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Biden Fails a Death Penalty Abolitionist’s Most Important Test

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The mystery of Joe Biden’s views about capital punishment has finally been solved. His decision to grant clemency to 37 of the 40 people on federal death row shows the depth of his opposition to the death penalty. And his decision to leave three of America’s most notorious killers to be executed by a future administration shows the limits of his abolitionist commitment. The three men excluded from Biden’s mass clemency—Dylann Roof, Dzhokhar Tsarnaev, and Robert Bowers—would no doubt pose a severe test of anyone’s resolve to end the death penalty. Biden failed that test.
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U.S. Supreme Court halts execution of John Balentine

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John Balentine
HUNTSVILLE, Texas (AP) - The U.S. Supreme Court has stopped the execution of a man convicted of fatally shooting three teenage housemates in Amarillo more than 14 years ago.

Justices decided Wednesday to halt the punishment until it resolves an appeal seeking review of John Balentine's case. The reprieve for the 43-year-old inmate came less than an hour before the former auto mechanic's scheduled execution in Huntsville.

Balentine has had three execution dates in as many years. Last year, the justices stopped his scheduled lethal injection, also about an hour before it was to have occurred.

Balentine's lawyer argues deficient legal help at his client's trial and earlier appeals. The lawyer also said the case deserves review so jurors can consider his poor, abusive childhood before deciding punishment.

State attorneys opposed the appeal.

Source: AP, August 22, 2012
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