Matters have passed beyond legal concerns in the Islamic Republic. On the other hand, it is equally clear that as long as the Islamic Republic remains standing, regardless of the degree of instability and political lawlessness, the performance of its institutions must be examined. One cannot ignore and leave unspoken a reality that cuts to the bone and inflicts open wounds until the day of reckoning arrives. The institutions of this regime pretend to adhere to the rule of law before the international community. It would be naive to assume that without efforts to expose this lie, global circles will believe otherwise. Before thousands more protesting Iranians are killed, the struggle must continue so that international judicial bodies might better understand these criminals masquerading as lawful authorities, read their hands, and confront them.
Alabama Gov. Kay Ivey announced Tuesday that she has commuted the death sentence of Toforest Johnson, 53, to life imprisonment without parole, citing concerns about the reliability of the evidence against him. Mr. Johnson has long maintained his innocence in the 1995 shooting death of a Jefferson County deputy sheriff who was moonlighting as a security guard at a Birmingham hotel. “In the 27 executions I have overseen, I have said we review each case with careful consideration, taking into account all the facts,” the governor said in a press release. “When presented with Mr. Johnson’s case, I had concerns there was not enough direct evidence to carry out the most serious punishment, death.”