Police Opposed to Proposed Pawnshop Law Changes: Police are against a proposal in the Ohio Legislature that would loosen reporting requirements for pawnbrokers and scrapyard owners, making it easier for thieves to sell stolen property. Lucas Sullivan of the Columbus Dispatch reports that Senate Bill 270 would remove the burden on pawnshop owners to comply with municipal laws detailing how they must report the items they buy to police, which typically entails reporting purchases to a database operated by a third-party company. The burden would instead shift police and local governments rather than business owners. The bill also eliminates a requirement for pawnshop owners that says they must refuse to purchase items from people who are intoxicated or who are known or believed to be a criminal or receivers of stolen property. The bill has yet to be scheduled for a committee hearing.
AL Judge Declares Death Penalty Scheme Unconstitutional: An Alabama judge ruled Thursday that the state's death penalty sentencing scheme, which permits judges to override jury recommendations, is unconstitutional. Kent Faulk of AL reports that Jefferson County Circuit Judge Tracie Todd's ruling, which followed a hearing, barred the death penalty in the cases of four men charged in three murders. Todd's order does not apply statewide, as she has only barred imposition of the death penalty in the cases before her, but it could become precedent if an appellate court were to uphold her ruling. Defense attorneys argue that Alabama's death sentencing scheme is the same as Florida's, which was ruled unconstitutional by the U.S. Supreme Court in January, and that a jury, not a judge, should have the final say in whether to impose a death sentence. Prosecutors say, however, that the two systems are not exactly the same because Alabama law, unlike Florida, allows juries to decide on aggravating factors. Further, the U.S. Supreme Court knew about the similarities between the two sentencing schemes but did not strike down Alabama's two months ago when it made its ruling against Florida's.
Judiciary Chairmen Angered over Immigration Policies: House and Senate Judiciary Committee Chairmen expressed outrage this week toward an Obama administration policy that facilitated the release of three criminal aliens charged with drunk driving and implicated in the murder and injury of Americans. Caroline May of Breitbart reports that at the center of the issue is the selective immigration enforcement policies of the U.S. Department of Homeland Security that were enacted with President Obama's 2014 executive amnesty, in which deportations of illegal immigrants are prioritized to include only those who have a felony conviction, are a threat to national security, have multiple misdemeanors or are recent border crossers. The Chairmen say that the Obama administration's high bar to enforce immigration law has resulted in at least two women dead, one in a coma and another seriously injured.
AL Judge Declares Death Penalty Scheme Unconstitutional: An Alabama judge ruled Thursday that the state's death penalty sentencing scheme, which permits judges to override jury recommendations, is unconstitutional. Kent Faulk of AL reports that Jefferson County Circuit Judge Tracie Todd's ruling, which followed a hearing, barred the death penalty in the cases of four men charged in three murders. Todd's order does not apply statewide, as she has only barred imposition of the death penalty in the cases before her, but it could become precedent if an appellate court were to uphold her ruling. Defense attorneys argue that Alabama's death sentencing scheme is the same as Florida's, which was ruled unconstitutional by the U.S. Supreme Court in January, and that a jury, not a judge, should have the final say in whether to impose a death sentence. Prosecutors say, however, that the two systems are not exactly the same because Alabama law, unlike Florida, allows juries to decide on aggravating factors. Further, the U.S. Supreme Court knew about the similarities between the two sentencing schemes but did not strike down Alabama's two months ago when it made its ruling against Florida's.
Judiciary Chairmen Angered over Immigration Policies: House and Senate Judiciary Committee Chairmen expressed outrage this week toward an Obama administration policy that facilitated the release of three criminal aliens charged with drunk driving and implicated in the murder and injury of Americans. Caroline May of Breitbart reports that at the center of the issue is the selective immigration enforcement policies of the U.S. Department of Homeland Security that were enacted with President Obama's 2014 executive amnesty, in which deportations of illegal immigrants are prioritized to include only those who have a felony conviction, are a threat to national security, have multiple misdemeanors or are recent border crossers. The Chairmen say that the Obama administration's high bar to enforce immigration law has resulted in at least two women dead, one in a coma and another seriously injured.
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