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Petition to state Supreme Court says Washington County DA is abusing power to seek death penalty
Petition to state Supreme Court says Washington County DA is abusing power to seek death penalty

CBS News

time10 hours ago

  • Politics
  • CBS News

Petition to state Supreme Court says Washington County DA is abusing power to seek death penalty

A team of defense attorneys filed a petition against the Washington County district attorney on Tuesday, claiming he's abused his power to seek the death penalty. Frances Harvey is with the Atlantic Center for Capital Representation, a non-profit organization that offers support for defendants in death penalty cases. The organization is now petitioning the Pennsylvania Supreme Court on behalf of two people currently facing the possibility of death in Washington County. "He can't exercise discretion to choose what we usually think of as the worst of the worst cases," Harvey said. "In every case, we see that he's making this decision about the death penalty in a way that's not related to the actual facts of the case." In the court filing, the organization argues that since Washington County District Attorney Jason Walsh took office in 2021, he's sought the death sentence in 11 out of 18 homicides, and has misused the prospect of the death penalty to pressure defendants into guilty pleas, force their cooperation, and as a political tool. The attorneys also say at one point Walsh was prosecuting about a quarter of the capital cases in the state, despite the county representing only 1.6 percent of the population. The petition is requesting for "some or all" of the following changes: for Walsh to be required to have an out-of-county judge, the state Attorney General's office, or a court-appointed special master to review death penalty decisions; to prohibit Walsh from seeking death sentences in the petitioners' cases; and to get an outside judge to review every capital case since 2021. "It's absolutely ludicrous, nonsensical, without merit, filed by a liberal think tank that's anti-death penalty from Philadelphia," Walsh said. Despite the petition arguing Walsh has frequently failed to show evidence of first-degree murder and aggravating factors, Walsh said the vast majority of his cases have dealt with babies, and that age as an aggravating factor can easily be argued in court. "This office will protect the most vulnerable in society, which children fit into," Walsh said. "We will seek justice and punish to the highest extent of the law people who brutally beat babies." The DA has 14 days to respond to the petition. It's important to note that since the 1970s, only three people have been executed in Pennsylvania, and a moratorium remains in effect.

Defendants argue to state's high court that a Pennsylvania DA has been misusing the death penalty
Defendants argue to state's high court that a Pennsylvania DA has been misusing the death penalty

Associated Press

time17 hours ago

  • Politics
  • Associated Press

Defendants argue to state's high court that a Pennsylvania DA has been misusing the death penalty

HARRISBURG, Pa. (AP) — Two men accused of homicide and facing a potential death sentence if convicted asked Pennsylvania's highest court Tuesday to restrict a county prosecutor's pursuit of the death penalty, accusing him of misusing it to pressure defendants into guilty pleas or get them to turn state's evidence. The two defendants filed a petition before the state Supreme Court that suggests a range of actions to limit Washington County District Attorney Jason Walsh's discretion in asking for capital punishment. 'The arbitrary seeking of the death penalty has become a crisis in Washington County, where a wildly disproportionate number' of the state's prosecutorial death penalty notices of aggravating factors are filed, wrote lawyers for Jordan Clarke and Joshua George. They say Walsh, a Republican appointed in 2021 and elected to keep the job nearly two years ago, has sought the death penalty in 11 of the county's 18 homicide cases during his term in office. Walsh on Tuesday disputed the numbers, saying the county has had more than 18 homicide cases over that period. He said several of the cases during his tenure have involved the deaths of children, where one of the aggravating factors required for the death penalty, the young age of the victim, is simple to demonstrate in court. 'If it fits under the law, prosecutors can seek the death penalty,' Walsh said in a phone interview. 'That's just the law.' The petition asks the justices to adopt 'some or all' of the changes they want. They are asking for Walsh to be required to have an out-of-county judge, the attorney general's office or a court-appointed special master review decisions to seek the death penalty; to stop the death penalty from being pursued in the cases of the two petitioners; and to get an outside judge to review all death penalty cases filed since the year Walsh took office. Washington County is a suburban and rural area of more than 200,000 people with a history of coal mining and gas drilling in the state's southwesternmost corner, about 28 miles (45 kilometers) southwest of Pittsburgh. 'No county has a bottomless well of money to fund defense teams representing indigents facing capital punishment,' lawyers with the Philadelphia-based Atlantic Center for Capital Representation argued in asking the justices to take the unusual step of accepting a case without an underlying appeal. 'The excessive, abusive, and coercive use of the death penalty by District Attorney Walsh has surely strained Washington County's ability to fund constitutionally adequate defenses.' As an example, the filing describes how the prosecutor's office upgraded a woman's charge of conspiracy to commit homicide to add criminal homicide after being told by defense lawyers that conspiracy was not sufficient to face a death penalty. She spent nearly four years in jail before the case was dismissed. Walsh said there is evidence supporting the case and he plans to appeal the dismissal. In Clarke's case, involving a 2-month-old boy's death, the petition alleges Walsh 'intervened to improperly influence the manner of death determination, filed homicide charges and a notice of aggravators before the manner of death was determined, and is pursuing a death sentence based on facially inappropriate aggravating circumstances.' Walsh said state and federal courts have long upheld the legality of the death penalty. In Pennsylvania, only three people have been executed since the 1970s, and all had given up on their appeals. Appeals and natural deaths have shrunk Pennsylvania's death row from well over 200 two decades ago to 94 inmates currently. 'This is nothing but a liberal Hail Mary from a liberal think tank,' Walsh said of the newly filed court petition. 'Those allegations are nonsensical and without merit.'

Defendants argue to state's high court that a Pennsylvania DA has been misusing the death penalty
Defendants argue to state's high court that a Pennsylvania DA has been misusing the death penalty

Al Arabiya

time17 hours ago

  • Politics
  • Al Arabiya

Defendants argue to state's high court that a Pennsylvania DA has been misusing the death penalty

HARRISBURG, Pa. Two men accused of homicide and facing a potential death sentence if convicted asked Pennsylvania's highest court Tuesday to restrict a county prosecutor's pursuit of the death penalty, accusing him of misusing it to pressure defendants into guilty pleas or get them to turn state's evidence. The two defendants filed a petition before the state Supreme Court that suggests a range of actions to limit Washington County District Attorney Jason Walsh's discretion in asking for capital punishment. 'The arbitrary seeking of the death penalty has become a crisis in Washington County, where a wildly disproportionate number of the state's prosecutorial death penalty notices of aggravating factors are filed,' wrote lawyers for Jordan Clarke and Joshua George. They say Walsh, a Republican appointed in 2021 and elected to keep the job nearly two years ago, has sought the death penalty in 11 of the county's 18 homicide cases during his term in office. Walsh on Tuesday disputed the numbers, saying the county has had more than 18 homicide cases over that period. He said several of the cases during his tenure have involved the deaths of children, where one of the aggravating factors required for the death penalty – the young age of the victim – is simple to demonstrate in court. 'If it fits under the law, prosecutors can seek the death penalty,' Walsh said in a phone interview. 'That's just the law.' The petition asks the justices to adopt some or all of the changes they want. They are asking for Walsh to be required to have an out-of-county judge, the attorney general's office, or a court-appointed special master review decisions to seek the death penalty, to stop the death penalty from being pursued in the cases of the two petitioners, and to get an outside judge to review all death penalty cases filed since the year Walsh took office. Washington County is a suburban and rural area of more than 200,000 people with a history of coal mining and gas drilling in the state's southwesternmost corner, about 28 miles (45 kilometers) southwest of Pittsburgh. 'No county has a bottomless well of money to fund defense teams representing indigents facing capital punishment,' lawyers with the Philadelphia-based Atlantic Center for Capital Representation argued in asking the justices to take the unusual step of accepting a case without an underlying appeal. 'The excessive, abusive, and coercive use of the death penalty by District Attorney Walsh has surely strained Washington County's ability to fund constitutionally adequate defenses.' As an example, the filing describes how the prosecutor's office upgraded a woman's charge of conspiracy to commit homicide to add criminal homicide after being told by defense lawyers that conspiracy was not sufficient to face a death penalty. She spent nearly four years in jail before the case was dismissed. Walsh said there is evidence supporting the case, and he plans to appeal the dismissal. In Clarke's case involving a 2-month-old boy's death, the petition alleges Walsh intervened to improperly influence the manner of death determination, filed homicide charges and a notice of aggravators before the manner of death was determined, and is pursuing a death sentence based on facially inappropriate aggravating circumstances. Walsh said state and federal courts have long upheld the legality of the death penalty. In Pennsylvania, only three people have been executed since the 1970s, and all had given up on their appeals. Appeals and natural deaths have shrunk Pennsylvania's death row from well over 200 two decades ago to 94 inmates currently. 'This is nothing but a liberal Hail Mary from a liberal think tank,' Walsh said of the newly filed court petition. 'Those allegations are nonsensical and without merit.'

One person killed, another injured in head-on crash in North Bethlehem Township
One person killed, another injured in head-on crash in North Bethlehem Township

CBS News

timea day ago

  • CBS News

One person killed, another injured in head-on crash in North Bethlehem Township

One person was killed and another was injured in an early-morning head-on crash in Washington County. The crash happened just after 5:15 a.m. on Tuesday along Rt. 40 near the intersection with Valleyview Road in North Bethlehem Township, according to dispatchers. One person has died in the crash and another is being flown by medical helicopter from the scene. The extent of their injuries wasn't immediately known, dispatchers said. The road is being closed in both directions as first responders are on the scene and is expected to be shut down for a significant amount of time. Pennsylvania State Police out of the Washington barracks will be leading the investigation into the deadly crash.

21-year-old Wisconsin woman killed following single-vehicle crash, under investigation
21-year-old Wisconsin woman killed following single-vehicle crash, under investigation

Yahoo

time2 days ago

  • Yahoo

21-year-old Wisconsin woman killed following single-vehicle crash, under investigation

HARTFORD, Wis. (WFRV) – Deputies in eastern Wisconsin are investigating a single-vehicle crash that left a 21-year-old woman dead on Thursday night. According to the Washington County Sheriff's Office, deputies got multiple reports of a single-vehicle crash around 9:45 p.m. on July 17. First responders from multiple agencies responded to the scene in the area of County Trunk K and Kettle Moraine Road in Hartford, where they found one victim, a 21-year-old woman from Hartford. Dump truck crash in Wisconsin spills gravel, diesel fuel and hospitalizes both drivers Life-saving efforts were performed at the scene; however, the woman was later pronounced dead at a local hospital. Assisting agencies included the Slinger Police Department, Hartford Fire and Rescue, and St. Lawrence Fire Department. The crash remains under investigation by the Washington County Sheriff's Office. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. Solve the daily Crossword

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