1830: Agnus Magnusdottir and Fridrik Sigurdsson, Iceland’s last executions

<div style="text-align: justify;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgjJtdwqPZFdLeCzzyeqM_D7gt2KkqonpNZBgwkLXOoxe4LoOdWPeEDsU3KREF5wvM0xZoQKtqZIx8ZiHGacDZNAK5ZzHh1cssdX4ip_VuF5s2pt8HWIMziYrI2xt_fFWLC7yyWXBhyMog/s1600/Iceland.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="266" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgjJtdwqPZFdLeCzzyeqM_D7gt2KkqonpNZBgwkLXOoxe4LoOdWPeEDsU3KREF5wvM0xZoQKtqZIx8ZiHGacDZNAK5ZzHh1cssdX4ip_VuF5s2pt8HWIMziYrI2xt_fFWLC7yyWXBhyMog/s400/Iceland.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>Iceland last used the <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Capital_punishment_in_Iceland" target="_blank">death penalty</a> on January 12, 1830 with the beheading of farm servants Agnes Magnusdottir and Fridrik Sigurdsson.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">Only threadbare details survive to posterity about their crime: one night in 1828, Agnes roused a neighboring farm to give the alarm that Natan Ketilsson's farmhouse, where she worked, was afire. </div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">Neighbors were able to quench the blaze quickly enough to realize that Ketilsson himself had not died because he was trapped in the flame -- but because he had been stabbed to death, along with another man known as a criminal, Petur Jonsson.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">Agnes, 33, and teenager Fridrik were arrested for murder and eventually beheaded on a desolate hill <a href="http://www.picador.com/blog/august-2013/burial-rites-a-photo-essay-from-iceland" target="_blank">on the frozen northern coast</a> where a mossed-over stone still silently marks the spot.*</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">Why were these men killed? If the stones remember, <a href="http://herringandclassstruggle.blogspot.com/2013/12/may-it-do-you-good-agnes-magnusdottir.html" target="_blank">they aren't telling</a> and in the scantiness of documentation the job has fallen to literature instead, for there is something to be said for an unexplained double murder in the ashes of a half-burned farm and the novelty of a woman being the very last human to have her head chopped off in Iceland. (On execution day, Fridrik went first.)</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjMlznn1ikMIW0EJGcVokvlrZjzGr-GizfYVMU_Xrh0X8JPIi48EIt27NCLHhLu3bdwhzYtrXnPz3xcPoKwqvWsSGzkl2BJuHUSqZjBO7_8s2xJwbKaigp9RpkkGqonZ6K0N6wyPR0Z-2c/s1600/Burial+Rites+by+Hannah+Kent.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="Burial Rites, by Hannah Kent" border="0" height="266" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjMlznn1ikMIW0EJGcVokvlrZjzGr-GizfYVMU_Xrh0X8JPIi48EIt27NCLHhLu3bdwhzYtrXnPz3xcPoKwqvWsSGzkl2BJuHUSqZjBO7_8s2xJwbKaigp9RpkkGqonZ6K0N6wyPR0Z-2c/s400/Burial+Rites+by+Hannah+Kent.jpg" title="Burial Rites, by Hannah Kent" width="400" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Burial Rites, by Hannah Kent</td></tr></tbody></table>Agnes <a href="http://graskeggur.com/blog/84/tough-justice-1830-style" target="_blank">was Natan's lover</a>, but the farmer had a reputation for womanizing and, so all suspect, eyes for Fridrik's young girlfriend;** the inference of a jealous domestic psychodrama perfectly cast on the fringe of the Arctic Sea, of chilly twilit tables gathering furtive eyes above with wandering hands below, seems hard to resist. And then there was the strange coda, while verdicts were sent to Denmark for confirmation,† of the condemned simply living and working among the community waiting to execute them. Nineteenth century rural Iceland was a little short on jail cells and surplus provisions.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">After studying on an exchange program in Iceland, Australian Hannah Kent found this speculative environment a rich source for her well-received first novel, <a href="http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/0316243922/exectoda-20" target="_blank">Burial Rites</a>. (There's a lengthy and interesting podcast interview with her by the Australian Broadcasting Corporation <a href="http://www.abc.net.au/local/stories/2013/05/16/3760644.htm?site=conversations">here</a>.)</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">Kent's drama has made headway in Hollywood, with <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/film/2013/oct/08/jennifer-lawrence-killer-iceland-burial-rites" target="_blank">Jennifer Lawrence</a> said to be keen on playing the tragic lead; if it someday does hit the silver screen, however, it won't even be the first on its subject matter -- witness the 1995 film <a href="http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0137344/?ref_=fn_al_tt_2" target="_blank">Agnes</a>.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><blockquote class="tr_bq" style="text-align: justify;">The criminals Fridrik Sigurdsson and Agnes Magnusdottir were today moved out of custody to the place of execution, and following them to the execution site were the priests Reverend Tomasson and Reverend Thorvardur Jonsson, an assistant priest. The criminals had wished that the latter two help them prepare for their deaths. After the priest Johann Tomasson completed a speech of admonition to the convict Fridrik Sigurdsson, Fridrik's head was taken off with one blow of the axe. The farmer Gudmundur Ketilsson,‡ who had been ordered to be executioner, committed the work that he had been asked to do with dexterity and fearlessness. The criminal Agnes Magnusdottir, who, while this was taking place, had been kept at a remote station where she could not see the site of execution, was then fetched. After the Assistant Reverend Thorvardur Jonsson had appropriately prepared her for death, the same executioner cut off her head, and with the same craftsmanship as before. The lifeless heads were then set upon two stakes at the site of execution, and their bodies put in two coffins of untreated boards, and buried before the men were dismissed. While the deed took place, and there until it was finished, everything was appropriately quiet and well-ordered, and it was concluded by a short address by Reverend Magnus Arnason to those that were there. </blockquote><blockquote class="tr_bq" style="text-align: justify;">Actum ut supra. </blockquote><blockquote class="tr_bq" style="text-align: justify;">B. Blondal, R. Olsen, A. Arnason</blockquote><blockquote class="tr_bq" style="text-align: justify;">(From the Magistrate's Book of <a href="http://ow.ly/ogYr307Xzmw" target="_blank">Hunavatn District</a>, 1830 -- as quoted in the epilogue of Kent's Burial Rites) </blockquote><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">* The milestone murderers, or at least their heads, <a href="http://stuckiniceland.com/north/ghost-stories-on-the-trail-of-agnes/" target="_blank">rest in Tjörn</a>.</div><div style="text-align: justify;">** This young woman, Sigridur Gudmundsdottir, was condemned to death with the other two but got to keep her head in the end.</div><div style="text-align: justify;">† Iceland did not become independent of Denmark <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Founding_of_the_Republic_of_Iceland" target="_blank">until 1944</a>.</div><div style="text-align: justify;">‡ The victim's brother was the executioner.</div><br />Source: <a href="http://www.executedtoday.com/2017/01/12/1830-agnus-magnusdottir-fridrik-sigurdsson-iceland-last-execution/" target="_blank">ExecutedToday.com</a>, January 13, 2017<br /><div><br /></div><div><b>➤ Related article:</b> <a href="http://deathpenaltynews.blogspot.fr/2013/08/burial-rites-hannah-kents-meticulously.html" target="_blank">Burial Rites: Hannah Kent's meticulously researched historical novel tells of the final months of the last woman executed in Iceland</a>, The Guardian, August 28, 2013<br /><div style="color: #444444; direction: ltr; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 14px; line-height: 1.4em; margin-bottom: 1em;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;">⚑ | Report an error, an omission; suggest a story or a new angle to an existing story; submit a piece; recommend a resource; contact the webmaster, contact us: <a href="mailto:deathpenaltynews@gmail.com">deathpenaltynews@gmail.com</a>.</div><br /><table border="0" cellpadding="4" cellspacing="4" style="background-color: white; border-collapse: collapse; border: 0px solid rgb(255, 204, 0); color: black; text-align: center; width: 100%;"><tbody><tr> <td><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: right;"><a href="https://www.facebook.com/WebDPN/" target="_blank"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhL4sspwgGptzvuHVklum5TwxKppRN-lIC5TN8RLZFq_B4ZOtBrX1ssXPNKQ6XpSyQFRJRtVQN45HMkpt3VX0JtOW0TovwxZAurG-AV6gh98IAXo7Ip6QlpkZr9WrM3_m943Mwy-gGxBAY/s1600/Find+us+Facebook.jpg" /></a></div></td> <td><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><a href="https://twitter.com/WebDPN" target="_blank"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiULIPEaT_P6oIauxAZd17XRRxljesDLS7iIjdQXT7Xct99uHeohx4IYmiAB6S044gTjMDGSy50sL2vDzOyPZ-3vJj9zwcYQ2rgzJh9v1-QDiunKAQtLLLqJ83s38qN3HABxGIC8GsIOD0/s1600/Find+us+twitter.jpg" /></a><span id="goog_1427852018"></span><span id="goog_1427852019"></span><a href="https://www.blogger.com/"></a></div></td> </tr></tbody></table><div style="text-align: center;"></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /><b>Opposed to Capital Punishment? 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1830: Agnus Magnusdottir and Fridrik Sigurdsson, Iceland’s last executions

Iceland last used the death penalty on January 12, 1830 with the beheading of farm servants Agnes Magnusdottir and Fridrik Sigurdsson. Only...

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We know how to prevent another Bali 9 case, but the blueprint is gathering dust

<div style="text-align: justify;"><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiYE30F1HaBFr83el0iruVXlxlRY6K41qm3GGNeT4TAaqAxnojX9NBYG1xXHHlhojEUC6zTZ4BJQCIvRSJSwLRKyOZdCgsZO7zZMR02noDNSRqF9W0dy3X6kiwe8BiSQmP2cqyWEuPe4vE/s1600/Another+Day+in+Paradise+Myuran+Sukumaran+Exhivition+JAN_2017.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="Another Day in Paradise - Myuran Sukumaran's exhibition opens in Sydney." border="0" height="215" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiYE30F1HaBFr83el0iruVXlxlRY6K41qm3GGNeT4TAaqAxnojX9NBYG1xXHHlhojEUC6zTZ4BJQCIvRSJSwLRKyOZdCgsZO7zZMR02noDNSRqF9W0dy3X6kiwe8BiSQmP2cqyWEuPe4vE/s400/Another+Day+in+Paradise+Myuran+Sukumaran+Exhivition+JAN_2017.jpg" title="Another Day in Paradise - Myuran Sukumaran's exhibition opens in Sydney." width="400" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Another Day in Paradise - Myuran Sukumaran's exhibition opens in Sydney.</td></tr></tbody></table>This week Sydneysiders will have their first opportunity to view the hauntingly beautiful artworks painted by Myuran Sukumaran during his final days on death row in Bali's Kerobokan prison.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">While the exhibition, <a href="http://www.sydneyfestival.org.au/2017/myuran" target="_blank">Another Day in </a><a href="http://www.sydneyfestival.org.au/2017/myuran">Paradise</a> which opens at the Campbelltown Arts Centre on Friday, is a chance to reflect on his life and the brutality of the death penalty, we mustn't shy away from a difficult home truth: the Australian Federal Police's role in his death.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">In April 2015, <a href="http://www.smh.com.au/world/bali-9-executions-andrew-chan-and-myuran-sukumaran-shot-dead-in-indonesia-20150428-1mvjj8.html" target="_blank">Indonesia executed Sukumaran</a> by firing squad, alongside Andrew Chan, a fellow member of the so-called Bali Nine who had also been convicted of drug trafficking offences.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">The execution of the two men united Australia against the death penalty as never before. The men's rehabilitation during their 10 years in prison, as well as the harshness of the ultimate penalty, had struck a chord. Hundreds of thousands of Australians campaigned for mercy and gathered together for candlelight vigils and protests around the country.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">The Australian government, to its great credit, advocated strongly for a stay of the executions. After the men were killed, Australia removed its ambassador to Indonesia in protest.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">Later that year, the Australian government confirmed its commitment to working towards global abolition of the death penalty, making that cause a key part of its bid for a seat on the United Nations Human Rights Council, the world's premiere human rights body.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">Australia has not executed anyone for nearly 50 years. (It will be 50 years since Ronald Ryan's execution in February.) As a nation, we can and should be a global leader on this issue.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">Yet in the midst of our shared grief and pain, and the government's apparent willingness to lead internationally, there remains a nagging issue: it was a tip-off from the AFP that led to the Bali Nine's arrest in the first place. It was the AFP that requested that the Indonesian National Police gather evidence and keep the Bali Nine under surveillance.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiHugLCU1JMZapvR-lQgx-8J7dFCxwY4VvuVjHw674O07VS_awxQhYMIW41iG4JgtYL_gKW9GcqpJJMKYZL1m4qUBz410SJfTmNLQKd5KFFgsw9dWcTu_qNkeOmeVeFv5dbVza0DHjQ2gBw/s1600/Australian+Federal+Police+badge.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiHugLCU1JMZapvR-lQgx-8J7dFCxwY4VvuVjHw674O07VS_awxQhYMIW41iG4JgtYL_gKW9GcqpJJMKYZL1m4qUBz410SJfTmNLQKd5KFFgsw9dWcTu_qNkeOmeVeFv5dbVza0DHjQ2gBw/s1600/Australian+Federal+Police+badge.jpg" /></a></div>Under current laws and guidelines, if the Bali Nine case happened again tomorrow, nothing would prevent the AFP from acting in exactly the same way. In fact, the AFP has <a href="http://www.abc.net.au/news/2015-05-04/renshaw-bali-9-and-the-afp/6443692" target="_blank">confirmed</a> its view that its actions in the Bali Nine case were not only lawful, but also the right thing to do.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">The AFP has strong law enforcement ties with police services in neighbouring countries. Undoubtedly much of its international co-operation is for good and valid reasons.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">However, elements of the AFP's co-operation place people in harm's way. <a href="http://www.smh.com.au/comment/the-afp-peddles-injustice-by-helping-asian-death-penalty-states-20150902-gjdvu3.html" target="_blank">Evidence</a> suggests that the AFP knowingly shares information with death penalty states and in so doing puts 370 people a year at risk of execution, 95 per cent of which is for drug offences.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">The AFP's ongoing information-sharing with foreign police in death penalty cases, represents Australia's complicity in the very practice it seeks to stamp out. It is a stain on our track record and a blight our legitimacy to lead in the global eradication of this inhumane practice. It's time we cleaned it up.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">Fortunately, a way forward has been prepared and agreed across the political divide. It just needs to be implemented.<br /><br /><div style="text-align: justify;">In 2016, a parliamentary committee chaired by Philip Ruddock presented a blueprint to ensure that Australia works comprehensively to abolish the death penalty worldwide. The committee's report, "<a href="http://www.aph.gov.au/Parliamentary_Business/Committees/Joint/Foreign_Affairs_Defence_and_Trade/Death_Penalty/Report" target="_blank">A world without the death penalty</a>", made 13 recommendations that must be implemented immediately in order to position Australia as a smart, sophisticated international leader on the issue.</div></div><br /><a href="http://www.smh.com.au/comment/the-afp-policy-that-lead-to-the-bali-9-execution-still-hasnt-been-changed-20170111-gtpd49.html"><b>Click here to read the full article</b></a><br /><br /><div style="text-align: justify;">Source: The Sydney Morning Herald, Emily Howie, January 12, 2017. Emily Howie is the director of advocacy at the Human Rights Law Centre.</div><br /><div style="text-align: center;">⚑ | Report an error, an omission; suggest a story or a new angle to an existing story; submit a piece; recommend a resource; contact the webmaster, contact us: <a href="mailto:deathpenaltynews@gmail.com">deathpenaltynews@gmail.com</a>.</div><br /><table border="0" cellpadding="4" cellspacing="4" style="background-color: white; border-collapse: collapse; border: 0px solid rgb(255, 204, 0); color: black; text-align: center; width: 100%;"><tbody><tr> <td><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: right;"><a href="https://www.facebook.com/WebDPN/" target="_blank"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhL4sspwgGptzvuHVklum5TwxKppRN-lIC5TN8RLZFq_B4ZOtBrX1ssXPNKQ6XpSyQFRJRtVQN45HMkpt3VX0JtOW0TovwxZAurG-AV6gh98IAXo7Ip6QlpkZr9WrM3_m943Mwy-gGxBAY/s1600/Find+us+Facebook.jpg" /></a></div></td> <td><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><a href="https://twitter.com/WebDPN" target="_blank"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiULIPEaT_P6oIauxAZd17XRRxljesDLS7iIjdQXT7Xct99uHeohx4IYmiAB6S044gTjMDGSy50sL2vDzOyPZ-3vJj9zwcYQ2rgzJh9v1-QDiunKAQtLLLqJ83s38qN3HABxGIC8GsIOD0/s1600/Find+us+twitter.jpg" /></a><span id="goog_1427852018"></span><span id="goog_1427852019"></span><a href="https://www.blogger.com/"></a></div></td> </tr></tbody></table><div style="text-align: center;"></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /><b>Opposed to Capital Punishment? Help us keep this blog up and running! <a href="https://www.paypal.com/cgi-bin/webscr?cmd=_s-xclick&hosted_button_id=JBVXEBZLP3WKW" target="_blank">DONATE!</a></b></div><form action="https://www.paypal.com/cgi-bin/webscr" method="post" target="_blank"><div style="text-align: center;"><img alt="" border="0" height="1" src="https://www.paypalobjects.com/fr_FR/i/scr/pixel.gif" width="1" /></div></form><div style="text-align: center;"></div><div style="text-align: center;"></div><div style="text-align: center;"></div>

We know how to prevent another Bali 9 case, but the blueprint is gathering dust

Another Day in Paradise - Myuran Sukumaran's exhibition opens in Sydney. This week Sydneysiders will have their first opportunity to vie...

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Mixed Messages on the Death Penalty in Indonesia's Drug War

<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgTWzOmYhoFp-0HE_DrROfCTJOO6_RcSXhSNfc_s7-Vc73quAPAOEzVRF2lTYFDYbs5mt974YBVQdnFzxO3Fj8lYP-5uFjvqzUIBdA1QMDxszJaxC85DY4bTlQNv1KbXLRe-mn53YZGRa0/s1600/Duterte+Widodo+Indonesia+9+SEPT+2016.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="Philippine President R. Duterte (left) and Indonesian President J. Widodo" border="0" height="301" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgTWzOmYhoFp-0HE_DrROfCTJOO6_RcSXhSNfc_s7-Vc73quAPAOEzVRF2lTYFDYbs5mt974YBVQdnFzxO3Fj8lYP-5uFjvqzUIBdA1QMDxszJaxC85DY4bTlQNv1KbXLRe-mn53YZGRa0/s400/Duterte+Widodo+Indonesia+9+SEPT+2016.jpg" title="Philippine President R. Duterte (left) and Indonesian President J. Widodo" width="400" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Philippine President R. Duterte (left) and Indonesian President J. Widodo</td></tr></tbody></table><div style="text-align: justify;">Indonesian authorities are sending mixed messages on the death penalty. The country abstained on a UN resolution for its abolition, and the president hinted at ending it, but some senior political figures are calling for the increased execution of drug offenders.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">On December 19, 2016, Indonesia was one of 31 countries that abstained from voting on a UN resolution that called for a moratorium on the use of the death penalty, the Jakarta Post reports. The UN has voted on a resolution on abolishing the death penalty every 2 years since 2008. Indonesia has abstained on every such resolution since 2012; prior to this, it had consistently voted <i>against </i>the measures.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">Human rights advocates, including the Human Rights Working Group, praised the government's abstention, as Indonesia has built a reputation as a prolific executioner of non-violent drug offenders under President Joko Widodo.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">Between 2010 and 2014, despite numerous people being sentenced to death in Indonesia, no executions took place [NB: 5 executions were indeed carried out in Indonesia in 2013: <a href="http://deathpenaltynews.blogspot.fr/2013/03/indonesia-execution-of-adami-wilson.html" target="_blank">Adami Wilson</a>, <a href="http://deathpenaltynews.blogspot.fr/2013/05/indonesia-executes-three-murderers.html" target="_blank">Suryadi Swabhuana, Jurit bin Abdullah, Ibrahim bin Ujang</a>, <a href="http://deathpenaltynews.blogspot.fr/2013/11/indonesia-fifth-execution-confirms.html" target="_blank">Muhammad Abdul Hafeez</a>. No executions were carried out between 2009 and 2012. -- DPN]. This changed after Widodo entered office in October 2014, since which 18 people have been executed - all for drug trafficking.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">Many of those executed were foreigners whose respective governments engaged in futile diplomatic efforts to reduce their citizens' sentences. At least 2 death row inmates, including one who was executed last year, accused law enforcement of torture during their interrogation.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">Despite Widodo's renewal of the death penalty, he recently hinted at potential reform. In an interview with ABC News in November 2016, the president said, "We are very open to options. I don't know when but we want to move towards that direction [of abolishing capital punishment]."</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">While Widodo's remarks suggest that human rights progress may be on the horizon for Indonesia, statements from other authorities paint a far darker picture of the future of the country's drug policy.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">Attorney General Muhammad Prasetyo stated in early December that executions were planned "in the near future", and that the state would be prioritising people convicted of drug-related crimes.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">In December, Budi Waseso - chief of the country's National Narcotics Agency (BNN) - told members of a new regional counter-narcotic taskforce, "Don't hesitate to shoot drug traffickers, drug dealers and drug users. Anyone involved in drug trafficking should be punished harshly, including traitors in the BNN body".</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">With echoes of President Rodrigo Duterte's calls for the slaughter of alleged drug offenders in the Philippines, Waseso's remarks suggest that a striking intensification of the Indonesian approach to drug policy may occur.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">Indonesian NGOs have repeatedly urged the government to officially end the death penalty, pointing out the lack of evidence for its supposed deterrent effect, and arguing that it contributes to societal harms.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">Ardhany Suryadarma, Policy Manager for the EU-funded project, Asia Action on Harm Reduction, proclaimed: "These executions only exacerbate the stigmatisation of people who use drugs, driving them underground, and away from [harm reduction interventions, which] ... keep individuals safer and curb the HIV epidemic."</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">The country has, seemingly, reached a crossroads, and the next step that it takes in regard to the death penalty will clarify its place in a region that is increasingly divided on the matter.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">For example, Malaysia seems to have introduced a secret moratorium on capital punishment for drug-related offences.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">Conversely, President Duterte's state-mandated violence against people allegedly involved with drugs has left at least 6,000 people dead in the Philippines since July 2016. Despite international condemnation, his government advocates the continuation of his lethal campaign.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">There are clearly conflicting ideologies between different authorities in Indonesia, and it is unclear which path the government will take. The country is currently at a crossroads: will Widodo stay true to his word and move towards adherence to the UN resolution? Will Indonesia return to its traditional approach of state-mandated executions? Or will it begin implementing extrajudicial killings as seen in the Philippines?</div><br />Source: talkingdrugs.org, January 10, 2017<br /><br /><div style="text-align: center;">⚑ | Report an error, an omission; suggest a story or a new angle to an existing story; submit a piece; recommend a resource; contact the webmaster, contact us: <a href="mailto:deathpenaltynews@gmail.com">deathpenaltynews@gmail.com</a>.</div><br /><table border="0" cellpadding="4" cellspacing="4" style="background-color: white; border-collapse: collapse; border: 0px solid rgb(255, 204, 0); color: black; text-align: center; width: 100%;"><tbody><tr> <td><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: right;"><a href="https://www.facebook.com/WebDPN/" target="_blank"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhL4sspwgGptzvuHVklum5TwxKppRN-lIC5TN8RLZFq_B4ZOtBrX1ssXPNKQ6XpSyQFRJRtVQN45HMkpt3VX0JtOW0TovwxZAurG-AV6gh98IAXo7Ip6QlpkZr9WrM3_m943Mwy-gGxBAY/s1600/Find+us+Facebook.jpg" /></a></div></td> <td><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><a href="https://twitter.com/WebDPN" target="_blank"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiULIPEaT_P6oIauxAZd17XRRxljesDLS7iIjdQXT7Xct99uHeohx4IYmiAB6S044gTjMDGSy50sL2vDzOyPZ-3vJj9zwcYQ2rgzJh9v1-QDiunKAQtLLLqJ83s38qN3HABxGIC8GsIOD0/s1600/Find+us+twitter.jpg" /></a><span id="goog_1427852018"></span><span id="goog_1427852019"></span><a href="https://www.blogger.com/"></a></div></td> </tr></tbody></table><div style="text-align: center;"></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /><b>Opposed to Capital Punishment? 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Mixed Messages on the Death Penalty in Indonesia's Drug War

Philippine President R. Duterte (left) and Indonesian President J. Widodo Indonesian authorities are sending mixed messages on the death pen...

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Colorado: New DA McCann says Denver is done with the death penalty

<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgM3J5JrAJ9GWwgcIwahIpZkQTjp5ewwVML2aqTJObNSvFbOeaVf96aICx_6uJqqVBdXCSsfG5_HPCechJ4NQHUAymu0FGMnbyBxEau1Y0wKT-BCB34vqO0TVnvCHXo2xcuwT2Lz1TBeJU/s1600/Beth+McCann+Denver+DA+Colorado.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="DA Beth McCann" border="0" height="330" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgM3J5JrAJ9GWwgcIwahIpZkQTjp5ewwVML2aqTJObNSvFbOeaVf96aICx_6uJqqVBdXCSsfG5_HPCechJ4NQHUAymu0FGMnbyBxEau1Y0wKT-BCB34vqO0TVnvCHXo2xcuwT2Lz1TBeJU/s400/Beth+McCann+Denver+DA+Colorado.jpg" title="DA Beth McCann" width="400" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">DA Beth McCann, Denver, Colorado</td></tr></tbody></table><div style="text-align: justify;">Denver is done with the death penalty. It dies as District Attorney Mitch Morrissey leaves office on Tuesday.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">His successor, Democrat Beth McCann, sat down with Next, and said she'll make good on her campaign promise to remove Denver from the list of the few remaining judicial districts in the state to seek capital punishment.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">"We are (done) under my administration," she said. "I don't think that the state should be in the business of killing people."</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">McCann believes life in prison gets the point of a punishment across, and "the millions and millions of dollars" the state spends on capital punishment cases can be saved to prosecute others.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">Morrisey sought the death penalty once. It was for Dexter Lewis, who was found guilty of stabbing five people to death in a Fero's Bar.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gary_Lee_Davis" target="_blank">Gary Davis</a> is the only person put to death in Colorado since the Supreme Court reinstated it in 1976. Davis was put to death in 1997.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">McCann is not looking to lead a statewide repeal of the death penalty, and she says she'd support a voter referendum on the issue, or repeal in the legislature.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">Tuesday, 9NEWS will talk to McCann about how she plans to handle prosecution of police officers accused of breaking the law, and how her work as a gun control advocate will impact how she prosecutes gun crimes in Denver. </div><br />Source: <a href="http://www.9news.com/news/local/next/new-da-mccann-says-denver-is-done-with-the-death-penalty/384633301" target="_blank">9NEWS</a>, Kyle Clark, Jan 9, 2017<br /><br /><div style="text-align: center;">⚑ | Report an error, an omission; suggest a story or a new angle to an existing story; submit a piece; recommend a resource; contact the webmaster, contact us: <a href="mailto:deathpenaltynews@gmail.com">deathpenaltynews@gmail.com</a>.</div><br /><table border="0" cellpadding="4" cellspacing="4" style="background-color: white; border-collapse: collapse; border: 0px solid rgb(255, 204, 0); color: black; text-align: center; width: 100%;"><tbody><tr> <td><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: right;"><a href="https://www.facebook.com/WebDPN/" target="_blank"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhL4sspwgGptzvuHVklum5TwxKppRN-lIC5TN8RLZFq_B4ZOtBrX1ssXPNKQ6XpSyQFRJRtVQN45HMkpt3VX0JtOW0TovwxZAurG-AV6gh98IAXo7Ip6QlpkZr9WrM3_m943Mwy-gGxBAY/s1600/Find+us+Facebook.jpg" /></a></div></td> <td><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><a href="https://twitter.com/WebDPN" target="_blank"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiULIPEaT_P6oIauxAZd17XRRxljesDLS7iIjdQXT7Xct99uHeohx4IYmiAB6S044gTjMDGSy50sL2vDzOyPZ-3vJj9zwcYQ2rgzJh9v1-QDiunKAQtLLLqJ83s38qN3HABxGIC8GsIOD0/s1600/Find+us+twitter.jpg" /></a><span id="goog_1427852018"></span><span id="goog_1427852019"></span><a href="https://www.blogger.com/"></a></div></td> </tr></tbody></table><div style="text-align: center;"></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /><b>Opposed to Capital Punishment? Help us keep this blog up and running! <a href="https://www.paypal.com/cgi-bin/webscr?cmd=_s-xclick&hosted_button_id=JBVXEBZLP3WKW" target="_blank">DONATE!</a></b></div><form action="https://www.paypal.com/cgi-bin/webscr" method="post" target="_blank"><div style="text-align: center;"><img alt="" border="0" height="1" src="https://www.paypalobjects.com/fr_FR/i/scr/pixel.gif" width="1" /></div></form><div style="text-align: center;"></div><div style="text-align: center;"></div><div style="text-align: center;"></div>

Colorado: New DA McCann says Denver is done with the death penalty

DA Beth McCann, Denver, Colorado Denver is done with the death penalty. It dies as District Attorney Mitch Morrissey leaves office on Tuesda...

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Nevada Lawmakers Want To End Death Penalty

<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjGBPajVJCcTSDayB5hfyxgi8Jd1A_Vp00lSyvQUVxRPT9I3go4DUDLZHBVkKD1qaxxwCpM6hvmr1a3eI5B4qiYLMRKQqu0wBrGLxns3DlW9lH-f3uZgd2RU9CPx5KQPwIUFS9cGhaJu9k/s1600/dollars.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="256" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjGBPajVJCcTSDayB5hfyxgi8Jd1A_Vp00lSyvQUVxRPT9I3go4DUDLZHBVkKD1qaxxwCpM6hvmr1a3eI5B4qiYLMRKQqu0wBrGLxns3DlW9lH-f3uZgd2RU9CPx5KQPwIUFS9cGhaJu9k/s400/dollars.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><div style="text-align: justify;">It's a hot button issue and it's going to come up during the 2017 Legislature.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">81 men sit on death row in Nevada, and a new chamber was just built at Ely State Prison. But the last execution took place more than a decade ago.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">State Senator Tick Segerblom wants to end the practice all together. He, with Assemblyman James Ohrenschall, is proposing a bill that would make the state's maximum punishment life in prison without parole.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">"I don't think a society has the right to decide who is going to live or die," Segerblom said.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">Besides the moral argument against the death penalty, Segerblom said money is also a factor. He said the state spends millions of dollars on death penalty cases, but no one is executed.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">"It's really just a feel good issue for people to say 'We're going to kill someone because they did something bad,' but at the end of the day, we never do kill the person and we spend millions of dollars trying to get to the point where we could kill them but it never happens."</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">Besides the state and federal appeals that take up both time and money, the drugs to execute people are not available. Segerblom said the state spends millions of dollars to get prisons to the point where they can be executed but it is never going to happen.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">Tod Story with the American Civil Liberties Union of Nevada agreed that the money spent on death penalty cases is far more than putting a prisoner away for life.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">According to the Las Vegas Review-Journal, a state audit of the cost of death row versus life in prison showed it costs sometimes double for someone to be sentenced to death than to be sentenced to life in prison without parole.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">Story said the argument against the death penalty goes beyond just the cost. He believes it is fundamentally about the society we want to be.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">"I think the fundamental question comes down to whether we as a government, we as a people, we as a society, can take away someone's life," he said.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">Supporters of the death penalty have said that it is a deterrent, arguing that people won't do something if they know they could face the death penalty for it.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">For instance, Illinois is 1 of 18 states that has repealed its death penalty and the murder rate in Chicago has skyrocketed lately.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">Both Story and Segerblom dismiss the argument that having a death penalty does anything to stop crime.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">"There is no correlation between whether you have the death penalty, you don't have the death penalty as far as violent crime," Segerblom.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">"We still have the death penalty here in Nevada and we had if not the highest, but one of the highest, murder rates here in Las Vegas last year," Story said, "We know that it is not a deterrent."</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">Segerblom is purposing the legislation when the Legislature meets in February, but he is not entirely sure it will pass or that the governor will sign it.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">"I had a bill a couple of sessions ago just to ask to study the death penalty and the governor vetoed it," he said.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">Story remains optimistic that Gov. Sandoval will sign it.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">"I think anything is possible," he said, "I think the governor has indicated his willingness to entertain the idea."</div><br />Source: knpr.org, January 6, 2017<br /><br /><div style="text-align: center;">⚑ | Report an error, an omission; suggest a story or a new angle to an existing story; submit a piece; recommend a resource; contact the webmaster, contact us: <a href="mailto:deathpenaltynews@gmail.com">deathpenaltynews@gmail.com</a>.</div><br /><table border="0" cellpadding="4" cellspacing="4" style="background-color: white; border-collapse: collapse; border: 0px solid rgb(255, 204, 0); color: black; text-align: center; width: 100%;"><tbody><tr> <td><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: right;"><a href="https://www.facebook.com/WebDPN/" target="_blank"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhL4sspwgGptzvuHVklum5TwxKppRN-lIC5TN8RLZFq_B4ZOtBrX1ssXPNKQ6XpSyQFRJRtVQN45HMkpt3VX0JtOW0TovwxZAurG-AV6gh98IAXo7Ip6QlpkZr9WrM3_m943Mwy-gGxBAY/s1600/Find+us+Facebook.jpg" /></a></div></td> <td><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><a href="https://twitter.com/WebDPN" target="_blank"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiULIPEaT_P6oIauxAZd17XRRxljesDLS7iIjdQXT7Xct99uHeohx4IYmiAB6S044gTjMDGSy50sL2vDzOyPZ-3vJj9zwcYQ2rgzJh9v1-QDiunKAQtLLLqJ83s38qN3HABxGIC8GsIOD0/s1600/Find+us+twitter.jpg" /></a><span id="goog_1427852018"></span><span id="goog_1427852019"></span><a href="https://www.blogger.com/"></a></div></td> </tr></tbody></table><div style="text-align: center;"></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /><b>Opposed to Capital Punishment? Help us keep this blog up and running! <a href="https://www.paypal.com/cgi-bin/webscr?cmd=_s-xclick&hosted_button_id=JBVXEBZLP3WKW" target="_blank">DONATE!</a></b></div><form action="https://www.paypal.com/cgi-bin/webscr" method="post" target="_blank"><div style="text-align: center;"><img alt="" border="0" height="1" src="https://www.paypalobjects.com/fr_FR/i/scr/pixel.gif" width="1" /></div></form><div style="text-align: center;"></div><div style="text-align: center;"></div><div style="text-align: center;"></div>

Nevada Lawmakers Want To End Death Penalty

It's a hot button issue and it's going to come up during the 2017 Legislature. 81 men sit on death row in Nevada, and a new chamber ...

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Abolition of the death penalty in Montana

<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjFBx83ETv0V3LBOmIuz86823h6AX-xLxwjtAFjjh8wV-Vf_CReuBIIhYjZec76YGNm7i1IWxd52gyFtKCYmbfiRlB6rwMOOxsFFohr4_1QJ6CM-tCgB-hOaArEi1HU9WUwDYXFnh0hsEY/s1600/welcome+to+Montana.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="Welcome to Montana" border="0" height="265" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjFBx83ETv0V3LBOmIuz86823h6AX-xLxwjtAFjjh8wV-Vf_CReuBIIhYjZec76YGNm7i1IWxd52gyFtKCYmbfiRlB6rwMOOxsFFohr4_1QJ6CM-tCgB-hOaArEi1HU9WUwDYXFnh0hsEY/s400/welcome+to+Montana.jpg" title="Welcome to Montana" width="400" /></a></div><div style="text-align: justify;">Now is the time for a significant act of righteousness – the time to put the admonition “thou shalt not kill” into action.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">We must act soon to permanently abolish the death penalty in Montana.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">Relevant bills to do so will be introduced when the Montana Legislature convenes in January 2017. Our great state would be further distinguished by abolition of this archaic practice. The death penalty is not a large numerical issue in Montana, since, thank God, we have few on “death row.”</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">It is, however, big to the few and to our moral/ethical conscience. The death penalty is on legal “hold” in Montana, as uncertainty about drugs for lethal injection has become and continues to be an issue.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">The moral/ethical position against capital punishment: Abolish the death penalty because it is the right thing to do.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">• “Thou shalt not kill.” We need to put this into action related to violence worldwide. In few instances do we have the power to control killing, but abolition of capital punishment is one such instance.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">• Mistakes are made in some cases. Infrequently, persons, who are later shown to be innocent, have been on death row awaiting execution. Some have, no doubt, been executed and later been proven innocent.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">• Family and loved ones of victims often favor life imprisonment over death and find solace in mercy.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">• The death penalty has not been a deterrent to crime, nor is there evidence that its abolition promotes or facilitates crime.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">• Is the person convicted and sentenced the same person who awaits execution, often many years after sentencing? Or has that person changed? It’s a privilege given humankind to be able to change.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">• Spare the executioner the experience of executing. Imagine such a job.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">Another position: Abolish the death penalty because it’s the responsible thing to do.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">It costs society more to carry out a death penalty sentence than to maintain a life sentence, in terms of monetary costs of appeals, etc. Anti-death penalty legislation proposes life in prison without possibility of parole. It would cost less.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">Lethal injection is not the merciful means of killing envisioned. About 7 percent of such executions are “botched.” The availability of drugs used to kill has been an issue for some time, and recently the pharmaceutical company Pfizer refused to provide its drugs for lethal injection. This makes a statement.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">Not unexpectedly, there are pros and cons about these points, but we have chosen the position that suits our individual moral consciences. See <a href="http://deathpenalty.procon.org/" target="_blank">deathpenalty.procon.org</a> for a ten-point argument.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">Whatever your personal reasons, please support efforts to abolish capital punishment in Montana by writing to representatives of your district, simply stating your support for bills abolishing capital punishment.</div><br />Source: <a href="http://ravallirepublic.com/news/opinion/viewpoint/article_224d054c-d3c4-11e6-9670-3704ae1d69bd.html" target="_blank">Ravalli Republic</a>, Guest Column, Mary Darby and Blaise Favara, January 6, 2017<br /><br /><div style="text-align: center;">⚑ | Report an error, an omission; suggest a story or a new angle to an existing story; submit a piece; recommend a resource; contact the webmaster, contact us: <a href="mailto:deathpenaltynews@gmail.com">deathpenaltynews@gmail.com</a>.</div><br /><table border="0" cellpadding="4" cellspacing="4" style="background-color: white; border-collapse: collapse; border: 0px solid rgb(255, 204, 0); color: black; text-align: center; width: 100%;"><tbody><tr> <td><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: right;"><a href="https://www.facebook.com/WebDPN/" target="_blank"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhL4sspwgGptzvuHVklum5TwxKppRN-lIC5TN8RLZFq_B4ZOtBrX1ssXPNKQ6XpSyQFRJRtVQN45HMkpt3VX0JtOW0TovwxZAurG-AV6gh98IAXo7Ip6QlpkZr9WrM3_m943Mwy-gGxBAY/s1600/Find+us+Facebook.jpg" /></a></div></td> <td><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><a href="https://twitter.com/WebDPN" target="_blank"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiULIPEaT_P6oIauxAZd17XRRxljesDLS7iIjdQXT7Xct99uHeohx4IYmiAB6S044gTjMDGSy50sL2vDzOyPZ-3vJj9zwcYQ2rgzJh9v1-QDiunKAQtLLLqJ83s38qN3HABxGIC8GsIOD0/s1600/Find+us+twitter.jpg" /></a><span id="goog_1427852018"></span><span id="goog_1427852019"></span><a href="https://www.blogger.com/"></a></div></td> </tr></tbody></table><div style="text-align: center;"></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /><b>Opposed to Capital Punishment? 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Abolition of the death penalty in Montana

Now is the time for a significant act of righteousness – the time to put the admonition “thou shalt not kill” into action. We must act soon ...

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Death Penalty Movie Week to be held at Tokyo theater

<div style="text-align: justify;"><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgjy8cBaDopv6QH5NFRtjD_Yzv3QA6q9Obivh6jEnbFTmUvsmSr67CDc9PrTf552UiFP28151oUp7xtrR00-wZqSFDrgSSplH7_OXthyphenhyphenD0GZ0K9pyLY1g6o8N64ZYjYW5_dTn3Kpg4kHRI/s1600/Former+death-row+inmate+Iwao+Hakamada+and+his+sister.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="Iwao Hakamada with his sister shortly after his release" border="0" height="276" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgjy8cBaDopv6QH5NFRtjD_Yzv3QA6q9Obivh6jEnbFTmUvsmSr67CDc9PrTf552UiFP28151oUp7xtrR00-wZqSFDrgSSplH7_OXthyphenhyphenD0GZ0K9pyLY1g6o8N64ZYjYW5_dTn3Kpg4kHRI/s400/Former+death-row+inmate+Iwao+Hakamada+and+his+sister.jpg" title="Iwao Hakamada with his sister shortly after his release" width="400" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Iwao Hakamada with his sister shortly after his release in March 2014</td></tr></tbody></table>TOKYO (Kyodo) -- The annual Death Penalty Movie Week will be held at a Tokyo theater in February, with eight films from home and abroad providing viewers with an opportunity to think about the "right to life."</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">The event will take place as pro- and anti-death penalty groups have been facing off at symposiums and on other occasions since the Japan Federation of Bar Associations declared in October it would work for the abolition of capital punishment by 2020.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">The eight films to be screened include 2005 German movie "<a href="http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0426578/" target="_blank">Sophie Scholl -- The Final Days</a>," which depicts the anti-Nazi struggle of a student who was executed, and "Freedom Moon," produced in Japan in 2016, that recounts the life of death row inmate Iwao Hakamada.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">Hakamada, convicted of a 1966 quadruple murder, was released in 2014 after a court decided to reopen the case.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">The film shows how his mental state has deteriorated due to decades-long solitary confinement and the endless fear of execution.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">South Korean popular movie "<a href="http://www.imdb.com/title/tt2659414/" target="_blank">Miracle in Cell No. 7</a>," produced in 2013, will also be screened during the sixth event.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">"Murder victims are deprived of their lives unjustifiably, but offenders are also robbed of their 'right to live' under capital punishment," said Masakuni Ota, one of the event organizers. "People seem to accept such circumstances without question, at a time when exclusion and intolerance are prevalent around the world."</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">During the event from Feb. 18 to 24 at the Eurospace movie theater in Tokyo's Shibuya district, four movies will be shown each day, accompanied by sessions with guest speakers.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">The scheduled speakers include actress Kirin Kiki, who played the mother of a death row inmate in a movie based on a true story, and pop singer Tsuyoshi Ujiki, whose father was convicted of war crimes after World War II.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">"We welcome both those seeking abolition of the death penalty and those who support or accept capital punishment" so the issue is discussed from various viewpoints, Ota said.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">The previous five Death Penalty Movie Week events attracted a total of around 6,000 viewers.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">In the four years since Prime Minister Shinzo Abe returned to power, 17 inmates have been hanged, with a government survey showing over 80 percent of people in Japan support the death penalty.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">On the other hand, Tokyo was urged by the U.N. Human Rights Committee in 2014 to "give due consideration to the abolition of the death penalty."</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">Currently, more than two-thirds of nations have abolished the death penalty by law or in practice.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">For further information on the screenings, call Eurospace at 03-3461-0211 or check its website at <a href="http://www.eurospace.co.jp/" target="_blank">http://www.eurospace.co.jp/</a></div><br />Source: Mainichi, January 3, 2017<br /><br /><br /><h2>Hakamada: Tapes point to police duress in miscarriage of justice</h2><br /><table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjr8vj-u4mA02VRwROPa4sr8grOzhtYYHKjaBJd4YSJsFC8IhcTKrEgvqcY8Yt8LyzUy96Ci-Ht9mqZvJjLB_KV8pNigT2V_nN3t_ABNgXLifi_bu_WhtyY4a9-jj-vNxxFPCmPdD9bpnk/s1600/Iwao+Hakamada.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="Iwao Hakamada (left) spent more than three decades on death row." border="0" height="287" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjr8vj-u4mA02VRwROPa4sr8grOzhtYYHKjaBJd4YSJsFC8IhcTKrEgvqcY8Yt8LyzUy96Ci-Ht9mqZvJjLB_KV8pNigT2V_nN3t_ABNgXLifi_bu_WhtyY4a9-jj-vNxxFPCmPdD9bpnk/s400/Iwao+Hakamada.jpg" title="Iwao Hakamada (left) spent more than three decades on death row." width="400" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Iwao Hakamada (left) spent more than three decades on death row.</td></tr></tbody></table><div style="text-align: justify;">Police records of interrogations that led to Iwao Hakamada being wrongfully convicted of multiple slayings show that the one-time death row inmate was not allowed to use the restroom as officers relentlessly tried to force him to confess.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">Just two days later, Hakamada, now 80, confessed to killing a family of four and setting fire to their home in Shizuoka Prefecture in 1966.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">A former professional boxer, Hakamada spent more than three decades on death row. He was released in March 2014 after the Shizuoka District Court ordered a retrial, having concluded that his conviction was likely based on faked evidence.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">Defense lawyers pressing for an early retrial presented documents to the Tokyo High Court on Dec. 21, highlighting apparent brazen violations of procedures during Hakamada's interrogation.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">The high court is weighing whether to hear Hakamada’s case. Prosecutors have appealed the district court decision.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">Hakamada, who is from Hamamatsu in the prefecture, had his death penalty finalized in 1980.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">Defense lawyers said 24 tape recordings of Hakamada being questioned were discovered at the police storage room in October 2014.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">The tapes recorded interrogations between his arrest on Aug. 18, 1966, and late September that year after he was indicted. The lawyers played the tapes to get a better grasp of how the interrogation was carried out.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">They said a session on Sept. 4 was particularly problematic as it appeared Hakamada was deprived of the use of restroom facilities, as he later testified in court.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">On the tape, an investigator trying to get him to confess, says, “It must be the case.”</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">After more exchanges with the investigator, Hakamada says, “I would like to use the bathroom.”</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">The investigator responds, “Why don’t you reply (to my question) before doing so?”</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">Lawyers said the recording makes clear that Hakamada had to urinate inside the interrogation room.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">“Get a lavatory pan. Let him urinate here,” the interrogator is heard saying.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">During his trial at the Shizuoka District Court in December 1967, Hakamada testified that he was forced to urinate in the interrogation room.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">“I was not permitted to go to restroom on many occasions,” he said. “I was not permitted to do it properly.”</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">The interrogator in question denied Hakamada’s account when he appeared in court as a witness in 1968.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">“There never was such a thing,” he said.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">The defense team also said that among the tapes were recordings of conversations between Hakamada and his lawyers, suggesting that the police eavesdropped on them.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">The lawyers argued that the investigators violated various laws in the course of establishing the case against Hakamada and during his trial. This, they said, was further ammunition for an early retrial.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">Forcing a suspect to urinate in the interrogation room constituted assault and cruelty by special pubic officers, and eavesdropping and recording interviews between defense lawyers and a client constituted an act of malpractice, they noted.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">They also noted that lying in court constitutes perjury.</div><br />Source: <a href="http://www.asahi.com/ajw/articles/AJ201612220063.html" target="_blank">The Asahi Shimbun</a>, December 22, 2016<br /><br /><div style="text-align: center;">⚑ | Report an error, an omission; suggest a story or a new angle to an existing story; submit a piece; recommend a resource; contact the webmaster, contact us: <a href="mailto:deathpenaltynews@gmail.com">deathpenaltynews@gmail.com</a>.</div><br /><table border="0" cellpadding="4" cellspacing="4" style="background-color: white; border-collapse: collapse; border: 0px solid rgb(255, 204, 0); color: black; text-align: center; width: 100%;"><tbody><tr> <td><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: right;"><a href="https://www.facebook.com/WebDPN/" target="_blank"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhL4sspwgGptzvuHVklum5TwxKppRN-lIC5TN8RLZFq_B4ZOtBrX1ssXPNKQ6XpSyQFRJRtVQN45HMkpt3VX0JtOW0TovwxZAurG-AV6gh98IAXo7Ip6QlpkZr9WrM3_m943Mwy-gGxBAY/s1600/Find+us+Facebook.jpg" /></a></div></td> <td><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><a href="https://twitter.com/WebDPN" target="_blank"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiULIPEaT_P6oIauxAZd17XRRxljesDLS7iIjdQXT7Xct99uHeohx4IYmiAB6S044gTjMDGSy50sL2vDzOyPZ-3vJj9zwcYQ2rgzJh9v1-QDiunKAQtLLLqJ83s38qN3HABxGIC8GsIOD0/s1600/Find+us+twitter.jpg" /></a><span id="goog_1427852018"></span><span id="goog_1427852019"></span><a href="https://www.blogger.com/"></a></div></td> </tr></tbody></table><div style="text-align: center;"></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /><b>Opposed to Capital Punishment? 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Death Penalty Movie Week to be held at Tokyo theater

Iwao Hakamada with his sister shortly after his release in March 2014 TOKYO (Kyodo) -- The annual Death Penalty Movie Week will be held at a...

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Death penalty: Soon to be a relic

<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEihgXfUKHkvxWVxqVvd4sx5Jtyl5R13XcCiu697fSOWTzPAXobPBZNiSDykpyOUCBChh-MYKAEZElNsWJxOGDlrXMHPcV9mq8-Q9t3-c3rDW-gTCWS2FH9ZRB7KsE6UwQNdOYqplyHjC4U/s1600/Texas+Prison+Museum.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" height="273" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEihgXfUKHkvxWVxqVvd4sx5Jtyl5R13XcCiu697fSOWTzPAXobPBZNiSDykpyOUCBChh-MYKAEZElNsWJxOGDlrXMHPcV9mq8-Q9t3-c3rDW-gTCWS2FH9ZRB7KsE6UwQNdOYqplyHjC4U/s400/Texas+Prison+Museum.jpg" width="400" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">"Ol' Sparky, the Lone Star State's official instrument of death for 40 years,<br />resides these days in the Texas Prison Museum in Huntsville."</td></tr></tbody></table><div style="text-align: justify;"><b>Capital punishment is a morally and fiscally unsupportable program.</b></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">Ol' Sparky, the Lone Star State's official instrument of death for 40 years, resides these days in the Texas Prison Museum in Huntsville. It's the museum's most popular exhibit, although the time is coming, we predict, when it will have competition. In the not-too-distant future, the needles, the drugs and the officious execution protocol that comprise the capital-punishment regimen in Texas also will be quaint relics on display. Museum visitors will marvel that a civilized society sustained such barbarism long after most Western democracies abjured the practice. The killing tools already are relics in most states, even where capital punishment remains on the books.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">What's surprising is that the death penalty's demise is coming sooner than most Americans expected, even in Texas, the nation's most enthusiastic practitioner of state-sponsored killing. The U.S. Supreme Court may never get around to ruling that capital punishment is "cruel and unusual," but the practice will wither away, nevertheless. In fact, the process already has begun, even in the county that leads the nation in executions, Harris County. The recent election of Kim Ogg as Harris County district attorney means that voters have chosen a prosecutor more open to reform and reductions in capital prosecutions than her predecessor.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">According to a year-end report from the Death Penalty Information Center, death sentences, executions and public support for the death penalty continued their precipitous decline nationwide. Juries around the country imposed 30 death sentences this year, compared to 315 in 1996. This year's number represents the fewest in the modern era of capital punishment.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">Twenty people were executed in 2016, the lowest number since 1991, and those executions were geographically isolated. Two states, Georgia and Texas, accounted for 80 percent of all executions. Thirty-two states still allow capital punishment for the most heinous crimes, but most rarely, if ever, use it. Since the start of 2014, five states - Texas, Georgia, Missouri, Florida and Oklahoma - have carried out all but two of the nation's executions.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">Public support for the death penalty also continues to decline. According to a Pew Research Survey, support fell below 50 percent for the first time in more than four decades. Support falls even further when respondents are given alternatives, including life without parole.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">Capital punishment is unlikely to be abolished permanently anytime soon. For now, only one member of the Supreme Court, Justice Stephen Breyer, questions whether it violates the Eighth Amendment. That number is unlikely to change when President-elect Donald Trump, a death-penalty supporter, gets to make his appointments to the court. His attorney-general nominee, Alabama Sen. Jeff Sessions, also is an ardent death-penalty supporter.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">What will happen, though, is that practicality will trump principle. Racism, randomness, decades-long delays and sheer expense will end capital punishment in this country - without officially ending capital punishment. Pragmatism prevails even in Texas. Time magazine a couple of years ago quoted Liberty County prosecutor Stephen Taylor, who acknowledged that cost is a factor in deciding on death. "You have to be very responsible in selecting where you want to spend your money," he said.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">Time also quoted Atlanta attorney David J. Burge, a leader of the Georgia Republican Party. "Capital punishment runs counter to core conservative principles of life, fiscal responsibility and limited government," he said. "The reality is that capital punishment is nothing more than an expensive, wasteful and risky government program."</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">We agree. Whether it's principle or pragmatism that kills capital punishment, the end can't come too soon.</div><br />Source: <a href="http://www.houstonchronicle.com/opinion/editorials/article/Death-penalty-Soon-to-be-a-relic-10827636.php?t=d015728e5b438d9cbb&cmpid=email-premium" target="_blank">Houston Chronicle</a>, December 30, 2016<br /><br /><div style="text-align: center;">⚑ | Report an error, an omission; suggest a story or a new angle to an existing story; submit a piece; recommend a resource; contact the webmaster, contact us: <a href="mailto:deathpenaltynews@gmail.com">deathpenaltynews@gmail.com</a>.</div><br /><table border="0" cellpadding="4" cellspacing="4" style="background-color: white; border-collapse: collapse; border: 0px solid rgb(255, 204, 0); color: black; text-align: center; width: 100%;"><tbody><tr> <td><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: right;"><a href="https://www.facebook.com/WebDPN/" target="_blank"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhL4sspwgGptzvuHVklum5TwxKppRN-lIC5TN8RLZFq_B4ZOtBrX1ssXPNKQ6XpSyQFRJRtVQN45HMkpt3VX0JtOW0TovwxZAurG-AV6gh98IAXo7Ip6QlpkZr9WrM3_m943Mwy-gGxBAY/s1600/Find+us+Facebook.jpg" /></a></div></td> <td><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><a href="https://twitter.com/WebDPN" target="_blank"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiULIPEaT_P6oIauxAZd17XRRxljesDLS7iIjdQXT7Xct99uHeohx4IYmiAB6S044gTjMDGSy50sL2vDzOyPZ-3vJj9zwcYQ2rgzJh9v1-QDiunKAQtLLLqJ83s38qN3HABxGIC8GsIOD0/s1600/Find+us+twitter.jpg" /></a><span id="goog_1427852018"></span><span id="goog_1427852019"></span><a href="https://www.blogger.com/"></a></div></td> </tr></tbody></table><div style="text-align: center;"></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /><b>Opposed to Capital Punishment? 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Death penalty: Soon to be a relic

"Ol' Sparky, the Lone Star State's official instrument of death for 40 years, resides these days in the Texas Prison Museum in ...

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Philippines: A moral, ethical issue for our people

<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjQ-sjP1LRymXP7DA6y7GXHOiwI1gpD_jv2Z7bXXCk94fjdYp07j6dzT4HGlc76g4raj7lwR_fkhFsNrKuHxvm4bMXbKB9xH8YmrTNeFaZWkp_Cj519ziB93gSYWswsM1Og90T4K1J-le8/s1600/Philippines+police+officers.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="266" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjQ-sjP1LRymXP7DA6y7GXHOiwI1gpD_jv2Z7bXXCk94fjdYp07j6dzT4HGlc76g4raj7lwR_fkhFsNrKuHxvm4bMXbKB9xH8YmrTNeFaZWkp_Cj519ziB93gSYWswsM1Og90T4K1J-le8/s400/Philippines+police+officers.jpg" width="400" /></a></div><div style="text-align: justify;">In the ongoing discussion on the death penalty, which President Duterte wants to return so as to strengthen the rule of law, it is useful to note that the world - and the Philippines with it - has long debated this issue in the United Nations.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">In 1966, the UN General Assembly, of which the Philippines is a founding member, adopted the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR) which, together with the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and the International Covenant on Economic, Social, and Cultural Rights, make up what is known as the International Bill of Human Rights. The Philippines signed the ICCPR on December 19, 1966, and ratified it on October 23, 1986.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">In 1989, the General Assembly adopted the Second Protocol on Civil and Political Rights, calling on all states to abolish the death penalty. The Protocol was a treaty signed by 83 states, including the Philippines. The Philippines signed the Protocol on September 20, 2006, and ratified it on September 20, 2007.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">In between these 2 international agreements, the Philippines became the 1st Asian country to abolish the death penalty when the nation ratified the Constitution in 1987, but Congress could reimpose it should the need arise. In 1993, such a law was passed to address the rising criminality in the country. 7 convicts were executed in 1999, followed by a moratorium in observance of the Catholic Church's "Jubilee Year." In 2003, 2 men were about to be executed when new evidence came up that exonerated the 2.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">All the while, the Commission on Human Rights vehemently opposed efforts to reimpose the death penalty. It said it was not convinced that the death penalty is the answer to rising criminality. The proper response, it said, lies in effective law enforcement, quick and impartial delivery of justice, and a responsive penal system. "To mete out to criminals the very final and irrevocable and inhuman verdict of death is tantamount to punishing them for the failure of the system," it declared.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">Today we are again in the middle of debate on the death penalty. Right after he won the presidential election last May, President Duterte said he wanted Congress to restore the death penalty - by hanging - for convicts involved in illegal drugs, gun-for-hire syndicates, and for those who commit "heinous crimes" like rapists and robbers who kill their victims.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">We are also in the middle of a nationwide anti-drug campaign in which thousands have already been killed, many allegedly for resisting arrest - moving some to ask if there is still need for a death penalty to discourage criminals.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">The critical debate on this issue will soon be taking place in the halls of Congress. Along with all the legal arguments and all the Philippines' commitments to the international community, the Church has also weighed in against the ancient system of "a tooth for a tooth, a life for a life." More than a legal issue, it will be a moral and ethical one which will determine what we really are as a people.</div><br />Source: tempo.com.ph, Editorial, December 30, 2016<br /><br /><div style="text-align: center;">⚑ | Report an error, an omission; suggest a story or a new angle to an existing story; submit a piece; recommend a resource; contact the webmaster, contact us: <a href="mailto:deathpenaltynews@gmail.com">deathpenaltynews@gmail.com</a>.</div><br /><table border="0" cellpadding="4" cellspacing="4" style="background-color: white; border-collapse: collapse; border: 0px solid rgb(255, 204, 0); color: black; text-align: center; width: 100%;"><tbody><tr> <td><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: right;"><a href="https://www.facebook.com/WebDPN/" target="_blank"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhL4sspwgGptzvuHVklum5TwxKppRN-lIC5TN8RLZFq_B4ZOtBrX1ssXPNKQ6XpSyQFRJRtVQN45HMkpt3VX0JtOW0TovwxZAurG-AV6gh98IAXo7Ip6QlpkZr9WrM3_m943Mwy-gGxBAY/s1600/Find+us+Facebook.jpg" /></a></div></td> <td><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><a href="https://twitter.com/WebDPN" target="_blank"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiULIPEaT_P6oIauxAZd17XRRxljesDLS7iIjdQXT7Xct99uHeohx4IYmiAB6S044gTjMDGSy50sL2vDzOyPZ-3vJj9zwcYQ2rgzJh9v1-QDiunKAQtLLLqJ83s38qN3HABxGIC8GsIOD0/s1600/Find+us+twitter.jpg" /></a><span id="goog_1427852018"></span><span id="goog_1427852019"></span><a href="https://www.blogger.com/"></a></div></td> </tr></tbody></table><div style="text-align: center;"></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /><b>Opposed to Capital Punishment? 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Philippines: A moral, ethical issue for our people

In the ongoing discussion on the death penalty, which President Duterte wants to return so as to strengthen the rule of law, it is useful to...

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As use of death penalty declines, the case for its repeal grows stronger

<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh84h15LtrghbRdHvF0Y1mpxUBQzkT__lpIR2crQ4KLTpf4ls030C79qejzPyFm654y7ea0Tw_KcDHAIFbUQvQc8hbAtrYL4sK02nRchVmUwu-GfrqqNGF1GK5E3jeC9AV77Gp-R-yZEdM/s1600/Huntsville+Unit+Texas.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="The Walls Unit, Huntsville, Texas" border="0" height="277" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh84h15LtrghbRdHvF0Y1mpxUBQzkT__lpIR2crQ4KLTpf4ls030C79qejzPyFm654y7ea0Tw_KcDHAIFbUQvQc8hbAtrYL4sK02nRchVmUwu-GfrqqNGF1GK5E3jeC9AV77Gp-R-yZEdM/s400/Huntsville+Unit+Texas.jpg" title="The Walls Unit, Huntsville, Texas" width="400" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">The Walls Unit, Huntsville, Texas</td></tr></tbody></table><div style="text-align: justify;">The death penalty is rare, even in Texas, where just seven executions were carried out this year. In some places, it's almost nonexistent. In Dallas and Harris counties, not a single death sentence was handed down this year.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">This is good news.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">Executions are costly. Their value in deterring would-be murderers and others from committing their crimes is small. And they are disproportionately carried out against persons of color. Of the nine men sentenced to death in Dallas or Tarrant counties since 2012, all are African-American. In Harris County, 15 of the 18 more recent death sentences have been handed down against black defendants, the other three against Latinos.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">Worst of all, an execution is the outcome of an error-prone system, and one that simply can't be undone once carried out.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">That insight was at the heart of the ruling 45 years ago next year in which the U.S. Supreme Court ruled 5-4 that the death penalty violated the Constitution.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">"The penalty of death differs from all other forms of criminal punishment, not in degree but in kind," Justice Potter Stewart wrote in one of five concurring opinions in Furman vs. Georgia. "It is unique in its total irrevocability. It is unique in its rejection of rehabilitation of the convict as a basic purpose of criminal justice."</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">Four years later, the court ruled that with proper attention to racial fairness and other factors, the executions could resume. But ever since, Texas has had a starring role in demonstrating just how naive that second decision was.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">It's distressing to note that support for the death penalty remains strong in many states, including Texas (<a href="http://www.pewresearch.org/fact-tank/2016/09/29/support-for-death-penalty-lowest-in-more-than-four-decades/" target="_blank">though that support is at its lowest level in decades</a>). There is hope in the<a href="http://www.dallasnews.com/opinion/editorials/2015/12/30/editorial-could-texas-be-losing-its-appetite-for-the-death-penalty" target="_blank"> fact that actual use of the death penalty is fading fast. </a></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">In the past five years, 26 inmates on Texas' death row have been removed. Eighteen saw their sentences reduced. Seven died in custody. One was exonerated and released.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">Even Texas' famously tough-on-crime Court of Criminal Appeals has grown far more careful when it comes to executions. In the past two years, the court has issued a total of 15 stays of execution. In the three years before that, it averaged just one per year.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">Nationwide, the use of the death penalty is also at a low.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">It's encouraging, too, to see <a href="http://www.dallasnews.com/opinion/editorials/2016/09/02/can-argue-whether-death-penalty-cruel-legal-certainly-unusual-fair" target="_blank">Justice Stephen Breyer continue his sometimes-lonely crusade </a>to convince the rest of the court to take up again, as they did in 1972 and 1976, the overall question of whether the Bill of Rights prohibits executions.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">The penalty is so rare and so random in its application, it should no longer be tolerated: "Individuals who are executed are not the 'worst of the worst,'" Breyer wrote Dec. 12, "but, rather, are individuals chosen at random, on the basis, perhaps of geography, perhaps of the views of individual prosecutors, or still worse on the basis of race."</div><br />Source: <a href="http://www.dallasnews.com/opinion/editorials/2016/12/27/use-death-penalty-declines-case-repeal-grows-stronger" target="_blank">Dallas News</a>, Editorial, December 27, 2016<br /><div style="text-align: center;">⚑ | Report an error, an omission; suggest a story or a new angle to an existing story; submit a piece; recommend a resource; contact the webmaster, contact us: <a href="mailto:deathpenaltynews@gmail.com">deathpenaltynews@gmail.com</a>.</div><br /><table border="0" cellpadding="4" cellspacing="4" style="background-color: white; border-collapse: collapse; border: 0px solid rgb(255, 204, 0); color: black; text-align: center; width: 100%;"><tbody><tr> <td><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: right;"><a href="https://www.facebook.com/WebDPN/" target="_blank"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhL4sspwgGptzvuHVklum5TwxKppRN-lIC5TN8RLZFq_B4ZOtBrX1ssXPNKQ6XpSyQFRJRtVQN45HMkpt3VX0JtOW0TovwxZAurG-AV6gh98IAXo7Ip6QlpkZr9WrM3_m943Mwy-gGxBAY/s1600/Find+us+Facebook.jpg" /></a></div></td> <td><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><a href="https://twitter.com/WebDPN" target="_blank"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiULIPEaT_P6oIauxAZd17XRRxljesDLS7iIjdQXT7Xct99uHeohx4IYmiAB6S044gTjMDGSy50sL2vDzOyPZ-3vJj9zwcYQ2rgzJh9v1-QDiunKAQtLLLqJ83s38qN3HABxGIC8GsIOD0/s1600/Find+us+twitter.jpg" /></a><span id="goog_1427852018"></span><span id="goog_1427852019"></span><a href="https://www.blogger.com/"></a></div></td> </tr></tbody></table><div style="text-align: center;"></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /><b>Opposed to Capital Punishment? 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As use of death penalty declines, the case for its repeal grows stronger

The Walls Unit, Huntsville, Texas The death penalty is rare, even in Texas, where just seven executions were carried out this year. In some ...

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As death penalty fades in North Carolina, it’s time to end it

<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgsSoUadKurrfTqvNfANeh1tYx5VJ9NSSA-KYFMcw8IE7I-v5a-NFqQy9aI-j3iwvHjViSd3Wgh3tGhlWNVJPnAoRKX3gcSgvxFDDHa1tqVwxjxgENDW1EU9djEABDhU0uxFzYBdOELtUs/s1600/North+Carolina+Death+Chamber.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="North Carolina's death chamber" border="0" height="213" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgsSoUadKurrfTqvNfANeh1tYx5VJ9NSSA-KYFMcw8IE7I-v5a-NFqQy9aI-j3iwvHjViSd3Wgh3tGhlWNVJPnAoRKX3gcSgvxFDDHa1tqVwxjxgENDW1EU9djEABDhU0uxFzYBdOELtUs/s400/North+Carolina+Death+Chamber.jpg" title="North Carolina's death chamber" width="400" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">North Carolina's death chamber</td></tr></tbody></table><div style="text-align: justify;">The Center for Death Penalty Litigation is staffed and supported by righteous people but in an end-of-year piece this week it needed no emotion to make the case against the death penalty in North Carolina. And, though it would be quite enough to end the penalty based on wrongful convictions that might have turned into death sentences, there are other, sensible reasons that ought to appeal to people across party lines and philosophical lines as well.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">The center notes that the death penalty is fading from favor both across the nation and in North Carolina, which used to issue a lot of death sentences. In this year, North Carolina marked 10 years without an execution, and only five people had been tried for capital crimes statewide. Nationally, death sentences were “at their lowest point in the modern era of the death penalty,” the center wrote, with just 20 executions in the United States. The respected Pew Research Center put out a poll this fall showing that a majority of Americans are opposed to the death penalty.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">Gretchen Engel, executive director of the center, brought the issue close to home: “Look at Wake County, which used to send people to death row almost every year, but hasn’t had a new death sentence in almost a decade. This year, in the sixth case in a row, a Wake County jury chose a sentence of life without parole over the death penalty. Society’s beliefs have shifted, and in the overwhelming majority of cases, people no longer think it’s appropriate.”</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">Just 20 years ago, 20 to 30 people a year were sent to death row across North Carolina, but in the past five years, the average is fewer than two people a year.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">Even so, the state has the sixth largest death row in the country with 150 inmates awaiting execution, but the vast majority of those — 75 percent — were given the penalty at least 15 years ago.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">The expense of maintaining death row is in hundreds of thousands of dollars a year, and the expense to the public of pursuing the death penalty has of course been in the millions over decades. And the inmates on death row grow older, creating what Engel calls “a costly warehouse for the elderly.”</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">It is simply not worth the risk — of executing the wrong person — and certainly not the expense to maintain the death penalty in this state. This drains the taxpayers’ purse and patience and emotions. Certainly all can feel sympathy for the families of murder victims, who understandably want revenge for often-horrendous crimes against their loved ones. But the state has to understand it is in the business of justice, not revenge. And taking away a murderer’s life for all time by incarcerating him or her is justice.</div><br />Source: <a href="http://www.newsobserver.com/opinion/editorials/article122844834.html" target="_blank">newsobserver.com</a>, Opinion, Editorials, December 26, 2016<br /><br /><div style="text-align: center;">⚑ | Report an error, an omission; suggest a story or a new angle to an existing story; submit a piece; recommend a resource; contact the webmaster, contact us: <a href="mailto:deathpenaltynews@gmail.com">deathpenaltynews@gmail.com</a>.</div><br /><table border="0" cellpadding="4" cellspacing="4" style="background-color: white; border-collapse: collapse; border: 0px solid rgb(255, 204, 0); color: black; text-align: center; width: 100%;"><tbody><tr> <td><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: right;"><a href="https://www.facebook.com/WebDPN/" target="_blank"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhL4sspwgGptzvuHVklum5TwxKppRN-lIC5TN8RLZFq_B4ZOtBrX1ssXPNKQ6XpSyQFRJRtVQN45HMkpt3VX0JtOW0TovwxZAurG-AV6gh98IAXo7Ip6QlpkZr9WrM3_m943Mwy-gGxBAY/s1600/Find+us+Facebook.jpg" /></a></div></td> <td><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><a href="https://twitter.com/WebDPN" target="_blank"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiULIPEaT_P6oIauxAZd17XRRxljesDLS7iIjdQXT7Xct99uHeohx4IYmiAB6S044gTjMDGSy50sL2vDzOyPZ-3vJj9zwcYQ2rgzJh9v1-QDiunKAQtLLLqJ83s38qN3HABxGIC8GsIOD0/s1600/Find+us+twitter.jpg" /></a><span id="goog_1427852018"></span><span id="goog_1427852019"></span><a href="https://www.blogger.com/"></a></div></td> </tr></tbody></table><div style="text-align: center;"></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /><b>Opposed to Capital Punishment? 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As death penalty fades in North Carolina, it’s time to end it

North Carolina's death chamber The Center for Death Penalty Litigation is staffed and supported by righteous people but in an end-of-yea...

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U.S.: The Continuing Collapse of the Death Penalty

<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgXw7H4WU4CaLY3ClKnIGDkZPeAejcd3woNC1kiZBwV8I9xau5i5dC_8VvHiaRXF9nlNOhSgxRd-Dfzn-fB8jcpGBubLKbq3brF_hDD18XJ6wK95vkoI8ZoDxHYzp4lbJchlMWDPiFPE94/s1600/Oklahoma+death+chamber.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="Oklahoma's death chamber" border="0" height="240" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgXw7H4WU4CaLY3ClKnIGDkZPeAejcd3woNC1kiZBwV8I9xau5i5dC_8VvHiaRXF9nlNOhSgxRd-Dfzn-fB8jcpGBubLKbq3brF_hDD18XJ6wK95vkoI8ZoDxHYzp4lbJchlMWDPiFPE94/s400/Oklahoma+death+chamber.jpg" title="Oklahoma's death chamber" width="400" /></a></div><div style="text-align: justify;">Piece by piece, the death penalty continues to fall apart. Last week, the Florida Supreme Court <a href="http://www.orlandosentinel.com/news/breaking-news/os-florida-death-penalty-asay-20161222-story.html" target="_blank">invalidated</a> between 150 and 200 death sentences — nearly half of all those in the state — because they were imposed under a law the United States Supreme Court <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2016/01/13/opinion/floridas-death-machine-loses-again.html" target="_blank">struck down as unconstitutional</a> in January. </div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">The law, which required judges and not juries to make the factual findings necessary to sentence someone to die, violated the Sixth Amendment’s guarantee of a jury trial. “A jury’s mere recommendation is not enough,” Justice Sonia Sotomayor wrote for an 8-to-1 majority.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">The Florida <a href="http://www.floridasupremecourt.org/decisions/2016/sc14-436.pdf" target="_blank">decision</a> is the most recent sign, in a year full of them, that the morally abhorrent practice of capital punishment is <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2016/12/21/us/death-penalty-capital-punishment.html?_r=0" target="_blank">sliding into the dustbin</a> of American history — where it should have been long ago.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">Juries around the country imposed 30 death sentences in 2016, a 40 percent drop from last year and fewer than at any time since the Supreme Court reinstated capital punishment in 1976, according to a <a href="http://deathpenaltyinfo.org/documents/2016YrEnd.pdf" target="_blank">report</a> by the Death Penalty Information Center, a research group that opposes capital punishment. Twenty people were executed this year, the lowest number in a quarter-century.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">The practice is not only increasingly rare, it is concentrated in an extremely narrow slice of the country. Only five states carried out executions in 2016, the report found, and only five imposed more than one death sentence. California sentenced nine people to die, the most of any state, but no one has been put to death there since 2006.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">Public support for the death penalty keeps dropping, too — <a href="http://www.pewresearch.org/fact-tank/2016/09/29/support-for-death-penalty-lowest-in-more-than-four-decades/" target="_blank">falling below 50 percent</a> for the first time in more than four decades, according to a Pew Research survey. Support falls even further when respondents are given the alternative of a long prison term like life without parole. Though voters in California, Nebraska and Oklahoma last month <a href="https://www.themarshallproject.org/2016/11/09/the-death-penalty-is-alive-and-well?ref=hp-4-121#.GEv5BuAM2" target="_blank">preserved</a> the death penalty, the overall trend is toward growing discomfort with state-sanctioned killing.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">The total abolition of capital punishment, however, will depend on the Supreme Court’s reading of the Eighth Amendment’s ban on <a href="https://constitutioncenter.org/interactive-constitution/amendments/amendment-viii" target="_blank">cruel and unusual punishments</a>. So far, only one current member of the court, Justice Stephen Breyer, a <a href="http://www.politico.com/story/2015/06/supreme-court-justice-stephen-breyer-death-penalty-may-be-unconstitutional-119547" target="_blank">regular critic</a> of the death penalty, has expressed openness to examining this question. This month Justice Breyer <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2016/12/12/us/politics/justice-stephen-breyer-death-penalty-supreme-court.html" target="_blank">took aim</a> at the practice again, in a <a href="https://www.supremecourt.gov/opinions/16pdf/16-5247_q713.pdf" target="_blank">dissent</a> from the court’s decision not to hear an appeal from a death-row inmate in Florida.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">Pointing to the facts of several recent cases that had come before the court, Justice Breyer asked whether the death penalty itself — plagued by arbitrariness, racism, decades-long delays and faulty execution-drug protocols — violates the Eighth Amendment. The people who end up being executed, he wrote, “are not the ‘worst of the worst,’ but, rather, are individuals chosen at random, on the basis, perhaps of geography, perhaps of the views of individual prosecutors, or still worse on the basis of race.”</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">Meanwhile the court is making matters worse with its <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2016/12/12/us/politics/the-lethal-gaps-in-how-the-supreme-court-handles-the-death-penalty.html">erratic </a><a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2016/12/12/us/politics/the-lethal-gaps-in-how-the-supreme-court-handles-the-death-penalty.html" target="_blank">decisions</a> in recent last-minute death-penalty appeals. Who lives and who dies is arbitrary.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">Justice Breyer is asking the right questions. It is up to a majority of his colleagues to listen closely and bring the only just result: the permanent abolition of capital punishment in America.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br /></div><div style="text-align: justify;">Source: <a href="http://www.nytimes.com/2016/12/26/opinion/the-continuing-collapse-of-the-death-penalty.html" target="_blank">The New York Times</a>, The Editorial Board, December 26, 2016</div><br /><div style="text-align: center;">⚑ | Report an error, an omission; suggest a story or a new angle to an existing story; submit a piece; recommend a resource; contact the webmaster, contact us: <a href="mailto:deathpenaltynews@gmail.com">deathpenaltynews@gmail.com</a>.</div><br /><table border="0" cellpadding="4" cellspacing="4" style="background-color: white; border-collapse: collapse; border: 0px solid rgb(255, 204, 0); color: black; text-align: center; width: 100%;"><tbody><tr> <td><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: right;"><a href="https://www.facebook.com/WebDPN/" target="_blank"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhL4sspwgGptzvuHVklum5TwxKppRN-lIC5TN8RLZFq_B4ZOtBrX1ssXPNKQ6XpSyQFRJRtVQN45HMkpt3VX0JtOW0TovwxZAurG-AV6gh98IAXo7Ip6QlpkZr9WrM3_m943Mwy-gGxBAY/s1600/Find+us+Facebook.jpg" /></a></div></td> <td><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: left;"><a href="https://twitter.com/WebDPN" target="_blank"><img border="0" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiULIPEaT_P6oIauxAZd17XRRxljesDLS7iIjdQXT7Xct99uHeohx4IYmiAB6S044gTjMDGSy50sL2vDzOyPZ-3vJj9zwcYQ2rgzJh9v1-QDiunKAQtLLLqJ83s38qN3HABxGIC8GsIOD0/s1600/Find+us+twitter.jpg" /></a><span id="goog_1427852018"></span><span id="goog_1427852019"></span><a href="https://www.blogger.com/"></a></div></td> </tr></tbody></table><div style="text-align: center;"></div><div style="text-align: center;"><br /><b>Opposed to Capital Punishment? 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U.S.: The Continuing Collapse of the Death Penalty

Piece by piece, the death penalty continues to fall apart. Last week, the Florida Supreme Court invalidated between 150 and 200 death sente...

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