death penalty
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2 Police Officers Killed in Fla., Suspect Apprehended
Two police officers in Kissimmee, Fla., a suburb of Orlando, have died after a shootout Friday night. Police have identified the victims as Sgt. Richard “Sam” Howard, who was pronounced dead at a hospital Saturday afternoon, and Officer Matthew Baxter, who died at the scene. Everett Glenn Miller, 45, has been charged with first-degree murder…
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Fla. Sheriff’s Office Investigating Noose Sent to Black Prosecutor Who Refused to Pursue Death Penalty
The Orange County Sheriff’s Office in Florida is investigating after a noose was mailed to the office of State Attorney Aramis Ayala, who announced last month that she won’t pursue the death penalty in any case she handles during her tenure. Orlando Weekly reports that Ayala’s chief investigator, Eric Edwards, contacted sheriff’s deputies with the…
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Prosecutor Sues Fla. Gov. for Taking Her Off Capital Cases After Refusal to Seek Death Penalty
Florida prosecutor Aramis Ayala on Tuesday filed a lawsuit against Gov. Rick Scott after he stripped her office of some 23 first-degree murder cases because she refused to pursue the death penalty. According to CNN, Ayala, the state attorney for the 9th Judicial Circuit, claims that Scott’s decision violated her constitutional rights, marred her reputation…
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Dylann Roof Pleads Guilty to State Murder Charges
White supremacist Dylann Roof has pleaded guilty to state murder charges in the Charleston, S.C., church massacre of nine black worshippers; in doing so, he is forgoing a second death-penalty trial. As the Associated Press notes, the move now leaves Roof awaiting execution in federal prison and also spares his surviving victims and the families…
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White Supremacist Dylann Roof to Plead Guilty to State Murder Charges: Report
Dylann Roof—the white supremacist who was convicted earlier this year of several federal charges, including hate crimes, and sentenced to death for the murder of nine black worshippers at a historic black church in Charleston, S.C.—will plead guilty to state murder charges in April, forgoing the second death penalty trial that was scheduled. According to…
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Fla. Governor Removes Prosecutor From Markeith Loyd Case After She Says She Won’t Pursue Death Penalty
Florida Gov. Rick Scott removed State Attorney Aramis Ayala from the case of accused cop killer Markeith Loyd on Thursday after she announced that she would not pursue the death penalty in this case or any other case she handles during her tenure. The Orlando Sentinel reports that Scott issued an executive order giving the…
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Ark. Rushes to Execute 8 Men in Almost as Many Days—Half of Them Black
In what only can be described as a mad rush toward death, the state of Arkansas plans to execute eight inmates in April because of a looming expiration date for a drug the state uses in executions. The New York Times reports that all eight men—four black, four white—were convicted of murders that occurred between…
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Supreme Court Orders New Hearing in Case of Texas Inmate’s Racially Biased Death Sentence
Duane Buck may get justice yet. On Wednesday the Supreme Court of the United States ordered a new hearing for Buck, a black Texas inmate who has sat for years on death row, after hearing claims that improper testimony about his race got him sentenced to death. As The Guardian reports, justices voted 6-2 in…
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Miss. Considers Firing Squad, Electrocution and Gas Chamber as Execution Methods
Mississippi lawmakers are pushing forth a proposal to add firing squad, electrocution and the gas chamber as methods of execution in case a court blocks the use of the drugs that are used in lethal injections, the Associated Press reports. The bill, Mississippi House Judiciary B Committee Chairman Andy Gipson said, is a response to…
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Dylann Roof Sentenced to Death in Charleston, SC, Church Massacre
Updated Tuesday, Jan. 10, 2017, 5 p.m. EST: Dylann Roof, the convicted white supremacist who was responsible for the murders of nine black parishioners at a historically black church, was condemned to death by a federal jury Tuesday, the New York Times reports. The jury, consisting of nine whites and three blacks, returned a unanimous verdict…