Death Penalty News

(The Associated Press © 11/14/2009)

The state's decision to replace a three-drug lethal injection with a powerful dose of one anesthetic is raising the possibility of what may have seemed unthinkable not so long ago: a truce in the long-running legal challenges to death penalty injection across the country.

Death Row Realism

(Los Angeles Times @ 10/2/2008)

Do executions make us safer? San Quentin's former warden says no.

Death penalty not a deterrent, police chiefs say

(The Columbus Dispatch © 10/20/2009)

Death-penalty opponents have new allies from an unlikely source: U.S. police chiefs, who say capital punishment does not deter murderers and has become a low law-enforcement priority.

Study: States can't afford death penalty

(CNN.com © 10/20/2009)

At 678, California has the nation's largest death row population, yet the state has not executed anyone in four years.

The costs to society and the state of capital punishment are too high to justify

(The Plain Dealer © 10/19/2009)

It has been 27 years since neo-Nazi Frank Spisak Jr. terrorized Cleveland State University by fatally shooting three men over a seven-month period.

Capital punishment in Ohio needs serious tweaking

(The Blade © 10/9/2009)

Even before my cousin, Ann, was brutally murdered more than two decades ago, I supported the death penalty. Capital punishment renders justice. I believed that then and now.

2 death-row inmates get reprieve from governor

(The Blade © 10/6/2009)

Gov. Ted Strickland Monday issued reprieves for two death-row inmates as the state reworks its lethal injection process in the wake of an aborted execution attempt last month.

Ohio presses on for execution of inmate from Cuyahoga Falls

(Akron Beacon Journal © 10/5/2009)

The Ohio Attorney General's Office will ask the U.S. Supreme Court to overturn today's appellate court ruling that placed a stay on Thursday's scheduled execution of Lawrence Reynolds.

Ohio governor delays execution amid confusion

(CNN.com © 10/5/2009)

Ohio's governor granted temporary reprieves to two death row inmates just hours after a federal appeals court blocked the execution of one of them -- adding to the mounting confusion over the state's capital punishment system.

Federal court halts Thursday execution of widow's killer

(The Columbus Dispatch © 10/5/2009)

A federal appeals court decision this morning blocking Thursday's execution of Summit County killer Lawrence Reynolds Jr. raised serious questions about Ohio's lethal injection process.

Botched Executions

(The New York Times © 10/3/2009)

Ohio’s attempt to execute Romell Broom last month by lethal injection was the death penalty at its most barbaric.

Time for a Moratorium to Rethink Executions

(The Huffington Post © 9/24/2009)

I am running for the United States Senate because I believe that public service is for the purpose of helping our fellow citizens realize improvement in their lives.

Nov. 30 hearing set for second try to execute inmate

(The Columbus Dispatch © 9/23/2009)

A federal judge in Columbus yesterday further delayed a second attempt to put a condemned rapist and killer to death by lethal injection.

Dying in Vein

(Newsweek © 9/21/2009)

Can a vein save a convicted killer? It the case of Romell Broom—it might. Broom was sentenced to death for raping and murdering 14-year-old Tryna Middleton on Sept. 21, 1984.

Court temporarily halts 2nd execution attempt

(The Plain Dealer © 9/18/2009)

A federal judge on Friday temporarily halted an unprecedented second attempt at lethal injection of an Ohio inmate whose execution was halted this week after he said prison staff painfully hit muscle and bone while trying to access a suitable vein.

Flawed execution

(Akron Beacon Journal © 9/18/2009)

Three times in recent years, Ohio has encountered problems seeking to carry out an execution.

Supreme Court asked to stop 2nd Ohio execution try

(The Plain Dealer © 9/18/2009)

An attorney for an Ohio inmate whose lethal injection failed this week asked the U.S. Supreme Court on Friday to halt an unprecedented second execution attempt scheduled for Tuesday.

'Dead Man Walking' author Helen Prejean speaks at Case Western Reserve University about death penalty and Ohio's failed execution of Romell Broom

(The Plain Dealer © 9/17/2009)

Perhaps even bad publicity from a botched execution may offer some hope -- hope for someday killing the death penalty in Ohio.

Inmate Will Testify About Failed Execution

(The New York Times © 9/17/2009)

Two days after the execution of a convicted rapist-murderer was halted when technicians were unable to inject him with lethal drugs, a federal judge ordered Thursday that the inmate be deposed for a federal lawsuit challenging the constitutionality of Ohio’s lethal injection procedure.

Parole board rejects mercy for Ohio killer

(The Plain Dealer © 9/17/2009)

The Ohio Parole Board has rejected clemency for a man sentenced to die next month for strangling his 67-year-old neighbor.

What's next for unexecuted inmate? Plan still is death

(The Columbus Dispatch © 9/17/2009)

Romell Broom is in the unique if unenviable position of being the first person in modern American history to face execution a second time.

Can Ohio Execute the Same Man Twice?

(CBS News © 9/16/2009)

For two hours Tuesday afternoon at a prison in Lucasville, Ohio, while the rest of us were at work or school or home, Romell Broom's team of executioners worked to find a usable vein which would deliver the lethal injections designed to stop his heart and end his life. 

Effort to kill inmate halted

(The Columbus Dispatch © 9/16/2009)

Ohio's lethal-injection process is under attack again as Gov. Ted Strickland intervened yesterday and halted the execution of Cleveland killer Romell Broom after a prison medical team spent two tense hours trying without success to attach IV lines.

Execution problems prompt one-week reprieve for Ohio inmate

(CNN © 9/15/2009)

Ohio Gov. Ted Strickland on Tuesday gave a death-row inmate a one-week reprieve after authorities tried for hours to find a vein to administer his lethal injection.

Ohio killer's execution placed on hold

(The Columbus Dispatch © 9/15/2009)

Ohio prison officials put the scheduled execution of Romell Broom temporarily on hold this morning, awaiting a decision from the full 6th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals.

Trial by Fire

(The New Yorker © 9/1/2009)

The fire moved quickly through the house, a one-story wood-frame structure in a working-class neighborhood of Corsicana, in northeast Texas.

Strickland denies clemency for murder-for-hire triggerman

(The Columbus Dispatch © 8/14/2009)

Gov. Ted Strickland decided today not to spare the life of convicted killer Jason Getsy, rejecting a rare recommendation for clemency from the Ohio Parole Board.

Judges’ Dissents for Death Row Inmates Are Rising

(The New York Times © 8/13/2009)

It took just 80 words for a federal appeals court to deny Kevin Cooper’s most recent plea to avoid execution.

Clemency not a slam on legal system

(The Columbus Dispatch © 8/8/2009)

The controversy surrounding Jason Getsy's clemency request puts Gov. Ted Strickland in a difficult position.

Ohio is on pace to carry out eight executions this year, the most in any year since the penalty was reinstated in 1999

(The Plain Dealer © 8/10/2009)

The state of Ohio is lining up death-row inmates for execution at a feverish pace not seen here since capital punishment was reinstated a decade ago.

Romell Broom, scheduled for execution in September for 1985 murder, may use public records as basis to seek new trial, appellate court decides

(The Plain Dealer © 7/31/2009)

A death row inmate scheduled for execution in September will get a chance to convince a judge that information discovered after his conviction could have exonerated him.

Next inmate scheduled for execution says he has turned his life around

(The Columbus Dispatch © 7/29/2009)

The next Ohioan scheduled for execution says he has turned his life around in prison, but understands why his victim's family still wants him dead.

Ohio Killer's Lethal Injection Marks 1,000th in US

(The New York Times © 7/21/09)

A man who went on a 1992 Christmas holiday killing spree that left six people dead, including an 18-year-old mother gunned down at a pay phone, was executed Tuesday, the state's second execution in two weeks and the 1,000th lethal injection in the U.S. since the death penalty was reinstated in 1976.

Ohio inmate faces death for 'Christmas killings'

(The Plain Dealer © 7/20/09)

An 18-year-old mother gunned down at a pay phone.

Ohio parole board makes rare mercy recommendation for hired killer

(The Columbus Dispatch © 7/17/09)

The Ohio Parole Board has recommended that Gov. Ted Strickland spare the life of Jason Getsy, a Trumbull County man who is scheduled to be executed next month for the 1995 murder of Ann Serafino, 68.

Ohio gov. rejects mercy for multistate killer

(The Plain Dealer © 7/8/09)

Ohio Gov. Ted Strickland has denied clemency to a man sentenced to die next week for a deadly shooting during a multistate killing rampage in 1991.

Crestliner on death row may get chance to clear name

(Mansfield News Journal © 6/3/2009)

Convicted killer Kevin Keith has long maintained his innocence.

Ohio court sets 2 additional execution dates

(Ohio.com © 6/3/2009)

The Ohio Supreme Court has set execution dates for two killers on death row, bringing to seven the number of executions scheduled this year.

A new Texas? Ohio's death penalty examined

(The Lantern © 5/6/2009)

The Kirwan Institute for the Study of Race and Ethnicity will be hosting a panel discussion titled "Perspectives on Ohio's Death Penalty," Saturday.

Cordray: Death appeals too long

(The Vindicator © 4/2/2009)

Ohio’s appeal process for inmates sentenced to death is still too long and sometimes defeats the possibility of justice being served, Attorney General Richard Cordray told The Associated Press on Wednesday.

New Hampshire House votes to abolish death penalty

(CNN.com © 3/26/2009)

New Hampshire's state House of Representatives voted Wednesday to abolish the state's death penalty, which has not been carried out in nearly 70 years.

New Mexico governor abolishes capital punishment

(Journal News © 3/19/2009)

Gov. Bill Richardson, who has supported capital punishment, signed legislation to repeal New Mexico's death penalty, calling it the "most difficult decision in my political life."

Budget concerns force states to reconsider the death penalty

(CNN © 3/2/2009)

Brian Sanderholm thinks Justin Thurber deserves to die for raping and killing his 19-year-old daughter.

An innocent man lost everything on death row

(Dayton Daily News © 2/23/2009)

Nineteen years after he walked off of Ohio's death row and out of prison, Dale Johnston may finally be in a position to clear his name.

Confinement and despair haunt death row inmates

(Dayton Daily News © 2/23/2009)

As he was walking off of death row, mattress under his arm, Kevin Watson filed past the cells of condemned men who had grown as close to him as brothers.

Third hearing will decide whether death sentence will stand for two-time murderer

(Dayton Daily News © 2/23/2009)

Leslie Cunningham peered into her neighbors' window that day in 1970. "I just remember seeing blood on the walls."

Death row a solitary reality

(Dayton Daily News © 2/23/2009)

Samuel Moreland of Dayton may always be known as the man who slaughtered two adults and three children in 1986.

Death row inmates wait for execution 'in a maze of walls and corridors'

(Dayton Daily News © 2/22/2009)

As he was walking off of death row, mattress under his arm, Kevin Watson filed past the cells of condemned men who had grown as close to him as brothers.

Inmates mark time in stark, controlled environment

(Dayton Daily News © 2/23/2009)

Samuel Moreland of Dayton may always be known as the man who slaughtered two adults and three children in a 1986 rampage.

Worst of the worst eludes death

(Dayton Daily News © 2/21/2009)

By any reasonable standard, Rhett DePew is among the worst of the worst.

Executions get less notice since resuming in '99

(Columbus Dispatch © 2/18/2009)

In the 10 years since Wilford Berry, the Cleveland murderer known as "the Volunteer," died with his eyes open on the lethal-injection table, much has changed and yet much remains the same about capital punishment in Ohio.

A Story of Redemption

(City Beat © 2/17/2009)

Jeffrey Hill was set to be executed on March 3 for murdering his mother in Cincinnati. But Ohio Gov. Ted Strickland followed the recommendation of the Adult Parole Board, as he’s done with all other death penalty cases during his tenure, and now Hill won’t be killed.

Canton man devotes life to exonerating brother

(Canton Repository © 2/17/2009)

Charles Keith is 50. Most days, he feels 35. Time, for him, stopped 15 years ago when his younger brother was convicted of a triple murder and sentenced to death for killing three people.

Strickland warns of 2011 prison closing

(Dayton Daily News © 2/2/2009)

Gov. Ted Strickland warned he might close one of the state's 32 prisons in 2011 unless the state prison population is reduced.

The Tide Shifts Against the Death Penalty

(Time © 2/3/2009)

If there were such a thing as a golden age of capital punishment in America, it peaked in 1999.

Another Cincinnati Black Man Dies

(The Plain Dealer © 1/28/2009)

That will be the headline on March 3 after the state kills Jeff Hill even though the victim’s family is begging the parole board and governor to spare Hill’s life.

Don't add to pain for Emma Dee Hill's family: Regina Brett

(The Plain Dealer © 1/28/2009)

Eddie Sanders doesn't want the state to execute the man who killed his sister.

Killer's execution would prolong the suffering of victim's family

(The Columbus Dispatch © 1/24/2009)

Eighteen years ago, my family experienced a profound tragedy when my sister Emma Dee Hill was murdered.

(The Washington Post © 1/16/2009)

Gov. Martin O'Malley (D) said yesterday that he will for the first time personally sponsor a bill and do "everything in [his] power" to abolish capital punishment in Maryland, signaling his desire to make the issue a chief accomplishment as he enters the second half of his term.

Death Penalty's Expensive, Lawyers Recommend Ending It

(WBBM780 © 1/14/2009)

A Chicago Bar Association committee is unanimously recommending an end to the death penalty in Illinois.

Bill would ban execution of mentally ill killers

(The News & Observer © 1/13/2009)

A coalition of advocates for the mentally ill and a state Superior Court judge spoke in favor today of legislation that would exclude the severely mentally ill from the death penalty.

Ohio sentences 3 to death in 2008, a record low

(The Columbus Dispatch © 1/6/2009)

Ohio sentenced three people to death last year, the lowest number since the state re-enacted capital punishment 27 years ago.

Eight southern states and Ohio '08 saw fewer executions

(The Columbus Dispatch © 12/11/2008)

Ohio was the only state outside the southern United States to carry out an execution in 2008, a year in which use of capital punishment declined nationally by 12 percent and new death sentences hit the lowest level in 32 years, the annual report by the Death Penalty Information Center concluded.

Ohio high court sets 2 execution dates

(The Columbus Dispatch © 12/03/2008)

COLUMBUS, Ohio (AP) - The Ohio Supreme Court has set execution dates next year for two condemned inmates.

Ohio executes Bryant-Bey for 1992 North Toledo murder

(The Blade © 11/19/2008)

LUCASVILLE, Ohio — Gregory Bryant-Bey claimed he was framed by investigators and prosecutors, and condemned his trial lawyers just moments before being administered the chemicals that ended his life, making him the 28th man executed in the state since 1999.

Death-penalty cases in Franklin County becoming rarer

(The Columbus Dispatch © 11/03/2008)

The 36-year-old truck driver from the North Side said he favors the death penalty for those convicted of the most-heinous crimes.

Long wait for Cooey's execution finally ends 

(Akron Beacon Journal © 10/14/2008)

LUCASVILLE: Twenty-five people gathered in a cramped, concrete-walled room to watch Richard Wade Cooey take his last breath.

Ohio To Cooey: Forget About It

(Akron News Now © 9/20/2008)

The state is urging a judge to reject an Akron condemned inmate's request to delay his execution while he argues he can't be put to death humanely.