Death Penalty News

California officials have abandoned a legal fight over their bid to secretly overhaul the state's execution method, a move that sends the issue back to square one and leaves San Quentin's newly-constructed execution chamber idled for the foreseeable future. Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger's administration decided not to appeal November's ruling by a state appeals court, which found that prison officials failed to follow proper administrative procedures when they attempted to revise California's lethal injection method without any public input. State lawyers had until Dec. 31 to appeal to the state Supreme Court, but have decided instead to follow the administrative rules and put the execution plan through public review, likely including public hearings. Deputy Attorney General Michael Quinn, who is handling the issue for the state, had no timetable on the administrative hearings, saying officials are now evaluating how to move forward. Brad Phillips, who represents 2...

The death penalty could be on the wane in the United States, where a study released Thursday shows death sentences in 2008 are at more than a 3-decade low, and executions the fewest since 1994. The decline comes despite an U.S. Supreme Court ruling in April that lifted a de facto moratorium on executions by upholding the lethal injection process in Kentucky. Death penalty opponents had predicted the ruling would lead to a spike in executions as states "caught up." The report from the Death Penalty Information Center shows Texas remains by far the state that has most applied the death penalty, executing 18. But Ohio distinguished itself by being the only state outside the South to carry out executions - accounting for 2 of the 37 this year in all states. "We were surprised that the surge did not happen," said Richard Dieter, executive director of the Washington-based centre, which works for the abolition of the death penalty. "Courts, legislatures, a...

With no legal method for lethal injection, state must keep delaying executions and let death row expand. Death penalty opponents and the attorneys for 2 condemned men at San Quentin won another round in their quest to delay executions in California when a state appeals court on Friday held that newly revised rules for administering lethal injections are illegal. The ruling by the 1st District Court of Appeal in San Francisco means the execution chamber is likely to remain idle through much of 2009, if not longer, pending a likely appeal to the California Supreme Court and possibly another lengthy review and redrafting of the procedures. Californians have repeatedly supported capital punishment at the ballot box, but opponents have successfully limited its practice with legal challenges that have caused the average time between conviction and execution to grow to about 25 years. The state has the largest death row population in the country, with 677 condemned to die. The last e...

Above: Death Chamber: Angola, Louisiana State Penitentiary (largest prison in the United States), 2005. "Ninety percent of inmates who enter Angola [Louisiana State Penitentiary], never leave," says photographer Richard Ross. Inmates work on the prison farm and are not allowed to eat the cows they raise because the quality of the meat is too high. Meals at Angola can cost as little as 17 cents per person since so much of the food is grown on site. Above: An indoor exercise yard at Pelican Bay State Prison, California. Pelican Bay prison holds some of the most dangerous inmates in California. Inmates are often accompanied by four guards during transport within the facility. The light coming through the ceiling in this photo is likely the only sunlight that inmates see during their sentence. In spite of the immense security, Ross says, prisoners are still able to get messages to the outside world to carry out deals and assassinations. A new book by photographer Richard Ross ...

SEATTLE, Washington, Nov 4 (IPS) — The length of time convicted murderers wait for their execution is steadily rising in the U.S., raising concerns that more will suffer from the mental illness known as "death row syndrome.” The United States' 3,300 death row inmates can now expect to wait an average of 12 years from the day of their sentencing to death by lethal injection or electric chair, a doubling of the time gap in the mid-1980s, according to the U.S. Bureau of Justice. This increase is mainly due to mandatory appeals introduced after capital punishment was reinstated by the Supreme Court in 1976 after a four-year suspension. These reforms have led to lengthier appeals, according to the Washington-based Death Penalty Information Center. The 667 death row inmates in California can expect to wait nearly 20 years. California's last execution was in January 2006. A month later, a judge halted the execution of Michael Morales, already on death row for 25 years, ca...

Activist Mike Farrell (pictured) criticized "state-sponsored killing" under Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger in an address at Pitzer College Wednesday night. Calling the governor "a coward" for "refusing to stand on principle," the former star of the television series M*A*S*H spoke to an audience of roughly 200 students and community members on behalf of the newly formed Inland Valley Death Penalty Focus. Mr. Farrell said that the justice system is inherently flawed and occasionally condemns innocent people. "Since the death penalty was reinstated in 1979, 130 death row inmates have been exonerated," he said. "Of course, we dont know how many innocent people have been killed in the history of the US under this system." He also argued in economic terms against the death penalty. In July, the California Commission of the Fair Administration of Justice found that abolishing capital punishment would save $125 million a year. It costs an ...

Scott Peterson Family Mission Statement: " This web-site is a combined effort of our family and our support system. We know Scott is innocent and that he has been unjustly convicted. Our pursuit of justice for Laci, Conner and Scott remains steadfast. We want to keep you informed as to the specifics of the case, the appeal, and related topics. We also want you to know how grateful we are for your prayers and support ." Scott Peterson's blogs: ScottPetersonAppeal.org Journey to Justice Scott Peterson (pictured) was convicted of the murder of his wife, Laci Peterson, who was eight months pregnant at the time, and their unborn son, Conner. In 2005, Peterson was sentenced to death by lethal injection. As of 2008, he remains on death row in San Quentin State Prison while his case is on appeal to the Supreme Court of California. He maintains his innocence. Scott Peterson also has a page on the Canadian Coalition to Abolish the Death Penalty website.

As the warden of San Quentin, I presided over four executions. After each one, someone on the staff would ask, "Is the world safer because of what we did tonight?" We knew the answer: No. I worked in corrections for 30 years, starting as a correctional officer and working my way up to warden at San Quentin and then on to the top job in the state -- director of the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation. During those years, I came to believe that the death penalty should be replaced with life without the possibility of parole. I didn't reach that conclusion because I'm soft on crime. My No. 1 concern is public safety. I want my children and grandchildren to have the safety and freedom to pursue their dreams. I know from firsthand experience that some people are dangerous and must be removed from society forever -- people such as Robert Lee Massie. I presided over Massie's execution in 2001. He was first sentenced to death for the 1965 murder of a m...

As the country's economic woes continue to mount, frightening many Americans, it has become clear that the United States simply cannot afford capital punishment. The death penalty is the revenue-guzzling SUV to the cost-efficient hybrid of life without parole. Researchers all over the country are crunching the numbers and coming to the same conclusion - the death penalty is far too expensive. In its recently released report, the California Commission on the Fair Administration of Justice found that California's current death penalty system costs $137 million annually compared with $11.5 million for a system without the death penalty. The commission also reported that California's system is "dysfunctional" and that it will cost an additional $200 million a year to fix it. In January 2008, New Jersey became the 1st state to abolish the death penalty in 40 years. The New Jersey Death Penalty Study Commission's report included the costs of a capital punishment sys...

California lawmakers have voted to ban use of uncorroborated testimony from jailhouse informants that is used to convict criminal defendants. The state Assembly on Tuesday approved a bill by Sen. Gloria Romero, a Los Angeles Democrat, that would prohibit use of the unsupported testimony. The Senate passed the measure in May. Assemblyman Mark Leno, D-San Francisco, said jailhouse informants frequently have an incentive to lie. He said Romero's bill would help prevent wrongful convictions. But Assemblyman Todd Spitzer, R-Orange, said the bill would make it difficult to prosecute crimes committed in jails and prisons. He said jurors should be the ones to judge the validity of an informant's testimony. The 80-member Assembly passed the bill with a bare majority, 41-37. Source: Associated Press

Some 71 years after the last hanging of an inmate at Folsom Prison, California's death penalty is fatally flawed, according to a state commission report. The California Commission on the Fair Administration of Justice was established in 2004 in part to determine the extent to which the state's legal system has caused wrongful executions. It reported June 30 that the state must narrow its death penalty, in part because the penalty is impossibly expensive to continue in its current broad form. Under the statute now in effect, a full 87 % of California's 1st-degree murders are "death eligible," and could be prosecuted as death cases, the commission noted. Any of a total of 22 "special circumstances" can be cited by local prosecutors in seeking a death penalty. The list includes drive-by murder. A federal Justice Department study in 2000 found numerous racial and geographic disparities applied to death penalty sentences. Bill Clark, chief assistant district ...

The California Commission on the Fair Administration of Justice issued its final report yesterday, recommending $95 million in changes to the state's current death penalty system. However the non-partisan statewide advisory board's 117-page report which alternatively recommended limiting the number of death-qualifying special circumstances or abolishing capital punishment entirely was the subject of criticism even before its release, with detractors contending that the circumstances of the commissions creation and its makeup raised doubts as to its impartiality. The report claimed to be the 1st comprehensive review by an official body of the state's death penalty procedures since the state death penalty was enacted in 1977. 'Dysfunctional' System Committee Chairman John Van de Kamp, a former attorney general and State Bar president, called the current system "dysfunctional," explaining that the state houses approximately 670 inmates on death row, but has o...

A recent audit of the construction costs for a new death row facility at California’s San Quentin prison revealed that estimates have soared over 80% from previous projections. Ground still has not been broken for the project, but the new death row is likely to require nearly $400 million , instead of the $220 million originally quoted, and it will provide even fewer cells than planned. As an average of 12 new condemned inmates arrive at San Quentin annually, the new facility will be full only three years after it opens. The lethal injection chamber at San Quentin has already been renovated at a cost of $750,000. The new construction is projected to cost over half a million dollars per cell (more than double the original estimate). “I think this report is a bombshell,” said Assemblyman Jared Huffman. “They simply want to build a massive monolith to house all our condemned inmates on the most expensive piece of real estate in Northern California.” Assemblyman Juan Arambul...

It's the stuff of nightmares, and the very definition of cruel and unusual punishment: A prisoner remaining aware, but paralyzed and unable to speak, while a deadly, caustic drug flows through his veins. This could be the reality of execution in the United States. Lethal injections, the preferred method of execution in every state but Nevada , use three drugs: sodium thiopental, a surgical anesthetic, followed by the paralytic drug pancuronium bromide, and finally potassium chloride, which stops the heart and causes death. A medical journal's review of autopsy reports in 49 executions by lethal injection in Texas and Virginia showed that 43 had critically low levels of anesthetic in their bloodstreams, and 21 had so little that they were likely conscious throughout the painful process of stopping their heart. This is unwelcome news to death-penalty supporters, but no surprise to those familiar with the history of lethal injection. It's a procedure that's frequently b...

Statistically, 90% of inmates lose all contact with family, friends and loved ones after 3 years. And more often than not, losing contact with their friends and family, means to lose any positive social influence at all. Which, in the end, is a fact nobody will benefit from; neither the facility, nor the outside society. Least of all the inmates themselves. Therefore, according to Title 15 of the California Code of Regulations (General Mail Policy) 'The department encourages correspondence between inmates and persons outside the correctional facilities.' 'Persons outside the correctional facilities' - those are the inmates' children, wives, parents, siblings. Those are their family and friends - such as us! Now, it comes as no surprise that the possibilities to stay in touch with our loved ones in San Quentin State Prison are strictly limited. The more important become the remaining means of communication, such as correspondence via letters. Sadly, however, co...

"I am but one soul in that hell. I have only ever been that one soul. I will die that one soul. And I will defend that one soul. Would you just accept your fate, lay down and get executed? Would you speak out, try to fight back and hope there are people out there willing to fight the battle with you? I know that some people will say, "They did not put you there, you put yourself there!". I have heard that so much and that would be true - if I had DONE the crime. But I did not. I know, I am not a perfect person. I have more faults than you can imagine. But I do try to be as honest as I can. I am not that hard to find. I am a real person not just some bites on a server somewhere. I would welcome your support. You can write me a letter if you desire, it takes little time. Or you can respond on this site and I will get the message. I am trying to do what it takes to enable myself the opportunity to fight back and I am truly hoping to find people like you that will step up an...

San Quentin's brand new execution chamber California Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger has earmarked $136 million in additional funds to build a new death row at San Quentin State Prison. In 2003, the California State Legislature had authorized $220 million for the same project, but the plans were put aside when cost estimates increased. The current estimate is $356 million to complete the construction of the 768 new cells needed to reduce San Quentin's significant overcrowding. California already has the largest death row in the country, with approximately 660 inmates. In 30 years, the state has carried out 13 executions. Many members of the legislature oppose spending such a large amount of money on death row facilities. Assemblyman Jared Huffman said he was "extremely disappointed" by the budget allocation, especially given that Gov. Schwarzenegger has also proposed budget cuts to social programs. Steve Kinsey, Supervisor of Marin County, California, also...

In the hours preceding an execution, the San Quentin California State Prison offers its doomed prisoner every measure of lukewarm comfort. The inmate is provided with Valium (optional), clean clothes and slippers (mandatory), access to radio and television and, of course, as extravagant a last meal as $50 can buy. At midnight, he or she is ushered into the execution chamber, strapped on a gurney and given alcohol swabs to prevent an infection that would never affect the inmate. The warden gives the signal, the three-drug cocktail is administered, and somewhere between three minutes and half an hour, the inmate's heart finally gives out. This is the ostensible beauty of lethal injection: quick, painless and, most importantly, easy for the onlookers. The needle has often been lauded as the humane alternative to capital punishment; there is no cringe-inducing crack of the neck, no smell of seared flesh, no shots fired. Recent challenges to the alleged painlessness of this m...