Death Penalty News

Death Row inmate wins case for new DNA testing

(The Columbus Dispatch © 5/3/2013)

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Convicted inmates still trying to prove their innocence from Death Row and elsewhere in Ohio’s prison system received an assist from the Ohio Supreme Court yesterday.

Ex-inmates say innocent men remain on Death Row

(The Columbus Dispatch © 4/12/2013)

Derrick Jamison has moved to Louisiana since his 2005 release from Ohio’s Death Row. But the former Cincinnati resident said he is compelled to return by memories of the men he saw put to death during the 20 years he spent behind bars after being wrongly convicted.

Death row shrinks as new sentences dwindle

(Dayton Daily News © 1/4/2013)

The head count on Ohio’s death row continues to decline, as the killers who either are executed, die in prison of other causes, win appeals or receive clemency outnumber new death sentences, which have slowed to a trickle.

Kasich’s clemencies rare

(The Columbus Dispatch © 1/2/2013)

During his two years in office, Gov. John Kasich used his clemency power to spare or extend the lives of five convicted killers. The Republican governor also allowed eight men to be executed.

Kasich spares condemned obese killer

(The Columbus Dispatch © 12/17/2012)

The governor today sidestepped a decision about whether a condemned inmate was too fat to be humanely executed by sparing the prisoner on the grounds that he had poor legal representation.

Ohio executes killer who stabbed woman 138 times

(The Columbus Dispatch © 11/13/2012)

Ohio today executed a condemned killer who claimed he was innocent of stabbing a woman 138 times, slitting her throat and cutting off her hands.

It’s official: Man was wrongfully convicted

(The Columbus Dispatch © 11/1/2012)

After spending seven years on Death Row for a pair of now-three-decade-old murders that he didn’t commit, Dale Johnston feels he finally has pocketed a piece of long-denied justice.

Inmate on death row professes innocence

(The Vindicator © 10/15/2012)

An Akron man facing execution next month for the murder and dismemberment of a woman 15 years ago maintains his innocence, saying prosecutors and a jailhouse snitch lied about the crime and failed to test evidence that could exonerate him.

Pierson will not face death penalty

(The Highland County Press © 9/11/2012)

Highland County Prosecutor Anneka P. Collins presented charges to the Highland County Grand Jury Tuesday in reference to Matthew Kaleb Pierson.

Murderer escapes death; prosecutors back off

(Cincinnati.com © 9/11/2012)

David Franks escaped a potential death sentence Tuesday when Hamilton County prosecutors dropped the death penalty charges and allowed him to be sent to prison for life.

Research racial bias in sentences

(Tribune Chronicle © 7/30/2012)

Those who cannot - or will not - remember the past indeed may be condemned to repeat it.

Ky. switching to use of 1 drug in executions

(Cincinnati.com © 07/21/2012)

Kentucky is switching to a single drug to carry out inmate executions, becoming the latest state to drop a three-drug mixture for lethal injections.

Man sitting on Death Row does not deserve to die for his crime

(The Columbus Dispatch © 7/7/2012)

As the elected prosecuting attorney for Mahoning County, I prosecuted John Jeffrey Eley in 1987 for the aggravated murder of Ishan Aydah.

Judge spares Cleveland killer from execution

(The Columbus Dispatch © 06/15/2012)

A judge ruled today that a condemned killer is too mentally ill to be executed for the death of his wife and brother-in-law, a decision that comes just a week after the governor made a reprieve hours before he was set to die.

Inman gets life in prison

(The Columbus Dispatch © 06/14/2012)

Will Inman is just a boy in a man’s body, a 27-year-old who never had to fight his own battles, his attorney said today.

A Stay of Execution

(The New York Times © 6/6/2012)

Doing what law and justice required, Gov. John Kasich of Ohio on Tuesday granted a two-week reprieve to Abdul Awkal, who had been scheduled to be executed Wednesday morning.

Gov. Kasich grants two-week reprieve to death-row inmate

(Mansfield News Journal © 6/6/2012)

Republican Gov. John Kasich on Tuesday issued a rare last-minute reprieve for a condemned killer, sparing Abdul Awkal for two weeks to allow a judge to hold a hearing on his mental competency.

Exercise caution before executing the severely mentally ill: William T. Robinson III

(The Plain Dealer © 6/6/2012)

Abdul Awkal is scheduled to be executed today for the 1992 murder of his estranged wife and brother-in-law.

Kasich won't spare killer of two

(The Columbus Dispatch © 5/30/2012)

Gov. John Kasich denied clemency today for a Cleveland man scheduled to be executed next week.

Innocents have been executed

(The Columbus Dispatch © 5/29/2012)

If you’re reading this in a comfortable, middle-class home, what happened to Carlos DeLuna almost certainly could never happen to you.

Execution drug criticized

(The Columbus Dispatch © 5/25/2012)

The same anesthetic that caused the overdose death of pop star Michael Jackson is now the drug of choice for executions in Missouri.

Charges Dismissed Against Houser in St. Dom's Slaying

(33 wytv News© 5/24/2012)

Jamar Houser could have faced the death penalty if convicted in the murder of Angeline Fimognari outside St. Dominic's Church in 2010.

Shifts detected in support for death penalty

(USA Today © 4/25/2012)

The campaign to abolish the death penalty has been freshly invigorated this month in a series of actions that supporters say represents increasing evidence that America may be losing its taste for capital punishment.

Ohio executes killer of teen

(The Columbus Dispatch © 4/18/2012)

More than 26 years after he brutally murdered a Rootstown, Ohio, teenager, Mark Wayne Wiles paid the ultimate price today.

Federal judge says Ohio can execute killer

(The Columbus Dispatch © 4/4/2012)

A federal judge has apparently cleared the way for Ohio to resume executions.

A killer’s words

(Tribune Chronicle © 2/26/2012)

Ohio death row inmate Charles ''Chucky'' Lorraine called the elderly Warren couple he befriended and then murdered in 1986 ''the two nicest people you would ever want to meet.''

Is Ohio's death penalty under its own death watch? Questions, criticism mount about Ohio executions

(The Plain Dealer © 2/19/2012)

Ohio's capital punishment system could be under its own death watch as scrutiny over how the state executes prisoners has led to calls for significant changes -- if not an outright repeal -- of the death penalty.

Prosecutors object to new trial for man on death row

(The Morning Journal © 2/17/2012)

Prosecutors are objecting to death row inmate Freddie McNeil’s request for a new trial for the 1994 killing of Blake Fulton.

Ohio justice rejects death penalty law he wrote

(Dayton Daily News © 2/15/2012)

As a young state senator 30 years ago, Paul Pfeifer helped write Ohio's death penalty law.

U.S. Supreme Court delays execution of Ohio killer

(The Columbus Dispatch © 2/8/2012)

The U.S. Supreme Court has rejected Ohio’s request to put a condemned killer to death by refusing to overrule lower-court rulings that put the execution on hold.

What the justice did not know

(The Akron Beacon Journal © 1/29/2012)

The Bucyrus Telegraph-Forum recently carried an interview with Paul Pfeifer. The subject was capital punishment, the Ohio Supreme Court justice having pledged a year ago to bring more sustained attention to whether the state should keep the death penalty.

Execution postponed for Ohio man in arson death

(The Columbus Dispatch © 1/26/2012)

Another Ohio execution has been postponed as state prison officials continue refining lethal-injection protocol to meet a federal judge’s requirements.

Condemned man claims innocence in arson death

(The Columbus Dispatch © 1/24/2012)

A man scheduled to die next month for starting a fire that killed his 3-year-old son says new arson science backs up his claim of innocence.

U.S. Supreme Court closes case against Joe D'Ambrosio for murder

(The Plain Dealer © 1/23/2012)

The 23-year-old case against Joe D'Ambrosio, the former death row inmate now living in North Royalton, has finally ended.

New trial ordered in double slaying due to attorney’s affair with client’s wife

(The Columbus Dispatch © 1/12/2012)

A man who was convicted in 1997 of killing his parents in their Jackson Township home is entitled to a new trial because his attorney was having an affair with his wife while defending him, a judge ruled yesterday.

EU curbs sale of execution drugs

(The Columbus Dispatch © 12/21/2011)

The European Union said yesterday that it will place new restrictions on the sale of lethal-injection drugs to countries that have yet to abolish capital punishment.

Death-penalty opponents appeal to end the system

(The Columbus Dispatch © 12/15/2011)

Against a backdrop of a 35-year low in U.S. death sentences, Ohio Supreme Court Justice Paul E. Pfeifer, family members of murder victims, and Death Row exonerees yesterday urged state lawmakers to abolish capital punishment.

Executions, death sentences continue steady declines in 2011

(cnn.com © 12/15/2011)

The number of executions and death sentences nationwide continues a steady decline, according to a study released Thursday, matching dwindling public support for capital punishment in general.

Gov. John Kitzhaber: Oregon death penalty fails 'basic standards of justice'

(The Oregonian © 11/22/2011)

SALEM -- Twice, Gov. John Kitzhaber has found himself torn between his physician's oath to do no harm and his governor's oath to uphold the state constitution.

Defendant no longer faces death penalty

(Youngstown Vindicator © 11/8/2011)

Kenneth Moncrief, the second defendant in the Aug. 11, 2009, double-suffocation murder, no longer faces the death penalty.

Appeals court to look at death sentence

(The Columbus Dispatch © 11/8/2011)

In another twist in one of Ohio’s most convoluted murder cases, the 6th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals will decide whether John David Stumpf should get the death penalty again for killing a New Concord woman 27 years ago.

U.S. Supreme Court restores death penalty in local slaying

(Toledo Blade © 11/8/2011)

The murder conviction and death sentence of Archie Dixon in the 1993 “buried-alive” slaying of his former roommate, Christopher Hammer, were reinstated Monday by the U.S. Supreme Court.

Task force questions when prosecutors should pursue capital punishment

(The Columbus Dispatch © 11/3/2011)

It didn’t take long for an Ohio death penalty task force to disagree on something.

Lifelong Death Sentences

(The New York Times © 10/31/2011)

In 1978, when he was 27, Manuel Valle killed a police officer in Coral Gables, Fla.

Death Row moving to Chillicothe, state confirms

(The Columbus Dispatch © 10/3/2011)

It’s official: Ohio’s Death Row will move to the Chillicothe Correctional Institution by Jan. 1.

Kasich spares killer's life

(The Columbus Dispatch © 9/27/2011)

Convicted killer Joseph Murphy has a list of people to thank for sparing his life — Gov. John Kasich, the Ohio Parole Board, his public-defender attorneys.

Parole board recommends governor spare life of convicted killer

(The Columbus Dispatch © 9/23/2011)

The Ohio Parole Board today unanimously recommended to Gov. John Kasich that he spare the life of convicted killer Joseph Murphy of Marion.

Former justice, victim’s niece speak up for killer

(The Columbus Dispatch © 9/16/2011)

A former Ohio Supreme Court justice and the victim’s niece were among the witnesses who urged the Ohio Parole Board yesterday to recommend sparing the life of convicted murderer Joseph Murphy of Marion.

Clemency request for killer based on childhood

(The Columbus Dispatch © 9/13/2011)

He was an uneducated, abused kid from a dirt-poor West Virginia family whose father traded him for sex with another man when he was 6 in order to get a jug of moonshine.

Marion man awaits clemency in 24-year-old murder

(The Columbus Dispatch © 9/12/2011)

He was an uneducated, abused kid from a dirt-poor West Virginia family whose father traded him for sex with another man when he was six to get a jug of moonshine.

Task force will review death penalty in Ohio

(The Columbus Dispatch © 9/8/2011)

The Ohio Supreme Court and State Bar Association are creating a joint task force to review the administration of the death penalty in Ohio.

Kasich postpones execution while lethal-injection debate continues

(The Columbus Dispatch © 9/2/2011)

The execution of another Death Row inmate, Billy Slagle of Cuyahoga County, has been postponed by Gov. John Kasich because of an ongoing legal fight about the state’s lethal injection procedures.

Blair takes lead in fight against death penalty

(Middletown Journal © 8/21/2011)

There’s been a summer pause in the execution of Ohio’s death row inmates and state Rep. Terry Blair would like to see that pause made permanent.

The Quiet Revolution In The Death Penalty Debate

(NPR.org © 8/16/2011)

There are 58 people on federal death row in Terre Haute, Ind. But for now none appears likely to face the ultimate punishment, at least not on President Obama's watch.

Sloppy execution

(Ohio.com © 7/23/2011)

Federal Judge Gregory Frost put it straight about the sloppy way Ohio conducts executions: “It is the policy of the state of Ohio that the state follows its written execution policy, except when it does not. This is nonsense.”

Governor delays execution over lethal injection concerns

(The Columbus Dispatch © 7/21/2011)

Gov. John Kasich today postponed the scheduled execution of convicted killer Brett Hartman of Summit County, citing a federal judge's ruling in another case questioning the state's lethal injection procedure.

Ruling halts Ohio executions

(The Columbus Dispatch © 7/14/2011)

Ohio executions are on hold while state prison officials adjust lethal-injection procedures that a federal judge termed haphazard.

Convicted killer pleads for clemency

(Ohio.com © 7/13/2011)

The Ohio Parole Board heard competing arguments Tuesday over whether to recommend clemency for condemned Akron murderer Brett Hartmann.

States: Death-penalty drug scramble, higher cost

(Businessweek.com © 7/9/2011)

States not only are having an increasingly difficult time getting the injectable drugs to carry out death sentences, they're also paying as much as 10 times more for the chemicals as in years past.

Death Penalty, Still Racist and Arbitrary

(The New York Times © 7/8/2011)

Last week was the 35th anniversary of the return of the American death penalty. It remains as racist and as random as ever.

Judge delays condemned Ohio killer's execution

(The Columbus Dispatch © 7/8/2011)

A federal judge on Friday delayed the execution of a condemned Ohio killer of two, agreeing with the inmate that the state enforces some of its execution policies haphazardly.

Kasich commutes convicted killer's sentence to life without parole

(The Columbus Dispatch © 6/8/2011)

Convicted killer Shawn Hawkins will not be executed because details of his role in the double slaying are "frustratingly unclear," Gov. John Kasich said today in commuting his death sentence to life without parole.

Uncertainty demands clemency for death-row inmate

(The Blade © 6/2/2011)

Shawn Hawkins has friends in high places. Not only does the Ohio death row inmate have all the usual opponents of capital punishment working to spare his life, set to end in 13 days, but even conservative, pro-death penalty Republicans are on board.

DOJ Tells Arizona it Illegally Obtained Death Penalty Drug

(abcNews.com © 5/25/2011)

Hours before the scheduled execution of an Arizona death row inmate, the Department of Justice informed the state that it should not use a controversial drug as part of the execution protocol because the state had illegally obtained the drug from a foreign source.

27 years later, frail killer meets his own end

(The Columbus Dispatch © 5/18/2011)

In his final minutes, Daniel Lee Bedford could have glanced to his left and seen the face of the young woman whose life he extinguished 27 years ago.

Europe fights the death penalty ― with drugs

(Global Post © 5/13/2011)

The Danish pharmaceutical company Lundbeck has an ethical dilemma.

Rarely used, Pennsylvania's death penalty remains a headache on both sides of the debate

(Philly.com © 5/15/2011)

Year after year, polls show that about 60 percent of U.S. citizens support executing people convicted of murder.

Board recommends mercy for condemned Ohio inmate

(The Columbus Dispatch © 5/12/2011)

The Ohio Parole Board has recommended mercy for a condemned inmate who says he's innocent of killing two men in 1989.

Shawn Hawkins faces last chance for life

(Cincinnati.com © 5/2/2011)

At the moment, Shawn Hawkins has seven weeks to live.

Danes to urge Ohio, Texas to stop using drug for executions

(The Columbus Dispatch © 4/14/2011)

Denmark's foreign minister says she will urge U.S. states such as Texas and Ohio to stop using a drug in lethal injections that is produced by a Danish company.

Ohio Parole Board recommends no clemency for Bedford

(The Columbus Dispatch © 4/13/2011)

A day after Ohio executed the third convicted killer this year, the Ohio Parole Board today recommended against clemency for the man who could become the fourth.

While some push to end capital punishment in Ohio, others are fighting to keep it alive

(The News-Herald © 3/27/2011)

Even as the Geauga County Common Pleas Court recently sentenced a person to death for the first time since at least 1981, two Ohio Democrats are lobbying for a bill that would eliminate the death penalty throughout the state.

The Broken Machinery of Death

(The New York Times © 3/18/2011)

The Drug Enforcement Administration seized Georgia’s sodium thiopental supply this week, after a complaint that the sedative used in the three-drug protocol for execution by lethal injection was imported illegally.

While some push to end capital punishment in Ohio, others are fighting to keep it alive

(The Columbus Dispatch © 3/14/2011)

Even as the Geauga County Common Pleas Court recently sentenced a person to death for the first time since at least 1981, two Ohio Democrats are lobbying for a bill that would eliminate the death penalty throughout the state.

Bill proposes ending Ohio's death penalty

(The Columbus Dispatch © 3/14/2011)

As Ohio heads toward a possible record number of executions this year, two lawmakers have introduced legislation to abolish the state's death penalty.

Killer executed for 1994 Toledo murder

(The Columbus Dispatch © 3/10/2011)

Ohio has put to death the killer of a Toledo store owner with the country's first-ever use of pentobarbital as a stand-alone execution drug.

Nathan Chesley needs to be heard in Tyrone Noling's death row case: Regina Brett

(Cleveland.com © 3/6/2011)

Nathan Chesley wants the world to know that an innocent man is sitting on Ohio's death row.

Questions in death row inmate Tyrone Noling's case deserve answers: Regina Brett

(Cleveland.com © 2/24/2011)

A cigarette butt could have the power to free a man on death row, but Portage County prosecutors don't want to allow it to be tested.

Ohio executes murderer who 'hunted' blacks

(The Columbus Dispatch © 2/17/2011)

When Frank Spisak was going on "hunting parties" targeting blacks in Cleveland, Ronald Reagan was president, a stamp cost 20 cents and the Cincinnati Bengals played in the Super Bowl XVI.

Ohio sets execution dates for seven killers

(The Columbus Dispatch © 2/8/2011)

The Ohio Supreme Court today set execution dates for seven convicted killers, bringing to nine the total scheduled this year.

Retire Ohio's death penalty: Paul E. Pfeifer

(Cleveland.com © 1/26/2011)

Are we, the people of Ohio, well served by our continuing use of the death penalty?

Former chief of Ohio's prison system says it's time to end the death penalty: Regina Brett

(Cleveland.com © 1/27/2011)

Terry Collins watched the state of Ohio kill 33 men.

Justice system can be improved by removing ultimate penalty

(The Columbus Dispatch © 1/25/2011)

For more than 32 years I had the honor of working at the Ohio Department of Rehabilitation and Correction.

Mercy plea rejected for convicted killer, Nazi sympathizer

(The Columbus Dispatch © 1/21/2011)

The Ohio Parole Board has unanimously rejected a mercy plea by convicted killer and Nazi sympathizer Frank Spisak of Cleveland.

9 to face their fate in ’11 capital cases

(Vindy.com © 1/2/2011)

Nine men are facing the death penalty in five aggravated murder cases as 2011 begins in Mahoning County Common Pleas Court.

Okla. set to execute inmate with substitute drug

(The Columbus Dispatch © 12/16/2010)

A man on Oklahoma's death row for the 2001 slaying of his cellmate is believed to be the first U.S. inmate set to be executed using a sedative commonly used to euthanize animals.

Peculiar Institution: America’s Death Penalty in an Age of Abolition

(The New York Review of Books © 12/23/2010)

David Garland is a well-respected sociologist and legal scholar who taught courses on crime and punishment at the University of Edinburgh before relocating to the United States over a decade ago.

Exposé Hits Hard at Death Penalty System

(The New York Times © 11/13/2010)

In our collective myopia, we may assume the Illinois death-penalty system is fixed.

Strickland spares killer of child from execution

(The Columbus Dispatch © 11/15/2010)

In the last death-penalty case he will face as governor, Ted Strickland today spared the life of a Youngstown man who gunned down a 3-year-old girl on the porch of her home.

Texas case shows folly of death penalty

(The Columbus Dispatch © 11/8/2010)

A few days ago, Anthony Graves called his mother and asked what she was cooking for dinner.

Ohio executes record eighth man this year

(The Columbus Dispatch © 10/6/2010)

The execution of Michael Benge will make headlines because he was Ohio's eighth lethal injection this year, a new record.

No clemency for killer Benge, Parole Board votes

(The Columbus Dispatch © 9/15/2010)

The Ohio Parole Board has voted unanimously against clemency for convicted killer Michael Benge.

Governor commutes death sentence to life

(The Columbus Dispatch © 9/3/2010)

The courts and Ohio Parole Board are convinced he's a triple murderer. Keith and his supporters say he's an innocent man.

Ohio’s Governor Spares Life of a Death Row Inmate

(The New York Times© 9/2/2010)

A death row inmate convicted of murdering a child and two adults was spared the death penalty Thursday by Gov. Ted Strickland of Ohio, who said there were possible problems with the evidence.

Clemency overrides unanimous parole board decision

(MansfieldNewsJournal.com © 9/3/2010)

A condemned inmate had his life spared Thursday when Ohio Gov. Ted Strickland cited "legitimate questions" about evidence used to convict the inmate, even though the governor believes the prisoner committed the crimes.

A 'troubling' case, and a life, rest in Ohio Gov. Ted Strickland's hands: Connie Schultz

(Cleveland.com © 8/22/2010)

One of the horrible blessings bestowed on the governor of Ohio is the occasional duty to play God, one life at a time.

Time to slow march to death: editorial

(Cleveland.com © 8/18/2010)

Four weeks from today, Kevin Keith is scheduled to die.

Federal judge upholds lethal injection in Ohio

(The Columbus Dispatch © 8/16/2010)

A federal judge has rejected the latest challenges to lethal injection in Ohio, saying an appeals court has settled the issue.

Are We About To Execute Yet Another Possibly Innocent Person?

The Huffington Post © 8/10/2009

Kevin Keith is scheduled to be executed in Ohio on September 15, 2010.

Unusual Alliance Protests Execution

(The New York Times © 8/9/2010)

An unlikely array of Republicans and Democrats, attorneys general and federal and state judges and prosecutors has lined up to fight the execution of a death row inmate many believe to be innocent.

Killer executed, but when isn't certain

(The Columbus Dispatch © 7/14/2010)

William Garner may have been ready to go, but his body wasn't.

Killer of 5 children is executed

(The Columbus Dispatch © 7/13/2010)

A Cincinnati man who set an apartment fire that snuffed out the lives of five children was executed this morning.

Strickland grants clemency to killer

(The Columbus Dispatch © 6/4/2010)

Gov. Ted Strickland has decided to spare the life of Hamilton County killer Richard Nields who was scheduled for execution next week.

Ohio's execution drug in short supply

(The Columbus Dispatch © 5/11/2010)

A worldwide shortage of an anesthetic used in lethal injections almost kept Ohio from proceeding with an execution scheduled for Thursday.

2nd judge pulled from Sowell case

(The Columbus Dispatch © 4/23/2010)

The Ohio Supreme Court has ordered that a judge be removed from the trial of a man suspected of killing 11 women whose remains were found in and around his home.

Parole Board rejects clemency for killer

(The Columbus Dispatch © 4/21/2010)

The Ohio Parole Board has denied a request for mercy from a death row inmate who fatally shot a man while hitchhiking almost three decades ago.

Suicide watch stepped up for Death Row inmate

(The Columbus Dispatch © 4/19/2010)

The next inmate to be executed in Ohio is under heightened security as the state tries to avoid another suicide attempt on Death Row.

Death Row inmate had purloined 30 doses of antidepressant

(The Columbus Dispatch © 3/26/2010)

In the weeks before his execution, Lawrence Reynolds secretly began stockpiling the prescription medication Elavil, determined to take his own life rather than "give the state any satisfaction of killing him."

Inmate gets 1-week reprieve after apparent suicide try

(The Columbus Dispatch © 3/8/2010)

The inmate who apparently tried to kill himself to avoid execution is showing signs of consciousness and will get a one-week reprieve, prison officials said this afternoon.

Ohio pipe killer to be executed on Oct. 6

(The Columbus Dispatch © 2/19/2010)

The Ohio Supreme Court has set an October execution date for a condemned killer who beat his girlfriend with a pipe, threw her in a river and stole $400 from her bank account.

Death penalty taken off the table in retrial in killing of Reynoldsburg merchant

(The Columbus Dispatch © 2/17/2010)

The retrial of a man accused of killing an immigrant storekeeper in 2007 began yesterday, but this time Christopher Cameron will not face the possibility of the death penalty.

Thomas Michael Keenan still on death row after co-defendant's conviction on same evidence is overturned

(The Plain Dealer © 2/16/2010)

Joe D'Ambrosio sits in a Parma apartment under house arrest, days away from what supporters hope will be his final vindication in the 1988 murder of Tony Klann.

We lied, witnesses in case of convicted killer tell judge

(The Vindicator © 1/16/2010)

Mark Aaron Brown has been on Ohio’s death row for nearly 16 years, but new testimony from two witnesses could land him a new trial.

Convict seeks new trial

(Tribune Chronicle © 1/16/2010)

With an execution date less than a month away, the attorneys for convicted killer Mark Brown are trying to convince a judge that the trial that ended in 1996 needs to be held again.

Supreme Court reinstates death sentence for Ohio killer Spisak

(The Columbus Dispatch © 1/12/2010)

The U.S. Supreme Court today handed Ohio Attorney General Richard Cordray a major legal victory when the justices reinstated a death penalty against a self-described neo-Nazi convicted in 1983 of murdering three people in Cleveland.

Clemency denial urged in ’94 murders of 2 men

(The Vindicator © 1/6/2010)

Ashraf Salman still wakes up wanting to see his dad’s coat hung in its usual place by the door, much the way he did as a 7-year-old boy one night in January 1994.

Group Gives Up Death Penalty Work

(The New York Times © 1/4/2010)

Last fall, the American Law Institute, which created the intellectual framework for the modern capital justice system almost 50 years ago, pronounced its project a failure and walked away from it.

There Is No ‘Humane’ Execution

(The New York Times © 12/13/2009)

This is what passes for progress in the application of the death penalty: Kenneth Biros, a convicted murderer, was put to death in Ohio last week with one drug, instead of the more common three-drug cocktail.

Killer Biros executed; says 'peace be with you'

(The Columbus Dispatch © 12/8/2009)

Trumbull County killer Kenneth Biros this morning became the first person in the United States to be executed using a one-drug lethal injection protocol.

Judge rejects stay in first 1-drug execution

(The Columbus Dispatch © 12/7/2009)

A federal judge on Monday denied an emergency delay in the execution of an Ohio inmate scheduled to become the first person in the U.S put to death with a single drug.

Death Row Realism

(Los Angeles Times @ 10/2/2008)

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

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.

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.

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.

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.

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. 

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.