Latest news with #deathpenalty
BBC News
18 hours ago
- BBC News
'Angel Delight' drug smugglers avoid death penalty in Bali
Three British nationals have avoided the death penalty for smuggling cocaine disguised as packets of Angel Delight into Stocker, 39, and her husband Jon Collyer, 38, were arrested at Bali's international airport in February after being caught with 994g of the Class A Float, 31, was due to receive the packages and was arrested a few days three defendants, who are from Hastings and St Leonards in East Sussex, were told by a judge that they would only serve a 12 month sentence. Minus the time they have already served, it means the trio could be eligible for release by early Collyer and Float could have faced the death penalty – the heaviest punishment for taking part in a drug transaction under Indonesian and Stocker were caught with 17 packages of cocaine, with a value of roughly £300, BBC's US partner CBS previously quoted the AFP news agency as saying Balinese authorities believe the cocaine was hidden in packets of Angel Delight, a powdered dessert hands out severe punishments for drug smuggling and has previously executed foreigners, but it has upheld a temporary halt on the death sentence since president Prabowo Subianto's administration previously moved to repatriate several high-profile inmates, all sentenced for drug offences, back to their home countries.
Daily Mail
20 hours ago
- Daily Mail
Fascinating reason Bryan Kohberger's inmates WON'T kill Idaho murderer revealed by expert
Quadruple murderer Bryan Kohberger is not likely to be killed by his fellow inmates because the risk of them ending up on death row is too high, an expert has claimed. Kohberger, 30, was sentenced Wednesday to four consecutive life terms for the brutal November 2022 slayings of four young University of Idaho students. A plea deal struck earlier this month saw him spared the death penalty, but he will never be able to apply for parole. He was handed a life sentence for each life he took - one for Madison Mogen, a second for Kaylee Goncalves, a third for Ethan Chapin and the final one for Xana Kernodle, all aged just 19 or 20 at the time of their deaths. Several of the victims' loved ones shared their desire for Kohberger to be attacked in prison during their addresses to the court. And even though his fellow inmates already think he is a 'f*****g weirdo', a former police investigator warns murder is not something Kohberger has to fear. Kohberger is 'vulnerable' being confined in the general population unit, retired NYPD inspector Paul Mauro admitted to Fox News, but can find some safety in the fact that 'Idaho is a death penalty state'. 'If you're in for life, and you kill somebody, well, that's going to get you to death penalty,' Mauro explained, suggesting that for most prisoners murder is too risky. Inmates sentenced to execution are housed in a designated part of the prison referred to as 'death row' and remain in isolation for 23 hours a day. As a result of his plea deal, Kohberger won't be kept near death row inmates - those most likely to be unbothered by the repercussions of committing murder. Kohberger was already in custody at the Idaho State Correctional Complex in Kuna by Wednesday afternoon, a source familiar with the case told Fox. The facility is located about 16 miles away from the Ada County courthouse in Boise, where he was sentenced earlier in the day. Once in custody, inmates go through an evaluation process to asses their 'needs' and 'determine appropriate housing placement', a state corrections department official said. The evaluation, which typically takes seven to 14 days to complete, includes a psyche check to determine whether a prisoner poses a threat to themselves, fellow inmates or prison staff. The prisoner's 'classification, housing placement, and privileges' will be determined after the evaluation process is complete. Mauro predicts Kohberger will be temporarily placed in solitary confinement, but eventually join the general prison population with other killers. And although the victims' families want Kohberger to 'living in fear' and thinking he is a 'target' in prison, the ex-inspector does not think threats on his life are likely. At least one fellow prisoner has already admitted he would have 'physically assaulted' Kohberger if he 'wasn't worried about further legal repercussions', jail records reveal. The inmate was talking about Kohberger during a jail transfer and branded him a 'f*****g weirdo'. Another prisoner alleged Kohberger became aggressive during a phone call with his mother MaryAnn after hearing an inmate shout 'you suck' at a sports match on TV. The killer allegedly thought the prisoner was talking about him and his mother and, according to records, 'immediately got up and put his face to the bars'. Mogen, Kernodle, Goncalves and Chapin were found stabbed to death on November 13, 2022 in their shared home on King Road in Moscow, Idaho. Kohberger was arrested in Pennsylvania, where his parents lived, in connection to the gruesome slayings roughly six weeks later. Police said they recovered DNA from a knife sheath found at the home, and used genetic genealogy to identify Kohberger as a possible suspect. They accessed cellphone data to pinpoint his movements and used surveillance camera footage to help locate a white sedan that was seen repeatedly driving past the home on the night of the killings. A Q-tip from the garbage at his parents' house was used to match Kohberger's DNA to genetic material from the sheath, investigators said. The 30-year-old killer - who spent years studying criminology - pleaded guilty to the quadruple murder earlier this month in a deal to avoid the death penalty. Kohberger's attorneys got his trial moved to Boise after expressing concerns that the court wouldn't be able to find enough unbiased jurors in Moscow. But Hippler rejected their efforts to get the death penalty taken off the table and to strike critical evidence - including the DNA - from being admitted in trial. The trial had been set to begin next month. In exchange for Kohberger admitting guilt and waiving his right to appeal, prosecutors agreed not to seek his execution. Instead, both sides agreed to recommend that he serve four consecutive life sentences without parole for the killings. The victim's families were split on how they felt about the plea deal. If investigators know why Kohberger committed the crime, they haven't said so publicly. Nor is it clear why he spared two roommates who were home at the time. Cellphone location data did show Kohberger had been in the neighborhood multiple times before the attack. Latah County Prosecutor Bill Thompson has said that Kohberger used his knowledge about forensic investigations to attempt to cover his tracks by deep cleaning his vehicle after the crime. Police say Kohberger's Amazon purchase history shows he bought a military-style knife as well as the knife sheath found at the home. But the knife itself was never found. The case drew widespread interest and judges feared the publicity could harm Kohberger's right to a fair trial. A sweeping gag order was imposed and hundreds of court documents were sealed from public view. After Kohberger pleaded guilty, a coalition of news organizations asked that the gag order be lifted and the case documents be unsealed. Hippler agreed, but said unsealing the documents will take time. It's not clear how many answers they might contain.
Washington Post
a day ago
- Washington Post
He was on death row. Now he's suing the men who put him there.
A Maryland man who was twice sentenced to death for a pair of murders he didn't commit, and then served 32 years in prison before being released, is suing the prosecutors and police detectives who mishandled his case, though he has now outlived four of the five people he says caused his decades of wrongful imprisonment.
The Independent
a day ago
- The Independent
Moscow police department releases inmate accounts about Bryan Kohberger's life in jail
Convicted mass murderer Bryan Kohberger received four consecutive life sentences without parole for the 2022 murders of four University of Idaho students. The sentencing at Ada County courthouse in Boise followed Kohberger's recent guilty plea, which allowed him to avoid the death penalty. Documents released by Moscow police included accounts from inmates at Latah County Jail, who described Kohberger as a 'weirdo' and annoying. Inmates reported that Kohberger would wash his hands dozens of times daily, take 45-minute to hour-long showers, and stay awake almost all night. Kohberger reportedly lost his temper only once, when an inmate made a comment he believed was directed at his mother during a video call.
CNN
a day ago
- CNN
His murder conviction was thrown out, but Richard Glossip will stay in prison while he waits for a new trial, judge rules
A judge on Wednesday denied bond for former Oklahoma death row inmate Richard Glossip, keeping him in custody while he awaits a retrial after the US Supreme Court tossed his conviction and death sentence in the 1997 killing of his former boss, according to court records. District Judge Heather Coyle said in the order that the 'State has sufficiently shown by clear and convincing evidence that the presumption of the defendant's guilt of a capital offense is great.' The order comes after a hearing on Glossip's motion to set bond on June 17. Glossip's attorney declined to comment on the judge's decision Wednesday. The ruling is the latest twist in the legal saga surrounding Glossip, who has been scheduled for execution nine times and has eaten his last meal three times only to have his execution stayed. After nearly three decades maintaining his innocence on Oklahoma's death row and the emergence of new evidence in recent years, the US Supreme Court in February tossed Glossip's conviction and death sentence. The Glossip case is arguably the highest-profile death penalty case to reach the court in years. The court ordered that Glossip receive a new trial, finding prosecutors failed to correct false testimony that may have influenced his jury. Then, Oklahoma prosecutors said last month they would retry the longtime death row inmate a third time for his role in the killing of his former boss. Since Glossip's 1998 conviction as the alleged orchestrator of a murder-for-hire scheme targeting his boss, Oklahoma City motel owner Barry Van Treese, a raft of issues with his prosecution has surfaced, coinciding with a shift of political winds now at the inmate's back. The fight to spare Glossip's life – which has drawn national attention – has been largely helmed by pro-death penalty Republicans, most notably Oklahoma Attorney General Gentner Drummond: He and others have said it's important Oklahomans have faith the death penalty is fairly administrated, and that Glossip's execution would erode trust in the state's justice system, given the questions surrounding his case. Drummond in June announced that he intends to pursue a new murder trial against Glossip on a first-degree murder charge. Drummond said that he would seek a sentence of life in prison for Glossip instead of the death penalty. Allegations surfaced that the state withheld evidence related to its star witness. Glossip's conviction rested on testimony from Van Treese's actual killer, Justin Sneed, who got a life sentence in exchange for a guilty plea and for testifying against Glossip. Sneed's testimony was the sole evidence linking Glossip, the motel's manager, to the killing. In its February decision, the Supreme Court found prosecutors had not corrected false testimony Sneed provided at trial; had they, his credibility would have suffered, undercutting his testimony – the lodestar of the prosecution's case. Years after Sneed's testimony, the state disclosed evidence that Sneed was treated for a serious psychiatric condition. The notes indicate prosecutors knew that Sneed's diagnosis and treatment at the time of Glossip's trial and, according to Glossip's supporters, hid that information from his defense. This is a developing story and will be updated. CNN's Dakin Andone contributed to this report.
