[Deathpenalty] death penalty news----worldwide

[Rick Halperin]

January 17



TRINIDAD & TOBAGO:

Privy Council to consider fate of mentally ill death row prisoner



The United Kingdom-based Privy Council is expected to hand down a ruling on 
whether a prisoner who may be mentally ill should remain on death row after he 
was convicted of killing another inmate.

The hearing in London, is being held this week, amid concern over the murder 
rate in the twin-island republic - a situation that has led to calls for the 
enforcement of the death penalty.

Trinidad and Tobago, as well as Barbados, are the only 2 countries in the 
region with mandatory death penalties for murder.

The case to be heard by the 5 judges this week stems from the conviction of Jay 
Chandler, 40, who was sentenced to death in 2011.

He had been convicted after he used a home-made knife and stabbed another 
prisoner, Kern Phillip, in October 2004.

The 2 men were said to have quarrelled during visiting hours at the Remand Yard 
prison in Arouca, Trinidad.

Chandler was seen chasing Phillip across the compound. The victim died in the 
prison's infirmary from his injuries.

A post-mortem examination showed that Phillip's heart had been punctured. 
however, Chandler denied having the weapon or attacking Phillip.

Lawyers for Chandler will present to the UK judges a report from a forensic 
psychologist who has diagnosed their client as suffering from episodes of 
psychosis .

The appeal will be heard by Lords Kerr, Sumption, Reed, Carnwath and 
Lloyd-Jones.

Trinidad and Tobago is 1 of more than 30 overseas territories, dependencies and 
Commonwealth states that rely on the Judicial Committee of the Privy Council 
(JCPC) as their ultimate court of appeal, sending cases from around the world 
to hearings before justices of the UK's supreme court.

(source: jamaicaobserver.com)








INDIA:

Women panel wants death for rape of girls below 15 yrs----Begins district-wise 
hearings in cases of crime against women



The Haryana State Women Commission wants the state government to enact a law to 
grant death penalty to the persons found guilty of raping girls below 15 years 
of age. The commission also advocates the imposition of liquor prohibition in 
the state in order to check the increasing cases of sexual and domestic 
assaults on girls/women.

This was stated by commission chairperson Pratibha Suman while talking to The 
Tribune on the sidelines of a district-level hearing by a commission Bench here 
today. Commission vice-chairperson Preeti Bhardwaj and members Suman Bedi and 
Indu Yadav were also present at the hearing.

It may be pertinent to mention here that it is for the 1st time that the State 
Women Commission has launched a drive to hold district-wise hearings to settle 
cases pertaining to crimes against women. "The office of the commission is 
located in Panchkula and it is not possible for the victims of sexual/workplace 
harassment, domestic violence, dowry cases and property disputes to come all 
the way to Panchkula. Hence, we have decided to hold district-wise hearings 
across the state," the chairperson stated.

On being questioned about the rising cases of sexual crimes against women, she 
said lack of proper education and gender sensitivity among boys and men and 
silence adopted by girls and women upon beingharassed/teased/molested were the 
major contributing factors behind the trend. "The Haryana Government should 
follow the example of Madhya Pradesh, which has decided to grant death penalty 
to those found guilty of raping girls below 12 years of age. We recommend to 
the state government to make a law for provision of death penalty to those 
found guilty of raping girls up to 15 years of age," said Pratibha.

She opined that the Haryana Government could also impose a ban upon the sale 
and consumption of liquor on Bihar pattern as a majority of persons accused of 
sexual/domestic assaults on women were alcoholics or drug addicts.

Asked about the laxity of the police in responding to cases of crimes against 
women, the chairperson asserted that the officials found guilty of 
laxity/dereliction of duty should be removed from their post. "A certain 
time-frame should also be fixed for the disposal of matters pertaining to 
various crimes against women," she added.

(source: tribuneindia.com)

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

Experts say lethal injection is not an alternative to hanging----Although the 
law commission report discussed whether the discretion of mode of execution 
should lie with the judge or the convict, the question of who would provide the 
injections to convicts remains unanswered.



A lawyer had filed a petition in the Supreme Court challenging the 
constitutional validity of a provision in the Criminal Procedure Code which 
provides that the mode of execution of death penalty would be hanging by the 
neck. The SC, however, said that it's the Centre's prerogative to decide the 
modes of carrying out capital punishment. "We can't say what should be the mode 
of carrying out a death sentence. Tell us what is happening in other 
countries," the apex court asked the Centre. In its reply, the Centre said 
lethal injection was "not workable" as there were several instances of it 
failing.

Rishi Malhotra, the petitioner, said the provision of Criminal Procedure Code 
stating death penalty is "violative of Article 21 (right to life and liberty) 
of the Constitution" and being "barbaric, inhuman and cruel". "There have been 
cases where the neck has been fractured, yet the man is alive," Malhotra said.

The 187th report of the Law Commission on mode of execution of death sentence 
stated in length about the use of lethal injections as an alternative apart 
from other methods which were used earlier. The Commission received responses 
from high court and subordinate court judges on the report and it stated, "All 
of the 80% judges who are in favour of amendment of Section 354(5) have 
suggested that administering the lethal injection should be the other mode of 
execution of death sentence."

Most of the states in the US use lethal injections as an alternative means to 
end lives of convicts in cases of death penalty. However, administration of a 
lethal injection on a convict does come with complications and USA has been 
facing concerns regarding the method as well. "In some cases of death penalty 
in USA, the death has not been instantaneous. It has been prolonged over 15-30 
minutes and with suffering," said chairman of Fortis Escorts Heart Institute 
Ashok Seth.

The term lethal injections has not been defined in any medical books but in 
cases of death penalty awarded to a convict, the drugs are administered in 
toxic doses which, are 10-100 times their recommended doses, said Seth.

Although the law commission report discussed whether the discretion of mode of 
execution should lie with the judge or the convict, the question of who would 
provide the injections to convicts remains unanswered.

"As the mission, purpose, training and oath of the medical profession is to 
save lives, many doctors and medical societies are not in favour of this ... in 
all other methods of death sentence the doctor just has to examine and certify 
death," said Seth.

Raising an ethical issue, former president of the Indian Medical Association, 
KK Aggarwal, said a judge cannot force a doctor to give an injection. "We are 
ethically bound by our oath to refuse. We cannot prepone anyone's suffering," 
he said.

Similar to the oath taken by a medical practitioner, procuring the drugs from 
companies or pharmacies also invites a moral and legal issue. "As many of these 
drugs are controlled drugs, proper documentation is required for the purpose 
for which the drugs are procured. Storage and administration have to be done 
accordance to existing law of land, hence changes in laws may be required," 
said Seth.

Apart from the medical reasons, there is always a possibility of misuse of 
these drugs. "Misuse could kill a person. Like in case of date rape drug, the 
formulas are now available on the internet and its misuse has been rampant. 
Therefore we have a policy in IMA to not name the drugs or state their dosage 
in public which could be misused," stated Aggarwal.

(source: indianexpress.com)








IRAN----execution

Prisoner Executed in Northern Iran



A prisoner was executed at Babol Prison on murder charges.

According to a report by HRANA, on the morning of Monday, January 15, a 
prisoner was executed at Babol prison. The 27-year-old prisoner, identified as 
Y. S., was sentenced to death on murder charges.

The prisoner had murdered his wife 3 years ago.

The execution of this prisoner has not been announced by the state-run media so 
far.

According to Iran Human Rights annual report on the death penalty, 142 of the 
530 execution sentences in 2016 were implemented due to murder charges. There 
is a lack of any classification of murder by degree in Iran which results in 
issuing a death sentence for all types of the murder regardless of intensity 
and intent.

(source: Iran Human Rights)

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

UN rights experts call on Iran to halt execution of 2nd juvenile



UN human rights experts* have appealed to Iran to halt the execution of 
Abolfazl Chezani Sharahi, who was 15 when he was sentenced to death. He is due 
to be executed on Wednesday, less than 2 weeks after the execution of another 
juvenile offender.

"The Iranian authorities must immediately halt the execution of this juvenile 
offender and annul the death sentence against him and afford him a fair trial 
in compliance with their international obligations," the experts said. "This 
planned execution represents a flagrant disregard for international human 
rights law, which is all the more shocking given the most recent execution of 
another juvenile offender."

Abolfazl Chezani Sharahi is scheduled to be executed on Wednesday for a crime 
that he was convicted of committing at the age of 15. He was sentenced to death 
in 2014 after being convicted of murder for the fatal stabbing of a man during 
a fight. In sentencing him to death, the court cited an expert opinion that 
stated he had attained "mental growth and maturity" at the age of 15. The 
verdict was upheld by the Supreme Court later that year.

In 2015, he submitted a request for retrial on the basis of Article 91 of the 
2013 Islamic Penal Code. The request noted that the medical commission 
assessing his maturity at the time of the crime did not include a child 
psychology specialist. The Supreme Court rejected the request.

In January 2016, the Committee on the Rights of the Child urged Iran to end the 
execution of children and persons who committed a crime while under the age of 
18. Iran has ratified the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights 
and the Convention on the Rights of the Child, which unequivocally prohibit the 
passing and carrying out of the death penalty against anyone below 18 years of 
age.

Despite this, reports received indicate that there are at least 89 juvenile 
offenders on death row in Iran but the number could be much higher. On 4 
January 2018, Amirhossein Pourjafar, a juvenile offender who was sentenced to 
death aged 16, was executed despite multiple interventions from human rights 
experts. At least 4 juvenile offenders were executed in Iran last year.

The experts deplored the continuing executions of juvenile offenders in Iran in 
contravention of international standards, and urged the Government to end the 
practice of sentencing to death people below the age of 18 years of age when 
the crime of which they were convicted was committed, and to commute all death 
sentences issued against such individuals.

# # #

* The UN experts: Ms. Asma Jahangir, Special Rapporteur on the situation of 
human rights in the Islamic Republic of Iran; Ms. Agnes Callamard, Special 
Rapporteur on extrajudicial, summary or arbitrary executions; and and Ms. 
Renate Winter, current Chairperson of the Committee on the Rights of the Child.

The Committee on the Rights of the Child is the body of 18 independent experts 
that monitors implementation of the Convention on the Rights of the Child by 
its State parties. It also monitors the Optional Protocols to the Convention, 
on involvement of children in armed conflict and on sale of children, child 
prostitution and child pornography; as well as a third Optional Protocol which 
will allow individual children to submit complaints regarding specific 
violations of their rights

The Special Rapporteurs are part of what is known as the Special Procedures of 
the Human Rights Council. Special Procedures, the largest body of independent 
experts in the UN Human Rights system, is the general name of the Council's 
independent fact-finding and monitoring mechanisms that address either specific 
country situations or thematic issues in all parts of the world. Special 
Procedures' experts work on a voluntary basis; they are not UN staff and do not 
receive a salary for their work. They are independent from any government or 
organization and serve in their individual capacity.

(source: The Arab Daily News)



UNITED ARAB EMIRATES:

Smuggler using iPhone boxes to hide kilograms of cocaine given death penalty



A smuggler found to be hiding kilograms of cocaine inside iPhone boxes has been 
given the death penalty following his arrest at Abu Dhabi airport in late 
December. The man who is said to of been "carrying the boxes for a friend" was 
stopped by customs officials who uncovered the stash of contraband in wrapped, 
sealed iPhone packaging.

As reported by Parhlo News, a video of the confiscation has been leaked showing 
Abu Dhabi officials unboxing the supposed iPhone 6s Plus boxes filled with 
cocaine which weighed approximately a kilo.

The smuggler has said he was carrying the iPhone boxes unaware of their 
content. It's believed he had been approached by a friend who asked him to 
carry the boxes and hand them over to somebody else at a designated drop off 
point. Despite the claims, after a full investigation and legal processes he 
received the death penalty.

(source: The Apple Post)








SAUDI ARABIA:

Saudi court begins trial of ISIS member who killed his cousin----The crime 
shook the kingdom as it was videotaped, and the man's cousin is seen begging 
for him not to kill him, repeatedly screaming "enough Saad".



Saudi Arabia's Specialized Criminal Court is commencing the trial of the man 
accused of murdering his cousin. The crime shook the kingdom as it was 
videotaped, and the man's cousin is seen begging for him not to kill him, 
repeatedly screaming "enough Saad". The case also caused outrage as it took 
place on the 1st day of Eid al-Adha in 2014.

Abdul Aziz bin Batel, a lawyer and legal adviser, told Al Arabiya that what the 
criminal did is a sign of cruelty and corruption in the land, where he 
purposefully killed a tied up, innocent soul.

Batel said that according to judiciary laws, he who betrays and kills a person 
who entrusted him should be sentenced to death, with no punishment or amnesty 
to be accepted by any means.

The General Authority of the Supreme Court studied the case to find the most 
fitting punishment, and found that sentencing the killer to death is what is 
fair as he also committed other crimes like videotaping the murder, sharing it 
ondifferent platforms proudly, intimidating people and announcing his loyalty 
to foreign parties, disobeying and denying his allegiance to the kingdom's 
ruler.

Al-Batel added that each of these crimes that he has committed has its own 
penalty, but the death penalty will cover them all. Despite these written laws, 
Saudi Arabia granted the right to defend himself or delegate someone to do so.

They also gave him the ultimate judicial guarantee of justice as the criminal 
will face three judicial levels after all the evidence is collected from 
investigations, the hearing of the statements of all those involved, and the 
examination of the evidence by the public prosecutor.

The Interior Ministry had revealed the details of the case at the time of the 
crime and death of the man in the video, Madous Fayez Ayyash al-Enezi. Al-Enezi 
was taken on the day of Eid al-Adha by his cousins who resided in the province 
of al-Shamli in Hail.

In the same year, the killers committed 2 other crimes, the 1st was killing 2 
citizens at the Amair bin Sanaa police station, and the 2nd was shooting a 
sergeant, Abdulelah al-Rashidi in the al-Shamli province traffic department.

The Interior Ministry declared that based on the information provided to them 
by security forces through rapid and extensive security sweeps they carried 
out, the criminals were found in a mountainous area in a village in al-Shamli. 
They were surrounded and asked to turn themselves in, to which they responded 
by opening fire at the security forces.

The gunfire exchange resulted in the death of the man who was behind the 
camera, and injury of his brother the killer who was then arrested. A security 
officer was killed in the exchange as well.

This video was shared on the social media in a wave of public anger at the way 
the killing took place, and the betrayal of the killer to cousin. This came in 
light of several terrorist groups pushing their followers to kill any of their 
family members who were part of any security force as part of their jihad.

(source: alarabiya.net)








MOROCCO:

Morocco sentences man to death over MP killing



A Moroccan court sentenced to death a man over the murder of a member of 
parliament and jailed his widow, in a case involving sex and money, the 
government said Tuesday.

Abdellatif Merdas, who was a member of the liberal Constitutional Union party, 
was gunned down near his house in Casablanca in March last year.

A local councillor, Hicham Mouchtari, was sentenced to death on Monday after he 
was convicted of "premeditated murder", the justice ministry said.

Merdas's widow, Ouafae Bensamadi, was given a life sentence, and a female 
acquaintance of hers described as a "fortune-teller" was sentenced to 20 years 
in jail.

According to media reports of the investigation, Bensamadi had been having an 
affair with Mouchtari, who killed Merdas with the help of a nephew -- who was 
sentenced Monday to 30 years in jail.

The motives were "sex, money and vengeance," the state prosecutor said during 
the investigation, dismissing any political reason for the killing of Merdas.

Bensamadi, who consulted the fortune-teller, had allegedly been abused by her 
husband and was seeking revenge, according to media reports citing the 
investigation.

Morocco has not abolished the death penalty but has not carried out any 
executions since 1993.

(source: dailymail.co.uk)