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U.S. | 'I comfort death row inmates in their final moments - the execution room is like a house of horrors'

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Reverend Jeff Hood, 40, wants to help condemned inmates 'feel human again' and vows to continue his efforts to befriend murderers in spite of death threats against his family A reverend who has made it his mission to comfort death row inmates in their final days has revealed the '"moral torture" his endeavor entails. Reverend Dr. Jeff Hood, 40, lives with his wife and five children in Little Rock, Arkansas. But away from his normal home life, he can suddenly find himself holding the shoulder of a murderer inside an execution chamber, moments away from the end of their life. 

China: 3 executed, 4 sentenced to death for drug trafficking

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Executing drug traffickers in China
3 men were executed on Tuesday in south China's Hainan Province for trafficking methamphetamine, ketamine and heroin, a local court said Wednesday.

Wang Yihuan was convicted of transporting and selling more than 7.9 kg of ketamine, according to the Intermediate People's Court of the provincial capital of Haikou.

Wu Songlin was found guilty of trafficking 1.15 kg of methamphetamine, while Hou Liangqin was convicted of selling more than 540 grams of heroin and 290 grams of methamphetamine.

In a separate case, six drug dealers were sentenced to death or life imprisonment on Tuesday in Kunming, capital of southwest China's Yunnan Province, according to the municipal Intermediate People's Court.

The 6 dealers purchased drugs on Nov. 26, 2011 in Nansan Township in the city of Lincang. Two of them, Yue Jintian and Yao Yubin, were arrested by police at a toll station the next day. Police found a pistol, eight bullets, an ammunition clip and 14 grams of methamphetamine in their SUV.

The other four dealers, namely Cheng Xinpei, Li Jinwu, Feng Huaide and Li Liming, ran away but were later caught by police. Police discovered 27.5 kg of methamphetamine in the trunk of the car they abandoned.

Yue Jintian and Cheng Xinpei were sentenced to death. Li Jinwu and Li Liming were given death penalty with reprieve, while Feng Huaide and Yao Yubin were sentenced to life imprisonment.

Drug trafficking is a felony in China.

Source: Xinhua, June 26, 2013
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