buylotrogold

This e-mail contains news articles from:         NH - Manchester Union Leader - Panel eyes death penalty for home invasion killings         SD - Public News Service - Death Penalty Repeal Returns - - - - - http://www.unionleader.com/article.aspx?headline=Panel+eyes+death+pen... home+invasion+killings&articleId=35d86288-68c9-47b6-837d-a85d892e3ef9 Wednesday, February 10, 2010 Panel eyes death penalty for home invasion killings By TOM FAHEY | State House Bureau Chief CONCORD - The teens accused of killing Kimberly Cates in her Mont Vernon home last fall were labeled barbarians and deviants yesterday by both sides of a debate on expanding the death penalty. But speakers appearing before the Senate Judiciary Committee disagreed on how to treat culprits who kill while invading a home in the future. Sponsors of Senate Bill 472 said that with the permission of Cates' husband, they have called the measure the Kimberly L. Cates Law. She was hacked and stabbed to death in her bed in October, and her 11-year-old daughter was attacked and left for dead. SB 472 would add home invasion killings to the state's capital murder law, allowing prosecutors to seek the death penalty just as they do now when police officers or judges are murdered or when killings are committed during kidnappings, rapes or cases of murder for hire. The bill's supporters said it would be a valuable tool for prosecutors and a reassurance to society. Opponents said the bill should be killed. The state is awaiting results of an in-depth study of capital murder laws, they argued, also questioning whether the bill would deter similar thrill killings. Barbara Keshen, a death penalty opponent, said the murder was an insane and deviant crime, and we will always have people do insane and deviant things. I wish legislation could prevent that. It won't. The bill cannot be applied retroactively, so it has no effect on the Cates case. Rep. William O'Brien, R-Mont Vernon, a sponsor of the bill, said, We cannot by any vote now put these barbarians to death. We know that. But he argued, We can do justice for those killed in this manner in the future. Among those in favor of the bill was John F. Quinlan, chairman of the Mont Vernon Board of Selectmen. He said people in his town and surrounding communities have been angry and frustrated that the death penalty is not even an option. This is first-degree, premeditated murder, he said, adding that cost or deterrence is not an issue for him. I've seen evil, and I know it has to be confronted at times, said Quinlan, a military man who has served in Afghanistan. We need to make a statement to the people that this is not going to be tolerated. Sen. Sheila Roberge, R-Bedford, prime sponsor, said teens have killed during home invasions before, mentioning two who killed a Hanover couple, Half and Suzanna Zantop in 2001. I think we have to pass this and hope it will never be used, Roberge said. Michael Iacopino of the Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers, said the bill should not be rushed through in reaction to a single crime. The group favors repeal of the entire death penalty law. He said the Legislature should at least delay until the death penalty commission it established reports in December. Arnie Alpert of the American Friends Service Committee, questioned how lawmakers could select some murders for capital punishment and not others. You as legislators have a sober responsibility to decide where to draw the line, he said. As long as you have a death penalty law on the books, you will see bills in every session to expand it. The Catholic Diocese of Manchester opposed the bill, saying death penalty prosecutions often traumatize victims' families further with media attention and prolonged court proceedings. Peter Cataldo said that with the option of life sentences without parole, the state has the ability to protect the lives of its citizens without resorting to lethal force. Nina Gardner, executive director of the state Judicial Council, said the way the bill is written, it could be applied to as many as five cases every year. The state has spent more than $2 million so far on the death penalty case against Michael Addison, convicted and sentenced to death for killing Manchester police Officer Michael Briggs. / / / / / More information on HB 1245 is at: http://legis.state.sd.us/sessions/2010/Bill.aspx?File=HB1245P.htm http://legis.state.sd.us/sessions/2010/QuickFind.aspx - - - - - http://www.publicnewsservice.org/index.php?/content/article/12636-1 February 10, 2010 Death Penalty Repeal Returns Jerry Oster | Public News Service - SD PIERRE, S.D. - Today, a bill that would repeal the death penalty in South Dakota will be heard in the House State Affairs Committee. HB 1245 would mandate life in prison without parole for people convicted of Class A felonies. The Association of Christian Churches of South Dakota supports the bill, which is sponsored by Rep. Gerald Lange (D-Madison). The association's executive director, Gene Miller, says the issue may have been out of public view until recently, but the group has not changed its views. This has gotten kind-of pushed to the side in light of other issues, but we still have the same stance, we still have the same position. The state has carried out only one execution in the last 50 years, that of Elijah Page in 2007 who had been convicted of murder. Miller says legislators must consider the moral implications of the death penalty. We are against the death penalty in all shapes and forms. You know, even setting aside the studies that have been in the paper recently about the fact that it's actually cheaper to keep someone alive, we just think it's moral and it's ethical to keep someone alive. Miller uses segregation as an example of another controversial issue, in which he sees a distinct difference between what is legal - and what is right. We don't have to go that far back in our history to find, for example, segregation laws. That made that legal, but it was never moral. Our position on this would probably be similar to that: You can make it legal, but that doesn't necessarily make it right. Similar efforts to repeal the death penalty have failed in the past few years. Those who favor the death penalty say it has broad support across the state, and believe it is an effective crime deterrent. / / / / / Steve Hall 512.879.1675  (o) 512.627.3011  (c) Skype: shall78711 This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it www.StandDown.org






 

winmail.dat
7K
Download