Sound of Ideas: Death Penalty in Ohio
FM 90.3 WCPN's the Sound of Ideas spoke to Justice Paul Pfeifer and Joe Deters about their views on the death penalty on February 15th. Watch the video below made possible by the Ohio Channel.
US Supreme Court says no to Ohio execution
On February 8th the US Supreme Court issued an order denying Ohio's request to overturn a District Court ruling in the case of Charles Lorraine.
The ruling means that executions in Ohio are on hold for an undetermined amount of time.
Click here to read the story.
Justice Pfeifer: we have a moratorium right now
Ohio's longest serving Justice, Paul Pfeifer, appeared on AM 1490 WERE's American Law Radio on January 26th.
Justice Pfeifer spoke about prosecutors and discretion, the intention of the death penalty law and what's happening with Ohio's death penalty. He also noted that Ohio is under a moratorium on executions.
Kevin Werner, OTSE's executive director and Ohio Representative Nickie Antonio also were guests on the program.
Click here to listen to Justice Pfeifer.
Click here to listen to Rep. Nickie Antonio.
Click here to listen to Kevin Werner.
D'Ambrosio exonerated from Ohio's death row
Attorneys for former death row prisoner Joe D’Ambrosio confirm that the case against their client is resolved and D’Ambrosio is the sixth man exonerated from Ohio’s death row. John Q. Lewis of Tucker Ellis & West LLP and David Mills of the Mills Law Office LLC said the United States Supreme Court denied the petition made by the Ohio Attorney General to review an August 2011 ruling by the Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals. The highest court in the nation had the final say as to whether or not D’Ambrosio could be re-prosecuted.
Joe D’Ambrosio was wrongfully convicted of the 1989 murder of Anthony Klann in Cleveland. Cuyahoga County prosecutors withheld 10 pieces of evidence that would have exonerated D’Ambrosio at his trial and implicated another suspect in the crime.
"Today was 23 years in the making,” D’Ambrosio says. “I want to thank my attorneys John Q. Lewis and David Mills, my family and friends who stood by me to make this day possible. Justice has finally prevailed."
Click here to read the latest from the Cleveland Plain Dealer
Click here for more from CityBeat. Click here to read MSNBC coverage.
- Background articles from Cleveland Plain Dealer:
March 5, 2010
August 29, 2011
January 23, 2012
Death Penalty Information Center releases report: staggering decline in sentences, executions.
One day after a House committee heard testimony in favor of abolishing the death penalty in Ohio, a new report was released by the Death Penalty Inofrmation Center (DPIC).
The report noted that Ohio saw a 38% drop in executions from 2010.
Below are links to stories and articles about the report.
The Atlantic
Politico
Huffington Post
All related articles
Committee holds second hearing on death penalty abolition bill
State Supreme Court Justice Paul Pfeifer testified before a House Committee on December 14, 2011 that Ohio's death penalty, a law which he helped write, should be abolished becasue it does not work.
The Columbus Dispatch has more.
Helen Prejean, Moeller high school students spend day advocating
Renouned author and advocate Sr. Helen Prejean joined a contingent of high school students and teachers from Archboishop Moeller School on a day-long trip to Lucasville and Columbus, OH to advocate for an end to the death penalty. The students went to Lucasville to hold a vigil during the execution of Reginald Brooks, 66. After the vigil they traveled to the statehouse in Columbus and met with legislators and the Governor's deputy legal counsel to express their concerns.
10TV News in Columbus has more.
Death penalty task force convenes, judge concerned by fairness
Members of the joint task force examining Ohio's death penalty convened on November 3 at the State Bar Association in Columbus. Judge James Brogan, the chair of the task force, raised concerns ranging from innocence to costs and from sentencing disparities among counties to the use of death as a plea bargaining tool for prosecutors.
The Associated Press and the Columbus Dispatch have more on the story.
OH Supreme Court to review death penalty case
Tyrone Noling was convicted of the 1990 murders of an elderly Portage County couple. Noling's case will be reviewed by the Ohio Supreme Court according to his lawyers at the Ohio Innocence Project. Tyrone noling has steadfastly maintained his innocence.
The Akron Beacon Journal has more. Click here to read the article.
Cost to taxpayers high in death penalty cases
The Journal News has an article about some of the soaring costs associated with death penalty cases.
Click here to read more.
Ohio death row relocating to Chillicothe
The Ohio Department of Rehabilitation and Corrections announced it is moving death row to Chillicothe. The move is being made to save the state money.
The Columbus Dispatch has more on this news.
Ohio top judge calls for death penalty review
The Associated Press is reporting that Chief Justice Maureen O'Connor will assemble a panel to explore how Ohio's death penalty system is working.
Click here for more.
Appeals court vacates 2002 death sentence
An appeals court vacated the 2002 death sentence of 34-year-old Kelly Foust. The court cited ineffective assistance of council in its decision. Foust, who was convicted of the 2001 murder of a Cleveland man, must be re-sentenced within six months.
Jeff Gamso, the attorney for Mr. Foust will seek a life without parole sentence. The Cuyahoga County prosecutor's office says it will appeal the decision.
Click here to read more from the Houston Chronicle.
US district judge halts executions
 Judge Gregory Frost issued a temporary restraining order in favor of death row inmate Kenneth Smith on July 8, 2011. The order halted the July 19th scheduled execution pending further hearings before Judge Frost in October 2011.
In his ruling, Judge Frost stated, "Ohio pays lip service to standards it then often ignores without valid reasons, sometimes with no physical ramifications and sometimes with what have been described as messy if not botched executions."
The scathing decision was not appealed by the Ohio Attorney General's office.
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