[Deathpenalty] death penalty news----ALA., CALIF.

[Rick Halperin]

Jan. 2




ALABAMA:

Lawyers for man accused of killing toddler in 'ritual' argue against death 
penalty


Lawyers for a Gadsden man accused of killing his toddler daughter in 2013 with 
either a sword or knife have filed several motions to prevent his execution if 
he is convicted.

Stephon Lindsay, 38, is accused of killing his daughter, 20-month-old Maliyah 
Tashay Lindsay.

Gadsden police discovered the body of Maliyah Lindsay in a wooded area at the 
dead end of Plainview Street in Gadsden on March 12, 2013 after Stephon Lindsay 
was arrested in connection with the child's disappearance.

Relatives later said Lindsay may have killed the child as a result of some kind 
of satanic ritual. An autopsy ruled the child died of blunt force trauma and 
that a knife or sword was used in her death. Lindsay is set for trial Feb. 22.

According to court documents filed this week, Lindsay's lawyers challenged the 
constitutionality of lethal injection and the ability of the judge hearing the 
case, District Judge Billy Ogletree, to override the jury's suggestion of a 
life sentence in a penalty phase.

In response, Etowah County Chief Deputy Marcus Reid argued in a motion that 
Stephon Lindsey had previously been convicted of at least 1 felony involving a 
threat of violence. In addition, Maliyah's death, he argued, was "especially 
heinous, atrocious, or cruel."

Ogletree on Wednesday ordered that he would hear arguments on the issues during 
the trial's penalty phase, if it should be necessary.

(source: al.com)






CALIFORNIA:

Worst mass killer in OC history should continue making headlines in 2016


Scott Evans Dekraai, the worst mass killer in Orange County history, was one of 
this year's biggest news makers, and the case against him and allegations of 
misconduct in the use of jailhouse snitches is bound to continue generating 
headlines in 2016.

A legal move to dismiss the death penalty as an option for Dekraai that was 
filed in early 2014 led to legal earthquake in March when Orange County 
Superior Court Judge Thomas Goethals recused the Orange County District 
Attorney's Office from further prosecuting the case. The judge concluded that 
Dekraai's rights were violated by the use of jailhouse snitches.

Goethals laid most of the blame on Orange County sheriff's deputies in the 
Special Handling Unit, but added he no longer believed prosecutors could be 
trusted to police their law enforcement partners in the case. That prompted the 
Attorney General's Office to appeal, which is still pending.

The Attorney General's Office argued that Goethals overstepped his authority 
while Dekraai's attorneys are arguing the judge had the discretion to boot 
Orange County District Attorney Tony Rackauckas' office from prosecuting the 
death penalty. The attorneys are expecting to make oral arguments before the 
Fourth District Court of Appeal after the Attorney General's Office files its 
response to defense attorneys on Jan. 11.

Dekraai, who pleaded guilty in May of last year to murdering his ex-wife and 7 
other people in and around a Seal Beach salon where she worked, has been 
waiting for the penalty phase of his trial to begin since then.

The allegations of outrageous governmental conduct regarding the use of 
jailhouse informants to gather information against inmates stemming from the 
Dekraai case has affected several other cases, including one in which the 
defendant was granted a new trial scheduled for 2016.

Meanwhile, the Attorney General's Office has been investigating the use of the 
informants and is expected to issue a report in the coming year. One law 
enforcement source said it could be as early as January.

Also anticipated soon is a report from an independent committee Rackauckas 
organized to evaluate the use of jailhouse informants.

The Informant Policies and Practices Evaluation Committee includes retired 
Orange County Superior Court Judge Jim Smith, retired Los Angeles County 
Assistant District Attorney Patrick Dixon, former Orange County Bar Association 
President Robert Gerard and Blithe Leece, described by Rackauckas as a 
specialist in ethics law and professional responsibility. Loyola Law School 
professor Laurie Levenson will serve as an adviser for the committee.

Then there was a recent call by top legal officials to have the U.S. Department 
of Justice investigate the use of informants. It's not clear if the prosecutors 
in Washington will take action in 2016 on the request led by UC Irvine Law 
School Dean Erwin Chemerinsky and former Attorney General John Van de Kamp.

The Fourth District Court of Appeal has also been called on to sort out a legal 
skirmish in Orange County Superior Court that some say stems from the Dekraai 
allegations.

This month, Orange County Superior Court Judge Richard King turned down four 
bids from prosecutors to disqualify Goethals from cases, arguing they were 
mucking up the court process to essentially punish the jurist for his ruling in 
the Dekraai matter. Rackauckas' office has appealed that ruling and sources say 
Chemerinsky will be asked to handle the legal arguments in defense of King's 
rulings.

The case against Eric Ortiz, which was outlined in Dekraai's motion alleging 
his constitutional rights were violated, unraveled in November when 2 sheriff's 
officials who factored into the subsequent evidentiary hearing on the 
accusations invoked their rights against self-incrimination on a motion for a 
new trial that was before Judge King. King granted the new trial, tentatively 
scheduled in February, for Ortiz, who was convicted last year of 1st-degree 
murder.

Henry Rodriguez, who was twice convicted in a double murder of a Fullerton 
woman and her unborn daughter, will continue his pursuit of a new trial based 
on similar allegations that defense attorneys weren't given relevant 
information about informants. Rodriguez, who was last convicted in 2000, is due 
back in court before Goethals in February for further arguments.

Also pending in 2016 is the sentencing of Fernando Perez, the central informant 
in Dekraai's case. Perez claimed her overheard Dekraai's statements about his 
case and did not solicit information from the defendant, which would be 
illegal.

Prosecutors are seeking leniency for Perez, scheduled to be sentenced Jan. 29 
in a gun possession case. Because he's a 3rd striker he faces a life sentence.

The other key informant in the Dekraai case was Oscar Moriel, who just 
completed testimony in the trial of alleged Mexican Mafia Orange County leader 
Peter Ojeda, whose trial continues in January. Moriel's attempted murder case 
dating back to 2005 is also pending with the defendant due back in court Jan. 
8.

Another offshoot of the Dekraai case is the expansion of the Office of 
Independent Review, which until this month was a watchdog for the Orange County 
Sheriff???s Department. Orange County Board of Supervisors, annoyed that they 
weren't getting more information about key cases such as Dekraai's, decided to 
expand the watchdog agency to also oversee the Probation Department, District 
Attorney and Public Defender's offices and the Social Services Agency.

That move faces a legal challenge in 2016 from the union representing the 
county's attorneys.

(source: mynewsla.com)