Skip to main content.
Religion News Blog is a non-profit service providing academics, religion professionals and other researchers with religion & cult news
ReligionNewsBlog

Religion news articles about religious cults, sects, world religions, and related issues

Navigation:
A Random Image
Death Penalty:

Death row Scot faces delay to discover fate

The Times, UK
Oct. 18, 2005
Shirley English
www.timesonline.co.uk

ReligionNewsBlog.com • Item 12505 • Posted: Tuesday October 18, 2005  

Click here... More articles on this topic: Death Penalty

A Scot on death row in America will have to wait another two weeks before learning if his conviction remains overturned.

Kenny Richey, 41, originally from Edinburgh, has been facing the death penalty since 1987 when he was convicted of the murder of a toddler in an arson attack. He has always maintained his innocence.

Earlier this year a state appeal court in Cincinnati overturned his conviction on the grounds that his original trial had been seriously flawed.

State prosecutors in Ohio, where he was tried, appealed that decision to the Supreme Court, simultaneously lodging an intention to retry Richey if their appeal failed. The Supreme Court was expected to make an announcement yesterday, but the decision was delayed without explanation.

Ken Parsigian, Richey’s Boston-based lawyer, said: “They did not get a ruling. It is unclear why but such delays usually occur when someone is asking for time to issue a dissent.”

Kenny Richey

US human rights abuses illustrated:

During the months preceding 21 March 1997, evidence was presented to the Ohio Court of Common Pleas, conclusively establishing the innocence of Kenny Richey.

This compelling evidence was submitted to support a bid for a hearing to allow Kenny’s defence team to show that the case was a tragic miscarriage of justice.

The state prosecution did not dispute the accuracy of the new evidence.

Prosecution Dan Gershutz said, “Even though this new evidence may establish Mr Richey’s innocence, the Ohio and United States constitution nonetheless allow him to be executed because the prosecution did not know that the scientific testimony offered at the trial was false and unreliable.”
- Quoted at The Official Kenney Richey Campaign site

“Judge Laura Denvir Stith seemed not to believe what she was hearing.

A prosecutor was trying to block a death row inmate from having his conviction reopened on the basis of new evidence, and Judge Stith, of the Missouri Supreme Court, was getting exasperated. “Are you suggesting,” she asked the prosecutor, that “even if we find Mr. Amrine is actually innocent, he should be executed?”

Frank A. Jung, an assistant state attorney general, replied, “That’s correct, your honor.”

That exchange was, legal experts say, unusual only for its frankness.

After a trial and appeal, many prosecutors say, new evidence of claimed innocence should generally not be considered by the courts.
Newspaper report on a different case

Amnesty International, which has campaigned tirelessly for Richey’s release, claiming that he is the “most compelling case of innocence on death row”, said that it expected him to be retried even if the Supreme Court threw out the prosecutor’s appeal. A spokeswoman said: “It is highly unlikely they [Ohio] will drop the case and release him.”

The Supreme Court is now in recess until October 31.


What You Can Do From Here

Read More Articles On These Topics
more cult news articlemore religion news Categories: Death Penalty
more religion news aboutmore Religion News Blog articles about
Share, Blog About, Bookmark, or Email This Article
Subscribe
Read Another Article
Find Related Information
cult research search enginecountercult information Use our custom search engines to find additional research resources on religions and cults
Find Related Books


Most Popular Today


Share This Article

To share this page simply copy and paste one of these URL's:





Counter Cult Search

Search for information about (religious) cults, cult-like organizations, -- as well as paranormal-, New Age, and pseudoscientific claims -- across 260+ websites, blogs and forums dedicated to cult research, spiritual abuse, ex-cult counseling & support.


Note: results are listed on another domain -- CounterCultSearch.com -- from which you can easily return here.


Apologetics Search

Search for apologetics articles, books, videos, and other research resources across 135 Christian apologetics websites and blogs.


Note: results are listed on another domain -- ApologeticsSearch.com -- from which you can easily return here.

About Religion News Blog
Religion News Blog (RNB), published by Apologetics Index, highlights news items and other resources on world religions, cults, religious sects, alternative religions and related issues. RNB's non-profit news clipping service is used by - among others - Christian apologists, countercult professionals, anticult organizations, cult experts, teachers, religion professionals, reporters and other researchers.

Home
Latest Headlines
RSS news feed [?]
Headlines by Email
News Trackers
Free content for your site
About RNB
Privacy Policy
Contact RNB
Link to RNB
Advertise on RNB
Apologetics Index
Cult FAQ
Apologetics Search Engine
CounterCult Search Engine