Death Penalty News

Robert Card is the person of interest police are looking for following Wednesday night's mass shootings in a bowling alley and nearby bar Police continue to hunt Thursday morning for the man who allegedly killed at least 18 people last night in multiple shootings in Maine. Robert Card, the person of interest police whom police are searching for, is a 40-year-old U.S. military firearms instructor believed to have opened fire in a bowling alley and nearby bar Wednesday evening.

New Jersey has banned the use of ‘gay panic’ and ‘trans panic’ defence in the state. The controversial legal strategy, which is mostly used in assault or murder cases, allows people to defend themselves by claiming they were driven to violence after discovering their victim’s sexual orientation or gender identity. On Tuesday (21 January), Democratic Governor Phil Murphy signed a bill that outlaws the use of the archaic defence in New Jersey, arguing that both ‘gay panic’ and ‘trans panic’ defences are “abhorrent” excuses for violence. “We will always stand with our LGBTQ+ community and promote full equality for all our residents,” he said in a statement. “Gay and trans panic defences are rooted in homophobia and abhorrent excuses that should never be used to justify violence against vulnerable populations. “With this new law, we are enacting critical measures to protect our friends and neighbors in the LGBTQ+ community.” Christian Fuscarino, Executive Directo...

In solitary confinement, the prisoner is isolated from others in a cell nearly 24 hours per day. In Maine, the cell doors are solid metal, so the prisoner has to shout merely to be heard by staff or residents of adjacent cells. The prisoner eats meals alone in his cell and remains almost entirely idle with no programs to permit him to increase socially desirable skills. This is not “the hole” of yesteryear. Lights are on around the clock and the doors open by remote control. The isolation and idleness are near total. Staff pass by the cells and slide food trays through slots in the door, but meaningful communication rarely occurs. The isolation and idleness that cause psychiatric symptoms in relatively healthy prisoners cause psychotic breakdowns, severe affective disorders and suicide crises in prisoners with histories of serious mental illness. Stunningly, one half of successful prison suicides today occur among the 3 percent to 10 percent of prisoners in solitary confinement at any ...