85 Pro Death Penalty Quotes by Attorneys from the U.S.A II

“Obviously the death penalty has been with us since the dawn of man. Sometimes it’s called war.”

THE SHOOTING OF RICARDO THOMAS WAS AN ordinary murder. Something similar happens more than once a day in Philadelphia. And as the case wound its way through the various steps of the prosecution, District Attorney Abraham treated it in the usual way -- seeking the death penalty, as she does in all murders like this one. "It was cold-bloodedly going from one person to another, planned for when the victims were the most defenceless," she says.

Where others might see gray, Abraham does not: "When it comes to the death penalty, I am passionate. I truly believe it is manifestly correct." She considers it the appropriate response to horrible crime, and the right thing to do for the families of murder victims.

"I don't care how many millions it costs, given the billions wasted every year in large cities. Please don't tell me about cost when talking about the rights of the victim. It's of no interest to me. It's not even a consideration. Whatever it costs is worth it."

"I've looked at all those sentenced to be executed. No one will shed a tear. Prison is too good for them. They don't deserve to live. I represent the victim and the family. I don't care about killers. All of our cases now are multiple gunshot executions, houses set on fire and six children burned to death. This is Bosnia."

“The defense did the greatest job of conning the public and the press," District Attorney Lynne Abraham said. "I think it was sad after 14 years that they had so little to muster."

Abraham was dismissive of the writers and activists from around the country and the world who had termed Abu-Jamal a political prisoner. "They are hypocrites and hucksters," she said. "They don't know a thing about this case."

Lead defense attorney Leonard Weinglass said he wasn't surprised by Sabo's decision.

"It is a travesty that Reginald Brooks has lived so long on death row after cruelly shooting his three boys to death," Cuyahoga County Prosecutor Bill Mason said in a statement after the Eighth District decision. "Justice demands that Brooks' execution go forward tomorrow."

“My goal was to make Oklahoma County the safest county in the country,” Macy said when he retired in 2001. “We have done that.”

“I don’t take any joy in the execution of a person. But I know when that happens, two things are going to happen: He isn’t going to kill anyone else and … (it) is a deterrent,” he said.

Robert Macy, District Attorney of Oklahoma City, described his concept of the need for retribution in one case: "In 1991, a young mother was rendered helpless and made to watch as her baby was executed. The mother was then mutilated and killed. The killer should not lie in some prison with three meals a day, clean sheets, cable TV, family visits and endless appeals. For justice to prevail, some killers just need to die."

It must be remembered that criminal law does not function in a vacuum, and that it cannot ignore the human beings with whom it has to deal. There seems to be an instinctive feeling in most ordinary men that a person who has done an injury to others should be punished for it… It has, therefore, been pointed out that if the criminal law refuses to recognize retributive punishment then there is a danger, to my mind, is that without a sense of retribution we may lose our sense of wrong. Retribution in punishment is an expression of the community’s disapproval of crime, and if this retribution is not given recognition then the disapproval may also disappear. A community which is too ready to forgive the wrongdoer may end by condoning the crime. [English Law and the Moral Law (London: Stevens & Sons, 1953), pp. 92-93]

Saturday 28 April 2012 - Yet Lieberstein opposes the measure to abolish the death penalty. One reason is that the measure is retroactive, he said. The initiative, if successful, he said, “would reopen the scars of scores on crime victims families across our state without them having a word to say about it with the exception of their personal vote at the ballot box.”

“It is truly cruel and unusual punishment for each of them who have sat through lengthy jury trials, sentencing and appeals only to have their vivid memories re-ignited by this initiative,” Lieberstein said.

Eric Matthew Copple was the last defendant in Napa County who was eligible for the death penalty for killing two women in their West Napa home in 2006. He was sentenced in 2007 to life without the possibility of parole.

“In my opinion, Copple was a cold-blooded murderer who deserved to die for his crimes,” Lieberstein said. “Having said that, life without the possibility of parole, the sentence he offered to plead to and was convicted of, was the appropriate and just sentence in this case for a number of reasons. Most importantly it was within the ultimate wishes of both of the victims' families who did not want to be dragged through trial and then through decades of appeals.”

Every year across the state in North Carolina, 10 death penalty cases on average are brought to trial.

Next year, Mecklenburg prosecutors plan to put three men on trial for their lives, signaling a more aggressive strategy to deal with the most heinous crimes. It's a significant change. In the last decade Mecklenburg has tried just four capital murder cases.

"Our goal is to obtain closure for the victims' families and reduce the murder case backlog," said Mecklenburg District Attorney Andrew Murray. [Monday 11 July 2011]

Prosecutors have already begun scheduling multiple murder trials each month, expecting that some will fall through. Sometimes cases are postponed; other times defendants plead guilty prior to trial. The tactic ensures prosecutors will have at least one defendant to put on trial.

"By scheduling several cases at the same time, we'll be able to obtain justice in the most heinous of crimes even if unforeseen events prevent the trial of any single case," Murray said.

"It seems to me that what the legislators should be thinking about in Sacramento is how to reduce the budget in other areas -- not to release hardened criminals out on the streets; not to eliminate the death penalty," he contends. "The death penalty is something that would be a deterrent to folks [and] prevent them from committing crimes [or] participating in crimes. It's something that we see too much here in California." [Monday 18 July 2011]

The former prosecutor's statements to the Los Angeles Times are her first on the topic, and Robert Tyler of Advocates for Faith & Freedom believes they echo the growing distaste for the death penalty in The Golden State.

"It is a very expensive method of punishment; however, it is also an effective method," he weighs. "Certainly for individuals who recognize the possibility of facing death, that will be a deterrent."

On Wednesday 20 July 2011, District Attorney Julia Slater has decided to seek the death penalty against Ricardo J. Strozier, the Columbus man charged last year in the fatal shooting of 25-year-old Heath Jackson.

The case marks the first time in Slater’s two-and-a-half years in office that she has sought capital punishment in a case indicted on her watch. During a brief news conference Tuesday afternoon, Slater declined to discuss the specifics of her decision, saying “it is impossible to compare one murder to another.”

The decision was reached sometime “in the last few months,” Slater said, after prosecutors received Jackson’s autopsy report. Slater cited three aggravating circumstances in the case -- the shooting allegedly happened during a robbery -- which are statutorily required in order to seek capital punishment, and stressed that she had the unwavering support of Jackson’s family members.

Jackson, a local radio personality, was killed Sept. 7 2010 after he walked in on an intruder in his residence. His homicide was one of four fatal shootings that happened over five days around Labor Day weekend.

Prosecutors said Strozier broke into the Carter Avenue home and robbed and shot Jackson twice with a .38-caliber revolver -- once in the lower back and once in the back of the neck. Jackson ran outside of the residence and collapsed in his driveway. Strozier allegedly fled the scene but was arrested the next day. Witnesses reported seeing a black man with shoulder-length dreadlocks in the area, and Strozier later was identified as a suspect in other burglaries in the area.

Slater’s announcement came shortly after a Muscogee County grand jury indicted Strozier on a raft of charges stemming from three separate incidents, including murder, armed robbery aggravated battery and burglary. A 10-count indictment also accused Strozier in an armed robbery and a burglary on 15th Avenue and a burglary on Virginia Street -- not far from Jackson’s residence.

“The decision to seek the death penalty is a case-by-case decision,” Slater said, adding she weighed the circumstances of Jackson’s death, the evidence collected by investigators and the results of “research into Strozier’s background.”

“Each murder case is considered and prosecuted separately on its merits,” she added.

They also said abolishing the death penalty is too important an issue to rush through the General Assembly during the closing hours of the veto session.

"Why are we here now?" asked Lyons. "We can only assume it's because you do not want to hear from persons opposed to this bill. That's why it comes up in the veto session, and that is offensive to victims. Prosecutors are accused all of the time of rushing to judgment. That's what's happening here."

Support for death penalty is strong

Thursday 06 January 2011

The anti-death penalty coalition asserts time and time again that public support for the death penalty in America and the world is declining. In fact, there is no indication that public support is waning. When faced with an actual execution, the public has overwhelmingly supported the application of the death penalty. The proof? Public opinion polls following the execution of Timothy McVeigh for blowing up more than 160 men, women and children in a terrorist act in Oklahoma showed an over 80 percent approval rating for the execution. Further proof? If Khalid Sheikh Mohammed, the self-proclaimed mastermind of the attacks on the World Trade Center in 2001 was to be executed, the approval ratings for that execution would be at least as high as the McVeigh figures.

Support for death penalty is strong

Thursday 06 January 2011

Complicated math

The anti-death penalty lobby also asserts that the death penalty is too expensive to administer. The figures presented to the commission by the Judicial Council, the attorney general's office and the courts were valid attempts to comply with commission requests but were hampered by complications that undermined an accurate understanding of the costs of the recent capital murder trials and the expected costs of substituting life-without-parole sentences for the death penalty in cases of capital murder.

For example, the attorney general's office is challenged when providing figures about the costs of litigating the two recent death penalty cases. In the Brooks case, the defendant was a retired multi-millionaire with virtually unlimited resources to pour into his defense. It was also complicated by the fact that multiple trips had to be made to Las Vegas, the defendant's home, to interview, depose and prepare witness for both the guilt phase and the penalty phase of the trial.

In State v. Addison, the attorney general's office assisted the Hillsborough County attorney in the preparation and trial of the underlying armed robberies cases, which became factors in the death penalty case. In a bid to be entirely transparent and complete, the attorney general included all costs associated with Addison case. Thus, the Addison figures overstate the actual costs of the death penalty trial.

The costs of incarceration for life in prison are equally challenged because of the limited information available. The Department of Corrections indicated the average length of incarceration of an inmate serving a life without parole sentence is 16.4 years. If the costs of incarceration of inmates are averaged across the system, the cost comes to approximately $33,100 per year. The costs associated with housing inmates in the Secured Housing Unit, where Michael Addison is housed, are higher because of the nature of confinement and the increased security in that unit.

Support for death penalty is strong

Thursday 06 January 2011

Skewed formula

Additionally, when talking about costs, the Department of Corrections uses an average cost of housing an inmate in New Hampshire prisons, which takes the total costs of the system and divides those costs by the number of inmates. This method skews the actual costs of life sentences downward. Clearly, it is more expensive to house an inmate sentenced to life without parole than an inmate serving three to six years, the average sentence in the state prison.

It is axiomatic that the prisoners who are serving life without parole have much higher total costs, such as medical costs associated with geriatric care, medical care for chronic health issues and end-of-life care. It is well documented that most Americans spend most of their lifetime health-care dollars during their end-of-life phase. There is no reason to doubt that the lifetime costs of average life-without-parole sentences will be higher than average costs of persons serving shorter sentences.

Since there is little data about the real cost of a life-without-parole sentence, the commission reached only general conclusions based upon general facts about end-of-life issues. Faced with lower that actual incarceration costs and higher than average prosecution costs, the commission settled for the proposition that while the cost of death penalty prosecutions is higher, no realistic precise figures could be ascertained.

Monday 7 May 2012 - Describing Kenneth Lynch as a “parasitic leech” and a “ticking time-bomb getting meaner by the day,” 11th Circuit Solicitor Donnie Myers asked a judge Monday to sentence him to death by lethal injection for the 2006 murders of a 53-year-old grandmother and her young granddaughter.

“He even stole the baby’s money,” Myers told Judge Eugene Griffith in his 23-minute closing argument during the trial’s penalty phase at Lexington County’s Westbrook courthouse. Trial testimony last month indicated Lynch raided the doll-bank of Angelica Livingston, a 7-year-old second-grader, around the time he killed her.

Griffith is trying the case without a jury, at Lynch’s request, and will be considering a sentence today.

Mocking Monday’s defense efforts to show Lynch’s human side, Myers — a veteran of dozens of death penalty trials known for channeling victims’ suffering and outrage — stepped to the side of the courtroom and uncovered a large white piece of paper.

On it, in foot-high, blood-red capital letters was written the word “EVIL.” Then Myers picked up a photograph of Lynch and taped it on the paper.

“Evil has a face to go with it — and this is it,” shouted Myers, sarcastically calling Lynch “killin’ Kenny.”

Under state law, the death penalty is reserved for murders with certain aggravating circumstances. This case met three qualifications: two or more people were killed, the death of a child and killing during a grand larceny.

To stress the legal as well as emotional grounds for giving the death penalty, Myers stressed the apparent brutality of the young girl’s killing, Lynch’s lies about the crime, and his refusal to say what happened to the bodies.

Holding up a photo of a green chair in Washington’s apartment under which Livingston’s blood was found, Myers said, “That’s where she came to her end — right there ... A battle! A fight for life with a man too big and a child too small, a body too weak, and a body (Lynch’s) too strong. ... A heart filled with murderous intent, snuffing the life out of that baby.”

Myers reminded the judge how unrepentant Lynch has been.

“Somewhere, there’s a 53-year-old woman’s body, a 7-year-old’s body, whose location is known only to an evil murderer,” said Myers, his voice rising to a loud growl.

“Where’s the mercy here?” said Myers. “Show mercy to those who give mercy. Deny mercy to those who are merciless ... The death penalty itself screams out for this case.”

"We can specifically deter such criminals with the threat of death."

Deputy District Attorney Edward McCann, a city homicide prosecutor for more than 25 years, said he thought "there is still significant support for capital punishment."

Nevertheless, McCann said he believed his office now sought death in far fewer cases - well below 10 percent of the 300 to 400 murder cases seen each year.

And, he added, that's proper: "It should be reserved for those crimes where you have strong evidence and the defendant is the worst of the worst. I think it should be difficult."

Death penalty opponents usually talk about crimes of passion, pointing out that the jealous husband was too filled with rage to give a thought to penalty, or on the homicidal maniac who is on a suicidal run.  This is all beside the point.  Whole other categories of criminals are deterred.  Think of those carjackings where the victim is in the trunk.  Some are shot, others not. Of course some criminals think of the consequences. Very few look forward to death row, let alone the “green room.”  Most criminals who don’t kill don’t want to be executed.  It really is that simple. [30 November 2002]

The death penalty deters that entire class of murders where there is a moment to reflect before killing.  This includes most drug dealer turf shootings, gang warfare, witness killings, robbery murders, and so on.  The dirty little secret is that most murders committed in the city of Oakland could be deterred as long as two conditions are met: (1) the arrest risk must reach a more credible level; (2) there must be a genuine prospect of the death penalty for the convicted.  The problem remains that, under current law, some Oakland murders aren’t death penalty eligible because “special circumstances” can’t be proved.  Witness killings, killings while “lying in wait,” and killings in the course of listed felonies are special circumstance murders eligible for the death penalty.  I would advocate adding a new one: any first degree murder by someone who has spent time in state prison.  The list of special circumstances seems to grow every time the legislature meets; this legislative change is needed for Oakland. Our governor is a death penalty supporter and our Supreme Court long ago found it constitutional. The City of Oakland should support this legislation; declare zero tolerance for killings; and ask the prosecutor to seek the death penalty in every Oakland case whenever legally appropriate. [30 November 2002]

Despite all the pressures on them, only a comparatively handful out of these thousands actually pick up a gun and blow away a fellow human being.  Remember: when we deter a potential killer, we help several people, the would-be killer among them.  Being tough on murder is ultimately a humane stance.  In fact, not all murder convicts need be ultimately executed for the penalty to be an effective deterrent, since the alternative is life without parole.  The strong message is the key: That Oakland is fed up with murder; that enough is enough; that if you take a life in “Oaktown”, you may forfeit your own. [30 November 2002]

Lawton said the lengthy nature of the case has helped rampant speculation override the facts. "It has been a game of delay throughout. The longer the delay, the more time they have to create not doubt, not honest doubt, not real doubt, but the appearance of doubt," he said. "And there are people who have not troubled themselves to acquaint themselves with the record, who don't know the facts, who do oppose the death penalty and who have been willing on the strength of that emotion alone to assume the truth of the allegations of the weakness of evidence in the case." [Referring to the Troy Davis case]

Tuesday 19 April 2011 - Jim O'Neill, the district attorney for Forsyth County, said the study doesn't take into account the pain and suffering of the murder victims and fails to examine the heinous nature of the crimes.

Some families don't want prosecutors to pursue the death penalty, O'Neill said. He also makes sure families know that because of appeals, it often takes a long time before someone is executed, he said.

But he said it is important to keep the death penalty as an option to reserve for the worst murders.

"As a result of dozens of murder cases I have prosecuted, I have come to believe that some people are so evil that death is the only appropriate punishment for them," he said.

A recent editorial (5/14, A-14, “Death penalty system has serious flaws”) seeks a moratorium of the death penalty in favor of “a thorough study of the system.”

The editorial overlooks one important thing. Studies of the death penalty have already been conducted across the nation, and their verdict is clear: the death penalty is fairly administered; today’s defendants receive effective representation; and any errors during the investigation or trial are uncovered in the appellate process.

More importantly, a growing number of studies indicate something that should not be overlooked: the death penalty saves lives.

A dozen recent studies reveal that the death penalty has a significant deterrent effect. A leading study published in the American Law and Economics Review collected data from 3,054 counties over a 20-year period. Using sophisticated multiple regression analysis, the study concluded that, on average, each execution results in 18 fewer murders.

The results of these studies mean we are confronted by a stark decision with real consequences.

On the one hand, we can continue to carry out death sentences. In so doing, we will execute only those defendants who have been found guilty by unanimous juries that have taken the extra step to recommend a death sentence. The executions will occur only after the defendants have exhausted their rights of appeal and been afforded every possible due process right.

Kansas reinstated the death penalty in 1935 after a spate of killings by criminals who admitted ... they chose Kansas to commit more crimes solely because they could avoid a death sentence if they were captured.

Sunday 25 September 2011 - An area solicitor said he has "no problem" with South Carolina's top jurist suggesting that state prosecutors refrain from a "win at all costs" mentality in death penalty cases.

Noting capital cases must continue to be held to a higher standard than other criminal cases, First Circuit Solicitor David Pascoe said of S.C. Supreme Court Chief Justice Jean Toal's stance "that is her job and I applaud her."

"The chief justice mentions this, and it is a phrase that judges, prosecutors and defense attorneys use in South Carolina: ‘Death is different,'" Pascoe said. "It demands higher ethics from the court, attorneys and law enforcement.

"I ask all judges to rein in prosecutors and expect them to do the right thing."

Pascoe feels the death penalty laws in South Carolina offer fair hearings to defendants.

"I take as much pride in dismissing a case when the defendant is not guilty as I do in a conviction when they are," Pascoe said. "The role of the prosecutor is to be a minister of justice rather than seeking conviction at all costs."

Toal's statements came on the same day Georgia executed 42-year-old Troy Davis, who was convicted in 1991 for killing an off-duty police officer. Witnesses that later recanted their testimony set off protests against the execution.

After conducting his own research on Davis' case, Pascoe said he was convinced of his guilt.

"After reading the original story you think, ‘Man, it looks as though he is getting railroaded,'" Pascoe said. "While there was no forensic evidence, what you don't get to read is that prosecution had a pair of his pants as evidence. It was suppressed in court because it was tied to an illegal search and seizure.

"He also fled the state after the crime. In my personal experience, no death penalty is handed down if they are innocent."

Death penalty about justice, not winning.

An estimated 230,000 killings remain unsolved since the reinstatement of capital punishment. Yet more time, attention, and resources continue to be focused on the rare challenge to an execution that somehow captures the morbid curiosity of the public. Whether a condemned killer lives or dies strikes me as far less important than the literally thousands of killers who are walking America's streets. [Capital punishment is the least of the justice system's problems. October 14, 2011|By Matthew T. Mangino]

Jurors sentenced Jerry Lard to death Saturday morning, July 28, 2012 in the April 2011 shooting death of Trumann police officer Jonathan Schmidt.

The jury of seven women and five men found Lard guilty of capital murder on Thursday, July 26, and voted unanimously Saturday for him to be put to death by lethal injection.

Circuit Judge Brent Davis set Lard's execution to be on April 12, 2013 -- exactly two years to the day after he killed officer Schmidt.

Following the sentencing hearing Saturday, Ellington, who serves as Second Judicial District prosecuting attorney, issued this statement:

"When the spouse of a law enforcement officer sends him or her off to begin their shift, they never know if they will see each other alive again. The most important job of a law enforcement officer is to return home safely to his or her family at the end of his or her shift.

"I have attended three funerals for fallen officers since I was elected in 2010. I hope and pray that I never have to attend another. The citizens of the Second Judicial District can trust that if another law enforcement officer is killed in the line of duty while I am your prosecuting attorney, my office will pursue the death penalty against the responsible person or persons. My administration has and will continue to have an absolute zero tolerance policy for the unspeakable crime of murdering a police officer in the line of duty.

"My decision to seek the death penalty in this case is one that did not come without a great amount of prayer and guidance. Capital punishment and the use of such is not something that I take lightly. In this particular case, I saw no other option. Not only did the defendant kill Trumann police officer Jonathan Schmidt, he came within inches of killing Sgt. Corey Overstreet in the same episode.

"In my 20 years as a trial attorney, I have never heard a jury speak any louder or clearer than this Greene County jury did today. This jury spoke volumes with the punishment that they delivered today -- a sentence of death. The jury echoed the commitment of the community to protect those who protect us. I am very proud of their courage and fortitude. I know it wasn't an easy decision, but it is one that had to be made. They jury is the conscience of the community, and I appreciate their sacrifice in serving in this two-week trial and for what I know had to be a difficult decision. We knew it would take all 12 jurors to impose the death sentence and they have done just that.

"The State of Arkansas -- and I speak for the state as the elected prosecutor for the Second Judicial District -- believes officer Jonathan Schmidt and his family now have justice for his murder and are a step closer to closure. They have experienced a tremendous amount of pain and suffering. That pain and void that they have felt will never fully go away, but I pray that with the jury's decision they will find peace. The family of officer Schmidt are some of the finest and strongest people that I have ever had the privilege of meeting, and they will continue to be in my prayers.

"I want to thank my team, Greene County Deputy Prosecutors Kimberly Dale and Dr. Andy Fulkerson; Poinsett County Deputy Prosecutors Jimmy Gazaway and David Boling, and our support staff, Zach Morrison, Liz Wagner, Robin Norman and investigator Allan Hicks. All have given 110 percent, and I could not be prouder of my deputy prosecutors and staff for their tireless work and effort in helping me achieve justice for officer Schmidt and his family.

"I also want to thank Poinsett County Judge Charles Nix, Poinsett County Sheriff Larry Mills, Craighead County Sheriff Jack McCann, Greene County Sheriff Dan Langston and all of their departments for the assistance they have provided throughout this long ordeal.

"Poinsett County has gone above and beyond the call of duty in helping to bring this murderer to trial and hold him responsible for his actions.

"The Arkansas State Police and their expertise were so valuable in taking this case, investigating it, and pulling it together for the prosecution team. They turned over every rock and followed every possible lead to ensure that justice would be done for officer Schmidt. Lead investigator, Special Agent Mike Grimes, Sgt. John Carter, Special Agents Ramey Lovan, Allen Earnhart and Tony Roe gave their all and I appreciate their service.

"Most importantly, let us not forget about the true heroes in this, officer Jonathan Schmidt and Sgt. Corey Overstreet, who put their lives on the line every day to serve and protect the people of Trumann.

"Officer Jonathan Schmidt made the ultimate sacrifice doing what he loved most, protecting and serving his community. His legacy and life that he gave unselfishly will never be forgotten.

"In remembering Officer Schmidt and the sacrifice that he made, my mind was drawn to John 15:13: 'Greater love hath no man than this, that a man lay down his life for his friends.'

"Officer Jonathan Schmidt, fallen but not forgotten. Thank you."

An Arkansas lawmaker filed a bill to end the death penalty in the state, Monday 11 March 2013. 

The bill was filed by Democratic Sen. Joyce Elliott of Little Rock who said she was asked by a group interested in ending the death penalty to file the bill.

"I can't see Arkansas abolishing the death penalty, I certainly would be opposed to that," said Scott Ellington, district prosecuting attorney.  "Opponents to death penalty say it is so easy to get the death penalty, it is not. First of all the crime has to fit in the very specific areas that is spelled out in the statute. "

Ellington said the state of Arkansas has what's called capital felony murder which is someone committing a felony or was an accomplice of someone committing a felony.

There are currently 37 people on death row in the state of Arkansas.

"We take filing a capital murder and especially seeking the death penalty as a very very serious matter," said Ellington. "It's not something we do half-heartedly or without much thought or consideration."

Once a person is convicted of a capital crime, there are certain factors that must be proven to convince a jury that the death penalty is necessary. In the case of a tragedy, Ellington said the public deserves that option.

"If we had another Sandy Hook and the person didn't kill themselves but they were actually captured. I think there would be a public outcry if we didn't have the death penalty asking why do we not have the death penalty," Ellington said.

"I believe that it is necessary in this society that we continue to have that option available in the most heinous of crimes."

Ellington said he doesn't think the bill will pass, especially if legislators are listening to their constituents. But in the case that the bill does pass, he said it would change the type of crimes committed.

"I think the more heinous crimes, they may be more frequent."

We never knew such a dark and horrible place existed in America until Timothy McVeigh sent us there, tell him he is no patriot. He is a traitor and he deserves to die.

As I stood up in front of the jury, I looked them in the eye and I thought, if I am asking these 12 people to do something that I believe is morally just, and not just just but necessary in this case, I have to be able to do what I’m asking them to do. I have to be able to look Timothy McVeigh in the eye and say that he deserves to die. And so, as I was going through my closing argument, I turned to him and told the jury to take a moment and to look at him and call him a coward and tell him that he had committed treason, and that was something, obviously, that in our country we rejected – the use of violence to perpetrate political views – and to sentence him to death. That was perhaps for me the most difficult moment in the case, not because I did not believe it, but because I was looking into the eye of the person that I thought should receive the punishment.

Obscured behind the flawed logic of Schwartz, president of the Coalition of Arizonans to Abolish the Death Penalty, is the truth that only the most egregious first-degree-murder cases result in the imposition of the death penalty in Arizona.

For example, Eric King and Daniel Wayne Cook were sentenced to death for killing, or assisting in killing, more than one person. Jeffrey Landrigan was sentenced to death for murder after he escaped from an Oklahoma prison where he was incarcerated for murder. Thus, King's, Cook's and Landrigan's death sentences were consequences of taking more than one life. And a death sentence is the only punishment that ensures they will never kill again. - Death penalty ensures end to 'killing sprees' by Bill Montgomery on May. 2, 2011 12:01 AM

In Schwartz's surreal worldview, society's law-abiding citizens are the real murderers while convicted killers are the victims. He equates capital punishment with "premeditated homicide" and asserts that because these three convicts are scheduled to be executed within a six-month period, Arizona is on a "killing spree." - Death penalty ensures end to 'killing sprees' by Bill Montgomery on May. 2, 2011 12:01 AM

Schwartz's problem with capital punishment seems to have less to do with justice than with economics. He's concerned that Arizona's overwhelming support for the death penalty will mean fewer visitors to the Grand Canyon because foreign tourists will clearly be "repulsed by our cruelty."

Equally flimsy is Schwartz's attempt to "peer pressure" Arizonans into surrendering the death penalty simply because some other states and countries have done so. In Arizona, we hold criminals accountable. We incarcerate those who commit violent and repetitive felonies, and we execute those who take innocent human life without justification. - Death penalty ensures end to 'killing sprees' by Bill Montgomery on May. 2, 2011 12:01 AM

First, without offering any actual evidence, Mr. Schwartz claims that "all the evidence" contradicts the assertion that the death penalty makes society safer from a murderer than does a life sentence.

In fact, recent evidence suggests exactly the opposite.

In July 2010, three convicted murderers, Tracy Province, Daniel Renwick and John McCluskey, each of whom was serving a life sentence, escaped from a medium-security prison in Kingman and embarked on a violent crime spree that ended in the brutal murder of an elderly couple at a New Mexico campground.

What assurances can Mr. Schwartz provide that these three murderers and escape artists will never escape or kill again during the remainder of their life sentences? None. Death is the only sentence that ensures that these murderers will never again endanger society. And it will be much more difficult for them to escape from death row than from a medium-security prison. - Montgomery: Facts make the case for the death penalty Capital punishment more effective than a life sentence by Bill Montgomery - Dec. 3, 2011 12:00 AM

Mr. Schwartz, again without offering specific evidence, claims there is a direct causal relationship between the death penalty and homicide rates. In 2008, there were 142 homicides in New Mexico. In the beginning of 2009, New Mexico abolished the death penalty, and homicides increased to 198. In 2010, there were 142 homicides in New Mexico, which is much higher than the 99 homicides that occurred in 2001 when the death penalty was lawful. To the dismay of advocates on both sides of the issue, a causal relationship between the death penalty and homicide rates does not appear to exist, and to claim otherwise shows disregard for the many factors that influence the homicide rate and disrespect for the complexity of the issue. - Montgomery: Facts make the case for the death penalty Capital punishment more effective than a life sentence by Bill Montgomery - Dec. 3, 2011 12:00 AM

Wednesday 15 February 2012 - Maricopa County Attorney Bill Montgomery says the death penalty is an appropriate response to the “unjustified taking of innocent human life.”

“Our society has a responsibility to protect citizens from those who commit murder and an obligation to hold accountable those who commit the ultimate crime,” he said.  

Thursday 12 January 2012 - Relatives of murder victims should be allowed to tell juries weighing death sentences how the crimes affected them and split-jury decisions would no longer automatically rule out death sentences under proposals submitted to a state death penalty task force by a veteran prosecutor.

Ohio juries and judges also should be allowed to consider a multitude of factors about a homicide carrying the possibility of a death sentence, not just specific elements laid out in state law, Hamilton County prosecutor Joe Deters said.

"The victim's family many times don't understand why they can't explain the impact this has had to their family," Deters said Thursday, discussing a letter he sent to fellow members of the task force earlier this week.

Deters, though, notes Ohio law includes the death penalty, he swore an oath to uphold that law and he will do so even if others disagree with him for doing so.

“There are some crimes so bad you need to die for what you’ve done,” Deters said. “The evil and acts we are dealing with are so extreme.” [Saturday 2 June 2012]

Since Ohio reinstated the death penalty in 1981, Hamilton County grand juries have handed up 172 capital murder indictments through 2011. Of those, prosecutors won death sentences in 61, or 35.5 percent, records from the Ohio Supreme Court and Ohio Attorney General show.

Despite Hamilton County’s reputation for aggressively seeking the death penalty, its 172 capital murder indictments are one-third of Franklin County’s 496 and one-eighth of Cuyahoga County’s 1,231 in the same 30-year span.

Cuyahoga has won a death sentence in 5.1 percent of its capital murder indictments through 2011; Franklin County in 3.8 percent.

Those numbers mean Deters seeks the death penalty far less than his Ohio big-county counterparts but succeeds far more often. Hamilton County’s 35.3 percent rate is almost seven eight times higher than Cuyahoga and more than nine times higher than Franklin.

“We’re being criticized for doing our jobs very well,” said Deters, Hamilton County’s prosecutor from 1992-1998 and again since 2005.

Deters’ indictment numbers are so low compared to the other large counties, he believes, because of his personal stance.

“If we indict a death penalty, we don’t plea bargain,” Deters said. “If there is a proof (of guilt) problem at all, I’m not doing it. I’m not seeking the death penalty.”

Death-penalty opponents can argue all they want, Deters said, but until the law changes, he will seek the death penalty when he thinks it appropriate.

“If the politics were there to get rid of the death penalty, they’d get rid of it. It’s just not there,” Deters said.

“I’ve always believed in the death penalty. Some people may say I’m a bad Catholic, but I say I’m a good Catholic. But that remains to be seen.”

"What they are interested in is finding the poster boy for the abolition of the death penalty," Bradley said. "And they want to make Willingham that poster boy. And they chose poorly, because Willingham is a guilty monster."

Wednesday 28 December 2011 - While it’s been a long year and heavy workload for prosecutors, de la Rionda is gratified that these murderers are getting the punishment they deserve.

"You realize how sacred life is and how valuable it is and how we have to do everything to protect these innocent people," de la Rionda said.

Thursday 10 October 2002 - Not everyone believes prison inmates should have access to the Internet, let alone have their cases publicized through special web pages. "I think they [CCADP] are just misguided individuals," East Baton Rouge, Louisiana Assistant District Attorney John Sinquefield told the Advocate News. Sinquefield, who has prosecuted death penalty cases, said the people running the Web site aren't related to the victims of "the people slaughtered by some of the worst, most heinous criminals around." Sinquefield added that he thought CCADP is "intervening in something that's not really their business. I think they should stay in Canada. I'm sure there's plenty of criminals up there to keep them busy."

"It was a heinous murder that resulted in the death of a fine woman and the maiming and paralyzing of a very fine man," Sinquefield said. "The viciousness of the act and the suffering that was caused has always been demanding of the death penalty." [Referring to the execution of Feltus Taylor on 6 June 2000]

A Capital Case?

Under California law, a convicted murderer is eligible for the death penalty or life without possibility of parole if any of the following special circumstances are found to be true:

* The murder was committed intentionally and for financial gain

* The defendant was previously convicted of first- or second-degree murder

* The defendant was convicted of multiple murders

* The murder was committed with a hidden destructive force

* The murder was committed in an attempt to evade arrest or escape from custody

* The murder was committed by mailing a destructive device

* The victim was an on-duty peace officer

* The victim was an on-duty federal agent

* The victim was an on-duty fireman

* The victim was a witness to a crime and murdered in order to prevent their testimony

* The murder was retaliatory and the victim was a prosecutor, judge, elected official or juror

* The murder was especially heinous, atrocious or cruel and manifesting exceptional depravity

* The murder was committed by someone lying in wait

* The murder was committed because of race, color, religion, nationality or country of origin

* The murder was committed during or directly after the commission of robbery, rape, burglary, kidnapping, arson or other designated felonies

* The murder involved torture

* The murder was committed with poison

* The murder was committed during a drive-by shooting

* The murder was committed while the defendant was an active participant in a criminal street gang

Source: The California Penal Code

Tuesday 10 May 2011 – “We have a horrific case in which the victims' eyeballs, heart and tongue were cut out, by medical records and police reports, while he was still alive,” Alexander said, adding that he finds it “completely unacceptable” that Riese didn't file the allegations. “I will do anything in my power to see to it that Jarrod Wyatt never steps foot on this earth again as a free man.”

Governor Pat Quinn signed the bill which abolished the death penalty in Illinois on Wednesday 9 March 2011: Phil Hiscock, chief of the criminal division for McHenry County, said that he had some concerns about a death penalty-free state.

“At this point, I think my concerns go out to the families of murdered victims who have had to deal with the uncertainty of the death penalty over the last 11 years,” Hiscock said. “A lot of the time, victims of murdered families are forgotten.”

Hiscock said that the decision to seek capital punishment was the most difficult and important decision a prosecutor had to make, but he said he believed it should be available.

“My personal opinion is that the death penalty should be reserved for the most heinous of crimes where there is strong evidence,” Hiscock said.

He also pointed to death penalty reforms introduced based on concerns raised by former Gov. George Ryan pertaining to better training for prosecutors and defense attorneys, better funding for defense attorneys, and the required videotaping of all confessions.

Ryan’s moratorium on executions came in January 2000 after revelations regarding the innocence of 13 death row inmates.

Thursday 18 August 2011 - Kent E. Cattani, chief counsel of the Criminal Appeals/Capital Litigation Section at the Arizona Attorney General’s Office, will represent the case for capital punishment. Cattani said while Arizona’s system is not perfect, his office has applied the state’s death penalty statute in a fair and just manner.

“Since 1993, Arizona has required the appointment of two highly qualified trial attorneys in every case in which the State notices its intent to seek the death penalty. We also provide experienced counsel to represent death-sentenced inmates in state appellate and post-conviction proceedings,” Cattani said. “We remain open to suggestions on how to improve the process, and as long as capital punishment remains the law in Arizona, we will continue to carry out the law as fairly as possible.”

Wednesday 14 December 2011 - The North Carolina Conference of District Attorneys said that Perdue's veto "creates yet another de facto moratorium on the death penalty."

The last execution in the state took place on Aug. 18, 2006, when Samuel R. Flippen was put to death for murdering his 2-year-old stepdaughter. Since then, no one has been put to death because of various legal rulings, including ones involving execution procedures.

"North Carolina citizens support the death penalty and do not support a moratorium," said Johnston County District Attorney Susan Doyle, the conference president.

Colusa County District Attorney John Poyner said even if the voters thought redirecting money to law enforcement was appropriate, the money promised — $30 million each year from 2013 to 2016 — would not be enough to make a difference in solving crimes.

"It is just a carrot to dangle in front of a horse," Poyner said. "Thirty million wouldn't be enough for Los Angeles, much less the entire state." [Tuesday 25 October 2011]

Instead of removing the death penalty, Poyner said California needs to fix the problem of costly and cumbersome appeals, which makes the death penalty in California so expensive to enforce.

"We need to be more like Texas and Florida," he said. [Tuesday 25 October 2011]

Jones agreed that California's failures are largely due to the lack of foresight when it comes to passing laws, but they are problems he believes could be fixed.

"I think man still has the ability to work through these areas in a common sense manner," he said. [Tuesday 25 October 2011]

THE most important function of local government is to protect the public through enforcement of the rule of law. It is what separates a civil society from lawlessness, keeps our neighborhoods safe and establishes an orderly environment for commerce. That's why it is essential that we as a society have the death penalty as the ultimate punishment. [Death penalty has a place in King County, regardless of budget strife Originally published Friday, September 2, 2011 at 3:31 PM]

Pursuing appropriate penalties is not only important to public safety, it is necessary as a measure of justice for victims' families. What is our message to these families if we do not seek maximum punishment under the law? If your loved one had been killed when we had a good economy, we'd seek a tougher penalty? Our commitment to enforcing laws should not ebb and flow with government revenue. [Death penalty has a place in King County, regardless of budget strife Originally published Friday, September 2, 2011 at 3:31 PM]

The death penalty should remain on the table regardless of tight budgets because the safety of the public and the rights of victims' families demand no less. [Death penalty has a place in King County, regardless of budget strife Originally published Friday, September 2, 2011 at 3:31 PM]

Thursday 18 October 2012 - The County Administration Building provided a backdrop today for people who came out to affirm their support of the California death penalty. Members of San Diego law enforcement groups and the families of murder victims urged a "no" vote on Proposition 34, which would repeal the death penalty in the state.

“What this is really all about is honoring the families of the victims and providing justice,” said Bonnie Dumanis, the San Diego County District Attorney.

The death penalty process is mired in delays, and California hasn’t executed anyone for six years. Since the death penalty was reinstated in 1978, California has condemned nearly 900 people to death. Only 13 of them have actually be executed.

But Dumanis said it doesn’t have to be that way.

“There are ways to fix it. We can mend it, not end it,” she said.

Wednesday 3 October 2012 - Wagstaffe argued it is time to fix the system, not get rid of it. He suggested hiring more attorneys to speed up appeals.

Not having a death penalty would handicap negotiations for guilty pleas and recovery of victims' bodies, Wagstaffe said. He also said he speaks for the murdered victims of death row inmates and keeps their pictures on his desk.

"What is the right punishment for the evil perpetrated?" asked Wagstaffe. "It isn't just about the killer. It's about what the killer did. And now, those same people who caused the delay -- who caused the enormous amount of money to be spent -- are now saying 'Its broken, so let's throw it out.'"

"It's the most severe penalty in our criminal justice system," Haddox said. "As a prosecutor, I'm sworn to uphold the law without a personal opinion or agenda. I'm a proponent of the death penalty." [Sunday 23 September 2012]

Haddox believes a death sentence is punishment, a deterrent and justice.

"It rids society of that individual and any other crimes they may commit," he said. "I think it also is a bit of the Old Testament where it's an eye for an eye."

Tuesday 13 December 2011 - Despite how heinous a crime may be or the criminal history of a defendant, Little said that he may want to pursue the death penalty but only a small classification of crimes rise to the level of the ultimate punishment.

“I’m a strong proponent of the death penalty, but I have to work within the system and do the best that I can to ensure that every decision is commensurate with justice in each case,” he said.