[Deathpenalty] death penalty news----PENN., N.C., S.C., LA., OHIO

[Rick Halperin]

July 8



PENNSYLVANIA:

Politically Uncorrected: Pennsylvania's Death Penalty Lingers On


Today it's pensions, liquor privatization and educational funding. These 
white-hot issues pervade the policy debate in Pennsylvania, sucking so much 
political oxygen out of the air that other issues seem virtually invisible.

Will pensions, liquor and educational funding ever go away? Will they ever be 
resolved?

A better question might be: 20 years from now will they even be remembered?

In fact, it was only 20 years ago that crime dominated the politics and 
monopolized the policy debates in the state capitol. Tom Ridge (R) had been 
elected governor after a campaign that made crime the central issue in the 1994 
gubernatorial race. Once elected, Ridge fulfilled a campaign promise to call a 
special session of the legislature, one that led to the passage of 2-dozen 
tough crime-fighting measures.

Back then, most state politicos supported the death penalty, too, as did many 
national leaders. In this climate, Ridge signed more than 200 death warrants - 
5 times the number signed by his two predecessors.

Even so, just 3 people were put to death, only after waiving their legal 
appeals. And no one has been put to death in Pennsylvania since. Indeed, 
Pennsylvania now has the 5th largest number (186) of condemned prisoners 
awaiting execution.

The reasons are many for the virtual abandonment of the death penalty in 
Pennsylvania. Governor Wolf's temporary moratorium is 1 of them - but even 
without the moratorium it is doubtful anyone would be executed since the state 
can no longer legally procure the chemicals needed to carry out an execution.

Meanwhile, support for the death penalty has steadily waned nationally as well 
as in the state. National Gallup surveys show support peaked during the 
mid-1990s when almost 80 % of the population backed it.

Decline in support has been precipitous since. Today, in 2015, just 56 % of 
Americans favor it. Many factors explain the erosion in support for the death 
penalty-botched executions, the enormous cost of actually executing someone (6 
times the cost of lifetime imprisonment) and the abandonment of the death 
penalty by virtually the entire western world have changed many minds.

But the 2 strongest reasons for opposition lay in the dual beliefs that 
innocent persons have probably been put to death while the death penalty is not 
really a deterrent.

In Pennsylvania, the June Franklin & Marshall College Poll showed just 61 % of 
state voters still favor the penalty, a decline similar to the national erosion 
of support. Even more tellingly, a plurality of poll respondents favors life in 
prison over the death penalty, when given that option. Asked do you favor 
imposing the death penalty or life imprisonment without parole for murderers - 
most voters favor life imprisonment without parole (47 % to 41 %) - compelling 
evidence of growing discomfit with the ultimate punishment.

Nevertheless, Wolf's unilateral moratorium has been controversial. The families 
of murder victims and prosecutors have expressed outrage, while pockets of 
political opposition have emerged including a legal challenge by Philadelphia's 
district attorney.

While the decline in support for the death penalty has been rapid, slim 
majorities still support it. The sharp divisions over the death penalty 
nationally as well as in Pennsylvania reflect the vast cultural differences 
that riven the nation in so many other areas of public policy.

The statistics are stark. In Pennsylvania, 3 of every 4 Republicans (75 %) 
still favor the death penalty, with only 1 in 7 (15 %) opposing. But only 1/2 
(54 %) of Democrats still support it and even fewer Independents (49 %).

Ideologically, the polarization is even sharper with liberals and conservatives 
now virtual mirror images of each other on the issue. 7 in 10 extreme liberals 
(72 %) oppose the death penalty but 8 in 10 extreme conservatives (79 %) favor 
it.

Interestingly, many demographic groupings often seen at odds over public policy 
differ little on the death penalty. Neither age nor income reveal any great 
difference in support or opposition. Nor is there much difference among the 
major religious denominations.

But regional differences are substantial. In Philadelphia only 3 in 10 (32 %) 
support the death penalty while in western Pennsylvania (excluding Allegheny 
County) 7 in 10 support it.

This pattern of public opinion with its deep partisan and ideological fissures 
is reflected as well in support or opposition to Wolf's moratorium. Only 36 % 
of Republicans support it while 59 % of Democrats do; almost 9 in 10 (86 %) of 
extreme liberals support Wolf's action, but only 3 in 10 (28 %) of extreme 
conservatives do.

Clearly, public opinion is steadily turning against the death penalty. But a 
majority, albeit a shrinking one, still support it. Moreover, there are deep 
differences on the issue among key groups in the electorate. No one is moderate 
on the death penalty.

Echoing the now too familiar polarization that infuses so much of our politics 
today, these divisions all but guarantee the death penalty will live on in 
Pennsylvania for some time. If support for it is declining, it is declining 
slowly.

The death penalty may end, but not quickly, nor quietly. If it does die it will 
be a lingering death.

(source: G. Terry Madonna & Michael L. Young, politicspa.com)






NORTH CAROLINA:

Grand jury to consider murder charges against 4 Morrisville defendants


A Wake County grand jury will convene Wednesday to determine if there is enough 
probable cause to hand up indictments charging three teens and a 20-year-old 
with felony murder of a 16-year-old in what police described as a drug deal 
gone bad late last month.

2 of the defendants, Jourdan Chanquion Mack and Beth Marie Strange, could be 
put to death or spend the rest of their lives in prison without the possibility 
of parole if they are convicted of the 1st-degree murder of Katherine "Katie" 
Burdick-Crow.

But the death penalty is not an option for their co-defendants, Joshua Odell 
Simmons and Abijah James Masse, both 17. If convicted of felony murder, they 
could be eligible for parole after 25 years behind bars. In 2012, the U.S. 
Supreme Court ruled that mandatory sentences of life without the possibility of 
parole is unconstitutional for those under the age of 18, said Jamie Markham, a 
legal expert with the UNC-Chapel Hill School of Government.

"A 20-year-old could get life in prison without the possibility of parole or 
potentially the death penalty," Markham said Tuesday. "So could an 
18-year-old."

Mack, 20, graduated from Green Hope High School in 2014. Strange, 18, graduated 
from Panther Creek High School in June.

Masse and Simmons are rising seniors at Green Hope and Panther Creek, 
respectively.

The Wake County District Attorney's Office charged all 4 with felony murder in 
the death of Burdick-Crow, a student at Green Hope High School.

In a search warrant, police said Burdick-Crow had "significant injuries to her 
head" after she was robbed of marijuana she was trying to sell the others and 
fell from a Ford F-150 truck that Simmons drove with the other defendants 
inside. Police say the transaction was to take place in Walnut Street Park 
shortly after 9 p.m. on Friday, June 26.

Wake County District Attorney Lorrin Freeman said her office opted to charge 
each of the defendants with murder because there was the "commission of a 
violent crime that led to the victim's death," in this case robbery.

The search warrant does not indicate any violence taking place when 
Burdick-Crow was robbed of the "quarter bag of weed," as one attorney involved 
with the case described it. But as he drove off, Simmons admitted to 
investigators that he "punched Burdick-Crow in the face and head with a closed 
fist two (2) or three (3) times until she fell from the moving 2003 truck," the 
warrant says.

Using violence to retain stolen property is the same under North Carolina law 
as using violence or intimidation to obtain it in the first place, said Jessica 
Smith, the W.R. Kenan, Jr. Distinguished Professor at the UNC-Chapel Hill 
School of Government.

"If I point a gun in someone's face, that's violence or intimidation," Smith 
said. "But it's also robbery if I am picking someone's pocket and they notice 
me doing it, struggle with me and I punch them in the face. That counts for 
robbery."

N.C. Central University Law Professor and defense attorney Irving Joyner of 
Durham agreed.

"Under North Carolina law, robbery is considered a continuous action until it 
ends," he said. "The fact that the girl ran to the truck does not alter the 
fact that it is a robbery."

Joyner said it's not unusual for prosecutors to charge someone with murder when 
a death occurs during the commission of another felony, like a robbery.

"In fact, it's used more often than not," he said. "It relieves the prosecutor 
of having to establish intent to kill by anyone... The prosecutor has a bonus, 
in effect."

Joyner thinks Freeman, the Wake district attorney, could have opted for "more 
appropriate charges."

"It's a very sad situation, all the way around," Joyner said. "From the girl's 
death to the charges the 4 young people are facing. I think she is using a 
sledgehammer when a belt would be more appropriate, like involuntary 
manslaughter."

(source: newsobserver.com)






SOUTH CAROLINA:

Charleston Shooter Hit With Additional Charges, Secures Defense Attorney


Several news outlets are reporting Dylann Roof, the white supremacist who is 
charged in the killings of 9 black churchgoers in Charleston, South Carolina, 
has been hit with multiple indictments. The Washington Post said Roof was 
already facing 9 murder charges, but today a grand jury added 3 attempted 
murder charges and 1 count of possession of a weapon during a violent crime to 
his indictment. Charleston County Prosecutor Scarlett A. Wilson said Roof is 
facing 1 charge for each person who survived the mass shooting. The Post also 
said Roof may face federal hate crimes charges.

On June 17, Roof, according to reports, walked into a Bible study group at 
Emanuel AME Church and was welcomed by churchgoers. After about an hour, Roof 
pulled a gun and began shooting while shouting racial slurs. According to 
reports, Roof carried out the attack in the attempt to spark a race war and 
because he feared black people "were taking over the world" and "raping our 
women."

Roof is a so-called "lone wolf" terrorist, who was radicalized after reading 
online information from white supremacists groups such as the Council of 
Conservative Citizens. Before the attack, he had expressed racist views and 
talked of carrying out a mass shooting, even though none of his friends took 
him seriously. He was also pictured with a gun and the Confederate flag, which 
was featured on his license plate. Other pictures showed him wearing a jacket 
with patches of white-led countries such as apartheid-era South Africa and 
Rhodesia (now known as Zimbabwe.)

Roof was captured less than 24 hours after the shooting by a tip from an 
eagle-eyed citizen. South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley has called for the death 
penalty, but Wilson has not yet made a decision.

"Jack Swerling, a Columbia private criminal defense attorney, said Tuesday that 
Wilson will make her decision on whether to seek the death penalty on several 
factors, including community sentiment, whether the death penalty is 
appropriate and the wishes of the victims' families," according to the South 
Carolina paper The State.

The State also reported Roof has already secured legal representation. Boyd 
Young, an attorney who specializes in death penalty cases, filed paper saying 
he will serve as Roof's defense attorney. However, mounting Roof's defense is 
going to be an expensive affair.

"The cost of defending a death penalty case, which are usually far more 
complicated than regular cases, can 'run into the hundreds of thousands of 
dollars,' Swerling said," reported The State.

Although Roof's attack was allegedly supposed to ignite a race war, it had the 
opposite effect. It has actually caused a backlash against the Confederate flag 
and other pro-Confederacy monuments. Legislators in South Carolina and other 
Southern states are now rushing to distance themselves from the rebel battle 
flag.

"The shooting, and Roof's fondness for the Confederate flag, sparked a push to 
remove a Confederate battle flag from the grounds of the state Capitol," 
reported USA Today. "The South Carolina Senate earlier Tuesday formally 
approved and sent to the House a bill removing the flag, where it has flown 
either atop the Capitol or on a nearby flagpole for 54 years."

The shooting has also become an issue in the 2016 presidential race. While 
several GOP candidates were hesitant to label the massacre a racist attack, 
they are now strongly condemning Roof's actions.

Former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush, a frontrunner among the Republican candidates, 
initially said he didn't know what motivated Roof's attack. But he later 
condemned Roof, referring to him as "the racist in Charleston," according to 
CBS News.

(source: Atlanta Black Star)






LOUISIANA:

3 decades on death row----Glenn Ford: An American tragedy


Glenn Ford died on June 29 at the age 65 at his home in New Orleans, Louisiana. 
He succumbed to lung cancer just 15 months after being released from the 
notorious Louisiana State Penitentiary, known as Angola, where he spent 29 
years 3 months and 5 days on death row.

Ford had been wrongfully convicted of murder in 1984 and sentenced to die in 
the electric chair. During his nearly 3 decades on death row, Ford was confined 
to solitary confinement for 23 hours a day. According to a census of US 
prisoners in the year 2000, at that time Ford was just 1 of more than 80,000 
prisoners languishing in some form of solitary confinement.

Ford was convicted and sentenced to death for the murder of Isadore Rozeman, 
the owner of a small jewelry and watch store in Shreveport, Louisiana in 1983. 
Ford and 3 other men were initially suspected of the murder and the robbery. Of 
the 4, only Ford stood trial, singled out since he had previously been employed 
by Rozeman to do yard work and had been seen in the area of the jewelry store 
on the day of the murder.

Ford was convicted on the basis of the testimony of a witness and a girlfriend 
of one of the 3 other suspects, who later admitted that she had lied during the 
trial. Circumstantial evidence included testimony by a forensic pathologist 
that the gun was fired by someone who was left handed. Ford was left handed, 
but prosecutors never produced a murder weapon or an eyewitness to the shooting 
to corroborate the pathologist's testimony.

There was little chance that Ford would be found innocent, since the court had 
appointed a completely inexperienced team of defense attorneys who had never 
before argued a case. Racism also played a role in the death penalty 
conviction. Ford, an African American, was tried before an all-white jury after 
the state prosecutor consciously culled any potential black jurors.

Ford and his attorneys maintained his innocence in repeated appeals to overturn 
his conviction over the last three decades. The appeals were routinely denied 
until last year when 1 of the 3 other suspects, Jake Robinson, confessed to 
Rozeman's murder. A confidential informant, being questioned on an unrelated 
matter in 2013, had fingered Robinson as the killer.

At the time of his release on March 10, 2014, Ford had been one the longest 
serving prisoners on death row in the United States. He spent the prime years 
of his life locked in a cage with limited human contact with only the prospect 
of a painful execution in front of him. "I've been locked up almost 30 years 
for something I didn't do," Ford said after his release. "I can't go back and 
do anything I should have been doing when I was 35, 38, 40."

The short time he spent outside the walls of the penitentiary was not easy for 
Ford. He was diagnosed with terminal lung cancer shortly after his release, 
living with home hospice care provided by the non-profit organization 
Resurrection after Incarceration. In April, Ford went missing for 14 hours. He 
apparently wandered away from his home after suffering from delirium caused by 
the cancer that had by that point spread throughout his body.

Unable to work after his release, Ford was left completely destitute. While he 
was eligible for possible total restitution of $330,000 from a fund set up by 
the state of Louisiana for exonerated prisoners, Ford never received a single 
cent. A state judge denied his petition for compensation on the spurious legal 
grounds that, despite his exoneration and release from prison, Ford had not 
proven he was "factually innocent."

Attorney A.M. "Marty" Stroud III, who was the lead prosecutor in Ford???s 
murder trial, wrote a letter in March to the Shreveport Times attesting to his 
role in attaining the false conviction and insisted on Ford???s innocence 
saying, "Glenn Ford was an innocent man. He was released from the hell hole he 
had endured for the last 3 decades."

According to Stroud, in the course of exonerating Ford investigators had 
uncovered evidence "so strong that had it been disclosed during of the 
investigation there would not have been sufficient evidence to even arrest Mr. 
Ford!" The attorney confessed that he neglected to investigate "rumors" of 3 
other men's involvement in the crime and deliberately struck blacks from the 
jury pool, directly contributing to an outcome Stroud acknowledged was a 
miscarriage of justice.

Despite this remarkable admission of guilt, neither Stroud, nor anyone else 
involved in sending Ford to death row, are expected to be subject to criminal 
prosecution. Attorneys responsible for wrongful convictions are rarely held to 
account for their role in destroying the life of an innocent person.

In a rare instance, former Texas prosecutor Ken Anderson accepted a plea deal 
in 2013 in which he was disbarred and sentenced to 10 days in prison plus 500 
hours of community service. Anderson admitted that he withheld evidence from 
the murder trial of Michael Morton that pointed to his innocence, resulting in 
a wrongful conviction. Morton, innocent of any crime, spent 25 years in prison 
until his release in 2011.

It is now an increasingly common occurrence for wrongfully convicted prisoners 
to be set free after serving decades of sentences or on death row. According to 
the Death Penalty Information Center, since 1973, there have been at least 154 
individuals freed from death row.

The latest innocent person on death row to be exonerated, Michelle Byrom, was 
released from a Mississippi prison on June 26. She had been on course to be the 
1st woman executed by the state in 70 years until earlier this year, when the 
State Supreme Court overturned her conviction and ordered a new trial at which 
she was found innocent. Byrom had been convicted of hiring a hit-man to kill 
her husband. Evidence that was not produced at her initial trial revealed that 
her son had confessed to his father's murder.

The notorious Angola prison where Ford was incarcerated holds other well-known 
inmates who have served long sentences on death row and in solitary 
confinement.

Last month, a federal appeals court ruled that Albert Woodfox, the last of the 
"Angola 3" still behind bars, would remain in prison despite a district court 
judge's ruling that he be set free. Woodfox, along with Robert Hillary King and 
Herman Wallace, all 3 members of the Black Panther Party, were confined for 
decades to solitary confinement after the murder of a prison guard. They were 
targeted by prison officials for their political beliefs and vocal opposition 
to conditions in the prison.

Gary Tyler, the victim of a racially and politically motivated frame-up, has 
spent the entirety of his adult life locked up in Angola. Though only 17 years 
old at the time of his arrest, Tyler was tried as an adult and sentenced to die 
in the electric chair in 1975. His life was spared when the US Supreme Court 
ruled the Louisiana's death penalty unconstitutional in 1977. Despite 
documented inconsistencies in his trial, repeated appeals for his release have 
been denied.

The horrors inflicted upon Ford, Tyler, Byrom, Woodfox and many others are not 
aberrations in an otherwise healthy process. Rather they are the product of a 
diseased and corrupted "criminal justice" system, in which the accused, 
particularly the poor, are denied the most basic democratic rights.

The American ruling class presides over a massive prison system, housing more 
than 2 million people. For the past four decades, the political establishment, 
under both Republicans and Democrats, has responded to the immense growth of 
social inequality, and the social disaster created by the devastation of cities 
throughout the country, by throwing an ever greater portion of the population 
behind bars.

(source: World Socialist Web Site)






OHIO:

Death row inmate wins appeal in Warren murder case


A Warren man on death row for the brutal beating of an elderly couple may get 
his chance to escape the death penalty.

An appeals court ruled that Andre Williams can continue to appeal his sentence 
claiming he was mentally disabled at the time of the 1988 crime.

George Melnick was killed and his wife Katherine was blinded in the attack.

The U.S. 6th District Court of Appeals ruled Tuesday that state courts failed 
to properly apply federal law governing claims of mental disability in capital 
punishment cases.

The federal court said a lower court ruled improperly when it refused to 
recognize evidence of the 48-year-old Williams' disabilities dating to when he 
was a teenager.

Under federal law, someone with a severe enough mental disability may be 
ineligible for the death penalty.

Williams' co-defendant, Christopher Daniel, is serving a life sentence.

(source: Associated Press)