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After acquittal of ex-death row inmate, debate needed on Japan's death penalty

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Japan should be ensuring the safety of its citizens, but instead it is taking people's lives. Is it acceptable to maintain the ultimate penalty under such circumstances? This is a serious question for society. The acquittal of 88-year-old Iwao Hakamada, who had been handed the death penalty, has been finalized after prosecutors decided not to appeal the verdict issued by the Shizuoka District Court during his retrial.

Paul G. Smith, Jr., Death Row, San Quentin, California

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"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 and help, that will not be cowed by the seemingly impossible task of taking on something as big as an ideological and political belief.

I know you doubt you can even do anything that will aid me. And you are correct. You alone are unlikely to be able to do this alone but I am hoping that many people will join in.
A collective effort is easier than taking on the world alone.

I am asking you to help me.

I do not like asking for help. My pride always seems toget in the way.

But without your help all I have is my pride and a date with the executioner."

Paul G. Smith, Jr.

Visit Paul's Website

This Website is also available in German.
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Photos of maximum-security prisons in Norway and the US reveal the extremes of prison life

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US Administrative Security Facility, or ADX Florence, in Florence, Colorado. Inside the walls of the toughest prison in the US, a fork is a deadly weapon. Inside the walls of Norway's toughest prison, a fork is, well ... a fork. The differences extend far past silverware. In just about every way, the approaches that the US and Norway take to criminal justice fall on opposite ends of the spectrum. While the US uses isolation to punish offenders and keep them away from civil society, Norway prefers to rehabilitate its inmates so they can return to the outside world — there are no life sentences . No two prisons make that difference more clear than the super-max Administrative Security Facility, or ADX Florence , in Florence, Colorado and Halden Prison , in Halden, Norway. Not all US prisons are as strict as ADX, and while Halden is technically maximum-security, it's still closer to the rule than the exception in Norway. Here's what life is like at both e
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After acquittal of ex-death row inmate, debate needed on Japan's death penalty

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Japan should be ensuring the safety of its citizens, but instead it is taking people's lives. Is it acceptable to maintain the ultimate penalty under such circumstances? This is a serious question for society. The acquittal of 88-year-old Iwao Hakamada, who had been handed the death penalty, has been finalized after prosecutors decided not to appeal the verdict issued by the Shizuoka District Court during his retrial.
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Switzerland | The Guillotine of Geneva

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During the French annexation, 36 prisoners were executed using this device. Built in 1799, this structure basically consists of a tall, vertical oak frame fitted with a heavy steel blade with an oblique cutting edge and suspended from the top. It was designed for a rapid execution by decapitation of those who were condemned to death in the Swiss canton of Geneva during the French period. Today it is part of the Permanent Collection at the Tavel House, the oldest building in Geneva.  
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Idaho death-row inmate survived injection intended to kill him. Now state will try again.

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A day after Idaho prison’s system advised that it is again ready to perform a lethal injection, an Ada County judge issued the latest death warrant for Thomas Creech, the state’s longest-serving death row prisoner, and scheduled him for another execution.  Creech, 74, is now set to be executed on Nov. 13. If fulfilled, the execution would be Idaho’s first in more than a dozen years. Prison officials called off Creech’s planned execution earlier this year when for nearly an hour they were unable to locate a suitable vein for an IV to inject him with the lethal chemicals. 
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Texas Court of Criminal Appeals denies Robert Roberson’s stay of execution request

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(Austin, Texas, October 11, 2024) - The Texas Court of Criminal Appeals (CCA) – without a written opinion – has denied Robert Roberson’s request to stay his execution, scheduled for Thursday, October 17. The CCA also denied, without issuing an opinion, Mr. Roberson’s request that the Court reconsider its denial of post-conviction relief. The CCA, once again, failed to consider any of the extensive medical and scientific evidence Mr. Roberson has submitted demonstrating that his chronically ill, two-year-old daughter, Nikki, died from illness, accident, and medical error, not because of any abuse.
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Wyoming | One of Matthew Shepard’s Murderers Denied Sentence Reduction

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Russell Henderson is serving consecutive life sentences in Wyoming after being convicted of homicide and hate crime One of the men who murdered gay college student Matthew Shepard in 1998 was denied a commutation of his sentence this week, the Wyoming Board of Parole has confirmed. Russell Henderson, who along with Aaron McKinney was convicted of homicide and hate crime charges for murdering Shepard 25 years ago, is currently serving two consecutive life sentences in Wyoming prison. Henderson applied for a reduction in his sentence earlier this year per the Board’s regulations, which allow prisoners who have served at least 10 years of a life sentence to submit a commutation petition once every five years. But the board ruled against sending Henderson’s petition to the governor, Executive Director Margaret White confirmed in statements to The Advocate this week.
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Activists Call on President Biden to End the Federal Death Penalty Before Leaving Office

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A conversation with Death Penalty Action Co-founder and Executive Director Abe Bonowitz. Now that Joe Biden is a lame duck president, activists are holding him accountable to make good on his promise to end the federal death penalty during his remaining six months as president. Biden’s election campaign in 2020 had pledged to end the federal death penalty and incentivize the remaining 27 states that still allow executions to do the same. While he made history as the first president in the United States to openly oppose the death penalty, there has been no movement to actually end federal executions during his nearly four years in office.
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Alabama set to tie record for executions in 50 years with upcoming lethal injection

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BIRMINGHAM, Ala. (WBRC) -Alabama is on track to tie its record for the most executions in a single year, as Derrick Dearman, a 35-year-old Mississippi man, is scheduled to be put to death next Thursday for the 2016 murders of five people in Mobile County. Described by officials as a “gruesome and horrific” crime, Dearman was convicted of using an axe and a gun to kill his five of his girlfriend’s relatives.
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Iran Executes 16 People in One Day Amid Surge in Death Penalties

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The Islamic Republic’s authorities have executed at least sixteen people in a single day. According to a report by the Iran Human Rights Organization, the death sentences of 13 men and one woman were carried out on Wednesday at Karaj Central Prison. On the same day, two other prisoners were also executed at Urmia Central Prison. The charges against these prisoners were listed as “premeditated murder,” “rape,” or drug-related offenses, for which they had been sentenced to death.
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