Death Penalty News

Over 80 families of those killed by the Iranian regime called for immediate global action to stop the recent execution spree in Iran. In a statement on Saturday, the petitioning families called the recent wave of executions in Iran a revenge by the Islamic Republic on the people for anti-regime protests. They also called on all activists and organizations defending human rights in the world to do their best to end the death penalty in Iran and save the lives of prisoners at risk. “Suffering from the deep wounds of losing our loved ones, whether on the street or at the gallows, we cry out to stop the executions and killings of people. End all death sentences immediately. Executions for any reason and for any crime must be stopped. We don't let you kill our loved ones anymore,” read the statement.

Iran Human Rights (IHRNGO); May 25, 2023: A man sentenced to death for charges of efsad-fil-arz (corruption on earth) was publicly hanged in Maragheh today.  State media published graphic videos of the public hanging that shows children in the audience. Warning of the resumption of public executions, Iran Human Rights demands a serious response from the international community to stop these state crimes. Director, Mahmood Amiry-Moghaddam said: “Today’s public execution and its publication by state media shows the true horrifying face of a government that’s trying to prolong its reign with cruelty, humiliation and intimidation of society.” “The international community cannot tolerate such medieval practices in 2023. Electing the representative of such a government as Chair of the UN Human Rights Council’s Social Forum has severely undermined the Council’s credibility,” he added.

Iran Human Rights (IHRNGO); May 26, 2023: Four men have been executed for drug-related charges in Kerman Central Prison. According to Hal Vash, four men were executed in Kerman Central Prison on 25 May. Their identities have been reported as Baluch minorities Ali Shahriari, 40 and Ghaderbakhsh Dehani, 39, and Abdolrasould Jamishidi, 55 and Ali Salari. They were all sentenced to death for drug-related charges by the Revolutionary Court. Ghaderbakhsh Dehani was on death row for around five years and Abdolrasoul Jamishidi was arrested around three years ago. At the time of writing, their executions have not been reported by domestic media or officials in Iran.

Lawmakers reject bill that would have eliminated capital punishment A legislative effort to eliminate the death penalty as a form of criminal punishment in Louisiana failed Wednesday, despite the state not having executed anyone involuntarily in over 20 years. Advocates for ending capital punishment stressed that 11 death row inmates have been exonerated or had their convictions reversed, compared with 28 executed, since Louisiana reinstated the death penalty in 1976. The probability of an error-prone prosecution provides ample reason to end the death penalty, they argued. Proponents of ending executions also made religious appeals to the conservative-dominated House Committee on the Administration of Criminal Justice, noting supporting the death penalty doesn’t sync with “pro-life” Christian values.

Jurors in southwest Florida have recommended the death penalty for a man convicted of killing an 11-year-old girl and her babysitter more than 30 years ago. The recommendation came following a trial in which Joseph Zieler yelled at the jury and made vulgar gestures while he was on the witness stand. The Lee County jury voted 10-2 in favor of death for Zieler on Wednesday night after about five hours of deliberations, according to court records. The same panel found Zieler, 60, guilty last week of two counts of first-degree murder. A judge will make the final decision in whether Zieler will be executed or spend the rest of his life in prison following a June 26 hearing.  Florida law had previously required a unanimous jury recommendation for a convicted murderer to face the death penalty, but a new law signed last month by Gov. Ron DeSantis requires only an 8-4 vote in favor of execution.

EL PASO, Texas (KFOX14/CBS4) — El Paso District Attorney Bill Hicks on Thursday shared details about the timeline to get the El Paso Walmart shooter state trial started after the federal case ends. Hicks explained what needs to happen once Patrick Crusius receives his sentence in federal court. "After that sentencing [in federal court] there is a paperwork process. Once that paperwork process is complete the shooter [Crusius] will come into state custody and we will proceed with our case in state custody,” said Hicks. After Crusius is sentenced, it could take anywhere from two to four weeks for him to transition into state custody, Hicks explained. "The number one priority of my office has been to put the Walmart case back on track and I’m very confident that we have done that, that we are prepared to proceed with prosecution on the case and that once he is back in our custody, looks like it will be sometime late June maybe early August, will be ready to proceed with the pros

The Iranian news website Entekhab published the complete text of the "Chastity and Hijab" bill, sparking heated debate among the public about personal liberties, women's rights and the extent of government control. The bill, which was presented to parliament on May 24 by the government of Ebrahim Raisi, outlines severe penalties for women who violate mandatory headscarf rules. Non-compliance with the Islamic Republic’s strict dress code is deemed as "nudity."  Offenders could face fines of up to 8 million tomans ($150), with the fines being doubled if not paid within a month, lose their jobs and be banned from social media activities for up to one year.  And repeat offenders would face imprisonment from six months to three years. The "Chastity and Hijab" bill has gained support from some officials of the Islamic Republic who consider the hijab a "red line."  Detractors argue that the proposed law focuses on punitive measures, restricts person

An Iranian prosecutor has announced the public execution of a man convicted of spreading "corruption and prostitution,” according to local media. Mahmoud Nemati, the public and revolutionary prosecutor of the north-western city of Maragheh, said on May 25 that the man engaged in "illicit relationships with women and girls, documenting their activities through filmed material," Fars news agency reported. The man, identified as Amir Mahdi, was apprehended in 2016, the prosecutor said, and the Maragheh Revolutionary Court sentenced him to death on charges of "corruption on Earth," a sentence that was later upheld by the Supreme Court. Human rights activists said at least seven people were executed across the country on May 25 on drug and murder-related charges. 

Iran Human Rights (IHRNGO); May 23, 2023: State media have reported the execution of an unnamed man for efsad-fil-arz (corruption on earth) charges for drug offences in Bandarabbas Central Prison. According to the Judiciary’s Mizan news agency, a man was executed in Bandarabbas Central Prison on 23 May. The unnamed man was sentenced to death for efsad-fil-arz charges as well as qisas (retribution-in-kind) for the murder of a policeman. The report does not specify which sentence was carried out. Mojtaba Ghahremani, the Hormozgan Prosecutor is quoted as saying: “According to the sentence, the convict was sentenced to death for charges of efsad-fil-arz through armed smuggling of narcotics and sentenced to qisas for the murder of Rahim Ghassemi Shiri…” In the past few days, three other men were executed for efsad-fil-arz charges for drug-related offences. Shahab Mansour Nasab, Samad Geravand and Saeed Geravand were executed in Qezel Hesar Prison on 20 May.

At least seven more Iranians have been given the death sentence in connection with nationwide protests, according to rights group Amnesty International, with dozens more at risk. At least 259 Iranians have been executed since January alone, according to the United Nations. Amnesty claims Ebrahim Narouie, Kambiz Kharout, Manouchehr Mehman Navaz, Mansour Dahmardeh, Mohammad Ghobadlou, Mojahed (Abbas) Kourkour and Shoeib Mir Baluchzehi Rigi are at grave risk of imminent execution with four others facing retrials on capital charges. Amnesty said it is aware of at least three others who have undergone trial on charges that carry the death penalty.

Don Siegelman and Robert Bentley co-write opinion piece calling state’s death penalty laws ‘legally and morally troubling’ Two former Alabama governors from opposite sides of the aisle said they are now troubled by the state’s death penalty system and would commute the sentences of inmates sentenced by judicial override or divided juries. Don Siegelman, a Democrat, and Robert Bentley, a Republican, co-wrote an opinion piece for the Washington Post. They said they had come “to see the flaws in our nation’s justice system and to view the state’s death penalty laws in particular as legally and morally troubling. “We missed our chance to confront the death penalty and have lived to regret it, but it is not too late for today’s elected officials to do the morally right thing.”

Saudi Arabia on Tuesday executed a man convicted of receiving weapons training in an unidentified "enemy country", state media reported, the latest in a spate of death penalty cases involving terrorism. Since May 2, the Gulf kingdom has executed seven terrorism convicts, all but one in the eastern region where the Shiite minority is concentrated. There have been 36 executions so far this year, according to an AFP tally based on state media reports. In 2022, Saudi Arabia executed 147 people in total -- more than double the 2021 figure of 69, the AFP tally showed. The figure for 2022 included 81 people executed on a single day in March of that year for terrorism-related offences, an event that sparked an international outcry.

Despite its tendency to distort memories, hypnosis has been used on witnesses in numerous investigations, including death penalty cases. Gov. Greg Abbott vetoed a similar bill in 2021. For the second session in a row, the Texas Legislature has passed a bill that would ban hypnosis-induced statements from being introduced as evidence in criminal trials. Lawmakers are hopeful the governor won’t veto it again this year. Despite scientific evidence that hypnosis can distort memories, Texas police and prosecutors have routinely relied on witnesses who identify suspects after being hypnotized by a police officer. The controversial policing practice was used close to 1,800 times in Texas over the course of 40 years, according to a 2020 Dallas Morning News investigation , and played a role in sending numerous people to death row, including a man who was executed last year.

No one understands what this is like. This is a part of Disorder in the Court , a weeklong series on the legal press and the most explosive Supreme Court in generations: how we cover it, how we’ve failed, and how we can do better. In these installments, we’re looking specifically at those who have suffered at the hands of SCOTUS decisions, as their stories are too frequently overlooked. When the federal death penalty was formally reinstated in 1988, the country didn’t rush to use it. In 2001 the U.S. executed Timothy McVeigh, the Oklahoma City bomber, and followed that up with two more executions later that year and in 2003. The federal government did not execute anyone else until 2020, when, under the Trump administration, 13 prisoners were killed in just six months. This spree would not have been possible without Barr v. Lee, a 2020 Supreme Court ruling that swatted away a lower court’s concerns that lethal injection’s potential for respiratory distress could count as “cruel and unus

Pending results from a full psychological evaluation, Palm Beach County murdered Duane Owen might avoid his death penalty. The convicted murderer has tried to appeal before, but has not succeeded. WEST PALM BEACH — Duane Owen, 62, fatally stabbed a Delray Beach babysitter and battered a single Boca Raton mom to death nearly 40 years ago. As of yesterday, Owen may no longer face a death sentence, pending psychiatric evaluation. Governor Ron DeSantis signed Owen's death warrant on May 16. He would have been the fourth person to receive the death penalty in Florida this year.

Abolfazl Ghadyani, a prominent Islamic revolutionary-turned-dissident, says that Iran may be ripe for a revolution to overthrow the Islamic leadership as anger turns to rage over the execution of protesters, oppressive policies, and poor living standards. The 78-year-old Ghadyani, a senior member of the reformist party the Mojahedin of the Islamic Revolution of Iran Organization, said in a published statement on May 22 that the most peaceful path for political change in Iran would require Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei to "willingly resign, ask for national forgiveness, and make way for a democratic system of governance."

Iran Human Rights (IHRNGO); May 20, 2023: State media have reported the execution of Shahrooz Sokhanvari who authorities claimed was arrested by Interpol in Malaysia and extradited to Iran in 2020. Condemning the executions, Iran Human Rights demands Interpol be held accountable for handing Shahrooz Sokhanvari to Iran authorities. Director, Mahmood Amiry-Moghaddam said: “If, as Islamic Republic authorities claim, Interpol was involved in handing over Shahrooz Sokhanvari to Iran, they are complicit in his execution and must be held accountable.” In a statement published in August 2022, Iran Human Rights questioned Interpol about its involvement in Sokhanvari’s extradition to Iran which was never answered.

Early 2023, the newly elected government of Israel announced an ensemble of judicial reforms; including a new bill that would introduce the death penalty for acts of terrorism. As of May 2023, the judicial reforms have been put on hold by the PM Netanyahu. This article takes a historical perspective to recontextualize the issue of the death penalty in Israel, as well as the views of civil society organizations on the subject. In January, the newly elected government of Israel announced an ensemble of judicial reforms which would modify the entire Israeli judiciary system. As part of this reform package is a law trying to instate mandatory death penalty for those deemed “terrorists” by the State. Specifically, the law targets anyone who “intentionally or out of indifference causes the death of an Israeli citizen when the act is carried out from a racist motive or hate to a certain public… and with the purpose of harming the State of Israel and the rebirth of the Jewish people in its hom

Unless the Iranian authorities are met with serious consequences by the international community, hundreds of protester lives will be taken by their killing machine. Iran Human Rights (IHRNGO); May 19, 2023: Protesters Saleh Mirhashemi, Majid Kazemi and Saeed Yaghoubi were executed this morning , according to the Judiciary’s Mizan news agency. Iran Human Rights previously warned of their imminent executions and urged the international community to do all in its power to save them.  Director, Mahmood Amiry-Moghaddam said: “The execution of the three protesters are extrajudicial killings that Iranian authorities, particularly Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei, must be held accountable for. Unless the Iranian authorities are met with serious consequences by the international community, hundreds of protester lives will be taken by their killing machine.” “These executions are meant to prolong the Islamic Republic's rule and only a high political cost can stop more protester executions,” he ad

Iran Human Rights (IHRNGO); May 18, 2023: Cousins Mostafa and Farhad Vafayi who were on death row for the same murder case, have been executed in Rasht Central Prison. According to information obtained by Iran Human Rights, two men were executed in Rasht Central Prison on 18 May. Their identities have been established as 23-year-old Mostafa Vafayi and 54-year-old Farhad Vafayi. They were sentenced to qisas (retribution-in-kind) for murder in the same case. An informed source told Iran Human Rights: “Mostafa and Farhad Vafayi were paternal cousins and had been arrested for a murder committed in a group fight and sentenced to death.” Iran Human Rights previously reported their transfer for execution. At the time of writing, their executions have not been reported by domestic media or officials in Iran.

The death penalty is inhumane and violates the fundamental right to life. Physician involvement enables this continuing abuse of human rights and undermines the four pillars of medical ethics—beneficence, non-maleficence, autonomy, and justice. “The death penalty is, in our common experience, an atavistic relic from the past that should be shed in the 21st century”, said UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, Volker Türk in April, 2023, during the 52nd session of the Human Rights Council. The death penalty has existed since the Code of Hammurabi, with its history seeped in politics and discrimination. Physicians have been involved throughout this history. In the eyes of the public, the medicalisation and very involvement of physicians renders execution palatable, eroding any natural sense of abhorrence. Yet capital punishment is ineffective as a deterrent and morally wrong. At its core, execution is a barbaric practice that goes against the ethical foundation of the physician's rol

On May 11, attorneys for Robert Roberson, a death-sentenced prisoner in Texas, filed a petition for certiorari to the Supreme Court asking it to reverse the decision of the Texas Court of Criminal Appeals (TCCA).  Mr. Roberson’s conviction for the murder of his daughter Nikki was based on the so-called “Shaken Baby Syndrome” which has now been debunked by new scientific and medical evidence.  The TCCA disregarded this and other evidence that showed his daughter’s death was attributable to natural and accidental causes.  In the petition, Mr. Robertson asserts that: (1) the State relied on an uncontested SBS causation theory to obtain his conviction; (2) each of the SBS premises considered medical orthodoxy in 2003 have since been undermined by evidence-based science; (3) the jury heard misleading, highly prejudicial testimony from one nurse suggesting that Nikki was sexually abused, when no one else saw any signs of such abuse; and

DUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AP) — Iran on Friday executed three men accused of deadly violence during last year's anti-government protests despite objections from human rights groups. Mizan, the judiciary's website, announced the executions of Majid Kazemi, Saleh Mirhashemi and Saeed Yaghoubi, without saying how they were carried out. Authorities say they killed a police officer and two members of the paramilitary Basij group in Isfahan in November during nationwide protests. Rights groups say the three were subjected to torture, forced into televised confessions and denied due process. The protests erupted last September after the death of a 22-year-old woman, Mahsa Amini, who had been detained by the country's morality police for allegedly violating its strict Islamic dress code. The demonstrations rapidly escalated into calls for the overthrow of the theocracy that has ruled Iran since the 1979 Islamic Revolution.

Prisoners held in solitary confinement are more likely to end up back in prison and die prematurely, and the cost of solitary confinement is three times higher than that of the general prison population, a PBS study found.  In 2020, United Nations Special Rapporteur on Torture Nils Melzer raised concern about the overuse of solitary confinement in U.S. prisons, noting that his predecessor, Juan Mendez, had compellingly shown the extent to which such practices amounted to torture. Melzer said that “the severe and often irreparable psychological and physical consequences of solitary confinement and social exclusion are well documented and can range from progressively severe forms of anxiety, stress, and depression to cognitive impairment and suicidal tendencies.” This practice of isolation affects those who are not convicted but held in local jails awaiting trial, including at the Tulsa County jail. The U.S. justice system presumes people to be innocent until proven guilty, so jails shou