[Deathpenalty] death penalty news----worldwide

[Rick Halperin]

Nov. 21




IRAN----executions

3 Men Hanged in Public- IHR Warns About a New Wave of Execution in the 
Coming Weeks



3 prisoners were hanged in public at Iranian city of Shiraz this morning. 
Several children were observed among the crowd watching the executions.

Iranian authorities have executed at least 15 people during the last 8 days. 
Iran Human Rights (IHR) warns against a new wave of executions in Iran and 
urges the UN, EU and countries with diplomatic relations with Iran to react 
immediately to stop these executions.

The IHR spokesperson and director Mahmood Amiry-Moghaddam, said: "We demand the 
halt of all executions, especially public executions which are inhumane and 
humiliating, and promote violence in society,". IHR spokesperson emphasised, 
"At the 1st anniversary of the nationwide protests in Iran, we are concerned 
that the Iranian authorities will use more executions and terror to avoid new 
protests. Adequate and prompt international reactions can stop these 
executions".

According to Iranian Students' News Agency (ISNA), Siamak Eslaminia, Kourosh 
Gholizadeh and Foad Ghanemi were hanged in public at Payam square of Shiraz 
city.

All 3 were convicted to death on Moharebeh charge (waging war against God) for 
armed robbery. The 1st defendant was also accused of killing a policeman.

"Tens of children between 3 to 10 years old were among crowd along with their 
parents," Islamic Republic News Agency (IRNA) reported.

UN human rights experts, including the former Special Rapporteur on the 
Situation of Human Rights in Iran, had previously drawn particular attention to 
continued reports of public executions. "a dehumanising effect on both the 
victim and those who witness the execution" and ultimately reinforced the 
"already cruel, inhuman and degrading nature of the death penalty," UN experts 
said.

(source: Iran Human Rights)








JAPAN:

Death penalty sought for man accused of killing Osaka teens in 2015



Prosecutors on Wednesday demanded the death penalty for a man accused of 
killing 2 junior high school children in Osaka in 2015.

During the trial at the Osaka District Court, prosecutors said Koji Yamada, 48, 
murdered by suffocation 12-year-old Ryoto Hoshino and 13-year-old Natsumi 
Hirata with "evident" intent. Yamada has denied intending to kill Hirata and 
says Hoshino died after experiencing a health problem.

"It was evident that the defendant choked the 2 with an intent to kill," a 
prosecutor said, claiming that Yamada did so as a result of an incident 
involving Hoshino and later to silence Hirata, despite the alleged killer 
having had no apparent relationship with either child.

The prosecutors said bruising found on Hirata's neck proved the act of choking, 
and other injuries on her body showed the extent of Yamada's "cruel and violent 
acts."

They also denied the defense team's claim that Hoshino died as a result of a 
health problem, citing security camera footage that showed the boy walking 
through a shopping mall shortly before his death.

Arguing that Yamada's mental state was not impaired at the time, the 
prosecutors said a capital sentence is unavoidable as the accused "showed no 
regard for life ... killing both teens in 1 day."

2 lawyers representing the victims' families also called for the death penalty 
at the trial, saying Yamada "has not shown remorse."

Yamada's defense counsel admitted that the accused was involved in the death of 
Hirata, but claimed he should have been charged with causing injury resulting 
in death rather than murder.

The defense team also argued that as Hoshino died of a health problem, Yamada 
should have been charged with failure to offer necessary care.

According to the indictment, Yamada choked Hirata and Hoshino to death 
somewhere in or near Osaka Prefecture around Aug. 13, 2015.

Prosecutors said during the trial that Yamada met the teens for the 1st time at 
a deli in Neyagawa, Osaka Prefecture, on the morning of Aug. 13, and lured them 
into a car. He then headed to the city of Kashiwara in the same prefecture.

Hirata's body was found at a parking lot in the Osaka Prefecture city of 
Takatsuki soon after the 2 went missing, and the partially skeletal remains of 
Hoshino were discovered a week later in the mountains in Kashiwara. Parts of 
both bodies were found bound with adhesive tape.

The 2 children, who attended the same city-run junior high school, went missing 
after spending hours together at a shopping arcade.

(source: Japan Times)








INDIA:

SC to review death penalty awarded to man killing his family



In a rare decision, the Supreme Court (SC) on Wednesday decided to review its 
final decision of awarding a man death penalty for the murder of 4 children and 
a woman with whom he was living as husband and wife.

A bench headed by Justice Kurian Joseph also directed that the order to suspend 
the death sentence of the convict, Sudam alias Rahul Kaniram Yadhav, will 
continue to operate till the disposal of the review petition.

"Having heard the learned counsel for the parties, we are of the view that the 
review petitions regarding the sentence needs to be considered afresh," the 
bench, also comprising Justice A M Khanwilkar and Justice D Y Chandrachud, 
said. The order of the Apex Court added, "Therefore, the order dated July 26, 
2012, passed in the review petition, dismissing the review petition is 
recalled...The order on the suspension of the death sentence will continue to 
operate till the disposal of these review petitions. Post these review 
petitions for hearing afresh during the 2nd week of January 2019."

The Apex Court also directed the competent authorities to take a decision 
within four weeks on Sudam’s plea to be transferred from Nagpur Central Jail to 
Aurangabad. The bench noted that his jail transfer request has been forwarded 
with a positive recommendation by the Senior Jailor, Nagpur.

The residents of Rupla Naik Tanda, a remote village in district Nanded in 
Maharashtra, were horrified when a few of its natives found 4 bodies floating 
in the village pond in the morning of August 21, 2007. A 6-year-old male child 
along with 2 female children of 10 years and a male child of 2 to 4 years were 
tied separately. The local police also found the body of an unidentified woman 
below a boulder.

According to the police, the deceased woman who was living with Sudam as his 
wife had come to know about his illicit relationship with another woman. This 
led to frequent fights.

There is no eye-witness to the occurrence and relying on the circumstantial 
evidence, the trial court came to the conclusion the man had committed the 
murder of the 4 children and the woman and in order to cause the disappearance 
of evidence of murder threw the dead bodies in the pond.

The trial court had awarded death sentence to Sudam and the High Court had also 
confirmed the death penalty.

The top court had in its 2011 verdict confirming the death penalty said that he 
had not only killed the 2 children of the deceased who were born from the 1st 
husband but also killed his own 2 children. Later in July 2012, the SC 
dismissed the review petition filed against the death penalty.

(source: siasat.com)

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

7 get death for murder after volleyball game clash----Accused fired at rival 
group in U.P. in 2010 incident



A local court in Muzaffarnagar on Tuesday awarded death sentence to 7 persons 
for firing indiscriminately at a group and murdering 1 person following a clash 
over a volleyball game 8 years ago.

District and Sessions judge Rajesh Bharadwaj found the accused guilty under 
Sections 302 (murder) and 307 (attempt to murder) of the Indian Penal Code, 
among others. They accused were also convicted under Section 25 of the Arms 
Act.

Those convicted and awarded death penalty were identified as Sadiq, Sarfaraz, 
Shahid, Arshad, Rashid, Mumtaz and Farrukh.

The incident took place in February 2010.

According to details shared by Uttar Pradesh police, brothers Naseem and Khalil 
had got into a fight with some locals, the accused, during a game of volleyball 
in Harsoli village of the district.

Following this, the accused persons allegedly barged into the house of the 
brothers "in a planned manner armed with guns and country-made weapons" and 
fired indiscriminately, said the note issued by the U.P. police.

Shot 5 times

While Naseem, who was shot 5 times, died, his brothers Khalil and Raiyan, and 
nephew Shakeel received bullet injuries; the 3 were shot 8 times. The incident 
had left locals terrorised, the court noted.

A total of 9 witnesses, including the 3 injured survivors, were produced in the 
case.

(source: The Hindu)