[Deathpenalty] death penalty news----IND., COLO., CALIF., USA

[Rick Halperin]

Aug. 15




INDIANA:

Convicted murderer Wayne Kubsch's bid for new trial rejected


A federal appeals court panel has rejected a bid for a new trial by convicted 
murderer Wayne Kubsch, who is on death row for a triple slaying in Mishawaka in 
1998.

Kubsch was sentenced to death for the murders of his wife, Beth Kubsch, 31; her 
ex-husband, Rick Milewski, 35; and their 10-year-old son Aaron Milewski, who 
were found dead in the basement of their Mishawaka home in September 1998.

Prosecutors say Kubsch was heavily in debt and killed his wife to collect on a 
$575,000 life insurance policy he'd taken out on her.

His 1st conviction in 2000 was overturned before a 2nd jury in 2005 also 
convicted him and recommended the death penalty.

Kubsch appealed his sentence, calling it unconstitutional because evidence was 
excluded.

(source: South Bend Tribune)






COLORADO:

What does it take to get death penalty?


What does it take?

What does it take in the state of Colorado to give someone the death sentence? 
A man planned to murder as many people as possible at a soft target and chose a 
theater, knowing that all or most of the people there would not be armed and it 
would be difficult for people to get away. Then he does exactly that, killing 
numerous people, including a young child, and wounding several more. Yet a 
juror or jurors did not give him the death penalty. Instead he will be given 
room and board for life at the tax payer's expense. Why?

What was in the mind(s) of the juror or jurors who could not bring themselves 
to give this evil person the death sentence? Was it the sobs of the assassin's 
mother? What about the sobs of the family members of the victims? Or maybe it 
was because none of the victims were family members or friends of said 
juror(s).

Maybe not enough people were killed or wounded by this murderer. How many does 
it take - 25, 50, 100? It should take only 1 murdered victim for a jury to give 
someone the death sentence. Or maybe the crime wasn't heinous enough. Does a 
murderer have to use a bomb that kills indiscriminately and scatters body parts 
over several hundred feet for a jury here to give someone the death sentence? 
Thank God the Boston Marathon bombing trial didn't take place here!

In the state of Colorado, not only can you smoke marijuana, but you can also 
commit mass murder and not get the death sentence. What more could you want?

I want someone to please tell me. What does it take?

Ken Miller

Colorado Springs

(source: Letter to the Editor, Gazette Springs)






CALIFORNIA:

California defense attorney, 3 state highway police arrested for murder ---- 
Arrests Murder California Police Lawyers


A California defense attorney and 3 state highway patrol officers were arrested 
on Friday in connection with the 2012 killing of a man thought to be stealing 
scrap metal and other items from private property, police said.

A total of 9 people were arrested near the city of Modesto, about 92 miles (68 
km) east of San Francisco, on a string of charges related to the murder of 
26-year-old Korey Kauffman, according to the Stanislaus County sheriff's 
office.

Criminal defense attorney Frank Carson, who last year made an unsuccessful run 
for Stanislaus County district attorney, was named as ringleader of the plot 
and charged with 1st degree murder, conspiracy and the special circumstance of 
lying in wait, which could qualify for the death penalty under California law.

The probable cause arrest warrant describes Carson as an easy-to-anger property 
owner with no respect for law enforcement who was hoping to send a message to 
thieves targeting his belongings.

Carson accused Kauffman of stealing items from a property he owned in Turlock, 
where he stored antiques, scrap and cars.

Kauffman was known locally for "scrapping," or stealing metal to sell to 
recyclers, according to the Sacramento Bee.

Carson had complained to authorities about his missing property and had 
confronted Kauffman, who did not deny his involvement, the arrest documents 
said.

Kauffman went missing in March 2012. His remains were found by hunters in a 
remote area of Mariposa County in August 2013. Witnesses said he was beaten to 
death.

Among those arrested on Friday were Carson's wife, her daughter, and 3 other 
associates.

Carson's attorney told the Sacramento Bee his client looked forward to fighting 
the allegations in court and clearing his name.

California Highway Patrol officer Walter Wells also faces charges of murder, 
conspiracy and false imprisonment. It was unclear how he intended to plead. He 
could not immediately be reached for comment.

According to the arrest documents, Kauffman's body was dumped in the woods by a 
police car, witnesses told investigators.

2 other officers, Scott McFarlane and Eduardo Quintanar Jr., were charged with 
criminal conspiracy and being an accessory.

The 2 officers could not immediately be reached for comment about the 
allegations.

"The California Highway Patrol is a very proud organization that values 
integrity," CHP Commissioner Joe Farrow said at a Friday press conference, the 
Modesto Bee reported. "To hear news like this is devastating."

(soure: Reuters)






USA:

States That Banned The Death Penalty Could Still Have Inmates On Death Row, And 
Here's How


3 years after legislators abolished the death penalty in Connecticut, the 
state's supreme court has ruled that the 11 inmates currently still on death 
row will not be executed. Capital punishment was first struck down in 
Connecticut by the state's legislature in 2012. Though the decision effectively 
eliminated executions for all future crimes, it did not extend to inmates 
already serving on death row. Thursday's 4-3 decision changed that, allowing 
for all 11 death row prisoners to serve life sentences rather than face 
execution. Connecticut is just 1 of 19 states without a death penalty. Still, 
there is one more state that's banned capital punishment but still has a death 
row.

New Mexico abolished the death penalty in 2009 and, like Connecticut, the bill 
signed into law did not affect those already facing execution. Thus, 2 inmates 
- Timothy Allen and Robert Fry - are both facing execution despite the ban of 
capital punishment. Allen was convicted 2 decades ago for the 1994 kidnapping, 
rape, and strangling of a 17 year old. Fry was convicted in 2000 for four 
murders, 3 of his convictions carrying life sentences and one carrying with it 
the death penalty. Both death row inmates' lawyers have argued that by 
executing Fry and Allen, the state would be engaging in cruel and unusual 
punishment in the face of their capital punishment ban.

Other states have faced similar decisions as Connecticut and New Mexico. The 
most recent state to abolish the death penalty was Nebraska earlier this year. 
The state's legislation explicitly stated that death row inmates have their 
sentences changed to life in prison, effectively eliminating the same dilemmas 
faced by Connecticut and New Mexico. Before that, Maryland was the last state 
to eliminate capital punishment in 2013. Though the change did not immediately 
affect death row inmates, Governor Martin O'Malley commuted the sentences of 
all four prisoners facing execution on his last day in office, changing their 
sentences to life without parole.

Likewise, Connecticut Governor Daniel P. Malloy has been consistently against 
the death penalty. Though Thursday's decision was indeed momentous, Malloy said 
in a statement that the event was still a sober reminder of the crimes all 11 
inmates committed that led them to death row. Malloy said:

Today is a somber day where our focus should not be on the 11 men sitting on 
death row, but with their victims and those surviving families members. My 
thoughts and prayers are with them during what must be a difficult day.

It's highly unlikely that New Mexico Governor Susana Martinez will follow 
O'Malley's lead or be supportive of a state supreme court decision eliminating 
death row altogether. Martinez has been vocally in favor of capital punishment 
for years, most recently in July when she and other New Mexico officials met to 
discuss flaws in the state's criminal justice system.

(source: bustle.com)