Scheduled execution of DC sniper stirs debate

With November 10th set as the execution date for John Allen Muhammad (pictured), the man dubbed the DC Sniper, new interest in his case is growing, with people on both sides speaking out.

Muhammad was tried in Virginia Beach for the murder of Dean Meyers in Prince William County on October 9, 2002. Convicted, the jury recommended death, and a Virginia judge issued the death sentence in March 2004.

Marion Lewis’ 25-year old daughter, Lori Ann Lewis-Rivera, was killed by Muhammad and his teenage accomplice, Lee Boyd Malvo, during a three week shooting spree in October 2002 that crossed two states and the nation’s capital and saw ten people killed by the snipers. Malvo was sentenced to life for his role in the shootings. Lewis says that he wishes he could dispatch Muhammad himself, but will settle for just being present at the execution.

Other victims’ family members also wish to be present. The director of the Victim/Witness Program in Prince William County, Patricia D. Allue, says that eleven families of victims have expressed interest in attending the execution.

Not everyone, however, is excited about this execution. Jonathan Sheldon, Muhammad’s attorney, has asked Gov. Tim Kaine to grant clemency based on new evidence of mental illness brought on by Gulf War Syndrome. He said, “Execution is not justified in this case because of John Muhammad’s severe mental illness as illustrated by brain damage, brain dysfunction, neurological deficits as well as his psychotic and delusional behavior.”

Richard Dieter, the Executive Director of the Death Penalty Information Center, agrees, saying that "From the evidence that has been submitted with the clemency petition for Mr. Muhammad, it appears that he is seriously mentally ill, more so than many people realized. This is not an excuse for his terrible crimes, but it should factor into whether he should be executed.”

Beth Panilaitis, Executive Director of Virginians for Alternatives to the Death Penalty, is also opposed to this execution. “Our thoughts are with the victims and with all those impacted by the shootings and the trauma of that time,” she says. “It is important to keep in mind that the citizens of Virginia and the greater metro area have been safe from this crime for seven years. Incarceration has worked. Life in prison without the possibility of parole has and will keep the people of Virginia safe. The execution and media coverage around it resurfaces all the crime details and in many ways re-traumatize the families of the victims and the community as a whole.”

Last year Kaine commuted the death sentence of Percy Walton to life in prison due to evidence that Walton suffered from mental illness. The US Supreme Court banned executing the mentally ill 2002 in Atkins v. Virginia.

Muhammad’s execution also comes at a time when the death penalty faces major challenges. Although there is little evidence to suggest that Muhammad might be innocent, Dieter and Panilaitis both cite the 2004 execution of Cameron Willingham who, as it turns out, may have actually been innocent. “The case of Cameron Willingham in Texas is an example of how the state may have executed an innocent person. Life without parole serves society's needs for punishment and protection without the risks associated with executions,” says Dieter.

Governor Kaine’s office says that he does not make comments on clemency requests until he makes his decision; however Kaine said that he can see no reason why the execution will not take place, but he promises to review the clemency petition.

Muhammad’s execution is scheduled to be carried out at the Greensville Correctional Center in Jarratt, Virginia on November 10, 2009 at 9:00 PM.

Source: Examiner.com, Oct. 26, 2009

Comments

Singapore executes three drug mules over two days

Singapore hanged three people for drug offences last week, bringing the total number of executions to 17 this year - the highest since 2003. These come a week before a constitutional challenge against the death penalty for drug offences is due to be heard. Singapore has some of the world's harshest anti-drug laws, which it says are a necessary deterrent to drug crime, a major issue elsewhere in South East Asia. Anyone convicted of trafficking - which includes selling, giving, transporting or administering - more than 15g of diamorphine, 30g of cocaine, 250g of methamphetamine and 500g of cannabis in Singapore will be handed the death sentence.

Florida | After nearly 50 years on death row, Tommy Zeigler seeks final chance at freedom

The Winter Garden Police chief was at a party on Christmas Eve 1975 when he received a phone call from his friend Tommy Zeigler, the owner of a furniture store on Dillard Street. “I’ve been shot, please hurry,” Zeigler told the chief as he struggled for breath. When police arrived at the store, Zeigler, 30, managed to unlock the door and then collapsed “with a gaping bullet hole through his lower abdomen,” court records show. In the store, detectives found a gruesome, bloody crime scene and several guns. Four other people — Zeigler’s wife, his in-laws and a laborer — lay dead.

Louisiana death row inmate freed after nearly 30 years as overturned conviction upends case

A Louisiana man who spent nearly 30 years on death row walked out of prison Wednesday after a judge overturned his conviction and granted him bail. Jimmie Duncan, now in his 60s, was sentenced to death in 1998 for the alleged rape and drowning of his girlfriend’s 23-month-old daughter, Haley Oliveaux — a case long clouded by disputed forensic testimony. His release comes months after a state judge ruled that the evidence prosecutors used to secure the conviction was unreliable and rooted in discredited bite-mark analysis.

Oklahoma board recommends clemency for inmate set to be executed next week

A voting board in Oklahoma decided Wednesday to recommend clemency for Tremane Wood, a death row inmate who is scheduled to receive a lethal injection next week at the state penitentiary in McAlester. Wood, 46, faces execution for his conviction in the 2001 murder of Ronnie Wipf, a migrant farmworker, at an Oklahoma City hotel on New Year's Eve, court records show. The recommendation was decided in a 3-2 vote by the Oklahoma Pardon and Parole Board, consisting of five members appointed by either the governor or the state's top judicial official, according to CBS News affiliate KWTV. Oklahoma Gov. Kevin Sitt will consider the recommendation as he weighs whether to grant or deny Wood's clemency request, which would mean sparing him from execution and reducing his sentence to life in prison without the possibility of parole.

Vietnam | Woman sentenced to death for poisoning 4 family members with cyanide

A woman in Dong Nai Province in southern Vietnam was sentenced to death on Thursday for killing family members including two young children in a series of cyanide poisonings that shocked her community. The Dong Nai People's Court found 39-year-old Nguyen Thi Hong Bich guilty of murder and of illegally possessing and using toxic chemicals. Judges described her actions as "cold-blooded, inhumane and calculated," saying Bich exploited the trust of her victims and "destroyed every ethical bond within her family."

Afghanistan | Two Sons Of Executed Man Also Face Death Penalty, Says Taliban

The Taliban governor’s spokesperson in Khost said on Tuesday that two sons of a man executed earlier that day have also been sentenced to death. Their executions, he said, have been postponed because the heir of the victims is not currently in Afghanistan. Mostaghfer Gurbaz, spokesperson for the Taliban governor in Khost, also released details of the charges against the man executed on Tuesday, identified as Mangal. He said Mangal was accused of killing members of a family.

Afghanistan's Taliban rulers carry out public execution in sports stadium

The man had been convicted of killing 13 members of a family, including children, and was executed by one of their relatives, according to police. Afghanistan's Taliban authorities carried out the public execution of a man on Tuesday convicted of killing 13 members of a family, including several children, earlier this year. Tens of thousands of people attended the execution at a sports stadium in the eastern city of Khost, which the Supreme Court said was the eleventh since the Taliban seized power in 2021 in the wake of the chaotic withdrawal of US and NATO forces.

Utah | Ralph Menzies dies on death row less than 3 months after his execution was called off

Judge was set to consider arguments in December about Menzies’ mental fitness Ralph Menzies, who spent more than 3 decades on Utah’s death row for the 1986 murder of Maurine Hunsaker, has died. Menzies, 67, died of “presumed natural causes at a local hospital” Wednesday afternoon, according to the Utah Department of Corrections. Matt Hunsaker, Maurine Hunsaker’s son, said Menzies’ death “was a complete surprise.” “First off, I’d say that I’m numb. And second off, I would say, grateful,” Hunsaker told Utah News Dispatch. “I’m grateful that my family does not have to endure this for the holidays.”

Iran carries out public hanging of "double-rapist"

Iran on Tuesday publicly executed a man after convicting him of raping two women in the northern province of Semnan. The execution was carried out in the town of Bastam after the Supreme Court upheld the verdict, the judiciary's official outlet Mizan Online reported. Mizan cited the head of the provincial judiciary, Mohammad Akbari, as saying the ruling had been 'confirmed and enforced after precise review by the Supreme Court'. The provincial authority said the man had 'deceived two women and committed rape by force and coercion', adding that he used 'intimidation and threats' to instil fear of reputational harm in the victims.

Burkina Faso to bring back death penalty

Burkina Faso's military rulers will bring back the death penalty, which was abolished in 2018, the country's Council of Ministers announced on Thursday. "This draft penal code reinstates the death penalty for a number of offences, including high treason, acts of terrorism, acts of espionage, among others," stated the information service of the Burkinabe government. Burkina Faso last carried out an execution in 1988.

Death Penalty News

Search This Blog