Arizona Capital Representation Project

After briefly staying the execution of Joseph Wood, Arizona began the execution at 1:52. More than 90 minutes later, Mr. Wood was still alive and gasping for air. An emergency stay motion has been filed in District Court and the Arizona Supreme Court. emergencystay

The following is a statement from Dale Baich, one of Joseph Wood’s attorneys, regarding today’s execution:

“The experiment using midazolam combined with hydromorphone to carry out an execution failed today in Arizona. It took Joseph Wood two hours to die, and he gasped and struggled to breath for about an hour and forty minutes. We will renew our efforts to get information about the manufacturer of drugs as well as how Arizona came up with the experimental formula of drugs it used today. Arizona appears to have joined several other states who have been responsible for an entirely preventable horror — a bungled execution. The public should hold its officials responsible and demand to make this process more transparent.”

-Dale Baich

-July 23, 2014

The Arizona Supreme Court issued a last minute stay of the execution of Joseph Wood in order to consider Mr. Wood’s Petition for Review. Mr. Wood was scheduled to be executed at 10 a.m. MST/1 p.m EDT today.

The national death-row population is roughly 42 percent black—nearly three times the proportion in the general population. Read the article here:

Racism and the Execution Chamber

At the link is a summary of the secrecy laws regarding the lethal injection protocols for the 13 states responsible for the greatest number of executions since 2005, including Arizona.

http://www.buzzfeed.com/tasneemnashrulla/what-13-states-are-not-telling-you-about-how-they-kill-peopl

The Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals remanded Clabourne v. Ryan to the district court for consideration of whether Mr. Clabourne’s claim of ineffective assistance of sentencing counsel may be considered on the merits in light of Martinez v. Ryan. The Ninth Circuit denied relief on Mr. Clabourne’s remaining claims, including that the Arizona Supreme Court improperly applied a causal nexus requirement to his mitigating evidence. The opinion is below.

2014-03-05 Opinion

Citing inequality and imperfection, Governor Inslee declares a moratorium on Washington’s death penalty and welcomes national debate. http://www.usatoday.com/story/news/nation/2014/02/11/washington-death-penalty-inslee/5394917/

ANNUAL THEORY & INTENSE PRACTICE
*
*CAPITAL VOIR DIRE TRAINING
BOULDER, COLORADO
MAY 15 – 17, 2014
*
The program website is here: http://www.nccvd.org <http://www.nccvd.org/> *The application page on the program website is
here: http://www.nccvd.org/application/*

Death penalty voir dire is one of the most difficult yet crucial skills for lawyers to master.

Join the National College of Capital Voir Dire, the Arizona Capital Representation Project, the Office of the Colorado State Public Defender, and the University of Colorado School of Law for this unique hands-on training program.  Participants will work with David Wymore, the originator of this method of capital jury selection, and a faculty of masters of capital voir dire for two and a half days to learn, refine
and master the art and science of death penalty jury selection.

The program teaches the Colorado Method of capital voir dire by using a combination of lecture, demonstration, and small group exercises involving real jurors.  This is the proven method which has nearly emptied Colorado’s death row and saved capital defendants across the country.  Students will learn the core Supreme Court jurisprudence and how to use it to make the judge let you ask what you need to ask. Students will learn and then practice in small groups how to get venire persons to share their views about the death penalty and life imprisonment by stripping away extraneous issues and circumstances, identify and rate strong pro-death and potential life-voting jurors, build and make challenges for cause and protect other jurors from cause challenges, teach life-givers how to get out of the jury room with their vote intact, and teach strong pro-death jurors to respect the decisions of all jurors (including life-giving jurors).

This will be the only national Capital Voir Dire Training in 2014.
Space is limited to 60 capital defense attorneys.  The on-line application requests information about the dates of any pending trials and your legal experience. Please apply early – slots fill up quickly.
If you have any questions about the program please contact Clinical Law Professor Ann England ude.odarolocnull@dnalgne.nnata<mailto:atann.england@colorado.edu>.

The seminar will be held at the University of Colorado Law School, Wolf Law Building, 2450 Kittredge Loop Road, Boulder, Colorado 80309.

The Arizona Supreme Court unanimously affirmed Shawna Forde’s convictions and sentences today, modifying two non-capital sentences to run concurrently. Of note, the Court found two allegations of prosecutorial misconduct in closing arguments–vouching and misstating the evidence–but ruled the misconduct did not constitute fundamental error. Read the opinion here: 2014-01-17 Opinion

The Court affirmed the convictions and death sentence in State v. Miller last week. The opinion is below.

2013-12-27 Opinion

In an amended opinion filed today, the Arizona Supreme Court again affirmed Christopher Payne’s death sentences over (a rare) dissent by Justice Bales. The trial court excluded an entire category of mitigating evidence–Skipper/post-incarceration behavior evidence. Justice Bales would remand for a new penalty hearing pursuant to Lockett. Access the opinion here: 2013-11-21 Amended Opinion