[Deathpenalty] death penalty news----VA., GA., MO., KAN., CALIF.

[Rick Halperin]

Jan. 25



VIRGINIA:

Virginia says it lacks drugs needed for lethal injections


Texas owed Virginia a favor when it gave the state the 1st of 3 drugs it needed 
to execute serial killer Alfredo Prieto by injection in October.

With a March 16 execution date set for Richmond's Ricky Javon Gray, the 
Virginia Department of Corrections says it currently lacks enough of that drug 
to put to death the killer of Richmond's Harvey family.

Virginia has 3 drugs approved for use in the 1st step. But state officials said 
in September that, because execution drugs are increasingly unavailable, it was 
able to obtain only pentobarbital from Texas.

The department said last week that it "has only 2" of the 3 pentobarbital vials 
it received from Texas in August, suggesting, perhaps for backup or other 
reasons, that 2 are not enough for an execution, even though it appears just 1 
vial was used to execute Prieto.

"The Department of Corrections doesn't currently have the step 1 drugs 
necessary to carry out a death sentence by lethal injection," spokeswoman Lisa 
Kinney said in an email.

"The department can't comment further regarding the lethal injection drugs due 
to potential litigation," Kinney said.

"The department works to maintain an adequate supply of lethal injection drugs 
so as to be able to carry out court orders; however, it has become extremely 
difficult to obtain lethal injection drugs," she said.

***

Litigation over compounded pentobarbital obtained from Texas continued right up 
to Prieto's execution Oct. 1. The compounded pentobarbital was made in an 
undisclosed pharmacy rather than by a pharmaceutical manufacturer.

This time, it does not appear Texas will be helping Virginia.

"There are no plans to provide lethal injection drugs to Virginia," said a 
spokesman for the Texas Department of Criminal Justice.

Texas sent Virginia the 3 vials of pentobarbital last year because Virginia 
sent Texas some in 2013, the spokesman said.

Gray, 38, was convicted of the New Year's Day 2006 murders of Bryan Harvey, 49; 
Kathryn, 39; and their daughters, Stella, 9, and Ruby, 4, in their Woodland 
Heights home.

He and Ray Dandridge killed the Harveys in a string of slayings that left seven 
people dead in Richmond. Gray was sentenced to death for the girls' killings. 
Dandridge was sentenced to life.

Also killed in the pair's crime wave were Ashley Baskerville, 21, who had been 
a lookout when Gray killed the Harveys; her mother, Mary Tucker, 47; and 
stepfather, Percyell Tucker, 55, in their Richmond home.

The Virginia Attorney General's Office complained in court filings last year 
that the national shortage of execution drugs is the result of "well-recognized 
efforts by anti-death penalty advocates."

Robert Dunham, executive director of the Death Penalty Information Center, 
disagrees.

"Drug companies don't want their life-sustaining and life-preserving drugs to 
be used to kill prisoners," Dunham said. "As a result, they've taken the drugs 
off the market or refused to sell to prisons."

In any case, many states that execute by injection are having problems. Just 
weeks after Prieto was put to death in Virginia, Ohio rescheduled 12 executions 
until 2017 because it could not obtain the required drugs.

Much could happen between now and March 16 to make the question moot. The 
department could obtain the needed drug, courts or the governor could step in, 
or Gray could even choose the electric chair instead of lethal injection.

Condemned inmates in Virginia have had the choice since 1995, although only 7 
of the 87 executed since then have opted for the chair.

The default method is lethal injection if the inmate refuses to choose. A bill 
under consideration in the Virginia General Assembly would give the corrections 
department director the ability to use the option not chosen by the inmate if 
that method of execution is unavailable.

However, it is unlikely that could be made law by March 16. The department said 
it has not taken a position on the legislation.

***

Virginia uses a 3-step lethal injection protocol similar to many other states.

The state has approved 3 drugs - sodium thiopental, pentobarbital and midazolam 
- for the 1st step, which renders the inmate unconscious. Pancuronium bromide 
or rocuronium bromide causes paralysis in the 2nd step, and potassium chloride 
stops the heart in the third and final step.

A saline solution flushes the IV line between the 1st and 2nd and the 2nd and 
3rd chemicals. 2 IV lines are used, 1 as a backup in case there is a problem 
with the 1st. An officer pinches the inmate after the 1st drug is administered 
to test for consciousness.

Kinney, the corrections spokeswoman, said last week that, in addition to the 
two vials of pentobarbital from Texas that expire in April, the department has 
potassium chloride that expires in June and rocuronium that expires in April 
2017.

Virginia used sodium thiopental in the 1st step for many years, but it no 
longer is available in the U.S. for any purpose. The state's supply of 
midazolam expired shortly before Prieto's execution last year, prompting the 
use of the pentobarbital from Texas.

When Prieto's lawyers learned through the Freedom of Information Act that the 
state intended to use compounded pentobarbital from Texas, they went to court 
to block his execution until more could be learned about the drug.

They asked if it was being stored adequately and about its shelf life and 
potency. The lawyers argued that, if an inmate is not sufficiently sedated by 
the first drug, it could lead to an agonizing death.

Prieto's lawyers referred to executions in Oklahoma and South Dakota using 
compounded pentobarbital that had apparent problems.

"Mr. Prieto alleges, based on the information available to him and this Court 
about the intended manner in which the (Department of Corrections) is prepared 
to kill him, that there is a substantial, unacceptable and unnecessary risk 
that his execution will amount to cruel and unusual punishment," the lawyers 
said.

The day before Prieto's execution, the attorney general's office told a federal 
judge that the pentobarbital was compounded by a licensed pharmacy in Texas, 
which does not disclose the suppliers or manufacturers of drugs used in lethal 
injections.

"The Texas pentobarbital is the only substance (Virginia) has been able to 
obtain for use in the 1st step of its 3-drug protocol," the Virginia Attorney 
General's Office said.

Virginia authorities also said the pentobarbital had been independently tested 
and verified as potent, contaminant-free, maintained in appropriate conditions 
and used successfully in more than two dozen executions in Texas. Prieto's 
execution using the drug appeared to go smoothly.

U.S. District Judge Henry E. Hudson dismissed Prieto's attempt to win a 
preliminary injunction that would have delayed his execution.

"The difficulty states face in obtaining the appropriate drugs for conducting a 
lethal execution has been a topic of public debate for a number of years," 
Hudson wrote.

The judge suggested Prieto's real intent was to delay his execution and that 
his lawyers should have anticipated Virginia might face problems obtaining 
drugs and acted sooner.

Megan McCracken, a lawyer with the Death Penalty Clinic at Berkeley Law in 
California and an expert on lethal injection issues, said the current position 
of Virginia corrections officials has her stumped. Based on what little the 
department says, it appears it has the drugs to carry out one execution, she 
said.

"All I can say is, something here isn't adding up," McCracken said.

Dunham, with the Death Penalty Information Center, said the situation was 
reflective of the problems associated with the secrecy surrounding details of 
executions.

"We simply cannot know what is going on," Dunham said.

(source: Richmond Times-Dispatch)






GEORGIA:

Filings in capital case reveal evidence in pretrial dispute


Motions filed in the capital murder case of a Columbus man accused of killing 
his wife and infant son before setting their house afire in 2014 reveal some 
evidence in the case.

Brandon David Conner faces the death penalty if convicted in the Aug. 21, 2014, 
deaths of 32-year-old girlfriend Rosella "Mandy" Mitchell and their 6-month-old 
son Dylan Conner, whose charred bodies were found in their burned 1324 Winifred 
Lane home.

Investigators said Mitchell was stabbed. They did not say how Dylan died, but 
they called his death a "homicide."

Conner is represented by Columbus attorneys Mark Shelnutt and William Kendrick, 
who have filed dozens of motions to be heard before Judge William Rumer this 
week and the week of Feb. 15-19.

Among those filings are motions to suppress evidence patrol officers found on 
Conner after the homicides, when they noticed him sitting in his 2001 BMW 740i 
on Cedar Avenue off Wynnton Road.

The officers said they saw that Conner was "nervous, shaking, sweating 
profusely, and had blood on his face and clothing," according to prosecutors.

After questioning him, police charged him with making false statements to law 
enforcement and impounded his car.

Police by policy search suspects before putting them in a patrol car. Searching 
Conner, they found "a bloody glove, a bloody baby wipe, and two lighters in his 
pockets," according to filings by District Attorney Julia Slater.

Investigators then got a warrant to search the BMW, in which they found "a 
knife and bloody clothing," Slater wrote.

In moving to suppress such evidence, Conner's defense attorneys have argued 
police had no probable cause to detain and search him, because he had done 
nothing to arouse suspicion, as his car "was lawfully parked outside his place 
of employment, Davis Broadcasting on Cedar Avenue in Columbus ."

Prosecution filings also show tests from the crime scene revealed evidence 
gasoline was used in the arson.

Among the defense motions are filings asking Rumer to:

Suppress evidence police got from Conner's cellphone and laptop.

Declare Georgia's murder statute unconstitutional.

Find Conner's indictment insufficient.

Allow no witness to say the manner of death was homicide.

Order prosecutors to show no photographs depicting the victims before the 
crime, nor any autopsy photos taken afterward.

Find that African-Americans and other minorities were not sufficiently 
represented on the grand jury that indicted Conner.

Ensure Conner wears no jail uniform or shackles at trial, as that could 
prejudice the jury.

Bar prosecutors from seeking the death penalty because it would violate the 
Eighth Amendment prohibition on cruel and unusual punishment.

Issue a gag order prohibiting prosecutors from publicly discussing the case.

Conner's indictment alleges he stabbed Mitchell in the throat and torso with a 
knife that had a blade longer than 3 inches. His malice murder charges allege 
he deliberately killed his girlfriend and child, and his felony murder counts 
accuse him of killing the mother and infant while committing the felony offense 
of aggravated assault.

(source: ledger-enquirer.com)






MISSOURI:

Death penalty should not be partisan issue


Efforts to repeal the death penalty in Missouri have gained momentum, and 
college conservatives are speaking out on the issue. Daniel Blassi, president 
of Students for Life at Southeast Missouri State University is among those 
lending a voice to the issue.

Whereas there was a time when the death-penalty debate was divided down 
partisan lines -- with Republicans for and Democrats against -- it appears this 
line is becoming blurred. Blassi is Exhibit A; he recently joined Missouri 
Conservatives Concerned About the Death Penalty and believes his 
anti-death-penalty position is in accordance with his pro-life principles. <

Cape Girardeau Republican Rep. Kathy Swan takes the same position and has 
co-sponsored a House bill to repeal the death penalty, similar to Missouri 
Senate Bill 816, which the Missouri Conservatives group supports.

Beyond the sanctity of life in general, as some would term it, a major concern 
about the death penalty is the possibility of human error. "We may aim to 
execute only the guilty, but in practice, the death penalty puts too many 
innocent lives at risk," Blassi recently told the Southeast Missourian.

Another concern is the cost of the death penalty to taxpayers, as one legal 
case costs $100,000 more than defending 1 case for life in prison, according to 
Missouri Conservatives.

Cape Girardeau County Prosecuting Attorney Chris Limbaugh, however, takes the 
opposite position. He supports the death penalty and cites examples that prove 
it is a deterrent to crime.

Perhaps people have been personally affected by the death penalty, or perhaps 
they have been influenced by the media, with Netflix's "Making a Murderer" 
garnering attention, for example. Whatever the reason and no matter the 
position, this issue has clearly become more mainstream, less partisan -- as it 
should be. Something this important should not be based on politics. It demands 
an open-minded approach and an honest evaluation. We, for sure, are keeping our 
eyes open, and it will be interesting to see how this unfolds in our state and 
in the nation this year.

(source: Editorial, Southeast Missourian)

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

Attorneys for Missouri man charged with murder seek evidence


Attorneys for a southwest Missouri man charged in the death of a 10-year-old 
girl want copies of evidence they say could help the defendant.

Craig Wood is charged with murder, kidnapping, rape, sodomy and armed criminal 
action in the 2014 death of Hailey Owens.

The Springfield News-Leader reports (http://sgfnow.co/1SbnCgt ) Wood's lawyers 
have filed a motion seeking video interviews police conducted in 2014 with 4 
students at a school where Wood was a para-professional and coach. The motion 
says 2 of the students described Wood as "pretty cool" and "super nice."

The prosecutor says he doesn't believe he's required to turn over the 
interviews.

A trial's scheduled for Sept. 26 in Greene County, with a jury from Platte 
County. Prosecutors say they'll seek the death penalty if Wood is found guilty.

(source: Associated Press)






KANSAS:

Efforts to repeal Kansas death penalty may be stalled----Supreme Court decision 
upholds 3 Kansas death sentences


Some lawmakers say efforts to repeal the Kansas death penalty may be stymied by 
the U.S. Supreme Court decision upholding 3 Kansas death sentences.

A bill repealing the death penalty in Kansas was introduced Friday in the 
House. The Lawrence Journal-World reports the measure would prohibit death 
sentences for any crimes committed after July 1.

The U.S. Supreme Court on Wednesday reversed a Kansas Supreme Court ruling and 
upheld the death sentences of 3 convicted Kansas murderers, including Jonathan 
and Reginald Carr, who killed 5 people in 2000. A 3rd death sentence was also 
upheld.

Co-sponsors of the repeal say it may be hard for some to vote for repeal 
without appearing like they're letting the Carr brothers off the hook. The 
measure, however, wouldn't apply to the Carrs.

(source: Associated Press)






CALIFORNIA:

Manson Family Convicted of Brutal Murders


On 25th January, 1971, Charles Manson, Susan Atkins, Leslie Van Houten, and 
Patricia Krenwinkle were convicted of the sickening murders of Sharon Tate and 
6 others.

The verdict brought to an end a trial which at several points had threatened to 
descend into farce, the actions of the Manson Family - the dangerous cult which 
had grown up around Charles Manson - turning the Grand Jury Testimony and 
Manson's trial into a bizarre, macabre circus.

For months members of the Manson Family, hair shaved off and X's carved into 
their foreheads, had blocked the entrance to the courthouse while chanting and 
singing. The bizarre rituals, totally at odds with the brutal murders which had 
taken place, brought into shocking clarity the deranged reality of those who 
had been pulled in by Manson's aura.

The murders had taken place over 2 nights in August 1969.

On the night of the 9th August 4 members of the Manson Family, under Charles 
Manson's orders, burst into the Beverley Hills home of Sharon Tate, the 
pregnant wife of Roman Polanski. The 1st victim of the ferocious rampage was 18 
year old Steve Parent, a friend of Tate's caretaker who was shot as the cult 
members approached the house.

Tate, along with her guests: hair stylist Jay Sebring, writer Wojciech 
Frykowski and coffee company heiress Abigail Folger, were rounded up into the 
house's living room and tied up. Over the course of the evening the 4 were 
killed in shocking fashion, viciously and repeatedly stabbed and beaten. Susan 
Atkins used Tate's blood to write the word 'Pig' on the front door of the 
house, before the murderers left the bloody scene.

The next night members of the Manson Family, this time accompanied by Charles 
Manson himself, murdered wealthy supermarket executive Leno LaBianca and his 
wife Rosemary. Again, the killings were carried out with cold brutality.

Los Angeles was gripped with fear following the shocking, seemingly random 
homicides, yet for a year the grisly crimes went unsolved. Indeed, the Manson 
Family's involvement in the murders was only unearthed through chance.

In 1969 Manson and several members of the family were arrested on suspicion of 
vandalising Death Valley National Park, the Mojave Desert location they had 
been hiding out in since the murders. At the same time Susan Atkins was being 
held in detention on suspicion of another, unrelated murder. Her confessions 
pointed to the Manson Family's involvement in the earlier crimes.

In the trial, and over the years since, details of the time leading up to the 
murders and the nature of Manson's cult have come to be revealed. Manson 
arrived in San Francisco in 1967, after serving jail time in Washington. He 
quickly became involved in the counter culture movement surrounding the city's 
Haight-Ashbury district, gaining popularity with his guitar playing and song 
writing. By this point the idealistic, artist centered movement which had put 
Haight-Ashbury on the map had started to change, the early 1960s hippies 
replaced with a darker culture of narcotics and crime. The Manson Family would 
go onto to become the extreme embodiment of this dark undertone to 1960s 
counter culture.

Manson formed a bizarre, surreal philosophy which took in biblical imagery, 
1960s pop culture, and the growing racial tension in the United States. The 
late 1960s had seen a host of riots erupt in cities across the country, which 
Manson saw as precursors to an apocalyptic war between black and white people. 
He told the members of the cult that they could trigger this war, out of the 
destruction of which he would take on a Messianic role. He called the prophecy 
'Helter Skelter', named after The Beatles' song and in reference to coded 
messages in the band's 'White Album' Manson claimed only he could understand.

The brutal murders of high profile celebrities, according to Manson, was a 
necessary step towards bringing the Manson Family into the public eye, a means 
to bring more people into the cult.

Manson and the 3 others found guilty on 24th January were all eventually 
sentenced to death, although California abolished the death penalty the 
following year, meaning their sentences were reduced to life imprisonment.

How Manson managed to attract such a following is a dilemma discussed at length 
by historians and psychologists to this day.

(source: newhistorian.com)