The Death Penalty

I was watching InSession this morning; they are discussing the Anthony case, including the previous hearing when the defense was trying to have the DP thrown out.

Jean Casarez said something really interesting, something I THINK I knew, but probably had forgotten. In Florida, once a defendant has been convicted of first degree murder, the jury does not need to have a unanimous vote for the DP in order for the judge to consider it. If it is at least 7-5 FOR, the judge will seriously consider the DP. The judge has the final say.

Something to keep in mind, though, is that even if the jury comes back with a recommendation of death, the judge can choose to sentence the defendant to LWOP. A jury in the case of Florida v. Justin Barber recommended death, but the judge (not JP) gave Justin LWOP instead.

Something else to keep in mind, however, is that in 1985, Judge Perry, as a prosecutor, won a death sentence for a woman, Judy Buenoano, for the 1971 murder of her husband, James Goodyear. He even witnessed her execution in the electric chair in 1998. As a judge, he handed down his first death sentence in 1992 to Dusty Ray Spencer for killing his estranged wife, Karen Spencer.

So Judge Perry is no stranger to the death penalty....

Great information, Snaz. It's surprising to hear that a judge would witness an execution that he had won as a prosecutor on a woman, at least to me anyway. That even furthermore convinces me that the defense certainly made a huge mistake in their motion to recuse Judge Strickland. I'm sure they knew that the moment Judge Perry was announced. Wonder if Casey is starting to feel the flames at her feet as she sits before Judge Perry?

I feel Judge Perry will make the right decision.

Casey Prosecutors Outline Reasons For Death Penalty

State Replies To Anthony Defense Motion

POSTED: 2:42 pm EDT May 7, 2010

ORLANDO, Fla. --
In responses filed with the Orange County clerk of courts on Thursday, prosecutors in the Casey Anthony case said the aggravating circumstances it will prove to obtain the death penalty for Anthony are obvious.

The filing came in response to a motion by Anthony's defense team requesting the state be compelled to outline which circumstances it's going to argue.

Under state law, there are 15 so-called aggravating circumstances. At least one of them must be proven for a defendant to receive the death penalty.

In his response, state prosecutor Jeff Ashton said nine of the 15 circumstances clearly do not apply to Casey. He then went on to point out four that he said clearly apply to the case.

They are, as written in state law:

* The capital felony involved aggravated child abuse
* It was premeditated
* The victim was under the age of 12
* The defendant was the victim's parent

There are two other aggravating circumstances the state may or may not try to prove. One of them is that the defendant benefited financially from the victim's death. The other is that the alleged slaying was especially heinous, atrocious or cruel.

Defense attorney Richard Hornsby said he believes the state has already tipped its hand in regard to claiming Caylee's murder was especially cruel.

"It's my belief that Jeff Ashton has already put the defense and entire public on notice that he's going to try to prove that by that presentation in court about how the duct tape may have been placed over Caylee's mouth and how she might have seen the eyes of her killer as she took her last breath," Hornsby said.

In a second filing, the state requested what Hornsby called a "tit for tat." Prosecutor Jeff Ashton asked that the court compel the defense to reveal the mitigating circumstances it will try to prove to argue against the death penalty.

In other filings on Thursday, Anthony's attorneys asked Judge Belvin Perry to reconsider previous rulings made by Judge Stan Strickland, who stepped down from the case in April.

The defense specifically wants Perry to provide it access to George Anthony's grand jury testimony, as well as records from the volunteer search group Texas EquuSearch.

http://www.wesh.com/news/23488034/detail.html

Snaz, that is really interesting about JP watching the execution. I hope someone forwards that news clip to Casey.

I think it is only right that the Defense should inform the State of the mitigating circumstances that they will argue...as Mr. Hornsby said "tit for tat"...They (the defense) has caused a bit of turmoil, so let them stew for a while....I feel sorry for their Paralegal/s...Know they are more than earning their paycheck...I wonder how much of Baez' taxpayers money(JAC expences) will go to them...

It looks like it will be a long time before we can hear KrispyKC go snap, crackle, pop!

Piper said:

Great information, Snaz. It's surprising to hear that a judge would witness an execution that he had won as a prosecutor on a woman, at least to me anyway. That even furthermore convinces me that the defense certainly made a huge mistake in their motion to recuse Judge Strickland. I'm sure they knew that the moment Judge Perry was announced. Wonder if Casey is starting to feel the flames at her feet as she sits before Judge Perry?

I feel Judge Perry will make the right decision.

---------------------

BBM

Piper, another interesting thing Jean Casarez said when asked about it, was that her "sources" said the defense is thrilled with Judge Perry. I had to laugh when I heard that. Because as much as I love Jean Casarez, her "sources" must be friends of JB and Company. Of course the defense attorneys are going to say they are happy to have Judge Perry..... they may have done some really stupid things, but they aren't going to add insult to injury (to themselves) knowing they aren't getting another shot at a different judge!

I agree with you, Piper, that they probably realize they made a GINORMOUS mistake when they asked for the recusal of Judge Strickland, who has never sentenced a defendant to death, and ended up with Judge Perry, who obviously has no problem with the death penalty whatsoever.....

As JB always says, "quite frankly" I find it hilarious!!

Why is the state seeking the death penalty? Could be six reasons

posted by halboedeker on May, 7 2010 6:15 PM

What’s behind the state’s seeking the death penalty in the Casey Anthony case?

The defense wants to know which aggravating circumstances the prosecution will cite in seeking the death penalty. Prosecutors say the reasons should be obvious, WESH-Channel 2 reported this evening.

In a response to a defense motion, prosecutor Jeff Ashton notes there are 15 aggravating circumstances that could lead to the death penalty, and nine wouldn’t apply to Anthony, WESH’s Amanda Ober reported. Anthony is charged with first-degree murder in the death of her daughter.

“Four clearly apply to Casey Anthony, and the defense should have no problem figuring it out,” Orlando defense attorney Richard Hornsby told Ober.

And that’s the snarky tone of Ashton’s reply to the defense’s request.

Hornsby said those circumstances are that the victim was younger than 12, that Anthony was the parent; that the crime was premeditated; and that the crime involved aggravated child abuse.

But prosecutors could also argue that Anthony stood to benefit monetarily from Caylee’s death and that the crime was especially heinous, atrocious or cruel.

Ashton has hinted at the cruel nature of the murder when he described Caylee’s mouth as being duct-taped and suggested that the toddler might have looked into the murderer’s eyes, Ober said.

“I don’t think there can be anything more compelling or riveting in proving cruel, atrocious or heinous than that description, ” Hornsby said.

http://blogs.orlandosentinel.com/entertainment_tv_tvblog/2010/05/casey-anthony-why-is-the-state-seeking-the-death-penalty-could-be-six-reasons.html?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+entertainment%2Ftv%2Ftvguy+%28TV+Guy%29

Prosecutors List Death Penalty Reasons In Casey Case

Posted: 4:31 pm EDT May 13, 2010
Updated: 4:38 pm EDT May 13, 2010

ORLANDO, Fla. -- Prosecutors filed a document (read it) Thursday afternoon telling the defense which legal reasons they're using to justify the death penalty in the murder case against Casey Anthony.

DOCUMENT: Notice Of Aggravating Circumstances

If Casey is convicted of murdering her daughter Caylee, prosecutors will argue five of the 15 possible aggravators to the jury.

The aggravators they are using are:

* The murder was committed during aggravated child abuse, for which casey is also charged

* The murder was especially atrocious

* The murder was committed in a cold, calculated and premeditated manner

* The victim was younger than 12 years old

* The victim was particularly vulnerable because her killer was her mother

http://www.wftv.com/news/23545577/detail.html

Casey Prosecutors List Reasons For Death Penalty
Judge Ordered Prosecution To Provide Defense With Details

POSTED: 3:42 pm EDT May 13, 2010
UPDATED: 3:58 pm EDT May 13, 2010

ORLANDO, Fla. -- Prosecutors in the case against Casey Anthony revealed on Thursday a list of reasons why they'll seek the death penalty during trial.

Florida law requires that at least one aggravating factor must be proved to pursue capital punishment. Prosecutors in the Anthony case listed five of them.

Legal citations within the document provided by the prosecution showed they believe Caylee was killed as a result of aggravated child abuse.

Prosecutors also contend it was a particularly heinous, atrocious or cruel crime, and they said they contend Caylee's death was the result of a cold, calculated and premeditated crime.

Another listed factor was that Caylee was under the age of 12 when she died, and prosecutors said she was in familial custody, her mother's care, when she was killed.

The defense has claimed the medical examiner doesn't know exactly how Caylee died, so they wonder how the state could argue it was a cold, calculated and heinous crime.

http://www.wesh.com/news/23544839/detail.html

NBC analyst says, ‘Be careful what you ask for’

posted by halboedeker on May, 13 2010 8:57 AM

NBC’s “Today” turned to the Casey Anthony case this morning. The top-rated morning show repeated familiar points in analyzing events that unfolded earlier this week. Anthony is charged with first-degree murder in the death of her daughter, Caylee.

Dan Abrams, the network’s chief legal analyst, described the addition of the new judge, Belvin Perry, who replaced Stan Strickland.

“Be careful what you ask for,” Abrams said. ”They [the defense] had asked to disqualify the previous judge, saying that he had some sort of connection to a blogger who had strong feelings about the case. They got that judge removed. And now they’ve got a judge who may be even tougher.”

And Abrams added: “You always have to be careful when you’re seeking to dismiss a judge in a case, because you never know what you’re going to get.”

The defense this week failed to get the death penalty dropped from the case. In a report, NBC’s Kerry Sanders explained that Caylee’s official cause of death (”homicide by undetermined means”) was “a rare conclusion by the medical examiner who had limited forensics to work with.”

Sanders said Perry had established “a fast-paced agenda.”

And Sanders talked to former U.S. Attorney Kendall Coffey. His view: “If the prosecution can prove that a mother intentionally murdered her own child in order to pursue a wild social life, then this is indeed a death-penalty case.”

Abrams explained that to get the death penalty in Florida, there needs to be aggravating factors, such as premeditation.

Meredith Vieira noted that the defense unsuccessfully argued how could it be premeditation without a cause of of death.

“That’s an argument for the jury, in effect,” Abrams said. ”What the defense is trying to do is they’re trying to say, ’Look, as a legal matter we want the death penalty off the table.’ Very tough argument for the defense, in every case … Not surprising that this judge said that it can move forward. But this is just the first step.”

The segment on the Anthony case preceded a “Today” update on Anna Nicole Smith’s daughter.

http://blogs.orlandosentinel.com/entertainment_tv_tvblog/2010/05/casey-anthony-nbc-analyst-says-be-careful-what-you-ask-for.html

921.141(5) d, h, i, l, m as filed by prosecution.


(d) The capital felony was committed while the defendant was engaged, or was an accomplice, in the commission of, or an attempt to commit, or flight after committing or attempting to commit, any: robbery; sexual battery; aggravated child abuse; abuse of an elderly person or disabled adult resulting in great bodily harm, permanent disability, or permanent disfigurement; arson; burglary; kidnapping; aircraft piracy; or unlawful throwing, placing, or discharging of a destructive device or bomb.

(h) The capital felony was especially heinous, atrocious, or cruel.

(i) The capital felony was a homicide and was committed in a cold, calculated, and premeditated manner without any pretense of moral or legal justification.

(l) The victim of the capital felony was a person less than 12 years of age.

(m) The victim of the capital felony was particularly vulnerable due to advanced age or disability, or because the defendant stood in a position of familial or custodial authority over the victim.

I like (d) "The capital felony was committed while the defendant was engaged, or was an accomplice, in the commission of, or an attempt to commit, or flight after committing or attempting to commit". Pretty much covers the use of chloroform even if Casey didn't intend to kill Caylee with it.

Is death-penalty list a setback to defense? Is the list detailed enough?

posted by halboedeker on May, 14 2010 9:02 AM

What does the prosecution’s death penalty list mean in the Casey Anthony case? TV analysts weighed in last night.

The list was a setback to the defense, WFTV-Channel 9 legal analyst Bill Sheaffer said. “It gives the state more ammunition during the penalty phase to argue for the death penalty and certainly the facts as we know it support each and every one of these aggravating factors,” he said.

Anthony is charged with first-degree murder in the death of her daughter, Caylee. Those aggravating factors are cold, calculated premeditation; the victim’s being younger than 12; the victim’s being in her mother’s care; that the murder was committed during aggravated child abuse; and that it was a particularly atrocious, heinous or cruel crime.

Sheaffer said the list ”refutes the allegations that the state sought the death penalty for an improper reason.”

WKMG-Channel 6’s Tony Pipitone stressed that the factors only come into play if Anthony is convicted of first-degree murder and that we don’t know what her attorneys will argue were mitigating factors.

Pipitone then explored the challenges of proving each aggravating factor.

Anthony is also charged with aggravated child abuse, and if she’s convicted of that crime and the murder, that aggravator will be proved, Pipitone noted.

Pipitone said it will be harder to prove that the murder was cold, calculated premeditation or an atrocious, cruel crime. Pipitone noted there’s a lot of speculation on these points, but that aggravators “have to be proven beyond a reasonable doubt.”

If Anthony is convicted, Caylee’s age and being in her mother’s care would be easiest to prove, Pipitone said.

WESH-Channel 2’s Bob Kealing said the defense and prosecution were disagreeing over the death-penalty list. Prosecutor Jeff Ashton said he just needs to list the reasons, but defense attorney Jose Baez wants more detail, Kealing reported.

At 11 last night, Kealing looked at seven key points in the case. He said he had polled several sources about “the biggest developments in a very eventful week.”

Kealing highlighted prosecutor Ashton’s description of “a phantom plea.”

“With those words, phantom plea, prosecutors denied offering Casey any kind of plea deal,” Kealing said.

Kealing also highlighted that the death penalty is still possible in the case, “a reality that at times appeared to hit Casey hard.” The report replayed footage of Anthony wiping away tears.

Kealing’s other points included the prosecution’s being forced to list the reasons it’s seeking the death penalty; Judge Belvin Perry’s push for strict deadlines and fewer hearings; and Perry’s decision to go to another location to find the jury. Kealing’s other two points were the prosecution’s decision to use party pictures of Anthony during the month Caylee was missing and prosecutors’ revelation that Anthony is the first mother accused of killing her child they’ve prosecuted who isn’t claiming mental illness.

Kealing added that “one bright spot in otherwise grueling week for Casey Anthony” was that she told her mother, Cindy, “I love you” and “happy Mother’s Day.”

http://blogs.orlandosentinel.com/entertainment_tv_tvblog/2010/05/casey-anthony-is-death-penalty-list-a-setback-to-defense-is-the-list-detailed-enough.html?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+entertainment%2Ftv%2Ftvguy+%28TV+Guy%29

Why The State Wants Casey Put To Death

Friday, May 14, 2010 7:49:09 AM

ORLANDO -- The state is releasing the reasons why they are pursuing the death penalty against Casey Anthony.

Prosecutors are required by Florida law to explain their reasoning, and in a document released Thursday, they quote five statutes they said will allow them to argue there were aggravating circumstances regarding the death of Caylee Anthony, 2.

The state claims the capital felony was committed while the defendant "was engaged in the commission of a crime," like aggravated child abuse.

They also claim:

* the crime was especially cruel
* the murder was committed in a cold, calculated, and premeditated manner
* the victim was younger than 12
* the victim was vulnerable or the defendant had familial custody

http://www.cfnews13.com/News/Local/2010/5/13/state_explains_reasoning_for_seeking_death_in_casey_case.html

I hope the defense understands all the reasons now.

The State’s list of deadly Reasons

Posted on May 13th, 2010 by Valhall

During Tuesday’s hearing the judge gave the prosecution 10 days to formulate their list of aggravating circumstances for which they were seeking the death penalty in the murder trial for Casey Anthony. The prosecution completed their response and filed it today.

In their response they cited Florida Statute 921.141(5)(d),(h),(i),(l), and (m). There are five aggravating circumstances they feel apply toward the justification of seeking the death penalty for Caylee Marie Anthony’s murder.

Let’s look at these aggravating circumstances one by one.

(d) The capital felony was committed while the defendant was engaged, or was an accomplice, in the commission of, or an attempt to commit, or flight after committing or attempting to commit, any: robbery; sexual battery; aggravated child abuse; abuse of an elderly person or disabled adult resulting in great bodily harm, permanent disability, or permanent disfigurement; arson; burglary; kidnapping; aircraft piracy; or unlawful throwing, placing, or discharging of a destructive device or bomb.

(h) The capital felony was especially heinous, atrocious, or cruel.

(i) The capital felony was a homicide and was committed in a cold, calculated, and premeditated manner without any pretense of moral or legal justification.

(l) The victim of the capital felony was a person less than 12 years of age.

(m) The victim of the capital felony was particularly vulnerable due to advanced age or disability, or because the defendant stood in a position of familial or custodial authority over the victim.

Okay, so in (d) we see that the state is arguing the murder of Caylee was committed while Casey was engaged in aggravated child abuse. This would indicate that the state is prepared to show that Casey murdered Caylee during the commission of an abusive act. It remains to be seen what they will be seeking to prove – will the abusive act be that of drugging Caylee? of placing duct tape over her mouth leading to suffocation? of drowning her?

Read more:
http://www.thehinkymeter.com/2010/05/13/the-states-list-of-deadly-reasons/#comment-34177