This
undated photo provided by the Missouri Department of Corrections shows Carman
Deck.AP
On this date, May 3, 2022, Carman L.
Deck was executed by lethal injection in Missouri. He was convicted of the July
8, 1996 murder of elderly couple, James and Zelma Long.
Missouri
man put to death for 1996 murders in 5th execution this year
/ CBS/AP
A Missouri man
who killed a couple during a robbery at their rural home more than a quarter of
a century ago was put to death Tuesday, becoming just the fifth person executed
in the United States this year.
Carman Deck,
56, died by injection at the state prison in Bonne Terre. He was pronounced
dead at 6:10 p.m. His fate was sealed a day earlier when neither the U.S.
Supreme Court nor Republican Gov. Mike Parson stepped in to halt the execution.
Deck's death sentence was overturned three times before for procedural issues.
"Mr. Deck
has received due process, and three separate juries of his peers have
recommended sentences of death for the brutal murders he committed,"
Parson said in a statement Monday. "The State of Missouri will carry out
Mr. Deck's sentence according to the Court's order and deliver justice."
Deck mouthed a few inaudible words as the 5 grams of
pentobarbital were administered, then puffed out a couple of breaths before all
movement stopped, the process lasting just a few seconds.
"My hope
is that one day the world will find peace and that we all will learn to be kind
and loving to one another," Deck said in a written final statement.
"We all are a part of this journey through life, connected in every way.
Please give love, show love, BE LOVE!"
Parson, in a
statement Tuesday, said the couple killed, James and Zelma Long, "were
innocent victims of Carman Deck's heinous violence. Tonight, justice was
served."
Court records
show that Deck, of the St. Louis area, was a friend of the grandson of the
Longs, who lived in De Soto, about 45 miles (72 kilometers) southwest of St.
Louis. He knew the couple, in their late 60s, kept a safe in their home.
In July 1996,
Deck and his sister stopped at the home under the guise of asking directions.
Deck wasn't surprised the couple let them in.
"They're country folks," Deck told a detective, according to court
records. "They always do."
Once inside,
Deck pulled a gun from his waistband. At Deck's command, Zelma Long opened the
safe and removed jewelry, then got $200 from her purse and more money hidden in
a canister.
Deck ordered
the couple to lie on their stomachs on their bed. Court records said Deck stood
there for 10 minutes deciding what to do, then shot James Long twice in the
head before doing the same thing to Zelma Long.
A tip alerted
police to Deck, and he was arrested later that night outside his sister's
apartment building in St. Louis County. The decorative tin canister from the
Long home was on the floorboard of his car.
Prosecutors
said Deck later gave a full account of the killings in oral, written and
audiotaped statements. He was sentenced to death in 1998, but the Missouri
Supreme Court tossed the sentence due to errors by Deck's trial lawyer.
The U.S.
Supreme Court threw out his second sentence in 2005, citing the prejudice
caused by Deck being shackled in front of the sentencing jury.
He was
sentenced to death for a third time in 2008. Nine years later, U.S. District
Judge Catherine Perry determined that "substantial" evidence arguing
against the death penalty in Deck's first two penalty phases was unavailable
for the third because witnesses had died, couldn't be found or declined to
cooperate.
In October
2020, a three-judge panel of the 8th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals restored the
death penalty, ruling that Deck should have raised his concern first in state
court, not federal court. Appeals of that ruling were unsuccessful.
The clemency
petition on behalf of Deck cited abuse he suffered as a child, including
beatings that left welts and sexual abuse. It said he and his siblings often
were left alone without food. Deck's attorney, Elizabeth Unger Carlyle, said in
a statement that Deck also was raped while in prison for theft at age 19.
"This
experience transformed him from a non-violent thief into the person who
committed two terrible murders," Carlyle said. She called his execution
"unjust and immoral."
The number of
executions in the U.S. has declined significantly since peaking at 98 in 1998.
The drop has coincided with declining support, falling from a high of 80% in
1994 to 54% in 2021, according to Gallup polls. Since the mid-1990s, opposition
has risen from under 20% to around 45%.
Use of the
death penalty has become concentrated mostly in a few Southern and Plains
states. Last year, Texas executed three inmates, Oklahoma executed two and
one each were put to death in Alabama, Mississippi and Missouri. Three federal
inmates were executed in January 2021, toward the end of Donald Trump's
presidency.
On Monday,
Tennessee Gov. Bill Lee paused executions
in his state for the rest of the year to enable a review of lethal injection
procedures after a testing oversight forced the state to call off the execution
of Oscar Smith an hour before he was to die on April 21.
If
an offender has committed murder, he must die. In this case, no
possible substitute can satisfy justice. For there is
no parallel between death and even the most miserable life, so that
there is no equality of crime and retribution unless the perpetrator is
judicially put to death. – Immanuel Kant
Spring Brings New Life: Let’s pass compassionate
release for our incarcerated neighbors | Opinion. Everyone deserves a second
chance. This is our chance to give it to them
Your lordships can be assured that the only people hung are those guilty
of cruel, deliberate murder without mitigation…I put my views strongly because
from experience, one gets to feel strong views in these matters and should not
be afraid to express them. When a man deliberately murders another he is
committing the supreme crime, and should pay the supreme penalty.
On
this date, April 29, 2022, Kunchala Sasi Krishna was
sentenced to death for the stabbing of Nallapu Ramya on
August 15, 2021. The killer reminds of me of Zahir
Jaffer, Joseph
Fidel Alliniece and Thai Murderer, Ronnakorn
Romruen, all of them were abusive towards women.
Andhra student murder
case: Court awards death sentence to convict, CM YS Jagan hails decision. The
Guntur Fast Track Sessions Court found the accused Kunchala Sasikrishna guilty
of murdering Nallapu Ramya, a B.Tech student who was stabbed to death in August
2021.
In 2021 Ramya Murder Case, Death
Penalty For Accused In 'historic' Fast-track Verdict
The Guntur murder case dates back
to August 2021 when a student named Ramya was stabbed to death in broad
daylight by her stalker in Andhra Pradesh
A fast-track sessions court in Andhra Pradesh's
Guntur district issued a death sentence to a convict on Friday in the 2021
murder case. Named Kunchala Sasikrishna, the convict was found guilty of
stabbing 20-year-old engineering student Nallapu Ramya to death on August 15
last year.
Calling the verdict 'historic', Andhra Pradesh
Chief Minister YS Jagan Mohan Reddy welcomed the court's decision and
congratulated the Police Department for making sure that justice prevailed. "I welcome the historic verdict given by the fast track
court in the Ramya murder case. Congratulations to the Police Department for
expeditiously completing the investigation into this case and working hard to
bring the accused to book", he tweeted.
Moreover, in his statement over the verdict of the
Guntur Fast Track Sessions Court, CM Reddy hailed the 'Disha' spirit of the
police and Public Prosecutor. CM Reddy stated that this case has set an example
of his government's commitment to women's safety and security, adding that the
court's decision sends a clear message to those committing crimes against
women.
Following the court's verdict, K. Arif Hafeez,
Guntur Urban SP, said, "It is a case of murder against a girl who belongs
to a weaker section. So initially, when the report reached the police, all the
PCR officers, myself included visited the scene at the hospital and gathered
with the family members". Further detailing the fast-tracked case, Hafeez
said that "the trial which started on December 31, 2021, has ended in a
time-span of just four months".
Chief Minister Jagan's Disha Act has yielded
results in this case as a chargesheet was filed within just seven days of the
incident and the Guntur murder case has reached completion in just four months.
Owing to the Disha initiative, the DNA reports required in such cases were
submitted by forensic teams in just two days instead of the normal two months.
The origin of the act stemmed from the brutal rape
and murder of a 26-year-old veterinarian in the state, following which, an
outrage swept the entire Nation. In the aftermath of the incident, the CM
Jagan-led government presented two bills- Andhra Pradesh Disha Act - AP Special
Courts for Specified Offences against Women and Children Act 2019, and AP Disha
Act - Criminal Law (AP Amendment) Act 2019 before the state assembly. After
being passed with a majority, the law now issues capital punishment to
criminals for specified offenses against women within three weeks of the
incident. Currently, under the present laws, the offender can be sentenced to
life imprisonment or even given a death penalty depending on the severity of
the crime.
Such an extreme act of
pure evil can only be met by the most extreme of responses - and that can only
be death. All my life I've been against the death penalty. I genuinely never
thought I'd say this, but I am now convinced that the monster who executed this
young woman in cold blood should, in turn, be killed as punishment for his
crime. - John
Stevens, Baron Stevens of Kirkwhelpington
Youth
gets death sentence for killing Andhra student, CM Jagan Reddy hails ‘historic’
verdict
Ramya, a third-year engineering student, was
stabbed to death in broad daylight in August last year by Krishna, who
befriended her on a social media platform.
PTI
29 April, 2022 07:30 pm IST
Amaravati: A fast-track court in
Andhra Pradesh’s Guntur on Friday sentenced a youth to death, pronouncing him
guilty of murdering a third-year engineering student in broad daylight in the
city on Independence Day last year.
The Andhra Pradesh High Court
will have to affirm the special court’s sentence.
Reacting to the verdict, Chief
Minister Y S Jagan Mohan Reddy hailed the judgment and appreciated the
prosecution team.
A third-year engineering student,
N Ramya, was stabbed to death in broad daylight by one Sasi Krishna on a main
road in Guntur city on August 15, 2021.
Krishna befriended Ramya on a
social media platform but she subsequently spurned his love.
On the fateful day, Ramya was
walking on the Kakani Road when Krishna approached her on his motorbike. He
asked her to get on the two-wheeler but she she refused and an altercation
followed.
The assailant then took out a
knife and stabbed her repeatedly on the neck and stomach and fled the scene.
Locals rushed to the spot and
immediately moved the profusely bleeding girl to hospital. She, however,
succumbed to her injuries in the GGH.
Police arrested the accused
within 24 hours and he has been in jail as an under-trial prisoner for the past
eight months.
Closed-circuit television (CCTV)
camera footage obtained from a local shop nailed the assailant and the police
used it as a crucial evidence in the trial.
In all, 28 witnesses were
examined in the case since the trial began in December last year.
Judge Ram Gopal delivered the
sentence on Friday after finding the accused guilty of the offence under
Section 302 of the Indian Penal Code, according to Guntur Superintendent of
Police Arif Hafeez.
“The accused did not show any
remorse even after committing a heinous crime. Moreover, he tried to escape
from the court while the trial was on. The court, thus, feels he has to be
punished sternly,” the judge observed and sentenced Krishna to death by
hanging.
Calling it a “historic verdict”,
Chief Minister Y S Jagan Mohan Reddy, in a statement, congratulated the police
and the public prosecutor for successfully prosecuting the case.
He said the verdict would send a
clear message to those who seek to attack girls and women.
The government had, soon after
the incident last year, handed over an ex-gratia payment of Rs 10 lakh to the
victim’s family.
Guntur girl stabbed to
death in broad daylight by unidentified man, probe on
The victim was
identified as Ramyasri of Paramayakunta in Old Guntur area of the city and was
pursuing BTech third year at St.Mary's Engineering College in Chebrolu.
Andhra
Pradesh: Verdict in Ramya murder case historic, says women’s panel chief
AP Mahila Commission Chairperson
Vasireddy Padma | Photo Credit: V RAJU
‘It
demonstrates the intent of govt. to act against sexual offences’
Andhra
Pradesh Women’s Commission Chairperson Vasireddy Padma has said that the
capital punishment meted out to the accused in the N. Ramya murder case
demonstrated the intent of the State government to ensure swift action in cases
of sexual atrocities against women.
“The
death penalty awarded to the accused Sasi Krishna shows the commitment and
sincerity of the government and the hard work done by the police in the case.
The judgment was given in nine months, and the National SC Commission praised
the government and the police for acting swiftly in the case,” Ms. Padma said, adding that this was a historic
judgment.
“Chief
Minister Y.S. Jagan Mohan Reddy, who was anguished over the girl’s murder,
helped the victim’s family in all aspects. Police collected all material and
scientific evidences, filed the charge sheet in time as per the stipulations
laid down in the Disha Act, which helped to secure capital punishment for the
accused,” the Women’s Commission
Chairperson said on Friday.
Even if a civil society were to be dissolved by the consent of all its
members (e.g., if a people inhabiting an island decided to separate and
disperse throughout the world), the last murderer remaining in prison would first
have to be executed, so that each has done to him what his deeds deserve and
blood guilt does not cling to the people for not having insisted upon this
punishment; for otherwise the people can be regarded as collaborators in his
public violation of justice. (Kt6:333)
A
third-year engineering student was stabbed to death in Andhra Pradesh's Guntur
city on Sunday. The incident - caught on CCTV - has led to a huge uproar.
Andhra Pradesh Home Minister M Sucharita rushed to the Government General
Hospital, where the body was taken, and expressed shock over the incident.
Later in the night, state Director General of Police DG Sawang said the accused
in the case has been arrested. (Disclaimer: Violent visuals, not suitable for
children, viewer discretion advised.)
Dmitry Medvedev vows to reintroduce death penalty.
After the Council of Europe on Friday suspended Russia’s rights of
representation, the country’s deputy chairman of the Security Council says this
is a good opportunity to restore the death penalty for the most severe crimes.
"It is necessary that rapists get
strict punishment. We are going to send a letter to the Centre to make
necessary amendments to award capital punishment to rapists." - Yogi
Adityanath
“Arresting them will only lead to
further delay and placing them in jail will not lessen our pain. The only way
is to hang them as that is the right punishment for them as the loss we are
going through is immeasurable,” the victim’s family members said. - Neeraj
Panwar’s family demands death sentence for killers
