[Deathpenalty] death penalty news----GA., USA

[Rick Halperin]

May 27



GEORGIA:

Georgia seeks death penalty for suspect in killing of Florida priest


A Georgia prosecutor says she intends to seek the death penalty against a man 
charged with murder after leading authorities to the body of a missing Florida 
priest.

The Augusta Chronicle reports that District Attorney Ashley Wright filed notice 
this week that she will seek the death penalty for 28-year-old Steve James 
Murray of Jacksonville, Florida.

A grand jury in Burke County, Georgia, indicted Murray on murder and weapon 
violations in the April 18 shooting of the Rev. Rene Robert of St. Augustine, 
Florida.

Authorities believe Murray kidnapped the 71-year-old priest, took him to 
Georgia in his own car and killed him there. Murray was later arrested in 
Aiken, South Carolina, while driving the priest's Toyota Corolla.

(source: Associated Press)

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

Bishop calls for Georgia not to seek death penalty for Father Rene Robert's 
killer


On May 25, Steven Murray was indicted by a Burke County, Ga., grand jury for 
the murder of Father Rene Robert, who was priest of the Diocese of St. 
Augustine

It is my understanding that the prosecutors in Georgia will seek the death 
penalty for Murray because the murder occurred during other felonies - 
kidnapping and aggravated battery.

And if convicted, Murray deserves punishment for the brutal murder of Father 
Rene.

But imposing a sentence of death on Murray as a consequence of killing Father 
Rene only perpetuates a cycle of violence.

JAIL VIOLENT CRIMINALS FOR LIFE

While the state of Georgia has the right to carry out the death penalty in 
order to protect society, the unnecessary, deliberate taking of any life:

-- Denies the dignity of all persons.

-- Contributes to an ever-growing disrespect for the sacredness of human life.

-- Feeds a sense of vengeance rather than justice.

OPPOSED CAPITAL PUNISHMENT

Society remains safe when violent criminals are imprisoned for life.

Father Rene was vehemently opposed to capital punishment. He left a signed 
Declaration of Life document with his personal records that declared that 
should he become a victim of homicide, he did not want his murderer executed - 
no matter how heinous the crime may have been or how much he may have suffered.

FAMILY AWARE OF WISHES

This document has been shared with Father Rene's family, and they are fully 
aware of his wishes.

We sympathize with the pain they are suffering. However, another death will not 
provide the true healing and justice that they are seeking.

Father Rene was such a strong advocate for life - so much so that Father Rene 
felt it was important enough to document his wishes in writing and to leave 
them in my care to ensure that they are shared with the appropriate prosecuting 
authorities and also the community.

I hope Father Rene's written wishes will be given great weight by the Burke 
County prosecutors - and that Murray's sentencing will be passed in accordance 
with his wishes.

GRANT ETERNAL PEACE

In this year of mercy, let us pray that our loving Lord will pour his merciful 
love upon the troubled soul who took his life.

And may Jesus Christ grant eternal rest to Father Rene and peace for his family 
and our community who suffer his loss yet trust in the Good Shepherd's care for 
all.

Most Rev. Felipe J. Estevez,

Bishop of the Diocese of St. Augustine,

Jacksonville

(source: Letter to the Editor, Florida Times-Union)






USA:

1 Step Forward, 1 Step Back in the Fight Against the Death Penalty


The Department of Justice announces a rare intent to pursue the death penalty 
as Connecticut affirms its ban against capital punishment.

The United States Department of Justice will pursue the death penalty for 
Dylann Roof, the man charged with killing 9 people in a racially motivated 
attack last year in a South Carolina church. Attorney General Loretta E. Lynch 
announced this rare federal pursuit of the death penalty Tuesday, just 2 days 
before yesterday's ruling from the Connecticut Supreme Court to maintain its 
ban of the decreasingly popular policy.

The federal government's last execution came in 2003, when Louis Jones Jr., a 
Persian Gulf War veteran convicted of the kidnapping, rape, and murder of 
fellow soldier Tracie Joy McBride, was killed by lethal injection. Since 1988, 
U.S. attorneys general have authorized the government to seek the death penalty 
against 502 defendants, according to the Death Penalty Information Center. But 
only 37 federal executions have been carried out since 1927.

The Roof case indicates that federal prosecutors share the country's overall 
pro-death penalty stance, even as states like Connecticut maintain their bans. 
Support for the death penalty has declined steadily across the U.S. since 1995, 
especially among Democrats, the Pew Research Center reported last spring. But a 
majority of Americans?-?56 %, according to Pew, and 61 %, according to Gallup 
polls?-?continue to support the sentence. 19 states and Washington, D.C., have 
banned the death penalty.

As Pacific Standard has previously reported, the death penalty is often 
sentenced along racial lines. Killers of whites are more likely to receive the 
death penalty than killers of African Americans. Jurors are also more likely to 
convict black defendants compared to white defendants if the punishment is 
death, although they convict both groups equally if the sentence is life 
without parole. All nine of Roof's victims were black.

Roof, who also faces federal hate crime charges, will report to his 1st hearing 
in Charleston on June 7.

(source: Pacific Standard Magazine)