[Deathpenalty] death penalty news----NEB., UTAH, MONT., NEV., CALIF., WASH.

[Rick Halperin]

Jan. 25



NEBRASKA:

Execution protocol nears approval with confidentiality change


The Nebraska Department of Correctional Services apparently will strike a 
paragraph from its proposed execution protocol that would authorize the 
supplier of lethal injection drugs to remain confidential.

The department has reviewed testimony from a Dec. 30 public hearing on 
execution protocol, proposed at least one change and forwarded its proposed 
protocol to Attorney General Doug Peterson. Now, it's in the hands of Gov. Pete 
Ricketts' Policy Research Office.

The protocol was revised shortly after Nebraskans voted in November to continue 
using the death penalty. That vote came after the Legislature voted to repeal 
it and substitute life in prison for first-degree murder convictions.

The newly revised protocol would allow the Corrections Department to use 
available drugs for lethal injection of condemned inmates and would have kept 
the source of those drugs confidential. It would give only the inmate 
information on what drug(s) would be used and in what quantity 60 days before a 
request for a death warrant.

That use of appropriate available drugs was substituted for a 3-drug 
combination of sodium thiopental to render the inmate unconscious, pancuronium 
bromide to stop breathing and potassium chloride to stop the heart.

The department issued an explanatory statement Jan. 12, summarizing testimony 
given during the Dec. 30 public hearing and responding to issues and questions 
raised there.

Testimony -- the majority of it expressing concerns about the proposed protocol 
-- came from pharmacists, Omaha Sen. Ernie Chambers, a representative of the 
media, physicians, pastors, members of the public and ACLU of Nebraska. In 
addition, 25 letters and documents were submitted.

Many of the concerns were about secrecy in the revised protocol and use of 
pharmacy personnel in the process.

The department responded this way.

* Because of opposition to keeping the source of execution drugs confidential 
-- opponents cited a violation of Nebraska's public records laws and lack of 
transparency -- the Corrections Department said it will strike this paragraph: 
"... the director may authorize any records or information identifying a 
person, company, or entity supplying the substance or substances to be employed 
in an execution by lethal injection to be confidential."

* In response to concern about using unknown drugs in unknown doses, the 
department said the protocol does not do that. While the drugs are not 
specifically named in the protocol, the inmate will be notified of the drug(s), 
the quantity and the order they will be administered at least 60 days prior to 
the request for an execution warrant, the department said.

* The Corrections director, not the Legislature, is responsible by law for 
selecting the drugs and quantities to be used, and that will not change.

* As far as the concern that pharmacists involved in any way in the execution 
would be violating their code of ethics, the department cited state law saying 
a pharmacist or other person licensed by a board or department is exempted from 
disciplinary action.

* State law exempts the lethal injection process from the Pharmacy Practice 
Act, so references to pharmaceutical chemists can be used in the protocol, the 
department said. Pharmacists had objected because the practice act says only 
pharmacists, pharmacist interns and technicians may compound drugs. Also, 
pharmacists can provide the drugs without a medical order from a prescriber 
because of the exemption. * No fiscal impact is anticipated beyond what exists 
in the current rule.

* The department proposes to retain provisions that would allow a county 
coroner to determine whether an inmate is dead.

Corrections Director Scott Frakes said on Jan. 11 his department was working 
diligently to review all testimony, and that he would take the time necessary 
to make sure the review was done correctly.

He turned it over to Attorney General Peterson the next day.

Corrections spokeswoman Dawn-Renee Smith said the department's chief attorney 
spent considerable time drafting the hearing summary and the responses, and 
that by the close of business on Jan. 11, Frakes had received and reviewed the 
summary of testimony and the responses to each issue.

"The testimony was, in fact, carefully considered, which will be reflected in 
the final rule," Smith said.

(source: Lincoln Journal Star)






UTAH:

State representative sponsoring two death penalty bills


A battle is brewing over the death penalty on Utah's Capitol Hill.

Representative Paul Ray says the state needs to send a strong message about 
what's going on across the country.

"We have people that are out across the country who are out targeting and 
trying to kill police officers, because of who they are. We want to say, you 
know what, in Utah we're not going to do that. We're going to get some 
protections," said Ray, (R) Clearfield.

Ray is sponsoring a bill he says will create those protections.

It would require prosecutors to seek the death penalty for anyone who targets 
and kills an officer or member of the military.

He says it would then be up to a jury to decide if the sentence should be 
carried out.

The ACLU of Utah is waiting to see the wording of the bill, but says there are 
some potential problems.

"We know from Supreme Court rulings that it is not constitutional to have a 
mandatory punishment for any type of crimes. So, having the death penalty be 
mandatory would definitely run afoul of the Constitution, so that's definitely 
a problem to be looking for," said Marina Lowe, Legislative Counsel with the 
ACLU.

Ray is also sponsoring a bill to make human traffickers eligible for the death 
penalty.

"If you bring somebody into human trafficking and they die for some reason, you 
could ultimately be charged with a capital offense and be subject to the death 
penalty, because you are responsible for that individuals death," said Ray.

Both bills will face resistance.

House Minority Leader Brian King wants to see the death penalty abolished.

"The thing that worries me about the death penalty is that there a lot of 
examples of indications where we have put innocent people to death," said King, 
(D) Salt Lake City.

King is also concerned about racial and financial disparity.

But, Ray is determined to push forward.

"You hear the argument all the time, well we are killing innocent people. We're 
not doing that in Utah, you know people we are killing deserve to die, so we 
want to make sure we maintain that," said Ray.

The human trafficking bill, House Bill 176 was made public Tuesday.

The one for police officers should be public by the end of the week.

(source: good4utah.com)






MONTANA:

Prosecution considers seeking death penalty in Collins murder trial


Jake Collins pleaded not guilty to killing his wife Crystal Collins. He 
allegedly beat her to death with a frying pan during an argument on New Years 
Day.

The big question surrounding this case is whether prosecution will seek the 
death penalty.

To seek the death penalty, Galatians County Attorney Marty Lambert says there 
needs to be a statutory aggravated circumstance. The Supreme Court dictates 
that for someone to be sentenced to death, there must be at least 1 statutory 
aggravated circumstance proven against him or her.

"The circumstance I think would be applicable [is] torture." Lambert said.

The coroner's report was just release Saturday and the information revealed in 
that will play a part in Lambert's decision. Additionally he will speak with 
the family and attorney general.

Collins' bond is still set at $750,000. If he posts bond and is released, 
Collins can't own or possess firearms, have contact with his three children, 
and he must wear a GPS monitor at all times.

(source: abcfoxmontana.com)






NEVADA:

Prosecutors to seek death for man accused in death of 3-year-old daughter


Prosecutors intend to seek the death penalty against a 23-year-old man charged 
in the beating death of his young daughter.

Along with murder, Justin Tom Bennett faces dozens of counts of child abuse in 
connection with what prosecutors described as more than 18 months of torture on 
the 3-year-old, who died from a blow to the chest so severe that it damaged her 
heart, as well as his 4-year-old daughter.

The choice to seek capital punishment was made Tuesday afternoon by the 
district attorney's death penalty committee shortly after a meeting with 
Bennett's defense lawyers.

Prosecutors declined to comment on the decision.

Deputy Public Defender Joseph Abood said "there is no evidence this young man 
intended to kill his daughter. By seeking the death penalty, they're ensuring 
substantial costs to the taxpayers of hundreds of thousands of dollars, years 
of litigation and in the end, this young man will never be executed, even if a 
jury sentences him to death."

Nevada has not executed anyone since 2006, and officials with the Department of 
Corrections acknowledged late last year that they could not obtain the 
necessary drugs to carry out executions.

An indictment against Bennett details some of the abuse the girls suffered. He 
would hit and kick them, throw them against a wall, force feed them hot foods, 
cover their mouths and plug their noses, court documents state. In 1 instance, 
Bennett sliced open 1 girl's unhealed head wound.

Chief Deputy District Attorney Jacqueline Bluth said the younger girl, 
Abygaile, suffered a broken back and 3 broken ribs in the 36 hours leading up 
to her death July 1. An autopsy determined that the girl had suffered 
blunt-force trauma to the chest, and the right atrium of her heart had been 
torn, according to Bluth.

Her older sister survived.

Child Protective Services had investigated Bennett and his wife, Korie 
Morimoto, early last year when the parents accused 1 another of disciplining 
the children too severely, Bennett's parents told police. According to the 
Department of Child and Family Services, the agency received information about 
Abygaile and her family on Jan. 8, 2016.

The child abuse investigation revealed Bennett had forced mustard into his 
daughters' mouths when they lied and made them take cold showers as punishment, 
police wrote in a report at the time of his arrest. But the agency found there 
was no present or impending danger to the girls and recommended both parents 
take parenting classes.

Since Bennett's arrest, his surviving children, including a girl who was 2 when 
Abygaile died, and their mother, Morimoto, came forward with details of the 
abuse.

They said he forced the older girls to endure "wall sits," in which he made 
them keep their backs and bottoms against the wall. If the girls fell or cried, 
he would beat them, according to the prosecutor.

Morimoto, who has since been charged with one felony count of allowing child 
abuse or neglect with substantial bodily harm and 1gross misdemeanor count of 
allowing child abuse or neglect, surreptitiously recorded the abuse on video, 
apparently intending to seek help from authorities.

(source: Las Vegas Review-Journal)






CALIFORNIA:

Alleged RivCo Serial Killer Accused in Random Murders Facing Death Penalty ---- 
Jury selection in the trial of David Rey Contreras began this week.


Jury selection got underway Monday for the trial of a Perris man accused of 
knifing a dog owner to death and later fatally stabbing a mother and daughter, 
during what authorities theorize were unprovoked, random attacks.

David Rey Contreras, 28, could face the death penalty if convicted of killing 
53-year-old Jose Apreza, as well as 51-year-old Maria Gonzalez and her 
25-year-old daughter, Consuelo "Connie" Gonzalez, 4 years ago.

Contreras is charged with 3 counts of 1st-degree murder, along with special 
circumstance allegations of lying in wait and taking multiple lives in the same 
crime.

The case was assigned to a courtroom at the Southwest Justice Center in 
Murrieta, where Riverside County Superior Court Judge Stephen Gallon summoned 
200 prospective jurors for screening as to their availability and fitness to 
weigh evidence in the case.

Jury selection is expected to last several weeks, with opening statements 
tentatively set for the week of Feb. 20.

Deputy District Attorney Dan DeLimon told City News Service in 2015 that there 
was no readily identifiable motive behind the deadly attacks. According to the 
prosecutor, testimony from his preliminary hearing indicated that Contreras was 
allegedly "going out, walking the streets, seeking innocent people to kill," 
possibly just for the thrill.

The 1st fatal assault occurred on Dec. 29, 2012, in the area of Evans Road and 
Orange Avenue in Perris. The victim had gone out that morning to walk his pit 
bull and was reported missing by his wife when he didn't return within a few 
hours.

One of the deputies dispatched to search for the missing man that afternoon 
spotted a body in an open field with a dog standing nearby. When the deputy 
approached, the pit bull lunged at him, prompting the lawman to shoot and kill 
the animal.

Coroner's officials later confirmed the human remains were those of Apreza, who 
had been stabbed multiple times in the upper body, back and thighs. 
Investigators surmised that his canine was roaming around when the stabbing 
occurred.

On the evening of Feb. 4, 2013, Maria Gonzalez and her daughter left their 
Nuevo home to take a stroll along Central Avenue and a short time later were 
confronted by a man who attacked them both with a knife, according to 
investigators.

Deputies arrived within minutes and found the victims lying on a sidewalk 
between Ramona and Rosary avenues.

Connie Gonzalez was pronounced dead at the scene. Her mother was transported to 
Menifee Valley Medical Center, where she succumbed to her wounds less than an 
hour later.

Witnesses reported seeing a young man in dark clothing fleeing the area and 
provided specific identifying details that proved pivotal to the investigation, 
according to DeLimon.

"There were quite a few people who got a glimpse of what happened," he said. 
"They gave a good description of the assailant's dimensions, his clothing and 
the fact he was wearing a type of back brace you might see on a construction 
worker."

A week later, a deputy parked on Central saw an individual adorned in the exact 
same articles -- including the brace -- walking toward him. He detained the 
man, who turned out to be Contreras.

The defendant was arrested for carrying a concealed knife, which he'd hidden 
inside the brace. A dog leash was also found in his possession that apparently 
belonged to Apreza, according to the prosecution.

Contreras was jailed on a felony weapon allegation and spent several months 
behind bars until his attorney offered a plea deal directly to the court, 
resulting in a sentence of probation.

According to the prosecution, during and after the time that the defendant was 
in custody, DNA tests were conducted on his shoes and the leash, which 
allegedly contained blood stains. The time-consuming process was eventually 
completed, resulting in sufficient evidence to warrant murder charges.

Contreras was re-arrested without incident on Aug. 7, 2013, at his family's 
home in the 2200 block of Wilson Avenue.

He's being held without bail at the Southwest Detention Center.

(source: patch.com)






WASHINGTON:

Outlaw the death penalty in Washington state


The Seattle Times editorial, "Time for Washington to abandon the death 
penalty," (TCH, Jan. 8) talked me into it - let's outlaw the death penalty in 
Washington. It is too expensive to see a capital case through to its logical 
conclusion, there should be equal justice under the law and the deterrent 
effect remains unproven. Truly, God forbid the state should ever execute an 
innocent person.

While we're saving all that public money and treating convicts equally, let's 
stop paying to segregate prisoners like Clark Richard Elmore, who raped and 
murdered a child. That must cost an awful lot and segregation is so wrong. 
Release him back into the general prison population. 2 birds with 1 stone so to 
speak.

The Times puzzlement as to why some states still allow the death penalty and 
others do not is disingenuous. The U.S. Constitution reserves that right and 
responsibility to the individual states. The death penalty may have lost favor 
with Washington state's leaders, but I hope any permanent change in the law 
results from a vote of the people.

Linda K. Gragg, Kennewick

(source: Letter to the Editor, tri-cityherald.com)