Florida legislators approve measure to speed up executions

[CG6468]

Florida legislators approve measure to speed up executions

By Bill Cotterell
TALLAHASSEE, Florida | Mon Apr 29, 2013 3:46pm EDT

(Reuters) - The Florida Senate sent Governor Rick Scott a package of capital-punishment reforms on Monday designed to prevent condemned killers from spending decades on Death Row, despite warnings that speeding up the legal appeals process could lead to innocent prisoners being executed.

The "Timely Justice Act" sets deadlines for condemned killers to file appeals, and for the state to proceed with issuing warrants after the Florida Supreme Court upholds death sentences.

It also sets competency standards for lawyers handling cases. To reduce the number of appeals alleging incompetent counsel, any attorney twice found to have provided "constitutionally deficient representation" will be suspended from handling death appeals for five years.

"Is swift justice fair justice?" asked Democratic party Senator Arthenia Joyner, a Tampa attorney who voted against the bill. "We have seen cases where, years later, convicted people were exonerated," she said.

"I don't see the reason for the swiftness, especially with DNA evidence that can exonerate," said Senator Maria Sachs, who is also an attorney and a Democrat.

But Republican Senator Rob Bradley said, "this is not about guilt or innocence, it's about timely justice." Frivolous appeals designed only for delay are not fair to victims and their families, he said.

The act also requires the state Supreme Court to make annual reports to the Legislature on how many capital appeals have been pending more than three years. Attorneys found to have provided incompetent counsel would also be reported to the Florida Bar.

"Only God can judge," Matt Gaetz, a Republican who sponsored the bill in the House of Representatives, said last week during House debate. "But we sure can set up the meeting."

The House passed Gaetz's bill 84-34 last week. Governor Scott, a conservative Republican, is expected to sign the changes into law.

Execute 'em, just kill the worthless scum

[Eupher]

From the story:

Staff analysis of Gaetz's bill said the average time between sentence and execution, since Florida resumed executions in 1979, has been 13 years. The state has carried out 75 warrants in that time, second only to Texas, which has executed 496 convicted killers since 1976.

And now, for a bit of perspective:

December 28, 2012. A 40-year-old man shot to death on Chicago's West Side became the 500th homicide of the year in the city.

The bleeding heart ****tard liberals that line up outside the state prison at Huntsville, TX, whenever the good people of Texas slip the needle to the next convicted killer, completely fail to see just how ludicrous their whining really is.

Street executioners in Chicago killed more people in that one city in one year than the entire state of Texas put to death in 36 years.

Liberals, GFY.