prevail, so we have put this behind us. Not that we'll forget."

(source: Dallas Morning News)






PENNSYLVANIA:

Trial starts for man charged with killing officer


The capital murder trial for a man accused of killing a local police officer 
will begin Monday.

Rafael Jones is facing charges of 1st degree murder for allegedly shooting and 
killing police officer Moses Walker in 2012. Walker was shot to death near the 
22nd Police District headquarters where he was assigned. If convicted, Jones 
could face the death penalty. Walker was a 19-year veteran of the force.

Jones' accomplice in the murder, Chancier McFarland pleaded guilty soon after 
his arrest and agreed to testify against Jones when the case went to trial.

Investigators said Walker was killed during an attempted robbery four blocks 
from the 22nd district police station. He was dressed in civilian clothes at 
the time. Jones confessed to killing Walker. Details in a lawsuit that was 
filed against the Pennsylvania Department of Probation and Parole after 
Walker's death showed that Jones allegedly vandalized his mother's home while 
still in his early teens.

Questions immediately arose as to whether Jones should even have been out of 
jail, as he allegedly broke the stipulations of his release when he tested 
positive for narcotics. That litigation is still pending.

At age 15 Jones was arrested on drug charges and was later caught in a stolen 
car. In 2007, when he was 17, he was arrested again for carrying a .38 caliber 
revolver without a license. He served 4 years and parole officials determined 
that because of his troubling criminal history he was a high risk for 
re-offending and denied probation.

Jones, 25, has been charged with murder in the 1st degree, aggravated assault, 
conspiracy, weapons offenses and related charged in connection with Walker's 
murder. Jones allegedly confessed to having killed Walker during an attempted 
robbery.

(source: Phiuladelphia Tribune)






MISSISSIPPI:

Forrest County issues transfer request for Gillett


The story

On June 12, the Mississippi Supreme Court overturned Roger Lee Gillett's death 
sentence stemming from his 2007 conviction on 2 counts of capital murder.

Gillett was convicted for his role in the March 2004 slayings of his cousin, 
Vernon Hulett, 34, and Hulett's girlfriend, Linda Heintzelman, 37, and 
transporting their bodies to Kansas in a freezer.

Lisa Jo Chamberlin, Gillett's girlfriend at the time, also was convicted of 
capital murder in August 2006. She also is now on death row.

While in custody in Kansas, Gillett attempted to escape. That crime was 1 of 
the aggravating factors prosecutors presented jurors to support the death 
penalty.

In a 6-3 decision, the state Supreme Court said not every escape is considered 
a crime of violence under Kansas law. Therefore, wrote Justice Ann Lamar, the 
Kansas crime cannot be used to support a death sentence in Mississippi.

The ruling came in Gillett's post-conviction appeal. In a post-conviction 
petition, an inmate argues he has found new evidence - or a possible 
constitutional issue - that could persuade a court to order a new trial.

Gillett's case was remanded to the Forrest County Circuit Court for 
resentencing.

Gillett and Chamberlin were arrested March 29, 2004, after Kansas Bureau of 
Investigation agents raided an abandoned farm house near Russell, Kansas, owned 
by Gillett's father, and found the dismembered bodies of Hulett and Heintzelman 
in a freezer.

KBI agents were investigating Gillett and Chamberlin for their possible 
connection to the manufacture of methamphetamine.

Gillett and Chamberlin were living with Hulett and Heintzelman in Hattiesburg 
at the time of the slayings.

Chamberlin, in a taped confession played at her trial, said the victims were 
killed because they wouldn't open a safe in Hulett's home.

What happened?

On Nov. 24, Forrest County Circuit Court officials requested that Gillett be 
transferred from Parchman to the Forrest County Jail until he could be 
resentenced.

Officials say the transfer request usually takes about a week and Gillett could 
be returned to Forrest County as early as next week.

What's next?

A date for resentencing will be set.

(source: Hattiesburg American)






OHIO:

Ohio bill to keep execution process secret: Report; A bill about the execution 
process in Ohio aims to keep secret information of the killings.


A new report has revealed that a bill about the execution process in the state 
of Ohio aims to keep secret all information about the killings.

The Guardian reported on Saturday that Republican lawmakers are trying to 
"withhold information on every aspect of the execution process from the public, 
media and even the courts."

The next execution in Ohio is scheduled to happen on February 11.

According to the HB 663 bill, lawyers of death-row inmates would not be able to 
"request disclosure under court protection of the identity and qualifications 
of medical experts who advised the state on their techniques."

Mike Brickner, senior policy director of the American Civil Liberties Union in 
Ohio, said authorities do not want people to understand the cases.

"This bill is trying to do an end run around the courts. When things aren't 
going well, the state is making its actions secret because they don't want 
people to see them screwing up," he said.

Republican state lawmakers Jim Buchy and Matt Huffman framed the draft 
legislation.

The bill has passed the state House of Representatives and will go before the 
state Senate, according to the report.

The death penalty in the United States has come under fire following 
controversial executions in several states in recent years.

In Arizona, an inmate gasped more than 600 times and took nearly 2 hours to 
die.

In another case in Oklahoma, an inmate died of an apparent heart attack 43 
minutes after his botched execution began in April.

In January, an Ohio inmate snorted and gasped for 26 minutes before dying.

States have found it harder to obtain lethal injection drugs after European 
drug companies blocked sales to the US, objecting to the use of their products 
in executions.

US officials are resorting to alternative methods and drugs, which have not 
been tested before.

(source: PressTV)






INDIANA:

Experts: Overstreet ruling may deter death penalty


The hearings that allowed a northern Indiana judge to determine a death row 
inmate wasn't competent to be executed are likely to serve as an example for 
future attorneys arguing over the issue of mental competence, legal experts 
say.

St. Joseph County Judge Jane Woodward Miller relied heavily on the testimony of 
an experienced forensic psychiatrist who evaluated Michael Dean Overstreet and 
also considered Overstreet's long record of mental illness in ruling Nov. 20 
that he is too mentally ill to be executed for the abduction, rape and murder 
of Franklin College student Kelly Eckart.

Experts say her ruling will set the standard for determining competence and 
could make deciding whether to pursue the death penalty even harder.

"It honestly makes me question whether it's ever worth pursuing the death 
penalty again. How many millions of dollars and tens of thousands of hours have 
just been laid to waste?" Johnson County Prosecutor Brad Cooper told the Daily 
Journal.

The U.S. Supreme Court ruled in 1986 that people with severe mental illnesses 
cannot be executed if they cannot understand why the state is putting them to 
death. It updated that ruling in 2007 in a new case filed by Texas death-row 
inmate Scott Panetti, stating that mentally ill prisoners must also be able to 
comprehend why the death penalty is an appropriate punishment and what will 
happen to them when they are executed.

The court left states to determine whether a prisoner is competent based on 
guidelines from the Panetti case.

Overstreet understands the state is executing him because he was convicted of 
confining, raping and killing Eckart. That would make him competent for 
execution under the old standard.

But the Panetti standard bars execution of prisoners who have a severe, 
documented mental illness that is the source of gross delusions that prevent 
the person from understanding the link between crime and punishment.

Court records show Overstreet believes he's either already dead or in a coma 
and that the execution would allow him to wake up in his body and return to his 
family.

Indiana University law professor Jody Madeira said the way Miller reviewed the 
case fulfills the spirit of what the Supreme Court ordered states to determine.

"That is really the Panetti standard. I saw a lot of deference to the 
determination of psychosis, of documented mental illness even beyond the 
testimony among the forensic psychiatrists. There was a lot of careful 
consideration by the judge," Madeira said.

She said Miller's review sets a high threshold that could be more difficult for 
attorneys to prove, especially in cases of death row inmates who suffer from 
shorter-term or less severe illnesses than Overstreet's paranoid schizophrenia.

"It's all based on what the mental illness is and how sudden it has occurred. 
The Overstreet case, this is a long, long history, and we're most skeptical as 
a society and as legal practitioners if this is something that suddenly 
manifests in jail," she said.

(source: Associated Press)