Commission: No clemency for condemned Idaho inmate

The Idaho Commission of Pardons and Parole says it won't consider a clemency request from condemned inmate Paul Ezra Rhoades., who is scheduled to die by lethal injection Nov. 18.

Rhoades was sentenced to death for the murders of Susan Michelbacher and Stacy Baldwin in 1987, and he was sentenced to life in prison for the murder of Nolan Haddon the same year.

Commission director Olivia Craven said the panel decided Friday to deny Rhoades' request for a clemency hearing. Under Idaho law, only the governor has the authority to grant clemency on death penalty cases, but in order for the governor to do so, the parole commission must first consider the request and make a recommendation to the governor.

Craven said she met personally with Rhoades and his attorneys Oct. 14 to answer any questions they had about the clemency process. Inmates are only allowed to petition for clemency once every 12 months, and so she wanted to make sure Rhoades had all the information he needed, Craven said. The commissioners spent the last couple of weeks reviewing Rhoades' case before making the decision, she said.

"They take this very seriously. They put in a lot of their personal time, and I know they spent a lot of time reviewing everything over and over," Craven said. "So, their decision was not made lightly."

Defense attorneys called the decision disappointing and criticized the board for acting without taking the opportunity to get a fuller picture of Rhoades' story from witnesses. Rhoades' lawyers planned to have witnesses recount his addiction to methamphetamine and what the drug did to his behavior — details not shared with judges who sentenced him to death.

"We maintain the Commission is making a grave and irreversible mistake by relying primarily on a paper record," according to a statement issued Monday by the federal defender's office in Boise. "It is shameful that Mr. Rhoades will not have an opportunity to present his entire case and show that the man he is today is not someone whom society would want to put to death."

There is still a possibility that a federal judge could issue a stay of execution. Rhoades sued Idaho in federal court last month over the state's method of execution, but as of Monday afternoon, no stay had been ordered.

If the execution goes forward, Rhoades will be only the second Idaho inmate to be put to death since 1957, and the first one during that time to exhaust all his appeals. The last inmate to be executed, Keith Wells in 1994, gave up all of his remaining appeals and asked the state to carry out his lethal injection.

Idaho Gov. C.L. "Butch" Otter said in a prepared statement that he appreciated the commissioners for carrying out their statutory duty "respectfully and professionally."

"Paul Ezra Rhoades has taken full and unfettered advantage of his right of due process of law for more than two decades," Otter said. "That process is running its course. The law requires and justice demands that Mr. Rhoades be held accountable for his actions as a judge and jury have directed."

So far, Otter has received about 17 letters about Rhoades' case since his death warrant was signed, Otter's spokesman Jon Hanian said. Most of them — including letters from the Pope's U.S. representative, Monsignor Jean-Francois Lantheaume; the head of the European Union's delegation to the U.S.; and the ambassador of Switzerland to the U.S. — urged Otter to stop Rhoades' execution. A few were in favor of Rhoades being put to death, saying the heinousness of his crimes merited the ultimate punishment.

Idaho Catholic Bishop Michael Driscoll also wrote Otter a letter asking him to commute Rhoades' sentence to life in prison without parole. Driscoll told the governor, who is Catholic, that while he didn't condone Rhoades' crimes, Catholic teachings on the death penalty make it clear that executions shouldn't take place when other means can protect society from criminals.

A Facebook group called Idahoans against the Death Penalty is also arranging protests, vigils and letter-writing campaigns on Rhoades' behalf. The organizer of that group did not immediately return an email from The Associated Press.

Source: Associated Press, November 10, 2011

The Roman Catholic Diocese of Boise: "Ending the use of the death penalty would be one important step away from a culture of death, towards building a culture of life."

On Tuesday, The Roman Catholic Diocese of Boise expressed its sadness that the Idaho Commission of Pardons and Parole decided to deny Paul Ezra Rhoades his request for clemency.

The Catholic Church is an opponent of the death penalty.

Bishop Michael Driscoll with the Diocese of Boise wrote a letter to Gov. Butch Otter detailing the Church's position on this controversial issue.

"For the Catholic community, this issue - like all life issues - is more than public policy," Bishop Driscoll said. "It involves our faith and the central issue that all human life is sacred. Catholic teaching on this issue is more than just how to respond to violent crime. It's about justice and what kind of society we want to be."

Bishop Driscoll is urging members of the Catholic community all throughout Idaho to write the Pardons and Parole commission and ask the commissioners to reconsider their decision.

Paul Ezra Rhoades is scheduled to be executed November 18. This will be Idaho's 1st execution since 1994.

Source: KIVI TV News, November 10, 2011

Nov 05, 2011

Paul Rhoades, then 30, was arrested on 25 March 1987 and charged with three separate murders committed over the previous month. The victims were school teacher Susan Michelbacher and convenience store clerks Stacy ...

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