[Deathpenalty] death penalty news----TEXAS, N.H., VA., N.C., ALA.

[Rick Halperin]

March 3



TEXAS----impending execution

Death Watch: Heat of the Moment----Coy Wesbrook's mental deficiencies make his 
pending execution a "travesty," claims his lawyer


Coy Wesbrook was 39 years old when he killed his ex-wife Gloria Coons and 4 of 
her friends at Coons' home just east of Houston. He'd gone there Nov. 13, 1997, 
thinking that he and Coons could discuss getting back together. Instead, he was 
greeted by Coons' friends: 3 men and a woman. Despite the apparent change of 
plans, Wesbrook came inside.

According to various testimonies, the situation at Coons' house was a volatile 
one. All 6 people had been drinking, and Wesbrook came to realize that Coons 
had been sexually involved with 2 of the men present. Angry, he decided to go 
home. Before he made it to his truck, 1 of the men grabbed his keys and ran 
back into the house. Wesbrook went to his truck, which was unlocked, and 
grabbed a rifle. He came back inside where, he said - and he is the only 
survivor of that night - he quickly became the target of the group's jokes. 
Someone threw a beer at him, he said, and "the rifle went off." He shot and 
killed all 5, then waited outside for authorities to show up.

At trial, Harris County prosecutors were able to point to a number of instances 
in which Wesbrook had proven violent in the past, or expressed an interest in 
having his 1st wife Brenda Williams and her husband killed. After a week of 
sentencing hearings, Wesbrook was sent to death row.

Since his conviction, his attorney Don Vernay has focused on the 
spur-of-the-moment nature of the shootings, and how that fits in the context of 
Wesbrook's lifelong mental deficiencies. Wesbrook dropped out of junior high 
and had trouble keeping any job. Both of his marriages ended quickly. Even the 
fact that he waited outside for police, Vernay wrote in a clemency petition to 
Gov. Greg Abbott this February, points to a man who "now stands to lose his 
life for one impulsively tragic act." Vernay has also tried to argue in a 
series of filings that the state improperly planted an informant in Wesbrook's 
jail cell to obtain his confessions about his desire to kill Williams.

Both claims were rejected at the state and federal level until April 2011, when 
the State Board of Examiners of Psychologists issued a reprimand to Dr. George 
Denkowski, the psychologist who evaluated Wesbrook (and 13 other death row 
inmates) to determine their mental capacity. The board determined Denkowski to 
be completely inept at the job of evaluating the intellectual capabilities of 
death row inmates. Rather than face harsher penalties, Denkowski resigned. In 
light of this, the Court of Criminal Appeals sent Wesbrook's case back to trial 
court in Harris County, which in 2014 ruled Wesbrook mentally fit for 
execution. The case passed through the CCA again last January. On Monday, 
Vernay told the Chronicle that Wesbrook currently has no pending filings. "This 
execution is a travesty," he said.

Now 58, Wesbrook is expected on the execution gurney Wed., March 9. He'll be 
the 4th Texan executed this year, and the 535th since the state's reinstatement 
of the death penalty in 1976.

(source: Austin Chronicle)






NEW HAMPSHIRE:

N.H. Senate To Vote on Suspending State's Death Penalty


New Hampshire's state Senate is slated to vote on suspending the use of the 
death penalty. According to the bill's lead sponsor, Republican Kevin Avard, 
suspending the death penalty is good sense.

Avard once supported capital punishment, but says there are too many examples 
of the people improperly ending up on death row to remain confident the 
punishment is worth the risk.

"You know we are all capable of fallibility, and if you have 156 people who 
have been exonerated, we should take a real sober look at this."

Under the bill, capital punishment would be suspended until "methods exist to 
ensure that the death penalty cannot be imposed on an innocent person."

The bill is not drafted to undo the sentence of NH's lone death row inmate, 
Michael Addison, who was convicted of killing a police officer in 2006. But the 
bill's critics of the bill say it could have that effect.

New Hampshire has not executed anyone since 1939 but it is the lone New England 
state where the death penalty remains on the books. An effort to repeal the 
death penalty in 2014 failed when the senate deadlocked 12-12.

(source: New Hampshire Public Radio)






VIRGINIA:

Va. Senate panel backs electrocution as alternate execution method


Death row inmates in Virginia would receive their sentence by the electric 
chair if supplies of execution drugs were not available under House of 
Delegates legislation that cleared a Senate committee Wednesday.

Senators on the Courts of Justice Committee approved House Bill 815 by a vote 
of 9-5 and sent the measure to the full Senate for consideration.

The legislation, sponsored by Del. Jackson H. Miller, R-Manassas, passed the 
House by nearly a 2-1 margin. But it has stoked the ongoing controversy over 
whether capital punishment - and in particular, the electric chair as an 
execution method - is humane or cruel and unusual punishment.

The scarcity of lethal injection drugs - driven, in part, by the objection of 
some suppliers to provide them and the reluctance of others to formulate them 
in light of objections and boycotts by death penalty opponents - has caused a 
crisis in states that have no alternate means of execution.

The effectiveness of some new formulations of lethal injection drugs also has 
been questioned. Miller's bill offers a way around the drug supply issue. He 
said it is not an expansion of the death penalty but a way to make sure the 
determination of the justice system is carried out.

Washington and Lee University law professor David Bruck told the panel that 
electrocution is a "punishment whose time has long since passed."

Jeff Caruso of the Virginia Catholic Conference said Pope Francis has declared 
2016 a "year of mercy." In that spirit, he said, lawmakers should not be 
"piling 1 inhumanity upon another. ... We can do better," he said. "This is not 
who we are."

"If you do certain things, you don't deserve to live," said Sen. Richard L. 
Saslaw, D-Fairfax, who supported the measure.

In other action, the courts committee passed a measure to further penalize 
employers who deliberately fail to pay wages to workers.

Currently, an employer is subject only to a misdemeanor charge for refusing to 
pay an individual worker's wages up to $10,000. Under House Bill 1150, however, 
the employer would be subject to a felony charge if a group of workers is owed 
more than $10,000 collectively.

The committee also passed House Bill 1149, which would provide that a person 
who petitions the court for expungement of an offense will be reimbursed for 
the filing fee if the expungement is granted.

(source: richmond.com)

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

How McAuliffe could veto a public records bill without vetoing it


State lawmakers from both parties expressed concern Wednesday with action by 
Gov. Terry McAuliffe that they said would essentially veto a bill aimed at 
making sure public records are released.

The bill in question, SB494 by Sen. Scott Surovell, D-Fairfax County, relates 
to redaction of public records.

If certain information in a public record is exempt from disclosure under the 
Virginia Freedom of Information Act, state and local governments may redact the 
exempt parts but are required to release the parts that are public.

But a state Supreme Court ruling from September, Department of Corrections v. 
Surovell, would allow officials to withhold entire documents that contain any 
exempt information.

With backing from the Virginia Freedom of Information Advisory Council, 
lawmakers passed Surovell's bill, which makes clear:

"The provisions of this act are declaratory of the law as it existed prior to 
the September 17, 2015 decision of the Supreme Court of Virginia in the case of 
the Department of Corrections v. Surovell."

But McAuliffe sent back to the Senate a version that Surovell and Del. Jim 
LeMunyon, R-Fairfax County, who sponsored the same bill in the House of 
Delegates, say guts the bill. McAuliffe also recommended that the matter be 
studied by the FOIA council - which already endorsed Surovell's bill.

"Effectively, it would be a veto," Surovell said. "The FOIA council has already 
endorsed this in concept. ... The person who drafted it is the executive 
director of the FOIA council. The bill got vetted by all the local governments. 
It's been out there for 8 weeks."

McAuliffe's substitute "is like a nuclear bomb," Surovell said. "I was 
surprised, and I was disappointed in that I'm not clear where this is coming 
from or why it's coming."

LeMunyon said he agreed that McAuliffe's move is an effective veto.

"We're trying to restore the redaction process in the FOIA to what we always 
thought it was," he said.

Brian Coy, press secretary to the governor, said the administration disagrees 
that the court ruling applies to all local and state government agencies and 
said it applies only to the case at hand, an attempt by Surovell to obtain 
records about the death penalty.

And because the bill sent to the governor changed the word "records" to 
"information" in the FOIA, Coy said, it's a "wholesale rewrite" of FOIA that 
needs further study.

The bill, however, defines "information" as "content within a public record."

The McAuliffe administration has fought the release of information about the 
death penalty. In 2015, it introduced a bill - which passed the Senate but was 
killed by the House - to shield companies that sell lethal injection drugs from 
the public. The bill originally read: "All information relating to the 
execution process and the buildings devoted to the execution process and all 
records regarding the equipment used in the execution process shall be exempt 
from the Freedom of Information Act."

Roger Wiley, a lobbyist who represents the Virginia Municipal League and the 
Virginia Association of Counties, said the associations support Surovell's 
bill. "We had never thought the law allowed us to withhold an entire record 
just because one piece of it was exempt, so to the extent that case was 
suggesting that, we had no problem with correcting it," he said.

Surovell said he's looking at options for how to handle the governor's 
substitute bill.

Surovell's bill passed the Senate 38-1 and the House 98-2. With support from 
2/3 of each chamber, lawmakers could pass their version of the bill, LeMunyon 
said.

Megan Rhyne, executive director of the Virginia Coalition for Open Government, 
said McAuliffe's version of the bill would create an "unnecessary delay" in 
making sure the law is clear.

(source: The Virginian-Pilot)






NORTH CAROLINA:

Winston-Salem man accused of killing boy, 2, rejects plea deal at last minute


A Winston-Salem man accused of killing a 2-year-old boy in 2014 has rejected a 
plea deal that would have taken the death penalty off the table.

Daryl Jerome Reed, 26, made the decision at the last minute Wednesday morning 
in Forsyth Superior Court. Reed is charged with 1st-degree murder in the death 
of Corey Joseph Plater on Aug. 12, 2014. Assistant District Attorney Belinda 
Foster had offered to allow Reed to plead guilty to 1st-degree murder and be 
sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole.

For 1st-degree murder, there are only 2 possible sentences - a life sentence or 
the death penalty.

Just before the hearing, Reed appeared hesitant. For several minutes, he 
refused to take a pen his attorney, Julie Boyer, offered him so he could sign 
off on a change in the plea transcript reflecting the fact that he turned 26 on 
Tuesday. He eventually took the pen from Boyer.

Just after 9:30 a.m. Wednesday, the court proceeding started, and Judge Stuart 
Albright went over the plea transcript with Reed. When Albright asked Reed if 
he understood the charge, Reed replied, "In a sense."

Then Reed said he didn't want to take the plea.

"I don't feel taking this plea is in my best interest," he said.

Reed also told Albright he wanted to fire Boyer, a lawyer in the Forsyth County 
Capital Defender's Office who was appointed to Reed. Reed said that he and 
Boyer disagreed on how to handle his case. Albright denied Reed's request, 
noting that Boyer is not always going to tell Reed what he wants to hear.

"She can't sugarcoat it," he said. "She has to tell it like it is."

Boyer said in court that Foster had told her that if Reed didn't take the plea 
offer, she would seek the death penalty. Foster said in court that the plea 
deal would expire at noon Wednesday and would not be offered again. Reed didn't 
change his mind. If Forsyth County prosecutors pursue the death penalty, Reed 
will be assigned a 2nd lawyer to represent him, which is required in death 
penalty cases.

The next step now will be to hold what is called a Rule 24 hearing - scheduled 
April 6 - in which a Forsyth County judge will determine whether prosecutors 
have enough aggravating factors to pursue the death penalty. Forsyth County 
District Attorney Jim O'Neill said he could not comment on the case but said 
that in general, state law requires a jury trial when prosecutors pursue the 
death penalty. If a defendant is convicted of 1st-degree murder, a jury then 
decides whether to recommend a death sentence.

According to an autopsy report, Corey died from a laceration of the liver 
caused by blunt force trauma to his abdomen, meaning the 2-year-old was punched 
or hit in the stomach. Winston-Salem police went to a house in the 2800 block 
of Piedmont Circle around 5:50 p.m. on Aug. 12, 2014. According to the autopsy, 
Corey was found in the bathroom.

He had bruises on the left side of his face near his mouth and also had 
contusions on his upper right chest and on his forehead. The autopsy report 
said police believed Corey had been struck, possibly by a belt.

Winston-Salem police have said Reed and another adult had been taking care of 
Corey that day and that Reed had been dating one of Corey's relatives. Police 
have not identified either the relative or the other adult taking care of 
Corey.

No trial date has been set. Reed is in the Forsyth County Jail with no bond 
allowed.

(source: Winston-Salem Journal)



ALABAMA:

Alabama Supreme Court rejects John Clayton Owens' bid to have state's death 
penalty ruled unconstitutional


The Alabama Supreme Court has rejected a request by John Clayton Owens' lawyers 
to rule the state's death penalty system unconstitutional.

The court denied the request without comment this afternoon.

Attorneys Brian Clark and Ron Smith filed the petition last month on the eve of 
Owens' capital murder trial. Owens was found guilty of capital murder in the 
August 2011 death of 91-year-old Doris Richardson on Bide-a-wee Drive near Five 
Points in Huntsville.

The jury was then asked to decide on whether to recommend the death penalty or 
life without parole. The jury voted 10-2 in favor of the life without parole, 
after just 35 minutes of deliberation. The verdict took about 8 hours.

Under Alabama law, the judge has the final say and can override the jury 
recommendation and sentence Owens to death.

But that system, where the judge, not the jury, has the final say is 
unconstitutional, Owens' lawyers argued. They cited the U.S. Supreme Court's 
January decision in Hurst vs. Florida, which struck down the Florida death 
penalty system.

Alabama's system is very similar to Florida's, but the Alabama Attorney 
General's office has said there is a key difference that makes it 
constitutional. The U.S. Supreme Court said the problem is the jury is not the 
final finder of fact in Florida in determining sentencing, since the judge 
holds a separate evidentiary hearing.

Alabama's judges also do fact-finding before capital murder sentencing, but the 
Attorney General's office has said that as long as the jury has found 1 
aggravator - evidence that shows the defendant deserves the death penalty - the 
law is constitutional.

The capital murder charge against Owens is that he burglarized Richardson's 
home along with strangling her. In Alabama, burglary is 1 of the aggravators 
that a jury can find as a basis for recommending a death sentence.

In rejecting the defense's request to throw out the death penalty law in Owens' 
trials, Madison County Circuit Judge Alison Austin cited the fact that the 
charge contained an aggravator, meaning they found an element that could 
justify a death sentence.

The defense has also argued that Alabama's system has jurors weigh the 
aggravators and mitigators - any fact that would make life in prison, rather 
than death, the appropriate sentence - in reaching their recommendation. The 
defense contends that if the jury itself doesn't find sufficient weight to 
recommend a death sentence, under the Hurst ruling, the judge cannot override 
the decision.

Owens sentencing is set for April 20.

(source: WHNT news)

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

Lindsay jury hears of a broken childhood, and a sister's regret


Jurors in the Stephon Lindsay capital murder trial have heard numerous details 
of a troubled childhood, and the tearful anguish of a sister's regret.

Those jurors found Lindsay guilty of capital murder on Tuesday in the death of 
his 20-month-old daughter, Maliyah.

This happened 3 years ago this week. Lindsay slashed her throat and chopped her 
neck with some type of sword, telling police his God, "Yahweh," wanted her 
gone.

Jurors are now hearing the penalty phase, where they will determine whether to 
recommend the death penalty or life in prison without parole. Etowah County 
Circuit Judge Billy Ogletree will make the final determination.

The last witness on Wednesday was Lindsay's sister, Tiffany Tolbert. She is a 
mother of three. Tolbert broke into tears as she recalled the last day she ever 
saw Maliyah alive.

Tolbert had taken Maliyah's mother, Tasmine Thomas, to the grocery store while 
Lindsay watched the children. When Tolbert saw him that evening she said he was 
nervously pacing back and forth, something that was out of character for him. 
That night, she says Lindsay told her repeatedly to take Maliyah for the night, 
and she kept saying she couldn't.

Lindsay's statement to police indicate that was the night he killed Maliyah. He 
told his girlfriend, Thomas, that Maliyah was staying for a few days at 
Tolbert's house, and asked his sister to tell Thomas that Maliyah was with her 
if she asked.

Earlier in the day, Gadsden police investigator Wayne Hammonds choked back 
tears as he recalled Maliyah's death and the crime scene. Her body was dumped 
into a trash pile. Hammonds told jurors he thought the crime was especially 
"heinous, atrocious and cruel," when compared to other capital crimes. That's 
because he imagined her having complete trust in her father, then her last 
moments on earth having to experience him hitting her in the throat with a 
sword. Hammonds also told the jury he has a son himself.

A defense-hired mitigation expert, Talitha Bailey, testified going through DHR 
records to uncover the puzzle pieces of a broken childhood. Bailey described 
how social workers with the Etowah County Department of Human Resources were 
called out numerous times between 1979 to 1991 to investigate Lindsay's and his 
sister's living conditions. The most frequent complaint, said Bailey, was that 
the children were left alone while their mother went out drinking or doing 
drugs. In 1991, the children were finally pulled from the home when a social 
worker found Lindsay and his sister playing in the yard with the house doors 
locked. When their mother finally came to the door, she was drunk.

Jeffrey Miller, Lindsay's former stepfather, testified that before age seven, 
Lindsay took a cigarette lighter under a bed in an attempt to find his toy 
spider. In doing so, Lindsay accidentally set the bed on fire. His aunt was 
lying in the bed and died from the fire.

When asked if Miller remembered Lindsay ever getting counseling over that 
incident, he said "I doubt it."

Tolbert also described her brother as mischievous when he was younger, 
eventually getting kicked out of school. She says until the day of Maliyah's 
death, she fully trusted Lindsay around her own children, and he even babysat 
them the day of Maliyah's death.

Testimony is set to resume Thursday morning in the penalty phase.

(source: WBRT)