[Deathpenalty] death penalty news----TEXAS, PENN., N.C., GA., FLA., ALA., OHIO, WASH., USA

[Rick Halperin]

Feb. 24



TEXAS:

Guilty: Kountze man faces death penalty at sentencing in child's death----The 
members of the jury found Jason Wade Delacerda, 40, of Kountze, guilty of 
capital murder.



A week of heart-wrenching testimony came to a close Friday morning and a jury 
of 9 women and 5 men began deliberations in the trial of a man accused of 
ending the life of his girlfriend's 4-year-old child. By 3 p.m. the jury made 
its decision. The jury foreman read the verdict Friday afternoon. The members 
of the jury found Jason Wade Delacerda, 40, of Kountze, guilty of capital 
murder.

Delacerda faces the death penalty when jury members decide his punishment. The 
punishment phase of the trial will begin at 8 a.m. Monday. If he is sentenced 
to death, he would be the 1st person to receive the death penalty in Hardin 
County since the 1980's when Robert Streetman was sent to death row. He was 
convicted of shooting and killing Christine Baker, 44, whom he shot through a 
window as she sat watching TV in her Kountze home in 1982. (source: 
deathpenalty.org).

The young victim, Breonna Nichol Loftin, died at CHRISTUS Southeast Texas - St. 
Elizabeth in 2011. Doctors said she had burns, bruises and broken bones. It's 
taken nearly 7 years for the case to be placed before a jury.

An attorney for Jason Wade Delacerda did not offer opening statements Tuesday 
morning. Ryan Getz said he would rely on the jury to find evidence presented by 
the prosecution as too weak for a conviction. He asked the judge to "limit the 
scope" of questioning during the trial saying questions about the condition of 
the child at the hospital have nothing to do with how the child's injuries 
contributed to her death. Judge Steven Thomas denied Gertz's request to 
restrict the evidence.

One of the first witnesses called by the prosecution is Jefferson County 
Medical examiner Tommy Brown. He said under oath that the young victim's death 
was caused by a severe head injury, known as "Subdural Hematoma." He said 
forensic evidence disputes Delacerda's claim that the injury was caused by a 
trampoline accident.

Emergency room physician Dr. Charles Owen also took the stand on the 1st day of 
the trial. He testified that the child had multiple bruises, scabs and broken 
bones. He said there were signs of pushpins pressed into the victim's forehead. 
The defense objected to the prosecution's presentation of this evidence, saying 
it was not related to the child's death. Judge Thomas overruled the objection.

Hardin County Sheriff's Office Captain Gary Spears testified about seeing the 
child's injuries while at the hospital. While Capt. Spears was on the stand, 
prosecutors played an audio recording of an interview with the defendant that 
was made as part of the investigation. Delacerda is heard on the tape saying 
that the burns could have been caused by a cigarette, but denied knowing how it 
could have happened. Delacerda's voice on the tape is also heard saying that 
Breonna's leg and head injuries were caused by a trampoline accident. Delacerda 
said her burns were caused by hot coffee.

Jury members Wednesday continued watching video of Delecerda as he was 
questioned by 2 Hardin County investigators. Delecerda is heard explaining 
Breonna's injuries. An investigator is heard in the video telling the defendant 
that Amanda, the victim's mother, gave investigators a very different story 
than his. The video ends as Delecerda and one of the investigators began 
shouting at each other.

The Jury had a short day on Thursday. Testimony was cut short because of an 
issue with one of the jury members, and the prosecution and the defense raised 
concerns they wanted worked out before testimony resumed Friday. Prosecutor 
Bruce Hoffer expressed concern of, "extreme risk of corroboration" between 
Delacerda's 2 sons. He asked that the sons be brought in separately when they 
testify. Defense attorney Ryan Gertz said he had an issue as to how recorded 
interviews with Delacerda???s sons were carried out. Both sides met with the 
Judge after the jury left Thursday morning.

(source: 12newsnow.com)

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

Texas Dad Speaks Out After Saving Son Who Plotted Murders of Mom and Brother 
>From Death Sentence



The father of the man whose execution was commuted just before he was scheduled 
to be put to death said on Megyn Kelly TODAY that he is grateful his son's life 
was spared - even after the son's conviction for plotting the murder of his 
family members and the attempted murder of the dad himself.

"I feel a great sense of relief and hope," Kent Whitaker told Kelly, adding, 
"He's been given a 2nd chance at life."

In an attempt to gain hold of the family's $1 million estate, Thomas "Bart" 
Whitaker, plotted the murders of younger brother and mother in a brutal 2003 
attack he masterminded that left Kent severely injured.

While Kent was in the hospital recovering from his near fatal wounds, he vowed 
to forgive whoever was behind the murders. Months later, he was shocked to 
learn the identity of the killer: his own son, Bart.

Leaning on his Christian faith, Kent begged authorities to spare his son's life 
ever since Bart was convicted of the murders and sentenced to death in 2007. He 
argued that as the only surviving victim, he would be victimized yet again if 
his son were put to death.

On Thursday, after an emotional goodbye with his son, Kent learned that Texas 
Gov. Greg Abbott commuted Bart's sentence from death to life in prison without 
the possibility of parole.

"People use the term bizarre, but that's what it was," he told Kelly. "I've 
never seen anything like it. We started the day not knowing what was going to 
happen, believing that Gov. Greg Abbott would commute the sentence but not 
knowing."

Abbott's decision followed a unanimous decision on Tuesday for commutation by 
the Texas Board of Pardons and Paroles.

It is the 1st death sentence Gov. Abbott has ever overturned.

On Thursday, Kent and his wife, Tanya Whitaker, drove to the prison to say 
their final goodbyes to Bart.

"It was extremely sad," he said. "We touched the glass with our hands and said 
goodbye."

Officials ended the call at 5 p.m. While Tanya went to the observation room 
during the injection, Kent decided at the last minute not to go.

Then word came that his sentence had been commuted.

"I want to thank all the people all over the world who have prayed for this," 
Kent told reporters just after he learned that his son's life had been spared.

Upon learning his fate, Bart told prison officials, "I'm thankful not for me 
but for my dad. Any punishment that I would have or will receive is just, but 
my dad did nothing wrong. The system worked for him today. And I will do my 
best to uphold my role in the system."

In a statement explaining his reasoning for granting clemency, Abbott said, "In 
just over 3 years as Governor, I have allowed 30 executions. I have not granted 
a commutation of a death sentence until now.

"The murders of Mr. Whitaker's mother and brother are reprehensible. The crime 
deserves severe punishment for the criminals who killed them. The 
recommendation of the Texas Board of Pardons and Paroles, and my action on it, 
ensures Mr. Whitaker will never be released from prison."

The Governor said Kent's pleas for his son's life influenced his decision.

"Mr. Whitaker's father insists that he would be victimized again if the state 
put to death his last remaining immediate family member," he said in his 
proclamation.

Whitaker's friend, Chris Brashear, pleaded guilty to a murder charge and was 
sentenced to life in prison. His other friend, Steve Champagne, who drove 
Brashear from the house the night of the shootings, took the plea deal with a 
15-year prison sentence in exchange for his testimony against Whitaker.

"I'm 100 % guilty," Bart testified at his trial in 2007. "I put the plan in 
motion."

(source: people.com)








PENNSYLVANIA:

Execution Delayed in Pennsylvania for Notorious Killer Raghunandan Yandamuri



Raghunandan Yandamuri, the 1st Indian American on death row, was not put to 
death by lethal injection on Feb. 23, his scheduled execution date, as the 
state of Pennsylvania has a moratorium on the death penalty since 2015.

Pennsylvania District Court Judge Petrese Tucker issued a stay of execution for 
Yandamuri Jan. 16, based on a request by the killer, who - during court 
proceedings - told a judge he wanted to die for the crimes he had committed, 
and asked that the death sentence be imposed upon him. He received two death 
sentences, which he later appealed but lost last April.

Amy Worden, press secretary for the Pennsylvania Department of Corrections, 
told India-West that another warrant would have to be signed for the execution 
to proceed. "For now he remains on the capital case unit," she said.

The Pennsylvania Board of Pardons would have to determine if Yandamuri's death 
sentence can be commuted to a life sentence, said Worden.

Sue McNaughton, communications director, Pennsylvania Department of 
Corrections, told PTI in January that the likelihood of Yandamuri being 
executed is slim. She noted that Pennsylvania Governor Tom Wolf has said he 
would issue a reprieve if a court did not grant the stay.

Pennsylvania has not carried out any executions in the past 20 years. Yandamuri 
is incarcerated at the Greene State Correctional Institution, a maximum 
security prison in Waynesburg, Pennsylvania.

In 2014, Yandamuri was sentenced to die by lethal injection for murdering 
10-month-old Saanvi Venna and her 61-year-old grandmother, Satyavathi Venna. A 
jury deliberated for just 3 hours before declaring Yandamuri guilty (see 
India-West story here: http://bit.ly/2DhvWch).

After he was arrested in 2012, the killer provided a chilling account of how he 
entered the Vennas' apartment while Saanvi's parents, Venkata and Latha, were 
at work. He fatally stabbed Satyavathi - who was attempting to protect her 
granddaughter - before kidnapping the baby, which he hoped to use to obtain 
$50,000 in ransom from her parents.

Yandamuri and his wife Komali were friends with the Vennas and lived in the 
same apartment building in King of Prussia, Pennsylvania.

After kidnapping Saanvi, Yandamuri covered her mouth and stuffed the baby in a 
suitcase, then left her at a basement gym in the apartment building, where she 
suffocated to death. During a frantic 3-day search by police and the local 
community, Yandamuri handed out missing baby flyers.

The H-1B tech worker was arrested later that week at a local gambling casino. 
Earlier India-West stories reported that Yandamuri had accrued $35,000 in 
gambling debts and had filed for bankruptcy while working in Northern 
California. His wife Komali was pregnant at the time of the murders. She has 
returned to India.

(source: indiawest.com)

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

Man charged in fatal Homewood arson could face death penalty



A man accused of burning down a Homewood house in December, killing 2 women and 
a 4-year-old girl, could face the death penalty if he's convicted.

Allegheny County District Attorney Stephen Zappala's office announced the 
decision Tuesday afternoon. The district attorney says this filing is based on 
several reasons, including Martell Smith's significant criminal history and the 
fact that one of the victims was a child.

Smith, 41, allegedly started the early-morning house fire on Dec. 20 after a 
confrontation at a Penn Hills bar earlier in the evening.

Sandra Carter Douglas, 58, and her son's girlfriend, Shamira Staten, 21, died 
in the Bennet Street blaze, as did Staten's daughter, Chy'enne Manning.

Douglas' husband, Cecil Douglas, escaped by climbing out a window; he suffered 
a broken ankle.

Investigators say they have surveillance video of Smith buying gasoline at a 
Sunoco before the fire. And according to court documents, witnesses overheard 
Smith saying, "Yep, I did it," as he stood looking at the fire.

He faces 3 counts of criminal homicide, several related arson charges and 
narcotics charges.

A 2nd person, Tiasia Malloy, was also arrested at the scene, charged with 
aggravated assault on an officer.

(source: WXPI news)








NORTH CAROLINA:

Judge vacates order that prosecutors said had stalled investigation into death 
of 2-year-old boy; trial is scheduled for September



A Forsyth County judge vacated a court order Friday that prosecutors said was 
preventing the testing of physical evidence in a case involving the death of a 
2-year-old boy nearly 3 years ago.

Charles Thomas Stacks, 32, is charged with 1st-degree murder in the death of 
Jaxson Sonny Swaim, who died Aug. 19, 2015 at Brenner Children's Hospital. 
Winston-Salem police found the child 3 days earlier at a house in the 5400 
block of Grubbs Street. Jaxson had abrasions all over his body and head 
injuries. Stacks was not Jaxson's father but had been friends with Jaxson's 
mother, Candace Swaim, and had been taking care of him.

An autopsy report showed that Jaxson died from bleeding between the surface of 
his brain and its outer covering that was caused by a blunt-force head injury. 
Jaxson also had bite marks on his body that were later identified as human, 
prosecutors have said.

Forsyth County prosecutors are pursuing the death penalty against Stacks. A 
trial is scheduled to start the week of Sept. 17.

At a hearing in Forsyth Superior Court on Friday, Assistant District Attorney 
Jennifer Martin said that an order signed by Judge Andy Cromer on Aug. 11, 
2017, has kept analysts at the State Crime Lab from testing physical evidence 
that Winston-Salem police detectives seized. That includes a hair found on a 
Louisville baseball bat that could either belong to Stacks or to Jaxson, 
according to a motion Forsyth County prosecutors filed seeking to vacate 
Cromer's order.

The physical evidence also includes DNA and 50 hair samples taken from Stacks, 
red-colored stains taken from near a table leg and from a corner in a bedroom 
at the house, and a blood and hair sample taken from the autopsy of Jaxson, the 
motion said.

Attorneys Nils Gerber and Stephen Ball are representing Stacks. Assistant 
District Attorneys Amara Hunter and C. Ruffin Sykes are prosecuting the case 
along with Martin.

The issue during the hearing was what might happen if certain physical 
evidence, particularly DNA, can't be re-tested after it has been analyzed. 
Stacks, Gerber said, has the right to examine the evidence against him, 
including DNA and other biological evidence.

Martin and Hunter argued, however, that defendants have the right to examine 
and challenge that evidence after it has been tested, not before.

Another issue was that the order was signed after an ex parte hearing, which, 
in this case, meant that prosecutors were not present when Cromer heard the 
matter on Aug. 11, 2017. Gerber said in court that prosecutors were notified 
about the order on Aug. 14, 2017. Prosecutors said they did not realize the 
consequences of the order until they submitted a rush order to the State Crime 
Lab on Jan. 22 to have the evidence tested.

A lawyer with the State Crime Lab told prosecutors that the crime lab could not 
test the evidence because of language in the court order. The 2nd paragraph of 
the order said that "all of the above agencies are prohibited from consuming 
all trace, blood or DNA evidence of Jaxson Swaim, or the defendant or anyone 
else whose trace, blood, or DNA evidence was obtained, without prior notice and 
order of the Court," according to the motion.

Martin said in court Friday that the order has stalled the criminal 
investigation for 7 months. Cromer, who presided over Friday's hearing, said 
that was not his intent.

Cromer vacated the order but he wanted to set up safeguards to make sure 
parties are notified if analysts realize that a piece of evidence can't be 
re-tested after analysis. Gerber offered several options, including the 
possibility of a defense expert being present in the lab.

Martin objected strongly to any suggestion that defense experts be in the lab. 
The State Crime Lab has specific protocols to protect the integrity of its 
work, she said. She also said it would create burdens if the State Crime Lab 
had to notify prosecutors about evidence that could not be re-tested.

Gerber said he understands that it might be burdensome, but he reminded Cromer 
that his client's life is on the line, if he is convicted of 1st-degree murder 
and gets the death penalty.

Cromer ultimately ordered that the State Crime Lab notify prosecutors if 
certain evidence gets to a point where it can't be re-tested.

Martin said requiring that would likely delay the trial for months.

(source: Winston-Salem Journal)








GEORGIA----new execution date

Execution date set for "Stocking Strangler" Carlton Gary



An execution date has been set for convicted "Stocking Strangler" Carlton 
Michael Gary.

The order was filed Friday in Muscogee Superior Court setting the 7-day window 
for the execution to begin at noon Thursday, March 15 and ending at noon a week 
later. Gary has concluded all his direct appeals, including state and federal 
habeas corpus proceedings.

Gary was convicted in the 1977 rape and murder of Florence Scheible, Martha 
Thurmond and Kathleen Woodruff.

(sourc: ledger-enquirer.com)








FLORIDA----new death sentence

Judge condemns Tampa man to death for 2013 Lakeland murder



Benjamin Davis Smiley Jr. sat motionless Friday as Circuit Judge Jalal Harb 
sentenced him to die.

"For the murder of Clifford Drake," Harb said, "you are sentenced to be put to 
death in a manner prescribed by law."

He said the reasons argued by Smiley's lawyers for granting him mercy, 
including 2 brain aneurysms that left him with permanent damage, paled in 
comparison to those presented by prosecutors for imposing the death penalty, 
including Smiley's violent past and the cruelty of his actions.

Shelia Drake, the victim's widow, cheered Friday upon learning of Smiley's 
death sentence.

(source: The Ledger)

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

Tallahassee residents oppose death penalty, latest state execution



96 people have been executed in the Sunshine State since Florida started the 
death penalty in 1979. The latest happened Thursday night.

Eric Branch was executed by the state of Florida 25 years after the rape and 
murder of Susan Morris. She was a college student and her body was found naked 
and left in the woods.

Friday afternoon, a group of residents remembered the lives of both people.

They call themselves the "Tallahassee Citizens Against The Death Penalty." 
Around 20 people gathered inside the capitol to reflect on the state's most 
recent execution.

Florida changed the rules for a death penalty sentence in 2016. A unanimous 
jury is now required. Branch's jury wasn't, but the new rules exclude those who 
were sentenced before 2002.

The group says it doesn't condone what happened to Susan Morris, but it can't 
support the capital punishment system here.

"Leaving aside the question of whether it is ever right to deliberately take 
the life of another person when we don't have to do that," said Walter Moore, a 
member of the Tallahassee Citizens Against the Death Penalty. "We can keep 
society safe by locking a person away if that is what is called for."

The group hopes Florida abolishes the death penalty as other states have done 
in recent years. Members say there have been more executions during Rick 
Scott's time in office than any other governor in Florida's history.

They say there have been too many cases of wrongful convictions and that they 
favor life in prison over execution. The group said it's actually more 
expensive to keep the death penalty than to abolish it.

"Tallahassee Citizens Against The Death Penalty" was created in the late 70s.

The group held a vigil outside the governor's mansion Thursday night, at the 
same time Eric Branch was being executed.

(source: WTXL news)








ALABAMA----2 new execution dates

Alabama has set executions for 2 men, including one who asked for it



The Alabama Supreme Court has set execution dates for 2 inmates, 1 for the man 
convicted in the 1989 pipe bombing that killed a federal appeals judge in 
Mountain Brook, and the other from an inmate who asked the court to expedite 
his own death.

The court set April 19 for Walter Lee Moody's execution for the death of U.S. 
11th Circuit Court of Appeals Judge Robert S. Vance. Justices also set March 15 
for the execution of Michael Wayne Eggers, the Alabama Attorney General's 
Office confirmed Friday.

Eggers was convicted of 2 counts of capital murder in connection with the Dec. 
30, 2000 murder of Bennie Francis Murray, of Talladega, during the course of a 
kidnapping and robbery.

While the Alabama Attorney General's Office asked for an execution date for 
Moody, Eggers had submitted on Jan. 10, 2016 a hand-written motion to the 
Alabama Supreme Court asking that his execution be "expedited."

In 2016 a federal judge, after listening to mental health experts, declared 
that Eggers was within his rights to stop appeals in his case. "Eggers has made 
a rational choice to dismiss his appointed counsel and abandon his appeal. 
Eggers has the right to make that decision, provided he is competent to do so, 
and the evidence indicates that he is," the judge stated.

A 3-member panel of the U.S. 11th Circuit Court of Appeals upheld the judge's 
decision. The Alabama Supreme Court on Jan. 23 of this year set the execution 
date.

Eggers' former attorneys had sought a review by the full 11th Circuit appeals 
court but that court denied a review of the case on Feb. 7, the Attorney 
General noted in a motion. Eggers' former appellate attorneys with the Federal 
Public Defenders Office in Montgomery plan to file a request for review with 
the U.S. Supreme Court from the 11th Circuit's ruling in the next two weeks, 
according to Assistant Federal Defender John Palombi.

Meanwhile, the U.S. Supreme Court is also set to consider on March 2 a motion 
Eggers filed himself regarding competency.

In his 2016 motion asking the state to expedite his execution, he says he has 
not sought to delay his execution and a few times mentions getting closure for 
the family of his victim.

"Eggers now moves this court to expedite Eggers execution, sentence of death 
and the effective administration of justice, for the family members of one 
Bennie Francis Murray and citizens of the state of Alabama," Eggers wrote. 
"Eggers does not challenge the method of execution employed, or the drugs used 
for said execution by the state of Alabama."

Inmates have challenged Alabama's 3-drug protocol in court. On Thursday the 
state called off the execution of Doyle Lee Hamm after apparently having 
problems with finding veins.

Execution of Doyle Lee Hamm called off

Doyle Lee Hamm survived his date with the executioner Thursday, as Alabama was 
unable to begin the procedure before the death warrant expired at midnight.

In his motion, Eggers also states that "Justice should be swift, not a facade." 
He said that death row inmates should not be exposed to double punishment - 20 
to 30 years in prison "punctuated with an execution. One would argue it is 
cruel and unusual punishment."

Eggers noted the state of Texas where he said it's 6 to 10 years to execution. 
He wrote that "is on the right track."

"Family members should not be exposed to the procedural roller coaster, 
allowing for closure, while ensuring due process and equal protection under the 
state and federal constitution," Eggers wrote.

Moody

Moody, who at 83 is the oldest inmate on Alabama death row, on Jan. 8 had his 
request for a review of his appeal rejected by the U.S. Supreme Court. The next 
day the Alabama Attorney General sought an execution date from the Alabama 
Supreme Court.

"Moody has no further available challenges to his conviction and death 
sentence," the Attorney General wrote in its request.

The court should fix the date of execution for Moody "so that complete justice 
may be visited upon the murderer of Judge Robert Vance," the Attorney General 
states in the motion.

Moody was seeking to appeal an U.S. 11th Circuit Court of Appeals decision in 
March 2017. That appeal regarded his decision to represent himself at the 1996 
capital murder trial. After convicting him, the jury voted 11-1 for a death 
sentence and the judge followed that recommendation.

Moody had requested that he represent himself at his trial. But once jury 
selection began, he asked for a 12- to 18-month continuance so he could hire 
two lawyers. The judge refused to grant a continuance.

"This non-unanimous death verdict resulted from a case in which the defendant 
represented himself, despite numerous requests for counsel. Our court system 
should be concerned about the obvious unfairness of such a situation," Spencer 
Hahn, an assistant federal public defender who represents Moody, said in a 
statement to AL.com after the U.S. Supreme Court ruled.

The U.S. Supreme Court also previously refused to deny another appeal by Moody.

Judge Vance was killed Dec. 16, 1989, and his wife, Helen, was seriously 
injured after the judge opened a package that had been sent to his home, 
detonating the pipe bomb. A similar pipe bomb killed a lawyer in Atlanta 2 days 
later.

Moody was linked to the crimes through a similar bomb nearly two decades 
earlier that had injured his wife when it exploded. His prosecution in that 
case led to his resentment of the courts leading up to the 1989 bombings.

In 1991, a federal jury convicted Moody of 71 charges related to the pipe-bomb 
murders of Vance and civil rights attorney Robert E. Robinson.

Months later, an Alabama grand jury indicted Moody on 2 counts of capital 
murder and 1 count of assault in the 1st degree (for injuries suffered by Judge 
Vance's wife). Moody represented himself at his state trial, which took place 
in October of 1996.

Vance's son, Robert "Bob" S. Vance Jr., is a Jefferson County Circuit Court 
Judge who is running this year as a Democrat in the race for Alabama Chief 
Justice. He narrowly lost to former chief justice Roy Moore in the 2012 race 
after stepping into the race less than three months before the election.

Vance says murdered father taught him value of public service

Bob Vance's wife, Joyce Vance, is former U.S. Attorney for the Northern 
District of Alabama.

(source: al.com)

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

Attorneys seek information on aborted Alabama execution



After an aborted lethal injection in which lawyers contend a condemned prisoner 
endured 2 1/2 hours of medical staff trying to access his veins, a federal 
judge on Friday ordered Alabama to maintain records about the incident.

U.S. District Judge Karon Bowdre issued the order in response to a request from 
Doyle Lee Hamm's attorneys who say they want to know more about what happened 
during the attempt to execute him.

Hamm, who has battled lymphoma, was to be executed Thursday for the 1987 murder 
of a hotel clerk. However, prison officials announced at about 11:30 p.m. 
Thursday that they were halting the execution because medical staff did not 
think they could obtain "the appropriate venous access" before a midnight 
deadline. The announcement came about 2 1/2 hours after the U.S. Supreme Court 
had cleared the execution to proceed.

The state prison commissioner said the execution was delayed because of a "time 
issue" while an attorney for Hamm argued that the execution was botched and the 
state should be "ashamed" for what happened.

Bernard Harcourt, who represents Hamm, said he had argued in court filings that 
lethal injection would be difficult and painful because Hamm's veins have been 
severely compromised by lymphoma, hepatitis and prior drug use.

"He's in great pain from yesterday evening, physically, from all of the 
attempts to access his veins in his lower extremities and in his groin," 
Harcourt told The Associated Press.

Corrections Commissioner Jeff Dunn early Friday morning disagreed that there 
was a problem with the execution.

"It was a time issue," Dunn said. "I wouldn't necessarily characterize what we 
had tonight as a problem. ... The only indication I have is that in their 
medical judgment it was more of a time issue given the late hour."

Bowdre had scheduled a hearing for Monday, but later canceled it.

Dunn said he didn't know how long the medical team attempted to connect the 
line. The Alabama attorney general's office didn't respond to a request for 
comment about the delayed execution.

Hamm's attorney argued that the lapse of more than 2 hours before the state 
halted the execution was a sign that something was wrong. The last 4 executions 
in the state began about an hour after final permission was given from the U.S. 
Supreme Court.

Records from Georgia show that it typically takes that state less than 20 
minutes to prepare an inmate for lethal injection, although there have been 
exceptions. In 2016, it took more than an hour to prepare a 72-year-old inmate 
when staff were unable to insert an IV in one arm and ended up connecting to a 
vein in his groin.

A medical review ordered by Bowdre found that the veins in Hamm's upper body 
would require a doctor and guided ultrasound, but that he has usable veins in 
his lower body. The Alabama attorney general's office had assured the courts in 
earlier court filings, as Hamm attempted to block his execution, that it could 
conduct the execution by connecting the intravenous line to usable veins in 
Hamm's lower leg.

Alabama carries out executions by lethal injection unless an inmate requests 
the electric chair.

Hamm was convicted in the 1987 killing of motel clerk Patrick Cunningham. 
Cunningham was shot once in the head while working an overnight shift at a 
Cullman motel. Police said $410 was taken during the robbery. Hamm gave police 
a confession and he was convicted after 2 accomplices testified against him in 
exchange for being allowed to plead guilty to lesser offenses, according to 
court documents.

Executions were also scheduled to take place Thursday in Texas and Florida.

In Florida, Eric Scott Branch , 47, was pronounced dead at 7:05 p.m. Thursday 
after a lethal injection at Florida State Prison. Branch was convicted of the 
rape and fatal beating of University of West Florida student Susan Morris, 21.

In Texas, Gov. Greg Abbott accepted the recommendation of the state's parole 
board and granted clemency for Thomas "Bart" Whitaker , on death row for 
masterminding the fatal shootings of his mother and brother at their suburban 
Houston home in 2003.

(source: Associated Press)



OHIO----new death sentence

Jurors recommend death penalty for convicted killer Christopher Whitaker



A jury has recommended the death penalty for Christopher Whitaker, who shot and 
killed Alianna DeFreeze, 14.

He will be sentenced by a judge on March 5.

Whitaker, 45, was previously found guilty of aggravated murder and charges 
including kidnapping and rape in DeFreeze's death. Her body was found in an 
abandoned home in Cleveland in January 2017, 3 days after her mother reported 
her missing when she didn't arrive at school.

Authorities say Alianna was beaten and stabbed and the South Euclid man's DNA 
matched evidence.

Whitaker told investigators he was high on cocaine and blacked out.

"I'm just happy that justice was finally served for Alianna," said Donnesha 
Cooper, Alianna's mother. "He got what the law thought he deserved, but it's 
too good for him."

Cooper said she feels "overwhelming relief" that the trial is now over and she 
can begin the healing process. Some jurors hugged her after their decision was 
read in court.

"The Cleveland police officers and prosecutors and all of the detectives, thank 
you for all of your hard work and perseverance in helping to convict him and 
helping find my daughter," Cooper said.

Assistant Cuyahoga County Prosecutor Mahmoud Awadallah said justice in this 
case called for the death penalty.

"This is, I think, every parent's nightmare. Your child going to school, should 
be arriving at school," Awadallah said.

Damon DeFreeze, Alianna's father, said the decision does not lessen his pain.

"I just ask that you please watch your children. There's a lot of Christopher 
Whitakers out here," DeFreeze said. "I want this man to experience hell on 
earth before he experiences hell in the afterlife."

(source: Fox News)








WASHINGTON:

Washington State House Committee OKs Death Penalty Repeal Bill



A House committee has passed a bill to abolish the death penalty in Washington, 
and the measure now awaits a potential vote by the full House.

The bill passed on a 7-6 party line vote out of the Judiciary Committee 
Thursday. The Senate passed the bill on a 26-22 bipartisan vote last week.

The measure would remove capital punishment as a sentencing option for 
aggravated murder and mandate instead a sentence of life in prison without 
possibility of parole. There has been a moratorium on the death penalty since 
2014, put in place by Gov. Jay Inslee.

There have been 78 inmates, all men, put to death in Washington state since 
1904. The most recent execution in the state came in 2010, when Cal Coburn 
Brown died by lethal injection for the 1991 murder of a Seattle-area woman.

(source: Associated Press)








USA:

America's Execution Belt



The United States can't guarantee the condemned inmates it kills aren't 
innocent. Landmark court cases of the last decade have offered proof. Mistakes 
happen. Courts can err. Witnesses can lie. Representation can be flawed. But we 
still kill.

That lowers America into a frightful club of nations that continues to execute 
prisoners. Most of its members are among the globe's most repressive, 
dictatorial nations: North Korea, Libya, Somalia, Cuba, China, India, Iran, 
Iraq, Syria, Pakistan, Lebanon and the Palestinian territories. That is the 
company the United States keeps when it kills the condemned. The other 2/3 of 
the world - Britain, Germany, Canada, France, Scandinavia, Ireland, Spain, 
Italy, Australia, for instance - long ago stopped this form of state-sponsored 
killings.

19 American states have abolished the death penalty. They understand that 
executions do not deter murders, do not reverse the crimes and lessen the moral 
standing on which our society rests.

America's Execution Belt tends to follow the Bible Belt that dominates the 
South and Southwest. On Thursday, 3 of those states - Alabama, Texas and 
Florida - planned to kill condemned inmates. Only 1 did, Florida, which 
executed Eric Scott Branch for raping and killing a college student in 1993.

Alabama called off its execution of Doyle Lee Hamm, officials said, because 
they weren't able to complete it before the midnight deadline. Hamm, convicted 
of a 1987 murder, has cancer and his representatives say his veins aren't 
suitable for the IV required for a lethal injection.

Meanwhile, Texas Gov. Greg Abbott granted clemency to Thomas Whitaker, who 
played a role in the 2003 murders of his mother and brother. His father, who 
survived, had asked the governor to spare his son's life and sentence him to 
life in prison. Abbott, a Republican in America's most execution-friendly 
state, surprisingly agreed.

America's most reprehensible crimes deserve lifelong imprisonment and the 
public's trust in knowing the convicted will never again be free. But those few 
hours Thursday night opened a window into the flawed and complicated realities 
of America's execution system.

(source: The editorial board of the The Anniston (Ala.) Star)