Results matching “first”

Now here's an intriguing thought. Paul Kane and Robert Costa have this article in the WaPo on the possible impact of the Ferguson debacle on the possible 2016 ambitions of Missouri Governor Jay Nixon.

In the U.S. Supreme Court's last term, CJLF accomplished one of its long-standing objectives regarding Congress's landmark 1996 reform of federal habeas corpus.  On questions of law, including "mixed questions" of law and fact, a lower federal court can effectively overturn a decision of a state court only if the state court decision is either (1) contrary to U.S. Supreme Court precedent, or (2) an "unreasonable application" of U.S. Supreme Court precedent.  That second phrase is supposed to refer to application of existing rules to the particular facts of the case, not making up new rules by plowing new legal ground.  We got the Supreme Court to clarify that, and put the brakes on lower federal courts, last April in White v. Woodall, discussed in this post.

Friday we saw the effect of Woodall in keeping a Nevada murderer in prison where he belongs.  The opinion comes from the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit, not friendly territory for law enforcement, written by Judge A. Wallace Tashima, not one of our best friends.

Realignment to Blame for Increase in Early Jail Releases: In an effort to relieve over-crowding caused by Governor Brown's Realignment plan, county jails across the state are being forced to release inmates at alarming rates-in Los Angeles County alone, male inmates are released after serving as little as 10% of their sentences while females are released after serving just 5%.  Paige St. John of the Los Angeles Times reports that on average, California county jails release more than 13,500 inmates early each month, leaving some to label the state's criminal justice system as a revolving door for criminals.  Just this week, authorities were forced to release a woman who snuck onto an airplane and flew to Los Angeles from Northern California after she served just three days out of her 117-day sentence.

Recently Released Rapist Charged in Home-Invasion: A New York man recently released from prison after serving 23 years behind bars for a rape conviction has been charged with breaking into a home and violently attacking a woman.   Denise A. Raymo of The Press-Republican reports that 40-year-old Timothy Jaworski has had a lengthy past with police in both New York and Massachusetts, and has served multiple prison sentences for home invasions, rape, and larceny.  Jaworski is currently being held on a $100,000 bond.

Convicted Murderer Loses Appeal for a New Trial: A Nevada man convicted of murdering a food deliveryman more than a decade ago will not get a new trial after the U.S. Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals reversed a lower court and reinstated his conviction.  Steve Timko of the Reno Gazette-Journal reports that 33-year-old Ryan Oshun Moore appealed his conviction based on the claim that the jury presiding over his case were not given the definitions of words such as 'willful', 'premeditated' and 'deliberate.'  Moore was found guilty of first-degree murder and sentenced to life in prison with the possibility of parole after twenty years.

Steve Hayward on Powerline writes:

[L]et's not move on before taking in the proximate cause of political dispute, the conduct of Travis County District Attorney Rosemary Lehmberg, who ironically runs the "public integrity section" of the DA's office while obviously having no public integrity whatsoever.  If you have 15 minutes of leisure and a strong threshold against disgust, take in these two videos of Ms. Lehmberg in action, first in her DUI stop (where her blood-alcohol level was .23), and then, even better, her appalling jailhouse behavior.

I was a federal prosecutor for 18 years under administrations of both parties (from William French Smith to Janet Reno).  Not once was I asked to participate in a case I had even slight reason to suspect was politically motivated. Apparently, times have changed.

I'll be the first to admit I know zilch about Texas law.  I'll also freely admit that I'm no fan of Gov. Rick Perry, one of the most obviously not-ready-for-prime-time Presidential candidates I've ever seen.  My opinion of him did not improve when he started touting his program to save money (or, more accurately, to shift costs onto future crime victims) by an early prison release program.

Bill Would Incarcerate Up More 'Low-Level' Felons: Ohio Attorney General candidate David Pepper has announced his support for a bill that would give judges more leeway when it comes to sentencing low-level felons.  Jeremy Pelzer of the Northeast Ohio Media Group reports that House Bill 251 would allow judges to send so-called 'low-level' felons to prison rather than probation for repeat offenses.  The bill is primarily aimed at drug dealers who carry slightly less than the amount of drugs the law requires to charge as possession for sale, in order to avoid prison and continue dealing while on probation.    

Convicted Killer Identified as Murder Suspect: Authorities in Colorado have announced that an inmate killed earlier this week was beaten to death by two other inmates, one of which is already serving a life sentence for murder.  Chris Vanderveen of KUSA reports that the other inmate involved in the killing is currently serving a 48 year sentence for an attempted murder conviction.  This is the sixth killing at this particular Colorado corrections facility since 2010.

New Hampshire Murderer Sentenced to Life: A New Hampshire judge has sentenced 31-year-old Seth Mazzaglia to life behind bars for his role in the rape and murder of a college student in 2012.  The Associated Press reports that Mazzaglia was convicted in June of first-degree murder and other serious felonies, and given the non-death penalty state's maximum sentence of LWOP.   Mazzaglia filed a motion earlier this week asking to skip his sentencing hearing in an effort to avoid listening to the victim's family impact statements, but the judge denied his request.   

Judge Calls 600 Potential Jurors in Death Penalty Case: A Denver, Colorado judge has announced plans to assemble a pool of 600 potential jurors for the upcoming death penalty trial against a man accused of stabbing five people to death in a bar nearly two years ago.  Jordan Steffen of The Denver Post reports that 24-year-old Dexter Lewis faces 16 counts, including robbery, arson, and first-degree murder, for the October 2012 attack that left five people dead.  This will be the first time since 2001 that Denver prosecutors are seeking the death penalty.  Attorneys will begin questioning potential jurors in January 2015.

NY Judges to Hear Child-Immigrant Cases: Beginning today, New York City immigration judges will start hearing requests for asylum made by thousands of children who have illegally entered the U.S.  Marisa Schultz of the New York Post reports that on average, New York City immigration judges are the most lenient in the country, granting 80% of requests made by asylum seekers—a number much higher than the national average of 50%.  Since October 2013, an estimated 63,000 children have entered the U.S. illegally, resulting in what many are calling an immigration crisis.

Police Make Arrest in 30-Year-Old Cold Case: Authorities have arrested a Minnesota man in connection with a murder that took place in Texas more than 30 years ago.  Tim Lammers of Bring Me The News reports that the 53-year-old suspect is believed to have stabbed San Antonio businessman Francisco Narvaez to death in a hotel room in September 1983.  Authorities re-opened the case in 2011 and enlisted the help of the Oklahoma Bureau of Investigation.  The suspect is expected to be extradited to Oklahoma and faces charges for second-degree murder and being a fugitive.

Claire Groden has this article in the WSJ:

Two summers ago a home invasion by gang members on the city's South Side went wrong when one of the robbers shot another one in the back of the head, according to Chicago police. Sixteen-year-old Douglas Bufford was killed, and 19-year-old Jermalle Brown was charged with first-degree murder. His trial begins on Aug. 15, and it may attract more attention than usual in a city plagued by violent crime, just as his arrest did. Why? Because at the time of the shooting, Douglas Bufford and Jermalle Brown were also on the Illinois state payroll, earning $8.50 an hour to hand out antiviolence pamphlets.

Such are the bitter ironies of Gov. Pat Quinn's Neighborhood Recovery Initiative, a now-defunct $54.5 million program whose failures are under new scrutiny as the Illinois governor, a Democrat, campaigns for re-election in November. Mr. Quinn launched the anticrime plan four years ago to "take on the root causes of violence in neighborhoods all across the city of Chicago." That didn't happen. Over the first two years of the initiative, the Chicago murder rate rose 20%, and the murder rate within city limits today is triple the national average. A state audit of the Neighborhood Recovery Initiative, or NRI, suggests that as much as 40% of the program's funding was simply wasted.

We should be extremely skeptical of anyone claiming "to take on root causes" of crime.  The primary root cause is cultural decay, government's ability to change that is limited, and few of the people using the term "root causes" have any intention of addressing it.  Mostly they seem to be interested in diverting the government program that has actually worked in reducing crime -- strong law enforcement.

Execution Date set for Double Murderer: A Missouri man convicted of murdering two people and sentenced to death more than a decade ago has been scheduled to be executed by lethal injection next month.  Rudi Keller of the Colombia Daily Tribune reports that 40-year-old Earl Ringo Jr. was one of two people convicted in the robbery and murders of a restaurant manager and delivery truck driver in July 1998.  Ringo's accomplice pled guilty to first-degree murder in order to avoid a possible death sentence and was sentenced to life without parole. 

KS Attorney General to Appeal Capital Rulings: The Kansas Attorney General's office has announced plans to petition the U.S. Supreme Court for review of three recent state Supreme Court decisions that overturned death sentences for three murderers.  The Great Bend Tribune reports that during its last term, the U.S. Supreme Court agreed to hear only five percent of petitions review filed by state attorneys general.  Kansas should be notified by the high court regarding its cases before the end of the year.  No one has been executed in Kansas since 1965. 

Arrest Made in Decades-Old Homicide Cold Case: A New Jersey mother has been charged with the murder of her five-year-old son 23 years after reporting him missing from a local carnival.  Lorenzo Ferrigno of CNN reports that Michelle Lodzinski, who has since relocated to Florida, had been a suspect, but police were unable find sufficient evidence to charge her.  During a cold case investigation, new evidence was discovered to support a grand jury indictment charging Lodzinski with her son's murder.   

The Wall Street Journal has this article about the convictions in the UN-backed Extraordinary Chambers in the Courts of Cambodia of Khmer Rouge intellectual and political leaders Nuon Chea and Khieu Samphan.

Nuon Chea, 88 years old, the Khmer Rouge's chief ideologue and former deputy to late leader Pol Pot, and 83-year-old Khieu Samphan, the former head of state, were sentenced to life imprisonment on Thursday after being found guilty of crimes against humanity--directing murder, political persecution and other inhumane acts related to the mass eviction of city-dwellers and executions of enemy soldiers.

The verdict, coming nearly three years after the trial began, marked the first convictions secured against top-tier regime officials by the United Nations-backed tribunal, long plagued by funding shortfalls and perceived political interference.

The article hails the convictions as justice for the victims of Khmer Rouge murder and pillage (crimes against humanity as the tribunal calls it) at long last, but convictions are not justice. A criminal conviction is merely a prerequisite to justice. It is the sentence that follows a conviction that determines if justice has been served.

We welcome to the blog Joshua Crawford, third-year law student at Suffolk University, who is interning at CJLF this summer. His first post is here.

Judge to Allow Death Penalty Option in Retrial: A Pennsylvania judge has ruled in favor of allowing prosecutors to seek the death penalty for a man convicted of murdering a woman ten years ago.  The Altoona Mirror reports that jurors in the first trial for 41-year-old Paul Ross deadlocked on whether or not he should be sentenced to death or life behind bars.  Ross' defense attorneys argued that the original jurors essentially decided against sentencing their client to death, therefore it should be barred as a sentencing option in his retrial.     
    
Illegal Immigrants Suspected of Killing Border Patrol Agent: Two illegal immigrants from Mexico have been arrested for the Sunday evening murder of an off-duty U.S. Border Patrol agent.  Fernando Del Valle of the Brownsville Herald reports that the two suspects had been arrested and deported several times in the past and confessed to committing several robberies in the local area.  Both men are facing charges of capital murder, attempted capital murder and aggravated robbery.

Prosecutors Can Seek Death Penalty for Mass Killer: A California judge has ruled that, in spite of prosecutorial misconduct, he would allow the district attorney to seek a death sentence for a man convicted of murdering eight people at a Southern California beauty salon in 2011. Paloma Esquivel of the Los Angeles Times reports that earlier this year, Scott Dekraai pled guilty to eight counts of murder and one count of attempted murder, but wanted the death penalty off the table based on claims of prosecutorial misconduct.  The judge ultimately ruled to allow the death penalty,  citing the prosecutor's mistakes as negligent rather than malicious.

Renowned sentencing expert (and long time buddy) Prof. Doug Berman put up a post about a year ago with this title:  "Could Momentum for Sentencing Reform Now Be Unstoppable in the Federal System?"  The gist of it was that, what with Eric Holder on board, the very enlightened coalition of libertarian-leaning Republicans like Rand Paul, and liberal Democrats, would enact significant sentencing reform legislation.  ("Sentencing reform," for those unfamiliar, means only one thing, to wit, putting felons back on the street faster than they get there now).

With the president and a line-up of his usual antagonists behind the same bill, the momentum for sentencing reform could be unstoppable. The result will be one of the biggest surprises of all the years of the Obama presidency -- a bipartisan success in passing new laws to reduce the nation's prison population.

We often hear that the law overpunishes "non-violent" offenses. This usually means theft of some sort, and the phrase "non-violent" is basically used as a cipher to imply "non-harmful" or "not all that harmful."

Texas Crime Up After Immigration Surge: A group of non-paid police officers are volunteering in Brooks County, Texas to help  gain control of an area overwhelmed by the recent illegal immigration from South America.  Bob Price of Breitbart Texas reports that Brooks County is a popular area for immigrants to enter the U.S., and police there are dealing with increased rapes and  sexual assaults upon women illegally crossing the boarder.  Local law enforcement has also been engaged in several vehicle pursuits causing damaged property and injuries. 
 
CA High Court Upholds Death Sentence: California's Supreme Court has upheld the death penalty for a man convicted of two murders occurring in 1994 and 1995.  City News Service reports that attorneys for Robert Carrasco challenged his sentence claiming that he was not given a fair trial because the judge denied his request for a second attorney and allowed evidence of of Carrasco's escape from jail prior to trial.  While the high court affirmed Carrasco's death sentence, it struck the "especially heinous, atrocious and cruel"  special  circumstance. 

New Law Allows Parole for Murderer: An Alabama man convicted of murder as a juvenile has been sentenced to life in prison with the possibility of parole after 15 years, under a new sentencing law that took effect in January 2014.  Kent Faulk of AL.com reports that 18-year-old Shirell Smith was convicted and sentenced to prison for a murder he committed at the age of 16.  He is among the first murderers sentenced under the state's new guidelines which allows judges to give juveniles convicted of aggravated murder life with the possibility of parole (LWOP).  The new law responds 2012 U.S. Supreme Court ruling in Miller v. Alabama announcing that laws mandating LWOP for juvenile murderers were unconstitutional.

Meanwhile, back in Arizona, Jodi Arias has exercised her "constitutional right ... to make a fool of [her]self."  Faretta v. California, 422 U.S. 806, 852 (1975) (Blackmun, J., dissenting).

AP reports:

PHOENIX (AP) -- A judge ruled Monday that Jodi Arias can represent herself in the upcoming penalty phase of her murder trial, where jurors will decide whether she is put to death for killing her ex-boyfriend.

Arias, 34, was convicted of first-degree murder last year in the 2008 killing of Travis Alexander, but jurors couldn't reach a decision on sentencing. Under Arizona law, while Arias' murder conviction stands, prosecutors have the option of putting on a second penalty phase with a new jury in an effort to secure the death penalty.

Arias, who has long clashed with her defense lawyers and tried to fire them previously, asked Judge Sherry Stephens to let her serve as her own lawyer during the second penalty phase set for Sept. 8. Stephens granted the request but said there would be no delays.

"I do not believe it is in your best interest ... I strongly urge you to reconsider," Stephens told Arias before granting the motion.

CO Legal Marijuana Affecting Surrounding States: Since Colorado began selling legalized marijuana last January, several nearby states have experienced an uptick in pot trafficking across their state lines.  CBS News reports that nearly half of the marijuana purchases in Colorado have been made by out-of-state buyers. At least 40 states have reported confiscating marijuana purchased legally in Colorado. Last year, 288 people were caught smuggling marijuana across Colorado state lines.  Experts believe is just 10% of the actual number of traffickers. 

CA Legislature to Vote on Firearm Control Bill: A bill set hearing in a California Senate committee would take firearms away from those who have shown signs that they may harm themselves or others.  Don Thompson of the Associated Press reports that AB1014 would allow family members, licensed therapists and health care providers to petition a judge to remove firearms from someone deemed to be potentially dangerous.  The law, which if passed would be the first of its kind in the nation, was prompted after this year's deadly attack near UC Santa Barbara that left six dead including the gunman who had shown signs of depression and anger towards himself and others. 

Convicted Killer up for Parole for the 27th Time: A family in Texas is preparing to attend the 27th parole hearing for the man convicted of murdering their daughter more than 45 years ago.  Tommy Witherspoon of the Waco Tribune reports that 71-year-old Carlos Dan Stultz was originally sentenced to death for the crime in 1969, but that sentence was later commuted to life in prison after the U.S. Supreme Court declared the death penalty unconstitutional in 1972.  Stultz is currently serving two life sentences for two murders as well a 50-year sentence for burglary.

OK, they don't endorse murder, exactly, but they come too close for comfort in a truly idiotic, and dishonest, article in Reason Magazine by Nick Gillespie. Its title is, "Why the Death Penalty Needs to Die."  Here's how it starts:  

Another week, another botched killing under the legal euphemism of capital punishment. After macabre screw-ups in Oklahoma and Ohio, it was Arizona's turn last week, when double-murderer Joseph Rudolph Wood III took about two hours to die. The specific problem this time around was an apparently unreliable "cocktail" of the drugs used in the lethal injection process. 

But let's face it: There's no good way to kill a person, even one as completely unsympathetic as Wood (he killed his ex-girlfriend and her father, shooting them at point-blank range). 

Good Samaritans Attacked for Reporting Child Locked in Hot Car: A Colorado woman who alerted police about a child being locked in a hot car has been seriously injured after the child's mother ran the woman and her boyfriend over.  Tammy Vigil of Fox Denver reports that 27-year-old Kristina Riddell, angered about the couple calling police, physically attacked them before running them over and fleeing the scene.  This is not Riddell's first incident with police, she has prior arrests for assault, domestic violence and multiple driving violations.  She now faces charges of hit-and-run, assault and child abuse.

Murder Re-Trial May Result in Death Sentence: A California man behind bars for murder may be sent to death row if found guilty of two more killings at the conclusion of his re-trial.  KESQ News reports that 30-year-old Angel Esparza, a parolee, was tried for the three murders together and was convicted of one.  The jury deadlocked on the other two murder charges forcing a re-trial.  Two of Esparza's accomplices pled guilty to the murders and were sentenced to 15 years to life behind bars.

Teens Charged in Beating Death: Four California teenagers have been charged with the beating death of a University of Southern California graduate student in an attempted robbery.  The Associated Press reports that two of the suspects were juveniles but will be charged as adults after allegedly beating the student to death with a baseball bat and wrench.  The defendants will be arraigned in two weeks on charges of murder during an attempted robbery.

A long time ago, in a galaxy far, far away, judges were neutral.  Parities made their arguments as best they could, and the judge, not taking one side or the other, decided the case under the law.

Francois Holloway has spent nearly two decades of a 57-year sentence in a federal prison, for serious crimes that no one disputes he committed. There were armed carjackings, and his participation in an illegal chop shop, where stolen cars would be dismantled and sold for parts.

But the fairness of the mandatory sentence has been a matter of dispute, not only for Mr. Holloway, but also for a surprising and most effective advocate: the trial judge, John Gleeson.

A commenter recently took me to task, disturbed that I criticized the Administration for its tepid response to the Russian-sponsored mass murder of 298 people in the Ukraine.  The commenter thought my remarks went too far in the direction of a strictly political attack.

Arizona Director of Corrections Charles Ryan has this statement on the execution of Joseph Wood (emphasis added):

The Department of Corrections followed the execution protocol and, as with every execution, it was monitored by an IV team of licensed medical professionals in control of the medical procedures.

The first confirmation that inmate Wood was fully and deeply sedated occurred at 1:57 PM, five minutes after the direction to proceed with the administration of drugs was given. The medical team re-affirmed the inmate remained deeply sedated seven additional times before death was pronounced at 3:49 PM.

Once the inmate was sedated, other than sonorous respiration, or snoring, he did not grimace or make any further movement. Throughout this execution, I conferred and collaborated with our IV team members and was assured unequivocally that the inmate was comatose and never in pain or distress.

Physiologically, the time to complete an execution varies for each individual. The Department of Corrections will conduct a full review of the execution protocol and process. We will await the results of an independent autopsy from the Pima County Medical Examiner and we have requested a toxicology study as well.

Also, Ashby Jones and Jacob Gershman have this story in the WSJ.

The Federal Public Defender for Arizona has filed a motion to stop the execution of Joseph Wood already in progress.  The first paragraph says:

The Arizona Department of Corrections began the execution of Joseph Rudolph Wood III at 1:52 p.m. At 1:57 p.m ADC reported that Mr. Wood was sedated, but at 2:02 he began to breathe. At 2:03 his mouth moved. Mr. Wood has continued to breathe since that time. He has been gasping and snorting for more than an hour. At 3:02 p.m. At that time, staff rechecked for sedation. He is still alive. This execution has violated Mr. Wood's Eighth Amendment right to be executed in the absence of cruel and unusual punishment.

The conclusion does not follow from the premises.  The motion does not dispute the ADC's conclusion that Wood is sedated.  If he is sedated, he is not in pain, and nothing happening here remotely qualifies as "cruel."  Gasping and snorting do not necessarily mean a person is in pain, and if he is sedated he certainly is not.

When states were able to use the single-drug protocol with pentobarbital, the executions went smoothly.  The problem here has been caused by those who pressured the suppliers to stop supplying pentobarbital, and any response should be directed at reopening that supply line.

Update:  AP reports the Arizona AG says the execution is completed, though it took about 2 hours.

The anti-death-penalty crowd is already throwing around their favorite word, "botched."  Wrong.  Joseph Wood died, as he should have, and he was sedated, not suffering extreme pain or, for that matter, any pain.  That is not "botched."

Ryan v. Wood, 14A82 (today):

The application to vacate the judgment of the United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit granting a conditional preliminary injunction, presented to Justice Kennedy and by him referred to the Court, is granted. The district judge did not abuse his discretion in denying Wood's motion for a preliminary injunction. The judgment of the United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit reversing the district court and granting a conditional preliminary injunction is vacated.

No dissent is noted.  That does not necessarily mean the decision is unanimous, but any Justice voting against the order, if any, did not feel strongly enough about it to have it noted.

The Court denied Wood's motion for stay and petition for certiorari in the parallel case seeking review of the Arizona Supreme Court's decision.

Wood's execution is set for 10:00 a.m. Mountain Standard Time tomorrow.  Arizona doesn't go in for that biannual clock-fiddling nonsense.  That's 10:00 a.m. PDT and 1:00 p.m. EDT.

Update (Wednesday, 7/23):  Yesterday the Ninth Circuit rejected an attempt by Wood to reopen his case via Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 60(b).  This morning the U.S. Supreme Court denied a stay of execution and writ of certiorari in that case.  No dissent is noted.

Update 2:  Now the Arizona Supreme Court has issued a stay, according to this AP story 1:41 p.m. EDT 7/23.

Update 3:  The 2:48 EDT update of the AP story (same link) says Arizona Supreme lifted the stay an hour later.  "The appeal focused on arguments that Wood received inadequate legal representation at his sentencing, along with a challenge about the secrecy of the lethal injection drugs."

Colorado Residents Using EBT Cards to Buy Marijuana: According to an analysis conducted by National Review Online, welfare recipients in Colorado have been withdrawing thousands of dollars worth of their cash benefits at marijuana retailers and dispensaries since the state began selling recreational marijuana earlier this year.  Jillian Kay Melchior of National Review Online reports that in the last six months, more than $23,000 has been withdrawn at a variety of marijuana establishments across the state, however, officials have yet to determine how much was spent on marijuana exclusively because some of the stores sell groceries as well.  In order to combat the issue, the state has enacted an emergency rule restricting the use of EBT cards at marijuana shops, bars, liquor stores and gambling establishments.

Convicted Killer Released From Prison Early, Arrested for Murder Again: An Indiana man convicted of murdering his first wife more than 20 years ago has been arrested and charged with murder yet again after authorities say he killed his current wife over the weekend.  The Associated Press reports that 50-year-old Tony Degrafreed was convicted of murder and sentenced to 30 years behind bars in 1995, but was released early and paroled after spending just 12 years in prison.  Authorities arrested Degrafreed on Sunday, charging him with murder and separate assault charges for stabbing his wife's son in the chest, causing minor injuries.

Convicted Killer up For Parole Under New Law: A Massachusetts man convicted of murder and sentenced to life in prison at the age of 17 is now eligible for parole after the state ruled that minors can not be sentenced to life in prison without the chance of parole.  Angie Angers of WPRI reports that Anthony Rolon was convicted of murder and sentenced to life after authorities say he stabbed another teen to death at a party, and so far, has spent just 17 years behind bars.  In 2013, a Massachusetts court ruled it is unconstitutional to sentence a minor to life without parole because their brains are "not fully developed."

Today's News Scan notes the stay of execution granted by a divided panel of the Ninth Circuit to Arizona murderer Joseph Wood so he can litigate his supposed First Amendment right to information about the source of Arizona's execution drugs.  The Ninth swiftly denied rehearing en banc with a dissent joined by 11 of the courts active judges.  The split was largely but not entirely on party-of-appointment lines, with Clinton appointee Richard Tallman and Obama appointee John Owens joining the dissent and Bush appointee Richard Clifton not joining it.

I have no doubt this case is headed for the Supreme Court.  It might be there already.

AZ Murderer Granted Stay of Execution: A federal appeals court has ruled to delay an Arizona man's execution until prison officials reveal details on the two-drug protocol to be used to put him to death.  Jacques Billeaud and Andrew Dalton of the Associated Press report that Joseph Wood's attorneys argued that the murderer's First Amendment rights were violated when officials refused to disclose the source of the drugs and how they would be administered.  Wood was sentenced to death for the 1989 murders of his estranged girlfriend and her father, he was originally scheduled to be executed Wednesday afternoon.

Thousands of Drug Felons set to be Released: The U.S. Sentencing Commission has unanimously voted in favor of retroactively reducing prison sentences for more than 46,000 drug offenders currently serving time behind bars.  Eric Tucker of the Associated Press reports that tens of thousands of these inmates may now be eligible for early release in what officials are calling a 'cost-cutting' proposal aimed at reducing the nation's prison population.  The releases would begin happening in November 2015 and continue on for a period of years.

FL High Court Debates New Juvenile Sentencing Law: Florida's Supreme Court is debating whether or not a new law changing the state's juvenile sentencing guidelines should apply retroactively.  Margie Menzel of The News Service of Florida reports that the new law, HB 7035, which went into effect July 1, requires a hearing in cases involving juvenile murderers facing a life sentence to determine if that sentence is appropriate.  If the life sentence is determined inappropriate, the murderer can  instead by sentenced to a minimum of 35 years in prison.

The US Sentencing Commission voted to support more and earlier heroin (and meth and PCP et al.) trafficking.  It did so by deciding to make its already ill-advised all-comers-welcome reduction of the guidelines for drug sentencing fully retroactive. Here's the USSC press release.

The Commission studied offenders released early after a similar 2007 amendment to the guidelines reducing sentences for crack offenders and found that those offenders were no more likely to re-offend than offenders who had served their original sentences.

Recently Released Immigrant Accused of Murder: A Guatemalan immigrant, released by immigration officials after entering the country illegally last month, has been arrested and charged with murder after authorities say he killed his girlfriend Sunday in Louisiana.  Alicia A. Caldwell of the Associated Press reports that 43-year-old Pedro Monterroso was released by immigration authorities on June 26 after it was determined that he had no criminal history or gang affiliation and was issued a notice to report back once he got settled in the U.S.  Monterroso's girlfriend had also entered the country illegally earlier this year, but had successfully followed up with immigration authorities after settling in Louisiana.

Families Outraged Over Juvenile Parole Bill: Families of murder victims in Massachusetts are outraged after lawmakers announced plans to water down parole guidelines for juveniles convicted of first-degree murder.  Christian M. Wade of Newbury Port News reports that the new legislation would make juveniles convicted of first-degree murder eligible for parole after serving 20 to 30 years behind bars.  The law would only affect murderers convicted after the new legislation is enacted.

Gang Members Lead Police on Deadly Chase: Three men led Stockton, CA police officers on an hour-long chase after authorities say they robbed a bank, took three women hostage and fired shots at responding officers.  Sarah Heise of KCRA reports that by the end of the pursuit, two of the robbers and one hostage were killed.  The third robber was arrested and the two surviving hostages were hospitalized.  All three of the robbers were known gang members, two of which had prior convictions for narcotics, firearms and domestic violence.