IN LOVING MEMORY OF PRESIDENT TEDDY ROOSEVELT [QUOTE ~ JANUARY 6, 2014]

January 5, 2014, 8:07 am

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Theodore Roosevelt

“Courage, hard work, self-mastery, and intelligent effort are all essential to successful life.”

America and the World War (1915)

– Teddy Roosevelt, the 26^thPresident of the United States

Complete Sentence: In this world it is as true of nations as of individuals that the things best worth having are rarely to be obtained in cheap fashion. There is nothing easier than to meet in congresses and conventions and pass resolutions in favor of virtue. There is also nothing more futile unless those passing the resolutions are willing to make them good by labor and endurance and active courage and self-denial. Readers of John Hay’s poems will remember the scorn therein expressed for those who “resoloot till the cows come home,” but do not put effort back of their words. Those who would teach our people that service can be rendered or greatness attained in easy, comfortable fashion, without facing risk, hardship, and difficulty, are teaching what is false and mischievous. Courage, hard work, self-mastery, and intelligent effort are all essential to successful life. As a rule, the slothful ease of life is in inverse proportion to its true success. This is true of the private lives of farmers, business men, and mechanics. It is no less true of the life of the nation which is made up of these farmers, business men, and mechanics.

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THE KILLING FIELDS OF THE KHMER ROUGE

January 6, 2014, 8:15 am

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            On this date, January 7, 1979, Phnom Penh falls to the advancing Vietnamesetroops, driving out Pol Pot and the Khmer Rouge. In order to remember that day and to denounce that atrocities of the Pol Pot, I will post information about the Killing Fields from Wikipedia and other links.

Skulls in a massive display at the Killing Fields (PHOTO SOURCE: http://www.ourreallybigadventure.com/southeastasia/cambodia/phnom_penh.html)

 

A commemorative stupa filled with the skulls of the victims at the Killing Field of Choeung Ek.

The Killing Fields (Khmer: វាលពិឃាតviel pi-kʰiet) are a number of sites in Cambodia where large numbers of people were killed and buried by the Khmer Rouge regime, during its rule of the country from 1975 to 1979, immediately after the end of the Cambodian Civil War(1970–1975).

Analysis of 20,000 mass grave sites by the DC-Cam Mapping Program and Yale University indicate at least 1,386,734 victims of execution. Estimates of the total number of deaths resulting from Khmer Rouge policies, including disease and starvation, range from 1.7 to 2.5 million out of a 1975 population of roughly 8 million. In 1979, communist Vietnam invaded Democratic Kampuchea and toppled the Khmer Rouge regime.

Cambodian journalist Dith Pran coined the term "killing fields" after his escape from the regime. A 1984 film, The Killing Fields, tells the story of Dith Pran, played by another Cambodian survivor Haing S. Ngor, and his journey to escape the death camps.

The Killing Fields: Choeung Ek, near Phnom Penh, Cambodia. These are the bones of young children who were killed by Khmer Rouge soldiers.

Mass grave at the Killing Field of Choeung Ek.

PHOTO SOURCE: http://www.cambodianmissionoutreach.org/the-killing-fields.html

Genocide

he Khmer Rouge regime arrested and eventually executed almost everyone suspected of connections with the former government or with foreign governments, as well as professionals and intellectuals. Ethnic Vietnamese, ethnic Thai, ethnic Chinese, ethnic Cham, Cambodian Christians, and the Buddhist monkhood were the demographic targets of persecution. As a result, Pol Pot is sometimes described as "the Hitler of Cambodia" and "a genocidal tyrant." Martin Shaw described the Cambodian genocide as "the purest genocide of the Cold War era."

Ben Kiernan estimates that about 1.7 million people were killed. Researcher Craig Etcheson of the Documentation Center of Cambodia suggests that the death toll was between 2 and 2.5 million, with a "most likely" figure of 2.2 million. After 5 years of researching some 20,000 grave sites, he concludes that, "these mass graves contain the remains of 1,386,734 victims of execution." A UN investigation reported 2–3 million dead, while UNICEF estimated 3 million had been killed. Demographic analysis by Patrick Heuveline suggests that between 1.17 and 3.42 million Cambodians were killed, while Marek Sliwinski suggests that 1.8 million is a conservative figure. Even the Khmer Rouge acknowledged that 2 million had been killed—though they attributed those deaths to a subsequent Vietnamese invasion. By late 1979, UN and Red Cross officials were warning that another 2.25 million Cambodians faced death by starvation due to “the near destruction of Cambodian society under the regime of ousted Prime Minister Pol Pot,” who were saved by international aid after the Vietnamese invasion.

Cambodia's ethnic minorities constituted 15 percent of the population in pre-Khmer Rouge era. Of the 400,000 Vietnamese who lived in Cambodia before 1975, some 150–300,000 were expelled by the previous Lon Nol regime. When Pol Pot's Khmer Rouge came to power, there remained about 100–250,000 Vietnamese in the country. Almost all of them were repatriated by December 1975.

The Chinese community (about 425,000 people in 1975) was reduced to 200,000 during the next four years. In the Khmer Rouge's Standing Committee, four members were of Chinese ancestry, two Vietnamese, and two Khmers. Some observers argue that this mixed composition makes it difficult to argue that there was an intent to kill off minorities. R.J. Rummel, an analyst of political killings, argues that there was a clear genocidal intent:

One estimate is that out of 40,000 to 60,000 monks, only between 800 and 1,000 survived to carry on their religion. We do know that of 2,680 monks in eight monasteries, a mere seventy were alive as of 1979. As for the Buddhist temples that populated the landscape of Cambodia, the Khmer Rouge destroyed 95 percent of them, and turned the remaining few into warehouses or allocated them for some other degrading use. Amazingly, in the very short span of a year or so, the small gang of Khmer Rouge wiped out the center of Cambodian culture, its spiritual incarnation, its institutions....As part of a planned genocide campaign, the Khmer Rouge sought out and killed other minorities, such as the Moslem Cham. In the district of Kompong Xiem, for example, they demolished five Cham hamlets and reportedly massacred 20,000 that lived there; in the district of Koong Neas only four Cham apparently survived out of some 20,000.

Rooms of the Tuol Sleng Genocide Museum contain thousands of photos taken by the Khmer Rouge of their victims.

Process

The judicial process of the Khmer Rouge regime, for minor or political crimes, began with a warning from the Angkar, the government of Cambodia under the regime. People receiving more than two warnings were sent for "re-education," which meant near-certain death. People were often encouraged to confess to Angkar their "pre-revolutionary lifestyles and crimes" (which usually included some kind of free-market activity; having had contact with a foreign source, such as a U.S. missionary, international relief or government agency; or contact with any foreigner or with the outside world at all), being told that Angkar would forgive them and "wipe the slate clean." This meant being taken away to a place such as Tuol Sleng or Choeung Ek for torture and/or execution.

The executed were buried in mass graves. In order to save ammunition, the executions were often carried out using poison, spades or sharpened bamboo sticks. In some cases the children and infants of adult victims were killed by having their heads bashed against the trunks of Chankiri trees. The rationale was "to stop them growing up and taking revenge for their parents' deaths."

Some victims were required to dig their own graves; their weakness often meant that they were unable to dig very deep. The soldiers who carried out the executions were mostly young men or women from peasant families.

Victims of Khmer Rouge (PHOTO SOURCE: http://www.trekearth.com/gallery/Asia/Cambodia/West/Phnum_Penh/Phnom_Penh/photo1338220.htm)

PHOTO SOURCE: http://www.amazon.com/Duch-Master-Kaing-Guek-Eav/dp/B00CPQ81FI

Prosecution for crimes against humanity

In 1997 the Cambodian government asked for the UN's assistance in setting up a genocide tribunal. It took nine years to agree to the shape and structure of the court – a hybrid of Cambodian and international laws – before the judges were sworn in in 2006. The investigating judges were presented with the names of five possible suspects by the prosecution on July 18, 2007. On September 19, 2007 Nuon Chea, second in command of the Khmer Rouge and its most senior surviving member, was charged with war crimes and crimes against humanity. He will face Cambodian and foreign judges at the special genocide tribunal. On July 26, 2010 Kang Kek Iew (aka Comrade Duch), director of the S-21 prison camp, was convicted of crimes against humanity and sentenced to 35 years' imprisonment. His sentence was reduced to 19 years, as he had already spent 11 years in prison. On February 2, 2012, his sentence was extended to life imprisonment by the Extraordinary Chambers in the Courts of Cambodia.

Today

The best known monument of the Killing Fields is at the village of Choeung Ek. Today, it is the site of a Buddhist memorial to the victims, and Tuol Sleng has a museum commemorating the genocide. The memorial park at Choeung Ek has been built around the mass graves of many thousands of victims, most of whom were executed after they had been transported from the S-21 Prison in Phnom Penh. The utmost respect is given to the victims of the massacres through signs and tribute sections throughout the park. Many dozens of mass graves are visible above ground, many which have not been excavated yet. Commonly, bones and clothing surface after heavy rainfalls due to the large number of bodies still buried in shallow mass graves. It is not uncommon to run across the bones or teeth of the victims scattered on the surface as one tours the memorial park. If these are found, visitors are asked to notify a memorial park officer or guide.

A survivor of the genocide, Dara Duong, founded The Killing Fields Museumin Seattle, Washington, USA.

INTERNET SOURCE:http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chankiri_Tree

A Chankiri Tree or Killing Tree was a tree in the Cambodian Killing Fields against which children and infants were smashed because their parents were accused of crimes against the Khmer Rouge. It was so the children "wouldn't grow up and take revenge for their parents' deaths". Some of the soldiers laughed as they beat the children against the trees. Not to laugh could have indicated sympathy, making oneself a target.

A Chankiri Tree. The sign reads "Chankiri Tree against which executioners beat children"

INTERNET SOURCE:http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Choeung_Ek

Mass graves at Choeung Ek, near Phnom Penh, Cambodia

Coordinates	11°29′3.82″N104°54′7.17″E
Location	Killing Fields in Phnom Penh, Cambodia
Type	Buddhist stupa
Height	62 meters
Beginning date	1988

Choeung Ek(Khmer: ជើងឯក[cəəŋ aek]), the site of a former orchard and mass grave of victims of the Khmer Rouge - killed between 1975 and 1979 - about 17 km south of Phnom Penh, Cambodia, is the best-known of the sites known as The Killing Fields, where the Khmer Rouge regime executed over one million people between 1975 and 1979. Mass graves containing 8,895 bodies were discovered at Choeung Ek after the fall of the Khmer Rouge regime. Many of the dead were former political prisoners who were kept by the Khmer Rouge in their Tuol Sleng detention center.

Today, Choeung Ek is a memorial, marked by a Buddhist stupa. The stupa has acrylic glass sides and is filled with more than 5,000 human skulls. Some of the lower levels are opened during the day so that the skulls can be seen directly. Many have been shattered or smashed in.

Tourists are encouraged by the Cambodian government to visit Choeung Ek. Apart from the stupa, there are pits from which the bodies were exhumed. Human bones still litter the site.

On May 3, 2005, the Municipality of Phnom Penh announced that they had entered into a 30-year agreement with JC Royal Co. to develop the memorial at Choeung Ek. As part of the agreement, they are not to disturb the remains still present in the field.

The film The Killing Fields is a dramatized portrayal of events like those that took place at Choeung Ek.

OTHER LINKS:

http://www.killingfieldsmuseum.com/genocide1.html

http://news.nationalgeographic.com.au/news/2003/01/0110_030110_tvcambodia.html

http://www.tourismcambodia.com/travelguides/provinces/phnom-penh/what-to-see/5_cheung-ek-killing-field.htm

http://www.cbsnews.com/news/remembering-the-killing-fields/

http://www.cambodianmissionoutreach.org/the-killing-fields.html

http://www.ourreallybigadventure.com/southeastasia/cambodia/phnom_penh.html

OFFICER GREGG WILLIAM WINTERS (END OF WATCH: JANUARY 8, 1991) (COP KILLER EXECUTED IN INDIANA ON JUNE 15, 2007)

January 7, 2014, 12:14 pm

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            Officer Gregg Winters died from his injuries on January 8, 1991. He was shot by Michael Allen Lambert on December 28, 1990 in Indiana. The Cop Killer was executed by lethal injection 16 years later on June 15, 2007. Let us hear from the slain cop’s family on Unit 1012 Blog. 

INTERNET SOURCE: http://www.odmp.org/officer/164-officer-gregg-william-winters

Officer Gregg William Winters

Officer

Gregg William Winters

Muncie Police Department, Indiana

End of Watch: Tuesday, January 8, 1991

Bio & Incident Details

Age:32

Tour:4 years

Badge #167

Cause:Gunfire

Incident Date:12/28/1990

Weapon:Handgun; .25 caliber

Suspect:Executed in 2007

Officer Gregg Winters succumbed to gunshot wounds suffered 11 days earlier after being shot while transporting a prisoner.

Officer Winters had arrested the subject for public intoxication and he was placed in the rear seat of his squad car after being searched by another officer. Approximately one-eighth mile from the jail, the handcuffed subject was able to pull out a concealed .25-caliber semi-automatic handgun and shoot Officer Winters in the back of the head and neck five times.

The suspect was convicted of murder and sentenced to death. On June 15, 2007, he was executed by lethal injection.

Officer Winters had served with the Muncie Police Department for four years. He is survived by his wife, two sons and a brother who serves as a deputy chief with the Muncie Police Department.

JARED LEE LOUGHNER THE 2011 TUSCON SAFEWAY SHOOTER

January 7, 2014, 12:14 pm

≫ Next: THE ONE-EYED DRAGON: TAN CHOR JIN (EXECUTED IN SINGAPORE ON 9 JANUARY 2009)

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            Jared Lee Loughner was sentenced to 140 years imprisonment for shooting six people dead in Tuscon, Arizona on January 8, 2011. So obvious that he did not want to be put to death, it was a good idea that the death penalty can be used for plea bargaining, to make trials faster. I will post information about him from Wikipedia.

 

Front view of federal mug shot of Jared Lee Loughner taken while in custody of U.S. Marshals in Phoenix, Arizona.

Born	September 10, 1988 (age 25)
Residence	Tucson, Arizona, U.S.
Nationality	American
Education	Mountain View High School (dropped out) Pima Community College (withdrew)
Known for	2011 Tucson shooting
Criminal charge	49, including 2 first-degree murder of federal employees (federal), 4 first-degree murder (state), attempted murder of a member of Congress (federal), 2 attempted murder of federal employees (federal), 10 attempted first-degree murder (state)
Criminal status	Pled guilty on August 7, 2012 to all charges, sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole

Jared Lee Loughner (born September 10, 1988) is an American who pleaded guilty to 19 charges of murder and attempted murder in connection with the shooting near Tucson, Arizona, on January 8, 2011, in which he shot and severely injured U.S. Representative Gabrielle Giffords, his target, and killed six people, including Chief U.S. District Court Judge John Roll, as well as a 9-year-old bystander Christina-Taylor Green. Loughner shot and injured 12 other people, and one man was injured while subduing him.

Acquaintances said that Loughner's personality had changed markedly in the years prior to the shooting, a period when he was also abusing alcohol and drugs. He had been suspended from Pima Community College in September 2010 because of his bizarre behavior and disruptions in classes and the library. After his arrest, two medical evaluations diagnosed him as paranoid schizophrenic and incompetent to stand trial. He was medicated while in jail as part of his treatment. He was again judged incompetent in May 2012. In August 2012, he was judged competent to stand trial, and at the hearing, he pleaded guilty to 19 counts. In November 2012, he was sentenced to life in prison without parole.

Personal background

Loughner is the only child of Randy and Amy Loughner. They were described by a neighbor as a very private family. Amy Loughner worked for the City Parks Department. Journalists did not determine if Randy Loughner worked outside the house. While Loughner had friends in high school, neighbors noted that in the years following, he kept more to himself and did not respond to others.

Behavior change

Loughner attended Mountain View High School, and dropped out in 2006. Around this time, when he was about eighteen years old, those who knew him noted a change in his personality. Kelsey Hawkes, who dated Loughner for several months in high school, later said she could not believe it was him after hearing of his arrest. "I've always known him as the sweet, caring Jared", said Hawkes, 21, then a student at the University of Arizona.

At some point, Loughner was fired from his job at a Quiznos restaurant, with his manager saying he had undergone a personality transformation. After this, Loughner briefly volunteered at a local animal shelter, walking dogs, but he was asked not to return. The shelter manager later said, "He was walking dogs in an area we didn't want dogs walked...he didn't understand or comprehend what the supervisor was trying to tell him. He was just resistant to that information."

Tong Shan, a former friend and classmate of Loughner's, recalled observing significant changes in his attitude and demeanor a year prior to the shooting. Shan, who became friends with Loughner on the day of their high school graduation, said that they would often spend time together after class in college but lost touch after the semester ended. When they met again in mid-2010, Shan recalled that Loughner appeared, "Radically different. [...] From the way he was talking to me [online]... you can see. It was just questions and questions and random, weird questions that didn't go together," she said. "He wanted to know everything...he would just trip out." Recounting her early experiences with Loughner in light of the shooting, Shan said Loughner was "a good person that just somehow changed so much. I don't know what the hell happened to him."

Shan stated that her last encounter with Loughner was in October 2010, after he was suspended and dropped out of college and just before he purchased the semi-automatic handgun used in the massacre. She said that while Loughner was "anti-government," he never appeared violent, nor did he mention his plans to buy a gun.

According to court records, Loughner had two previous offenses: in October 2007, he was cited in Pima County for possession of drug paraphernalia and on October 13, 2008, he was charged after defacing a street sign in Marana, near Tucson (which was dismissed following the completion of a diversion program in March 2009).

Substance use

Zach Osler, a high school classmate of Loughner's, and his closest friend, indicated that Loughner's life began to unravel after his high school girlfriend broke up with him. He began to abuse alcohol and other drugs, specifically Salvia divinorum (a natural hallucinogen illegal in some states). Another longtime friend, Kylie Smith, added that Loughner had used cannabis (marijuana), psychedelic mushrooms, and LSD around that same time. After struggling with drugs for more than two years, Loughner quit using marijuana (as well as alcohol and tobacco) in late 2008 and has not used it since, according to one of his longtime friends. The U.S. Army confirmed that Loughner had been rejected as "unqualified" for service in 2008. According to military sources, Loughner admitted to marijuana use on numerous occasions during the application process.

Former classmate Caitie Parker remembered Loughner as a "pot head". Loughner has a history of drug use, having been arrested in September 2007 for possession of marijuana and drug paraphernalia. "I haven't seen him in person since '07," Parker recalled in early 2011. "I'm looking back at this [as] a 14–19 year old...who knows if any of us knew what for sure we were yet."

In the months leading up to the shooting, Loughner's parents became increasingly alarmed at their son's behavior at one point resorting to disabling his car every night in order to keep him home. At one point his father confiscated his son's shotgun and both urged him to get help.

Loughner withdrew from Pima Community College after he was asked to obtain a mental health clearance.

Suspension from college

From February to September 2010, while a student at Pima Community College, Loughner had five contacts with college police for classroom and library disruptions. Some of his teachers complained to the administration about his disruptions and bizarre behavior, as they thought it a sign of mental illness and feared what he might do. On September 29, 2010, college police also discovered a YouTube video shot by Loughner, in which his spoken commentary stated that the college was illegal according to the United States Constitution. He described his school as "one of the biggest scams in America".

The college decided to suspend Loughner and sent a letter to his parents, to consult with them and him together. The college told Loughner that if he wanted to return, he needed to resolve his code of conduct violations and obtain a mental health clearance (indicating, in the opinion of a mental health professional, that his presence did not constitute a danger to himself or others). On October 4, Loughner and his parents met with campus administrators and Loughner indicated he would withdraw from the college. During Loughner's time at Pima, a classmate said she worried that he might commit a school shooting. One of his teachers has claimed a similar suspicion after the Tucson shooting. He never submitted to a mental health evaluation and did not return to the college.

Several college classmates recalled an incident in which Loughner, during a class discussion, had mocked and laughed at a young woman who was describing her abortion. One classmate described Loughner's reaction as "wildly inappropriate". "(Loughner) started making comments about terrorism and laughing about killing the baby," former classmate Don Coorough recalled to ABC News. Yet another classmate, Lydian Ali, recalled that "a girl had written a poem about an abortion. It was very emotional and she was teary eyed and he said something about strapping a bomb to the fetus and making a baby bomb out of it."

Expressed views

Views on politics

Records show that Loughner was registered as an Independent and voted in 2006 and 2008, but not in 2010. A YouTube channel under an account called "Classitup10" was linked to Loughner. (There have been numerous copies of 'impostor accounts' such as 'JaredLoughner' and 'Classitup1O'.)

Loughner's high school friend Zach Osler said, "He did not watch TV; he disliked the news; he didn't listen to political radio; he didn't take sides; he wasn't on the Left; he wasn't on the Right." A former classmate, Caitie Parker, who attended high school and college with Loughner, described his political views prior to 2007, prior to his personality transformation, as "left wing, quite liberal,""radical."

In the aftermath of the shooting, the Anti-Defamation League reviewed messages by Loughner, and concluded that there was a "disjointed theme that runs through Loughner's writings", which was a "distrust for and dislike of the government." It "manifested itself in various ways"– for instance, in the belief that the government used the control of language and grammar to brainwash people, the notion that the government was creating "infinite currency" without the backing of gold and silver, or the assertion that NASA was faking spaceflights.

Dislike for Gabrielle Giffords

According to a former friend, Bryce Tierney, Loughner had expressed a longstanding dislike for Gabrielle Giffords. Tierney recalled that Loughner had often said that women should not hold positions of power. He repeatedly derided Giffords as a "fake". This belief intensified after he attended her August 25, 2007 event when she did not, in his view, sufficiently answer his question: "What is government if words have no meaning?" Loughner kept Giffords' form letter, which thanked him for attending the 2007 event, in the same box as an envelope which was scrawled with phrases like "die bitch" and "assassination plans have been made". Zane Gutierrez, a friend, later told the New York Times that Loughner's anger would also "well up at the sight of President George W. Bush, or in discussing what he considered to be the nefarious designs of government."

Conspiracy theories

His friend Zach Osler noted that conspiracy theories had a profound effect on Loughner, particularly the online film Zeitgeist: The Movie, with which friends claimed Loughner held an obsession. He was a member of the message board Above Top Secret, which discussed conspiracy theories; members of the site did not respond warmly to his posts. Loughner espoused conspiracy theories about the 9/11 attacks, the New World Order, and beliefs in a 2012 apocalypse, among other controversial viewpoints. Reports appearing after the shooting noted similarities between the statements made by Loughner and those publicized by the conspiracy theorist David Wynn Miller. The Anti-Defamation League's report also confirmed Loughner's longstanding interest in conspiracy theories.

Views on religion

Journalists had speculated that Loughner was anti-Semitic due to his attack on Rep. Giffords, who is Jewish, but the Anti-Defamation League's analysis of the messages by Loughner found that he had a more generalized dislike of religion, and of government. Loughner declined to state his religion in his Army application. In his "Final Thoughts" video, Loughner stated, "No, I won't trust in God!" This comment, possibly a reference to the U.S. motto "In God We Trust," which appears on U.S. currency, comes after a complaint that U.S. currency is not backed by gold or silver, indicating Loughner believed the currency was untrustworthy.

Roadside sign at the scene the day of the shooting.

Tucson shooting

Main article: 2011 Tucson shooting

Preparation

Loughner allegedly purchased the 9mm Glock pistol used in the shooting from a Sportsman's Warehouse in Tucson on November 30, 2010. The night before the shooting, at 2:05 a.m. he left a message on a friend's voicemail saying, "Hey man, it's Jared. Me and you had good times. Peace out. Later." In a MySpace post the morning of the shooting at 4:12 am, he wrote, "Goodbye friends. Please don't be mad at me. The literacy rate is below 5%. I haven't talked to one person who is literate. I want to make it out alive. The longest war in the history of the United States. Goodbye. I'm saddened with the current currency and job employment. I had a bully at school. Thank you. P.S. --plead the fifth!"

Photos on the MySpace page showed a close-up picture of a handgun sitting atop a document titled "United States History."

The attack

On January 8, 2011, at 7:04 a.m. MST, Loughner went to a Walmart store in the Foothills Mall to purchase ammunition, but left that store and completed his purchase at a Walmart on North Cortaro Road at 7:28 a.m. He was stopped by Arizona Game and Fish Department officer Alen Edward Forney at 7:34 a.m. for running a red light, but once the officer determined there were no outstanding warrants for Loughner, he was allowed to proceed to his destination with a warning to drive carefully. Loughner took a taxi to a Safeway supermarket location in Casas Adobes, where Rep. Giffords was holding a constituents meeting. The shooting occurred at 10:10 a.m. MST.

Loughner opened fire on Giffords from close range, as well as numerous bystanders, killing six people. Thirteen other people were injured by gunfire, and one person was injured while fleeing the scene of the shooting. Giffords, the apparent target of the attack, was shot in the head and critically injured.

A picture of Loughner taken by the Pima County Sheriff's Office's forensic unit, which saw widespread distribution via media outlets

Arrest and legal proceedings

Arrest

Loughner was subdued by bystanders and was arrested by police, saying, "I plead the Fifth," as he was taken into custody. A photograph taken by the Pima County Sheriff's Office's forensic unit was released to the media on January 10, 2011 and published on front pages nationwide. The Washington Postdescribed the picture as "smirking and creepy, with hollow eyes ablaze," while the art director for the New York Times said the photo was featured on the front page because it "was the picture of the day [...] it was intense and arresting. It invited you to look and study, and wonder."

Charges and imprisonment

Loughner was charged in federal court with one count of attempted assassination of a member of Congress, two counts of murder of a federal employee (Giffords' aide and Judge Roll), and two counts of attempting to murder a federal employee, based on his injury of two of Giffords' aides. He was indicted on three of the charges on January 19, 2011. Loughner was held without bail in the Federal Correctional Institution at Phoenix, kept isolated from other inmates 23 hours a day and allowed out of his cell for one hour a day to shower and exercise. On February 24, 2011, he was transferred to the United States Penitentiary in Tucson.

Attorney Judy Clarke, a former federal public defender who in the past had represented suspects in several high profile murder and terrorism cases, was appointed to represent Loughner in federal court. The entire federal judiciary of the state of Arizona recused themselves from hearing the case because of their ties to fellow judge, John Roll, who was killed. Federal prosecutors opposed motions to move the case outside of Arizona because of pre-trial publicity. At the direction of Ninth Circuit Appeals court Chief Judge Kozinski, the federal case was assigned to the San Diego-based judge, Larry Alan Burns (from the Southern District of California).

Prosecutors representing Arizona, which has concurrent jurisdiction in the matter, announced they intended to file murder and attempted murder charges on behalf of the other victims, those who were not members of Congress or federal employees (although they could legally file charges on behalf of all the victims). Arizona law does not permit a verdict of "not guilty by reason of insanity", but does allow for a verdict of "guilty but insane."

Initial pleading and additional charges

On January 24, 2011, Loughner appeared at the Sandra Day O'Connor U.S. Courthouse in Phoenix, before Judge Larry Alan Burns from San Diego. Loughner, whose hair had partially regrown since his arrest, smiled while presented with the charges related to the shooting, including the attempted killing of Giffords and two of her aides. Loughner's attorney, Judy Clarke, requested that Judge Burns select a plea on her client's behalf, to which a plea of not guilty was recorded. When Burns asked Clarke if Loughner understood the charges against him, she replied that they were "not raising that issue" at the time. She did not object to a request by prosecutors to have future hearings moved back to Tucson. On March 3, 2011, a federal grand jury indicted Loughner on additional charges of murder and attempted murder for a total of 49 counts. On March 9, 2011, Loughner pleaded not guilty to all 49 charges.

Relationship with lawyers

On May 25, 2011, Judge Burns stated, "I got some letters declaring some conflict with his counsel...I intend to table them at this time. At such a point that his competency is restored, if he wants to bring up the matter of counsel, he can renew it then." The judge suppressed the letters from the court record.

Medico-legal proceedings

On May 25, 2011, Judge Burns ruled Loughner was then incompetent to stand trial, based on two medical evaluations. Court proceedings were suspended while Loughner, who had been diagnosed with paranoid schizophrenia, received psychiatric treatment at the psychiatric wing of the U.S. Medical Center for Federal Prisoners in Springfield, Missouri. He was scheduled to appear in court on September 21, 2011, but that hearing was delayed until September 28, 2011, when the judge reviewed whether he could understand the charges against him and could assist in his own defense. (Loughner’s lawyers unsuccessfully objected to him appearing at the hearing.) Loughner disrupted the court hearing with an outburst, and was carried from the court room. According to the New York Times, Loughner believed he succeeded in killing Giffords, and clashed with his lawyer when she informed him that the congresswoman had survived. He was judged still incompetent to stand trial following medical evaluations and a hearing in May 2011.

Forced medication rulings

On June 26, 2011, Judge Burns ruled that prison doctors could forcibly medicate Loughner with antipsychotic drugs in order to treat him to restore him to competency for trial.

But, on July 12, 2011, a three-judge federal appeals panel from the Ninth Circuit ruled that Loughner could refuse anti-psychotic medication, since he "has not been convicted of a crime, is presumptively innocent and is therefore entitled to greater constitutional protections than a convicted inmate." However, the ruling stated that it "does not preclude prison authorities from taking other measures to maintain the safety of prison personnel, other inmates and Loughner himself, including forced administration of tranquilizers".

A week after the ruling, prison medical authorities resumed forcible treatment of Loughner with the antipsychotic risperidone, this time citing Washington v. Harper and stating the purpose of treatment was the need to control the danger he posed to himself and others in prison, rather than rendering him fit for trial. Loughner's defense team submitted an emergency motion to the US Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit, claiming that this treatment was in violation of their ruling and seeking an immediate injunction to halt treatment. The request for an injunction was denied by the court, allowing treatment to continue pending a full hearing into the matter. Arguments began on August 30 as to the lawfulness of this treatment. In March 2012, a federal appeals court denied a request by Loughner's lawyers to halt his forced medication.

On May 24, 2012 a federal judge ordered a competency hearing for June 27 (later postponed until August 7) to determine Loughner's mental fitness to stand trial. He remained at a federal prison hospital in Missouri pending the entry of his plea. A request by Loughner's lawyers to rehear arguments on forced medication was denied on June 5, 2012.

Guilty plea and sentencing

On Tuesday, August 7, 2012, Judge Burns found Loughner competent to stand trial based on medical evaluations. Loughner pleaded guilty to 19 counts at the hearing, which spared him the death penalty. The hearing began with Loughner listening calmly to testimony from Dr. Christina Pietz, Loughner's forensic psychologist, who testified that he had displayed depressive symptoms in 2006 and was formally diagnosed with schizophrenia in 2011. Dr. Pietz said that she believed that, after having been forcibly medicated for more than a year, Loughner had expressed remorse and was a changed individual. She said that he was competent to stand trial and agree to a plea. Sentencing was set for November 15, 2012 at 10 a.m. local time. The sentence could not include the death penalty, because the guilty plea bargain was made with an assurance that it would not be sought; Loughner under the law faced a mandatory sentence of life imprisonment without the possibility of parole. Former U.S. Representative Gabrielle Giffords and her husband, retired NASA astronaut Mark Kelly, U.S. Representative Ron Barber, a former aide to Mrs. Giffords, U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder, and the U.S. Attorney for Arizona, John S. Leonardo, had all approved the plea. It was offered and accepted after consultation with them and with the families of the other victims.

By pleading guilty in the deal, Loughner automatically waived his right to any further appeals and cannot later alter his plea to an insanity plea. Loughner must pay a restitution of $19 million, $1 million for each of the victims. He forfeited the weapons he used in the incident, and any money earned from efforts to sell his story. Loughner calmly answered that he understood each charge, and signed his initials after each page of the agreement and shakily signed his name to it, dated August 6.

On November 8, 2012, Loughner appeared in front of U.S. District Court Judge Larry Alan Burns in a court in Tucson. He was sentenced to serve seven consecutive life terms plus 140 years in prison without parole. Even though he was convicted and sentenced in federal court, there was still a possibility that Loughner could be tried for murder and other crimes in Arizona court. Pima County Attorney Barbara LaWall declared later that afternoon that she would not prosecute Jared Loughner on behalf of the State of Arizona. LaWall explained that her decision would afford the victims and their families, as well as the community in Tucson and Pima County, an opportunity to move forward with their lives. She said that, after speaking and consulting personally with each of the surviving victims and with the family members of those killed, it was clear that they would not be benefitted by a State prosecution. Surviving victims and family members told LaWall that they are “completely satisfied with the federal prosecution”, that “justice has been served”, and that the federal sentence is “suitably severe”. He is currently serving his seven life sentences plus 140 years at The United States Medical Center for Federal Prisoners in Springfield, MO.

THE ONE-EYED DRAGON: TAN CHOR JIN (EXECUTED IN SINGAPORE ON 9 JANUARY 2009)

January 8, 2014, 12:56 pm

≫ Next: DENNIS STANWORTH (A RELEASED KILLER ACCUSED OF MURDERING HIS OWN MOTHER)

≪ Previous: JARED LEE LOUGHNER THE 2011 TUSCON SAFEWAY SHOOTER

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            On this date, 9 January 2009, a Salakau gangster in Singapore, Tan Chor Jin A.K.A The One-Eyed Dragon was executed by hanging in Singapore. He shot and killed nightclub owner Lim Hock Soon at the latter's apartment at Serangoon Ave 4 in the early hours of the morning on 15 February 2006. The weapon used was believed to be a Beretta 92. A total of 5 shots were fired. Good that he was executed 3 years after the murder, not live on Death Row for decades. 

Tan Chor Jin A.K.A One-eyed Dragon (PHOTO SOURCE: http://entertainment.xin.msn.com/en/radio/938live/singaporenews.aspx?cp-documentid=3956345)

INTERNET SOURCE:http://uncledicko.blogspot.com.au/2010/11/369-and-some-other-gangs-in-spore.html

In February 2006, something happened in Singapore that really shocked the nation and chilled the bones of everyone who later heard or read the news as the story unfolded. It was a cold-blooded killing carried out in typical ganglang fashion but with a gun ! Most gang-related murders were carried out with weapons such as choppers, parangs, daggers and bearing-scrapers in the past. Singapore, with our strict anti-gun laws, have made gun-related killings a rare occurrence. The mandatory death penalty awaits those dealing death with guns and bullets.

In the early hours of that 15th February morning, Tan Chor Jin, then 39 years old a secret society gangster and reputed top hitman, barged into the flat of Lim Hock Soon age 40, a nite-club owner, threatened him, his wife, 13 year old daughter and maid. Holding both a gun and a knife, he forced Lim to tie up the other three before firing 6 shots at point-blank range into Lim. 5 of the shots hit the victim in the face, head and body, killing him almost instantly. The killer then ransacked the flat for money and valuables and escaped in a waiting car driven by one of his ss underlings. He directed the driver to a canal where he threw away the weapons of death. Tan Chor Jin alias "The One Eyed Dragon" because he had been blinded in one eye, then fled to M'sia where he remained in hiding for 9 days before he was surprised and cornered in a hotel by special CID forces.

He was subsequently taken back to S'pore by CID officers and was charged for the capital crime of murder by firearms. In his trial at the High Court, he initially defended himself despite being cautioned that he was entitled to legal counsel. The trial lasted slightly over a week and he was found guilty and sentenced to death. After all appeals were finally rejected, this One Eyed Dragon met his own fate with Death on 9th January 2009.

Before his hanging at Changi Prison, he did something that was commendable. He decided to donate some of his organs including his kidneys which went to Mr Tang Wee Sung of CK Tang Dept Store ( The story made big news in the media ).

Tan Chor Jin left behind a wife and 2 young kids in M'sia. He also had a mistress with 2 kids.

He was a high-ranking member of the 369 secret society sometimes also known as "salakau". He was a known hitman.

The victim he killed was his one-time close friend and fellow ss member in the AS Tong.

Tan Chor Jin A.K.A One-eyed Dragon (PHOTO SOURCE: http://geraldgiam.sg/2009/01/one-eyed-dragon-hanged/)

Tan Chor Jin A.K.A One-eyed Dragon (PHOTO SOURCE: http://visuallyentertained.com/topsnbottoms/2009/top-10-crimes-that-ever-happened-in-singapore/)

DENNIS STANWORTH (A RELEASED KILLER ACCUSED OF MURDERING HIS OWN MOTHER)

January 8, 2014, 12:57 pm

≫ Next: THE DOCTOR DEATH: HAROLD SHIPMAN (14 JANUARY 1946 TO 13 JANUARY 2004)

≪ Previous: THE ONE-EYED DRAGON: TAN CHOR JIN (EXECUTED IN SINGAPORE ON 9 JANUARY 2009)

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         On this date, January 9, 2013, 70-year-old Dennis Stanworth phoned the Police to confess that he had murdered his own mother. Keep in mind; he had murdered two teenage girls in 1966. Those murders had all happened in the State of California. The SAFE California and the A.C.L.U are as usual keeping quiet about it. Dennis Stanworth’s case is similar to the one of Robert Lee Massiewho had his death sentence overturned, only to be paroled to kill again in California.

            I will post the story of Dennis Stanworth from several internet sources.

Dennis Stanworth in 2013, left, and in the 1960s ( (Mike Jory/Times-Herald; Contra Costa County Sheriff's Office)

Dennis Stanworth. Police photo. (PHOTO SOURCE: http://www.trutv.com/library/crime/blog/2013/01/11/released-killer-accused-of-murdering-own-mother/index.html)

INTERNET SOURCE:http://www.trutv.com/library/crime/blog/2013/01/11/released-killer-accused-of-murdering-own-mother/index.html

   

Released Killer Accused of Murdering Own Mother

January 11, 2013 2:09 PM By Nastacia Leshchinskaya

In 1966, Dennis Stanworth shot and killed two teenage girls. He had seen Susan Box, 15, and Caree Collison, 14, walking in Pinole, Ca., and offered them a ride. He then forced them to walk away from the road at gunpoint and ordered them to undress. When Collison tried to escape, Stanworth told her that if she ran, he’d kill her friend. She came back, and he shot them both in the head. He then performed sex acts on Box’s body. Prior to the murders, Stanworth raped two adult women and one 17-year-old girl. In 1969, Standworth pleaded guilty to murder, kidnapping, rape and other charges.

Stanworth was sentenced to death. He had confessed to everything and, while in prison, was remorseful. He actively objected to an appeal on his behalf, stating“The fact is I did it and I am guilty as charged and there is no doubt to that fact. I had a fair and impartial trial and swear that the conviction, which has resulted in the sentence of death is valid.” However, state law requires automatic appeals of death sentences, even against the wishes of the defendant. Based on several issues, including the dismissal of numerous jurors who objected to capital punishment, Stanworth’s death sentence was overturned. In 1979, he was released on parole under the condition that he register as a sex offender. Now, decades later, he’s accused of killing his 90-year-old mother.

According to Vallejo police, Stanworth, 70, called 911 Wednesday claiming to have killed his mother, Nellie Turner Stanworth, known to friends as “Nellie Belle.” A neighbor in the American Canyon mobile home park where Nellie Stanworth lived believed that the woman had been dead for over a month, because, according to NBC, that’s what Stanworth had told him. Instead, say police, her body was found in Stanworth’s home in the Hiddenbrooke neighborhood of Vallejo.

A relative of Caree Collison had a feeling Stanworth would strike again, telling ABC, “I knew, I knew something was going to happen; he’s such an evil man.”

Dennis Stanworth is led from San Mateo County Jail after he was arrested in the rape of a young woman in 1966. Photo: Barney Peterson (PHOTO SOURCE: http://www.sfgate.com/crime/article/Vallejo-man-allegedly-kills-mother-90-Ex-Death-4181570.php#photo-4013396)

INTERNET SOURCE:http://abclocal.go.com/kgo/story?id=9015836

1972 death penalty decision has lasting impact

Monday, March 04, 2013

It's a shocking case: a convicted double-murderer is released from prison, and later calls police to tell them he had killed again. Vallejo's Dennis Stanworth is one of dozens of California inmates released from death row in the years after a 1972 Supreme Court decision overturning the death penalty.

In 1966 Stanworth was sentenced to death for the brutal kidnapping, rape and murder of two 15-year-old Pinole teens, Caree Collison and Susan Box. Their family members are still haunted by the crime.

"He had them strip and Caree ran and he yelled at her if you don't come back, I'm going to kill your friend. She came back and he shot her in the head," a family member said.

Stanworth sat on San Quentin's death row for seven years. Then everything changed.

"The first step was when the California Supreme Court and U.S. Supreme Court determined that the death penalty was unconstitutional," Uncommon Law's Keith Whattley said.

That meant, by the mid-1970s, 174 death row inmates had their sentences reduced to life in prison. At the time, California did not have life without parole, so all were eligible for release.

Besides Stanworth, the group included Charles Manson and Sirhan Sirhan, who murdered Robert Kennedy in 1968. Manson and Sirhan were not released, but Stanworth and 50 others were eventually set free.

Among them was Robert Massie, who was convicted of murder in 1965 and sentenced to death. In 1978 he was paroled; eight months later, he murdered a San Francisco liquor store owner. In 2001, after the death penalty was reinstated, Massie was executed.

"Even if they're rehabilitated, they've already done something that can't be undone," Parents of Murdered Children spokesperson misty Foster said. "Those people are never coming back, so how do say their life is only worth 20 or 25 years?"

Stanworth was released in 1990. The parole board cited his good behavior and "excellent work record." Stanworth settled in Vallejo, re-married and lived a quiet life in a gated golf course community where some neighbors even knew of his past.

"I figured he had paid for his mistakes according to the law," neighbor Irving Vanderberg said.

But on Jan. 11, Vallejo police arrested Stanworth for killing his 90-year-old mother Nellie Stanworth at his home.

While the Stanworth case and a handful of others are certainly troubling, they are also the exception when it comes to death row inmates and convicted murderers who've been granted parole.

"I think it's hard for the public to grasp this," UC Berkeley Death Penalty Clinic Director Elisabth Semel said. "People who've been convicted of murder have a better rate of success, that is a lower recidivism rate, than individuals who commit other types of crimes."

A 2011 Stanford study found the recidivism rate for paroled murderers is less than 1 percent, much lower than the 49 percent rate for California parolees.

Keith Wattley is an Oakland attorney who represents lifers in prison, many of them murderers. He says several factors contribute to their success if they are released, much of it based on what they do, while behind bars.

"Decades of self-help and therapy programs, dealing with addictions and alcoholism from the past and finding support going forward," he said.

According to the California Department of Corrections, of the 107 death row inmates in Stanworth's "class of '72," 42 were paroled. Twelve of them committed new felonies.

Some worry the exceptions, like Stanworth's case, will prompt lawmakers to overreact by passing new laws to keep prisoners behind bars a lot longer. But those who've been touched by the violence of men like Stanworth say a sentence is a sentence.

"I know they don't have a lot of rooms there for them, but when they're that bad, put them in a 6 by 10 foot cage and forget about them; they're animals," Caree Collison's family member said.

Stanworth is awaiting trial for the murder of his mother. If convicted, he could receive the death penalty.

(Copyright ©2013 KGO-TV/DT. All Rights Reserved.) 

In 1968, Dennis Stanworth was on Death Row for killing two teenage girls he picked up hitchhiking in Pinole. Now 70, Stanworth has reportedly told police that he killed his 90-year-old mother. (PHOTO SOURCE: http://www.sfgate.com/crime/article/Vallejo-man-allegedly-kills-mother-90-Ex-Death-4181570.php#photo-4013397)

INTERNET SOURCE: http://www.timesheraldonline.com/ci_22354305/vallejo-suspects-violent-past-spans-46-years-two

Vallejo suspect's past spans 46 years, two rejected death sentences

/By Jessica A. York and Tony Burchyns/Times-Herald staff writers Vallejo Times Herald

Posted:01/11/2013 01:01:45 AM PST

A Vallejo man who gladly accepted a death sentence after killing two Pinole teenagers more than 45 years ago, has been arrested at his home for killing his mother. Vallejo Police said that Dennis Stanworth, 70, called the Vallejo Police Communications Center about 11:55 a.m. Wednesday, and claimed during the span of about a seven- or eight-minute call with a dispatch supervisor that he had killed his own mother, Vallejo police Lt. Jim O'Connell said Thursday. Officers responded to Stanworth's home at 2500 block of Marshfield Road, near the Hiddenbrooke Golf Club, where the suspect directed them to an undisclosed area where they discovered the deceased victim. Police said a search warrant was obtained for the residence, a house Stanworth lives in with his wife and father-in-law, and a subsequent search revealed evidence of the crime. Police have refused to release details about where they found Stanworth's mother, Nellie Turner Stanworth, 90. It also remained unclear Thursday why Stanworth's mother was at the Vallejo home. American Canyon resident The victim had been a resident of the Olympia Mobilodge of Napa in American Canyon. Ronda Bensing, another park resident, told the Times-Herald that Stanworth had moved his mother out of the park about 10 weeks ago and told her she was going to be placed in an assisted living facility in Vallejo. Bensing said Stanworth's mother returned two weeks later, complaining about her new living situation. Later, Bensing said Stanworth told her he was taking her to live with her sister. Then, about six weeks ago, Stanworth visited the mobile home park and said his mother had passed away, Bensing said. "We have been so distraught," Bensing said. "We were friends and neighbors for eight years ... we are just trying to find closure ... it is just wrenching." Bensing said Stanworth had frequently visited his mother, taking her shopping and administering insulin shots in the afternoon. On Wednesday, detectives interviewed Stanworth, who O'Connell said was cooperative with police, and later arrested him on suspicion of murder. O'Connell declined to say how or where police believe the victim was killed or where her body was found. He said police investigators were still interviewing witnesses Thursday and did not want any news reports to influence their answers. As for motive, O'Connell would not speculate, but said police "have a couple different ideas" and expect witness interviews to flesh out the details. Violent background The suspect has a long and violent criminal history that had apparently ceased, at least since his arrival in Vallejo in the late 1990s, O'Connell said. Stanworth is apparently unemployed, and described as retired on his sex offender registration, O'Connell said. "Our registration detective talked to him every year, but no complaints regarding him had come in," O'Connell said of Stanworth. "(He did not stand out) other than for the nature of the crimes for which he was convicted. Those are fairly egregious." As Stanworth had completed his parole, he would not have been under police oversight if it were not for his sex offender status dating back more than four decades. O'Connell was referring to two murder convictions in 1966. Stanworth had pleaded guilty to kidnapping, raping and shooting two Pinole girls, both 15, on Aug. 1, 1966 after he picked them up hitchhiking. According to Times-Herald reports at the time, Stanworth, then 24, a Pinole house painter and cook, admitted killing and raping Susan Box and Caree Lee Collison at a Point Wilson beach area in Pinole. Their bodies were discovered two days after the attacks. Found at the crime scene in a coma with head wounds, Collison never recovered consciousness and died on Sept. 12, 1966. Months after the attacks, Stanworth also admitted abducting and raping at least four other women, including three in Contra Costa County and one in San Mateo County, court records show. He eventually was caught after raping one woman who, after briefly passing out during the attack and coming to, untied herself, and reported to police who arrested Stanworth several hours later in her car. When Stanworth testified during his trial's penalty phase, his defense attorney asked him why he had confessed to police about the killings. "I couldn't live with it no more... I just had to tell somebody," Stanworth replied in a sobbing voice. "I told them everything I done and wanted to get it all off my chest. I was always sorry after I got through and even apologized sometimes." Stanworth mounted no opposition to being sentenced to execution, and published reports at the time said that after the jury voted to send him to the gas chamber, he gratefully shook his lawyer's hand. Fought appeals Under California law, death sentences are automatically appealed. Stanworth, according to court records, wanted no part of an appeal, and said he wanted to die. He repeatedly said the state should waste no more money on him, that he had accepted his death sentence, and did not wish to contest it. In a letter to the courts, Stanworth, then 27, wrote: "I know that I will never see the freedom of the outside world again, I have dishonored my family's name ... I understand that I and I alone must suffer for my actions and I understand also that the law holds me to task for my actions. "I cannot continue living with cloud over my head, please be merciful and give me an endless sleep as soon as you cans...... all I want, is to die." Despite Stanworth's pleas the state Supreme Court reduced his death sentence to life imprisonment. The Aug. 20, 1969 ruling cited a number of grounds, including that prosecutors had rejected a dozen prospective jurors for cause because they expressed opposition to capital punishment. The justices held that under a U.S. Supreme Court decision, such opposition alone should not disqualify a juror from considering a death penalty decision. The following July, another Contra Costa jury sentenced Stanworth to death, but that sentence was reduced once again in June 1974 based on the state Supreme Court's ruling in 1972 that the state's gas chamber constituted "cruel and unusual punishment." He was eventually released on parole in 1990, according to the state Department of Corrections. Contributing to this article were MediaNews Group staff writer Matthias Gafni and Times-Herald staff writer Sarah Rohrs. Contact staff writer Jessica A. York at (707) 553-6834 or jyork@timesheraldonline.com. Follow her on Twitter @JYVallejo.

Dennis Stanworth in 1966 (Associated Press file photo) (PHOTO SOURCE: http://www.timesheraldonline.com/ci_22354305/vallejo-suspects-violent-past-spans-46-years-two)

OTHER LINKS:

http://scocal.stanford.edu/opinion/people-v-stanworth-22555

http://www.klaaskids.org/blog/?attachment_id=960

THE DOCTOR DEATH: HAROLD SHIPMAN (14 JANUARY 1946 TO 13 JANUARY 2004)

January 12, 2014, 12:45 pm

≫ Next: HONORING SGT. THOMAS CLYDE HARRISON JR. [END OF WATCH: JANUARY 15, 1993] (COP KILLER: THOMAS TRESHAWN IVEY EXECUTED ON 8 MAY 2009)

≪ Previous: DENNIS STANWORTH (A RELEASED KILLER ACCUSED OF MURDERING HIS OWN MOTHER)

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Ten years ago on this date, 13 January 2004, a Serial killer, Dr. Harold Shipman nicknamed Doctor Death, committed suicide by hanging himself in his cell at Wakefield Prison in West Yorkshire. Since the United Kingdom had abolished the death penalty, he did his victims a favour by sentencing himself to death.

INTERNET SOURCE: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Harold_Shipman

Harold Shipman mug shot from Wakefield Prison

Born	14 January 1946 Nottingham, England
Died	13 January 2004 (aged 57) HM Prison Wakefield, West Yorkshire, England
Cause of death	Suicide by hanging
Other names	"Dr. Death"
Criminal penalty	Life imprisonment plus 4 years for forgery
Killings
Number of victims	250+
Span of killings	1975–1998
Country	England, United Kingdom
Date apprehended	7 September 1998

Harold Fredrick Shipman (14 January 1946 – 13 January 2004) was a British doctor and one of the most prolific serial killers in recorded history by proven murderswith up to 250 murders being ascribed to him.

On 31 January 2000, a jury found Shipman guilty of 15 murders. He was sentenced to life imprisonment and the judge recommended that he never be released.

After his trial, the Shipman Inquiry, chaired by Dame Janet Smith, began on 1 September 2000. Lasting almost two years, it was an investigation into all deaths certified by Shipman. About 80% of his victims were women. His youngest victim was a 41-year-old man.^[2] Much of Britain's legal structure concerning health care and medicine was reviewed and modified as a direct and indirect result of Shipman's crimes. Shipman is the only British doctor who has been found guilty of murdering his patients.

Shipman died on 13 January 2004, after hanging himself in his cell at Wakefield Prison in West Yorkshire.

Early life and career

Harold Frederick Shipman was born in Bestwood council estate in Nottingham, England, the second of four children of Vera and Harold Shipman, a lorry driver. His working class parents were devout Methodists. Shipman was particularly close to his mother, who died of lung cancer when he was 17. Her death came in a manner similar to what later became Shipman's own modus operandi: in the later stages of her disease, she had morphine administered at home by a doctor. Shipman witnessed his mother's pain subside in spite of her terminal condition, up until her death on 21 June 1963.

Shipman studied medicine at Leeds School of Medicine and graduated in 1970. He started work at Pontefract General Infirmary in Pontefract, West Riding of Yorkshire, and in 1974 took his first position as a general practitioner (GP) at the Abraham Ormerod Medical Centre in Todmorden, West Yorkshire. In 1975 he was caught forging prescriptions of pethidine for his own use. He was fined £600, and briefly attended a drug rehabilitation clinic in York. He became a GP at the Donneybrook Medical Centre in Hyde, Greater Manchester, in 1977.

Shipman continued working as a GP in Hyde throughout the 1980s and founded his own surgery at 21 Market Street in 1993, becoming a respected member of the community. In 1983, he was interviewed on the Granada television documentary World in Action on how the mentally ill should be treated in the community.

Detection

In March 1998, Dr Linda Reynolds of the Brooke Surgery in Hyde, prompted by Deborah Massey from Frank Massey and Son's funeral parlour, expressed concerns to John Pollard, the coroner for the South Manchester District, about the high death rate among Shipman's patients. In particular, she was concerned about the large number of cremation forms for elderly women that he had needed countersigned. The matter was brought to the attention of the police, who were unable to find sufficient evidence to bring charges; the Shipman Inquiry later blamed the police for assigning inexperienced officers to the case. Between 17 April 1998, when the police abandoned the investigation, and Shipman's eventual arrest, he killed three more people. His last victim was Kathleen Grundy, a former Mayor of Hyde, who was found dead at her home on 24 June 1998. Shipman was the last person to see her alive, and later signed her death certificate, recording "old age" as cause of death.

Grundy's daughter, lawyer Angela Woodruff, became concerned when solicitor Brian Burgess informed her that a will had been made, apparently by her mother. There were doubts about its authenticity. The will excluded her and her children, but left £386,000 to Shipman. Burgess told Woodruff to report it, and went to the police, who began an investigation. Grundy's body was exhumed, and when examined was found to contain traces of diamorphine (heroin), often used for pain control in terminal cancer patients. Shipman was arrested on 7 September 1998, and was found to own a typewriter of the type used to make the forged will.

The police then investigated other deaths Shipman had certified, and created a list of 15 specimen cases to investigate. They discovered a pattern of his administering lethal doses of diamorphine, signing patients' death certificates, and then falsifying medical records to indicate that they had been in poor health.

Prescription For Murder, a book by journalists Brian Whittle and Jean Ritchie, reports two theories on why Shipman forged the will: one is that he wanted to be caught because his life was out of control; the other theory put forward is that he planned to retire at age 55 and then leave the United Kingdom.

Add caption

Trial and imprisonment

Shipman's trial, presided over by Mr Justice Forbes, began on 5 October 1999. Shipman was charged with the murders of Marie West, Irene Turner, Lizzie Adams, Jean Lilley, Ivy Lomas, Muriel Grimshaw, Marie Quinn, Kathleen Wagstaff, Bianka Pomfret, Norah Nuttall, Pamela Hillier, Maureen Ward, Winifred Mellor, Joan Melia and Kathleen Grundy, all of whom had died between 1995 and 1998.

On 31 January 2000, after six days of deliberation, the jury found Shipman guilty of killing 15 patients by lethal injections of diamorphine, and forging the will of Kathleen Grundy. The trial judge sentenced him to 15 consecutive life sentences and recommended that he never be released. Shipman also received four years for forging the will. Two years later, Home Secretary David Blunkett confirmed the judge's whole life tariff, just months before British government ministers lost their power to set minimum terms for prisoners.

On 11 February 2000, ten days after his conviction, the General Medical Council formally struck Shipman off its register.

Shipman consistently denied his guilt, disputing the scientific evidence against him. He never made any statements about his actions. His defence tried, but failed, to have the count of murder of Mrs Grundy, where a clear motive was alleged, tried separately from the others, where no obvious motive was apparent. His wife, Primrose, was apparently in denial about his crimes as well.

Although many other cases could have been brought to court, the authorities concluded it would be hard to have a fair trial, in view of the enormous publicity surrounding the original trial. Also, given the sentences from the first trial, a further trial was unnecessary. The Shipman Inquiry concluded Shipman was probably responsible for about 250 deaths. The Shipman Inquiry also suggested that he liked to use drugs recreationally.

Despite the prosecutions of Dr John Bodkin Adams in 1957, Dr Leonard Arthur in 1981, and Dr Thomas Lodwig in 1990 (amongst others), Shipman is the only doctor in British legal history to be found guilty of killing patients. According to historian Pamela Cullen, Adams had also been a serial killer—potentially killing up to 165 of his patients between 1946 and 1956, but as he "was found not guilty, there was no impetus to examine the flaws in the system until the Shipman case. Had these issues been addressed earlier, it might have been more difficult for Shipman to commit his crimes." H. G. Kinnell, writing in the British Medical Journal, also speculates that Adams "possibly provided the role model for Shipman".

Death

Harold Shipman committed suicide by hanging in his cell at Wakefield Prison at 06:20 on 13 January 2004, on the eve of his 58th birthday, and was pronounced dead at 08:10. A Prison Service statement indicated that Shipman had hanged himself from the window bars of his cell using bed sheets. Some British tabloids expressed joy at his suicide and encouraged other serial killers to follow his example; The Sun ran a celebratory front page headline, "Ship Ship hooray!"

Some of the victims' families said they felt cheated, as his suicide meant they would never have the satisfaction of Shipman's confession, and answers as to why he committed his crimes. The Home Secretary David Blunkett noted that celebration was tempting, saying: "You wake up and you receive a call telling you Shipman has topped himself and you think, is it too early to open a bottle? And then you discover that everybody's very upset that he's done it."

Despite The Sun's celebration of Shipman's suicide, his death divided national newspapers, with the Daily Mirror branding him a "cold coward" and condemning the Prison Service for allowing his suicide to happen. The Independent, on the other hand, called for the inquiry into Shipman's suicide to look more widely at the state of Britain's prisons as well as the welfare of inmates. In The Guardian, an article by Sir David Ramsbotham (former Chief Inspector of Prisons) suggested that whole life sentencing be replaced by indefinite sentencing as these would at least give prisoners the hope of eventual release and reduce the risk of their committing suicide as well as making their management easier for prison officials.

Shipman's motive for suicide was never established, although he had reportedly told his probation officer that he was considering suicide so that his widow could receive a National Health Service (NHS) pension and lump sum, even though he had been stripped of his own pension. His wife received a full NHS pension, which she would not have been entitled to if he had died after the age of 60. Shipman had been encouraged to take part in courses which would have had him confess his guilt. After refusing, he became emotional and close to tears when privileges — including the opportunity to telephone his wife — were removed. Privileges had been returned the week before the suicide. Additionally, Primrose, who had consistently believed that Shipman was innocent, might have begun to suspect his guilt. According to Shipman's ex-cellmate Tony Fleming, Primrose had recently written a letter to her husband, exhorting him to "tell me everything, no matter what".

Aftermath

In January 2001, Chris Gregg, a senior West Yorkshire detective, was selected to lead an investigation into 22 of the West Yorkshire deaths. Following this, The Shipman Inquiry into Shipman's activities submitted in July 2002 concluded that he had killed at least 215 of his patients between 1975 and 1998, during which time he practised in Todmorden, West Yorkshire (1974–1975), and Hyde, Greater Manchester (1977–1998). Dame Janet Smith, the judge who submitted the report, admitted that many more suspicious deaths could not be definitively ascribed to him. Most of his victims were elderly women in good health.

In her sixth and final report, issued on 24 January 2005, Smith reported that she believed that Shipman had killed three patients, and she had serious suspicions about four further deaths, including that of a four-year-old girl, during the early stage of his medical career at Pontefract General Hospital, West Riding of Yorkshire. Smith concluded the probable number of Shipman's victims between 1971 and 1998 was 250. In total, 459 people died while under his care, but it is uncertain how many of those were Shipman's victims, as he was often the only doctor to certify a death.

The Shipman Inquiry also recommended changes to the structure of the General Medical Council.

The General Medical Council charged six doctors who signed cremation forms for Shipman's victims with misconduct, claiming they should have noticed the pattern between Shipman's home visits and his patients' deaths. All these doctors were found not guilty. Shipman's widow, Primrose Shipman, was called to give evidence about two of the deaths during the inquiry. She maintained her husband's innocence both before and after the prosecution.

In October 2005, a similar hearing was held against two doctors who worked at Tameside General Hospital in 1994, who failed to detect that Shipman had deliberately administered a "grossly excessive" dose of morphine.

A 2005 inquiry into Shipman's suicide found that it "could not have been predicted or prevented," but that procedures should nonetheless be re-examined.

In 2005, it came to light that Shipman might have stolen jewellery from his victims. Over £10,000 worth of jewellery had been found stashed in his garage in 1998, and in March 2005, with Primrose Shipman pressing for it to be returned to them, police wrote to the families of Shipman's victims asking them to identify the jewellery.

Unidentified items were handed to the Assets Recovery Agency in May. In August the investigation ended: 66 pieces were returned to Primrose Shipman and 33 pieces, which she confirmed were not hers, were auctioned. The proceeds of the auction went to Tameside Victim Support. The only piece returned to a murdered patient's family was a platinum-diamond ring, for which the family were able to provide a photograph as proof of ownership.

A memorial garden to Shipman's victims, called the Garden of Tranquillity, opened in Hyde Park (Hyde) on 30 July 2005.

As of early 2009, families of the victims of Shipman were still seeking compensation for the loss of their relatives. In September 2009, it was announced that letters written by Shipman during his prison sentence were to be sold at auction, but following complaints from victims' relatives and the media, the letters were removed from sale.

In media and popular culture

Harold and Fred (They Make Ladies Dead) was a 2001 strip cartoon in Viz, also featuring serial killer Fred West. Extracts from the strip were subsequently merchandised as a coffee mug.

Shipman, a television dramatisation of the case, was made in 2002 and starred James Bolam in the title role. The case was also referenced in an episode of the 2003 television series Diagnosis: Unknown called "Deadly Medicine" (Season 2, Episode 17, 2003). Shipman's activities also inspired D.A.W., an episode of the American TV series Law & Order: Criminal Intent. In it, the police investigate a physician who they discover has killed 200 of his patients.

Both The Fall and Jonathan King released songs about Shipman. The Fall's song is, "What About Us?", from the 2005 album Fall Heads Roll. King's song became controversial when, six months after its release, it was reported to be in Shipman's defence, urging listeners not to "fall for a media demon".

A Canadian film, Fatal Trust, directed by Philippe Gagnon and starring Amy Jo Johnson, came out in 2006 and makes a non-specific reference to the Shipman case just before the closing credits. It also seems to have been partly inspired by his story.

HONORING SGT. THOMAS CLYDE HARRISON JR. [END OF WATCH: JANUARY 15, 1993] (COP KILLER: THOMAS TRESHAWN IVEY EXECUTED ON 8 MAY 2009)

January 14, 2014, 1:21 pm

≫ Next: THE HANGING OF BARZAN IBRAHIM AL-TIKRITI & AWAD HAMED AL-BANDAR (BOTH EXECUTED ON 15 JANUARY 2007)

≪ Previous: THE DOCTOR DEATH: HAROLD SHIPMAN (14 JANUARY 1946 TO 13 JANUARY 2004)

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On this date, May 8, 2009, Cop Killer, Thomas Treshawn Ivey was executed by lethal injection in South Carolina for the January 15, 1993 murder of Sergeant Tommy Clyde Harrison Jr. Let us honor this fallen policeman and thank God that justice was served. I got the information about him from ODMPand please go to Unit 1012 blog to hear from the two victims’ families. Do not forget the other victim, Robert Montgomery.

 

Sergeant Tommy Clyde Harrison Jr.

Bio & Incident Details

Age: 38

Tour: 10 years

Badge # 641

Cause: Gunfire

Incident Date: 1/15/1993

Weapon: Handgun; .357 caliber

Suspect: Executed in 2009

Sergeant Thomas Harrison was shot and killed in a local mall while attempting to question three subjects who had passed forged checks.

Unbeknownst to Sergeant Harrison, the suspects had kidnapped a businessman two days earlier and dumped his body in Orangeburg County. As Sergeant Harrison asked one of the subjects questions about their identity, the man pulled out a handgun. As he pulled the weapon out it discharged. The round struck the floor and ricocheted into Sergeant Harrison's abdomen. The suspect then fired five more rounds at Sergeant Harrison at point blank range, killing him.

The suspect was arrested, convicted of Sergeant Harrison's murder, and sentenced to death. He was executed by lethal injection on May 7, 2009.

Sergeant Harrison had been with the agency for ten years and was survived by his wife, son, and parents.

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THE HANGING OF BARZAN IBRAHIM AL-TIKRITI & AWAD HAMED AL-BANDAR (BOTH EXECUTED ON 15 JANUARY 2007)

January 14, 2014, 1:22 pm

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≪ Previous: HONORING SGT. THOMAS CLYDE HARRISON JR. [END OF WATCH: JANUARY 15, 1993] (COP KILLER: THOMAS TRESHAWN IVEY EXECUTED ON 8 MAY 2009)

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On this date (15 January 2007), Two Iraqi War criminals were executed by hanging, Barzan Ibrahim al-Tikriti and Awad Hamed al-Bandar. Please go to this blog post to learn more.

Awad Hamed al-Bandar, left, former head of Iraq's Revolutionary Court; and Barzan Ibrahim, Saddam's half brother and former intelligence chief.

ROBERT GLEASON JR. MURDERED 1 OUTSIDE PRISON, KILLED ANOTHER IN PRISON AND KILLED ANOTHER IN ANOTHER PRISON (EXECUTED BY THE ELECTRIC CHAIR IN VIRGINIA JANUARY 16, 2013)

January 15, 2014, 1:19 pm

≫ Next: KILLED 3 OUTSIDE EVEN WHEN HE WAS BEHIND BARS: CLARENCE RAY ALLEN (JANUARY 16, 1930 TO JANUARY 17, 2006)

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            On this date, January 16, 2013, a double Prison Killer, Robert Gleason Jr. was executed by the electric chair in Virginia. I will post the information from clarkprosecutor.org. Please go to this blog post to see my comments on this killer.

Robert Gleason Jr.

Victim, Aaron Cooper

Summary: Gleason was serving life in prison for the 2007 fatal shooting of Michael Kent Jamerson in Amherst County. The murder was committed to cover up his involvement in a drug gang. In 2009, he became frustrated with prison officials because they refused to move out his new, mentally disturbed cell mate. Gleason hog-tied, beat and strangled 63-year-old Harvey Watson Jr. who was also serving time for murder. Gleason pled guilty. Both in court and in media interviews, Gleason vowed to continue killing if not given the death penalty. While awaiting sentencing at a highly secure prison for the state's most dangerous inmates, Gleason strangled 26-year-old Aaron Cooper through wire fencing that separated their individual cages in a recreation yard in 2010. Cooper was serving a 34 year sentence for Robbery. Gleason again pled guilty, waived appeals, and got his wish after choosing the electric chair over lethal injection.

Citations:
Gleason v. Commonwealth, 726 S.E.2d 351 (Va. 2012). (Direct Appeal)
Gleason v. Pearson, Slip Copy, 2013 WL 139478 (W.D.Va. 2013). (Habeas)

Final/Special Meal:

Confidential upon request.

Final Words:

“Well, I hope Percy ain’t going to wet the sponge. Put me on the highway to Jackson and call my Irish buddies. Pog mo thoin. God bless." In Irish Gaelic, the phrase “Pog mo thoin,” is translated as "Kiss my ass." 

Robert Gleason Jr.

ProDeathPenalty.Com

On May 8, 2007, Robert Charles Gleason, Jr. fatally shot Michael Kent Jamerson to death off of Virginia 130 in westerm Amherst County, Virginia. A turkey hunter found his body in a wooded area. He was shot four times; twice to the head and twice to the body. The murder weapon was found on the banks of the James River by a college student who was fishing there. Gleason was part of a methamphetamine drug ring and believed that Jamerson was going to cooperate with the government against the ring. At trial, Gleason burst out with a string of profanities, denouncing the court and was removed. Shortly thereafter, he told the judge he wanted to just "get this over with today" and pled guilty to the murder.

Two years to the day after the Jamerson murder, Harvey Watson was murdered at Wallens Ridge State Prison. His cellmate, Gleason, was serving a life plus three years sentence for the Jamerson murder and was charged with the "willful, deliberate, and premeditated killing of any person by a prisoner confined in a state or local correctional facility," a capital offense. On December 21, 2010, following an evaluation to confirm his competency, Gleason pled guilty to the murder of Watson in the Circuit Court of Wise County. Gleason confessed under oath, stating that he planned the murder to occur on the two-year anniversary of a previous homicide that he had committed. In 1983, Gleason admitted to binding Watson with torn bed sheets, beating him, taunting him about his impending death, shoving a urine sponge in his face and a sock in his mouth, and finally strangling him with fabric from the sheet. According to Gleason, he concealed the body in his cell for fifteen hours, making excuses for Watson's failure to emerge. Gleason further stated that he planned, once rigor mortis had passed, to dispose of the body in the garbage that was circulated to pick up food trays. Gleason was unsuccessful in disposing of the body before Watson was discovered by prison personnel. Throughout the circuit court proceedings, Gleason consistently repeated that he had no remorse. Rather, knowing that the premeditated murder of an inmate and more than one murder within a three-year period was punishable by the death penalty in Virginia, he commented to the court that he "already had a few other inmates lined up, just in case I didn't get the death penalty, that I was gonna take out." Following Watson's death, Gleason had been moved to solitary confinement in Virginia's "supermax" Red Onion Prison.

On July 28, 2010, Gleason was in a solitary recreation pen that shared a common wire fence with that of Aaron Cooper. Gleason asked Cooper to try on a "religious necklace" that Gleason was making. Gleason proceeded to strangle Cooper through the wire fence, repeatedly choking Cooper "'til he turned purple," waiting "until his color came back, then going back again" until Cooper finally expired. Gleason described himself laughing at the reaction of the other inmates. He then watched and mocked the prison staff attempting to revive Cooper. Cooper was serving a 34 year sentence for carjacking and robbery. Gleason was charged in the capital murder of Cooper for "the willful, deliberate, and premeditated killing of more than one person within a three-year period." On April 22, 2011, Gleason pled guilty to the murder of Cooper. He informed the court that he had deliberately targeted Cooper so as to make a point to the prosecutor and as a favor to another inmate who was to be released soon, so that the inmate would owe Gleason, and Gleason would then have someone outside the prison to do his bidding. After accepting both guilty pleas, the court conducted a multi-day joint sentencing proceeding, considering evidence and argument by counsel and Gleason. The court also reviewed a pre-sentence report, Gleason having waived a post-sentence report. The court fixed Gleason's sentences at death, finding the aggravating factors of both vileness and future dangerousness in both cases beyond a reasonable doubt, and concluding that these factors were not outweighed by mitigating facts. 

KILLED 3 OUTSIDE EVEN WHEN HE WAS BEHIND BARS: CLARENCE RAY ALLEN (JANUARY 16, 1930 TO JANUARY 17, 2006)

January 16, 2014, 12:36 pm

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On this date, January 17, 2006, Clarence Ray Allen was executed by lethal injection in California. As of today, he is the last person to be put to death by the State of California. Please go this blog post to learn more.

Clarence Ray Allen

Please hear from Patricia Pendergrass, the sister of Bryon Schletewitz and read this article by Former Californian Judge, James A. Ardaiz. 

GARY GILMORE CRITICIZED THE ABOLITIONIST

January 16, 2014, 12:36 pm

≫ Next: THE A.C.L.U (FOUNDED ON JANUARY 19, 1920)

≪ Previous: KILLED 3 OUTSIDE EVEN WHEN HE WAS BEHIND BARS: CLARENCE RAY ALLEN (JANUARY 16, 1930 TO JANUARY 17, 2006)

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            On this date, January 17, 1977, Gary Gilmore was the first person executed in America by the firing squad after the death penalty was reinstated in 1976. He was one of those condemned killers on Death Row who needed a suicide assist, he was executed 6 months after the murders and 3 months after being sentenced to death. What a swift and sure execution!

            Unlike Amrozi the Smiling Assassinand Al Rashidi, Gary Gilmore was very brave when he came face to face with the gunfire, his trademark quote, “Let’s do it!” will always be in the mind of death penalty supporters.

Portland Police Bureau mug shot of Gary Gilmore

          Everybody knows his trademark quote, “Let’s do it!” but Unit Force 1109 also remembers another quote from him where he criticized the abolitionist for delaying his execution date.

At a Board of Pardons hearing in November 1976, Gilmore said of the efforts by the ACLU and others to prevent his January 17, 1977, execution:

"They always want to get in on the act. I don't think they have ever really done anything effective in their lives. I would like them all — including that group of reverends and rabbis from Salt Lake City — to butt out. This is my life and this is my death. It's been sanctioned by the courts that I die and I accept that."

                What an embarrassment for the ACLU as the first man executed in the United States (since 1976), even criticize them by saying they did nothing effective in their lives. 

(SOURCE: http://www.jantoo.com/cartoons/keywords/firing-squads& http://www.jantoo.com/cartoons/lowres/209/20902271_low.jpg)

THE A.C.L.U (FOUNDED ON JANUARY 19, 1920)

January 18, 2014, 3:15 pm

≫ Next: PERRIE SIMPSON (EXECUTED IN NORTH CAROLINA ON JANUARY 20, 2006)

≪ Previous: GARY GILMORE CRITICIZED THE ABOLITIONIST

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Marcus Fabius Quintilianus (PHOTO SOURCE:http://izquotes.com/quote/386146)

            The American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU as abbreviation) is one of the major causes of evil spreading in America. Keep in mind, they are one of the worst evildoers in the country (there are many of their kind all over the world), they are Anti-Death Penalty and Pro Choice, where millions of innocent people both alive and unborn had been exterminated mercilessly by them respectively. Once they succeed in ending the death penalty, they will end life without parole next, sure to let murderers out to kill again.  

(SOURCE: http://houseofsubstance.blogspot.com.au/2011/01/se7en.html)

PERRIE SIMPSON (EXECUTED IN NORTH CAROLINA ON JANUARY 20, 2006)

January 19, 2014, 1:07 pm

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"I want to say I am sorry for what I did. I'm sorry for the victim and the families. I'm sorry for my family. I'm sorry for everybody. I want to say to Stephanie, I'm sorry for what happened to you. I wish you'd get out and make a life for yourself. May God bless everyone."

- The Final Words of Perrie Dyon Simpson

            On this date, January 20, 2006, Perrie Dyon Simpson was executed by lethal injection in North Carolina for the August 27, 1984 murder of Reverend Jean Ernest Darter. Most of all, Force 1109 is happy that Simpson did repent of his crime. 

Perrie Dyon Simpson

INTERNET SOURCE: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Perrie_Simpson

Perrie Dyon Simpson, was executed by lethal injection at the Central Prison in Raleigh, North Carolina on January 20, 2006. Simpson was found guilty of the 1984 murder of Jean Ernest Darter, a 92-year-old white male. Simpson, who was 21-years old when he committed the capital crime, was sentenced to death on March 12, 1985, again in 1988, and again on December 20, 1993.

Reverend Jean Ernest Darter

The Crime

The Reverend Jean Darter, a retired Baptist minister, was found dead in his Reidsville, North Carolina, home on the evening of August 28, 1984, by his daughter. Darter had been tied to a bedpost at the foot of his bed by a belt that was wrapped around his neck. Both of his arms had been slashed open, his head was bloated, and his face was covered with blood. There were numerous cuts and bruises on his head and his left cheek bore an imprint that matched the bottom of a broken Tab bottle lying on the bed. Blood and fragments of glass were in his eyes and a bloody razor blade lay near his right hand. Certain items were missing from the home.

Expert medical testimony showed that any of three major areas of trauma could have been life threatening but that Darter's death was due to ligature strangulation caused by the belt around his neck. His death had occurred over a period of five or six minutes or longer depending upon the amount of force used during the strangulation. Darter would have stopped breathing within three to five minutes after losing consciousness.

Investigation

Fingerprints were found in Darter's home on a hall telephone, in the bedroom, and in the kitchen. Some of the fingerprints found matched those of Simpson. Others matched the fingerprints of Simpson's girlfriend, Stephanie Eury, a 16-year-old black female.

Police traced a phone call from Darter's home to a friend of Simpson who identified Simpson as the caller. On that basis Simpson was arrested on September 21 on a warrant for an unrelated assault in Greensboro. After advising Simpson of his Miranda rights, the arresting officers briefly questioned him about the unrelated assault. They then began to discuss Darter's murder with him. Simpson initially denied any knowledge of the murder. Officers stopped questioning him once he agreed to take a polygraph test. After the polygraph procedures were explained to him and he was told the machine would reveal any lying on his part, Simpson said that the machine would show he was lying and that there was something he needed to tell the officers.

The Confession

Shortly thereafter Simpson was again advised of his Miranda rights. He then gave a statement in the nature of a confession indicating that he and Eury had gone to Darter's home on August 26 at her suggestion on the pretext that they were travelers who needed help. Once there the Reverend gave them food and money and allowed them to use the telephone in his home. After leaving the Darter home Simpson and Eury decided to go back and rob Darter.

The Robbery

Simpson said that on the evening of Monday, the 27th, he and Eury left Eury's home and began to plan the robbery and murder of Darter. Simpson stated: "Stephanie said if we go in there and rob the man we can't let him live and I said that is the truth."

They then went to Darter's home, and after making sure that no one could see them, knocked on the door. Darter let them in. When Darter attempted to call police to help Simpson and Eury, Simpson pulled Darter away from the telephone. He told Eury to cut the phone cord, which she did. Eury ran to the living room and pulled the drapes while Simpson held Darter down on the bed in the bedroom.

Eury began to ransack the residence for valuables to steal. When she brought food to the bedroom to show to Simpson he told her to look for money. He continued to hold Darter on the bed and told Darter, "I want some money or else." Simpson stated that Darter said that he had no money and to go ahead and kill him adding that, "The preacher was smiling as he told me to kill him because he was going to heaven and this made me mad."

The Murder

Simpson called to Eury to check the bedroom for money. He grabbed a belt from the footboard of the bed and looped it around Darter's neck. He held the belt tightly around Darter's neck with his right hand while he went through items on the bed with his left hand and "told the preacher that he better tell me where some more money was but the preacher could not talk as he was choking." The belt around Darter's neck broke, and Simpson grabbed a thicker leather belt from the footboard and looped it around Darter's neck, pulling it tight.

Simpson called to Eury "to bring me something in the bedroom to kill this preacher with." When the items Eury brought Simpson to kill Darter with proved unsatisfactory, he had her hold the belt and pull it tighter around Darter's neck while he went to the kitchen "and looked around for some device to beat the old preacher and finish him off".

Having found a full sixteen-ounce soft drink bottle of Tab, Simpson returned to the bedroom. He and Eury then pulled together to tighten the belt around Darter's neck. Simpson then hit Darter in the face with the bottle three times at which point it broke. Simpson tied the end of the belt to the footboard of the bed and went to the bathroom of the home and got a razor blade.

During this time Eury continued to search the house and gather up more items. Simpson cut both of Darter's arms while Eury gathered up items to be stolen and put them in a grocery bag and a plastic laundry basket. They then cut off the lights in the home and left with the items they had stolen.

Charges

After Simpson confessed warrants were issued charging him with first-degree murder, robbery with a dangerous weapon, and conspiracy to commit murder.

Trial

Simpson was tried in Rockingham County Superior Court. In 1985 he was sentenced to death and then resentenced after it was ruled the trial judge's refusal to allow more than one of Simpson's attorneys to present final arguments to the jury was in error. In 1988 Simpson was again sentenced to death, but a subsequent appellate court ruled that the jury had been erroneously instructed that the finding of mitigating circumstances had to be unanimous and vacated the sentence. Ultimately, Simpson's third death sentence was confirmed. Governor Michael F. Easley denied Simpson clemency. Accomplice Eury was convicted of first-degree murder and given a life sentence.

Perrie Dyon Simpson

INTERNET SOURCE: http://www.clarkprosecutor.org/html/death/US/simpson1006.htm

Final Meal:

A McRib sandwich from McDonald's, a double cheeseburger from Wendy's, macaroni and cheese, cheesecake and a Pepsi.

Final Words:

"I want to say I am sorry for what I did. I'm sorry for the victim and the families. I'm sorry for my family. I'm sorry for everybody. I want to say to Stephanie, I'm sorry for what happened to you. I wish you'd get out and make a life for yourself. May God bless everyone." 

SIMPSON, PERRY

DOC Number: 0371096
DOB: 10/30/1962
RACE: BLACK
SEX: MALE
DATE OF SENTENCING: 03/12/85
COUNTY OF CONVICTION: ROCKINGHAM COUNTY
FILE#: 84009828
CHARGE: MURDER FIRST DEGREE (PRINCIPAL)
DATE OF CRIME: 08/27/1984 

North Carolina Department of Correction (Chronology / Press Release)

Perrie Simpson - Chronology of Events
 
- 12/01/2005 - Simpson's execution date set for Jan 20, 2006. 

- 12/20/1993 - Perrie Simpson sentenced to death in Rockingham County Superior Court for the murder of Rev. Jean Ernest Darter. 

North Carolina Department of Correction
For Release: IMMEDIATE
Contact: Public Affairs Office
Date: January 19, 2006
Phone: (919) 716-3700 

Witnesses named for Perrie Simpson execution
 
RALEIGH - Witnesses have been named for the execution of Perrie Simpson, scheduled for 2 a.m. on January 20 at Central Prison. 

Official Witnesses
Curtis Faircloth - Victim’s family member
Chris Zisi - Victim’s family member
Phyllis Faircloth - Victim’s family member
Robert Jordan - Victim’s family member
Lt. Dwight Lucas - Reidsville Police Dept. (retired)
Walter House - Special Agent, State Bureau of Investigation

Media Witnesses
Estes Thompson – Associated Press, Raleigh
Glen Baity – Reidsville Review

PIERS MORGAN VERSUS RICK SANTORUM [PRO LIFE QUOTE ~ JANUARY 20, 2014]

January 19, 2014, 1:07 pm

≫ Next: THE BROCKTON NEO NAZI: KEITH LUKE (MURDERED TWO PEOPLE ON JANUARY 21, 2009)

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Piers Morgan (left) and Rick Santorum (Right) (PHOTO SOURCE: http://www.rippdemup.com/uncategorized/rick-santorum-abortion-the-what-if-rape-question-4179)

QUOTE:On Friday January 20, 2012, Piers Morgan sat down with GOP candidate Rick Santorum and his family for an in-depth interview in South Carolina.

MORGAN: And they are looking at their daughter, saying, how can I deal with this, because if I make her have this baby, isn't it going to just ruin her life?

SANTORUM: Well, you can make the argument that if she doesn't have this baby, if she kills her child, that that, too, could ruin her life. And this is not an easy choice. I understand that. As horrible as the way that that son or daughter and son was created, it still is her child. And whether she has that child or doesn't, it will always be her child. And she will always know that. And so to embrace her and to love her and to support her and get her through this very difficult time, I've always, you know, I believe and I think the right approach is to accept this horribly created -- in the sense of rape -- but nevertheless a gift in a very broken way, the gift of human life, and accept what God has given to you.

As you know, we have to, in lots of different aspects of our life. We have horrible things happen. I can't think of anything more horrible. But, nevertheless, we have to make the best out of a bad situation.

AUTHOR: Rick Santorum A.K.A Richard John "Rick" Santorum(born May 10, 1958) is an American author, attorney, and Republican Party politician. He served as a United States Senator representing Pennsylvania from 1995 to 2007, and was a candidate for the 2012 Republican Party presidential nomination. 

Born in Virginia, Santorum was raised primarily in Butler, Pennsylvania. He obtained an undergraduate degree from Pennsylvania State University, an M.B.A. from the University of Pittsburgh, and a J.D. from the Dickinson School of Law. Santorum worked as an attorney at K&L Gates where he met Karen Garver. They married in 1990, and have seven children; an eighth child died shortly after birth. Santorum was elected to the U.S. House of Representatives on behalf of Pennsylvania's 18th congressional district in 1990, becoming a member of a group dubbed the "Gang of Seven".

Santorum was elected as a United States Senator for Pennsylvania in 1994. He served two terms until losing his re-election bid in 2006. Santorum holds socially conservative positions, and is particularly known for his opposition to same-sex marriage and birth control. While serving as a senator, Santorum was the author of the National Weather Service Duties Act of 2005 and the Santorum Amendment. In 2005, Santorum introduced the Workplace Religious Freedom Act along with Senator John Kerry.

In the years following his departure from the Senate, Santorum worked as a consultant, private-practice lawyer, and news contributor. On June 6, 2011 Santorum announced his run for the Republican nomination in the 2012 U.S. presidential election. Upon announcing his campaign suspension on April 10, 2012, he had won 11 primaries and caucuses and received over 3 million votes. Santorum officially endorsed Mitt Romney on May 7, 2012.

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THE BROCKTON NEO NAZI: KEITH LUKE (MURDERED TWO PEOPLE ON JANUARY 21, 2009)

January 20, 2014, 1:51 pm

≫ Next: PACIFISM AND THE WAR (BY GEORGE ORWELL: 25 JUNE 1903 TO 21 JANUARY 1950) [SOLDIERS’ ARTICLE OF THE MONTH ~ JANUARY 21, 2014]

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            On this date, January 21, 2009, a Neo Nazi from Brockton, Massachusetts, murdered two Cape Verdean immigrants. I will post the information about him from several sources.

Keith Luke, of Brockton, Massachusetts, was a Podblanc user who, in 2009 at the age of 22, allegedly shot to death two Cape Verdean immigrants and attempted to murder a third, whom he also raped. He had planned to "kill as many nonwhites as possible" and finish off the killing spree at a synagogue's bingo night. Luke's lawyer hired nationally-known psychiatrist Keith Ablow to conduct a mental health evaluation, which led to Luke assaulting Ablow. In 2013 he was convicted and sentenced to two life sentences without parole. Luke had told police that he developed his white supremacist views largely by reading internet site such as Podblanc. (SOURCE:http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Podblanc)

INTERNET SOURCE: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2329626/Brockton-Massachusetts-rape-White-supremacist-Keith-Luke-laughs-sex-assault-victim-testifies-him.html

White supremacist LAUGHS at his victim in court as she testifies about how he 'brutally raped and shot her before killing her roommate and a 71-year-old man'

By Daily Mail Reporter

PUBLISHED: 13:56 GMT, 23 May 2013 | UPDATED: 20:08 GMT, 23 May 2013 

A diabolical white supremacist laughed at a 21-year-old woman who bravely took the witness stand to testify about how he raped her, shot her five times and then killed her roommate and a 71-year-old man in 2009. 

Jurors, reporters and courtroom observers wept on Wednesday as the diminutive woman described how Keith Luke forced his way into her apartment in Brockton, Massachusetts, and violently assaulted her and then shot her in the head, the chest and both arms as she clutched her teddy bear for comfort. 

Luke smiled and laughed at his alleged victim as she calmly told her her harrowing ordeal. 

Cruel laughter: Keith Luke sneered and laughed out loud as the woman he is accused of brutally raping testified on Wednesday (PHOTO SOURCE: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2329626/Brockton-Massachusetts-rape-White-supremacist-Keith-Luke-laughs-sex-assault-victim-testifies-him.html)

Accused: The woman described how Luke tried to inject her with an unknown substance until her roommate came home and interrupted the sexual assault (PHOTO SOURCE: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2329626/Brockton-Massachusetts-rape-White-supremacist-Keith-Luke-laughs-sex-assault-victim-testifies-him.html)

For more video on this story, please go to WBZ

The woman survived only by pretending to be dead so that Luke would leave. She felt certain that she was going to die, the Brockton Enterprise reports.

Luke is accused of breaking to the woman's apartment on January 21, 2009 after her roommate, Selma Goncalves, rejected her offer to go out with him.

Selma, 20, came home in the middle of Luke raping her roommate. He opened fire and shot her three times in the back.

She was dead when police arrived. As he fled the scene, he stopped and shot Arlindo Goncalves, 72 - no relation to Selma - as he walked down the sidewalk. The single gunshot wound to the head killed the elderly man, authorities say. 

Authorities allege Luke gunned down Selma Goncalves, 20, and Arlindo Goncalves, 72, who are not related, and shot another woman, who he brutally raped (PHOTO SOURCE: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2329626/Brockton-Massachusetts-rape-White-supremacist-Keith-Luke-laughs-sex-assault-victim-testifies-him.html)

Authorities allege Luke gunned down Selma Goncalves, 20, and Arlindo Goncalves, 72, who are not related, and shot another woman, who he brutally raped (PHOTO SOURCE: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2329626/Brockton-Massachusetts-rape-White-supremacist-Keith-Luke-laughs-sex-assault-victim-testifies-him.html)

 

Horrific: Luke appeared in court in May 2009 with a swastika carved into his forehead. He claimed the killings were racially motivated (PHOTO SOURCE: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2329626/Brockton-Massachusetts-rape-White-supremacist-Keith-Luke-laughs-sex-assault-victim-testifies-him.html)

Luke has a history of grabbing attention in horrifying ways during his court appearances. In May 2009, he appeared for a hearing with a swastika carved into his forehead.

He has smiled and laughed several times during his trial as witnesses testified about the horrifying evidence against him.

Luke's victim said that as he raped her, he told her to wipe white powder - possibly drugs from his mouth. He later pulled out a syringe and threatened to plunge it into her arm, she testified.

'He smelled horrible. He stank,' she said. 

Luke fled in a van after the January 21 attacks and was taken into custody moments later (PHOTO SOURCE: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2329626/Brockton-Massachusetts-rape-White-supremacist-Keith-Luke-laughs-sex-assault-victim-testifies-him.html)

In the midst of the sexual assault, Selma Goncalves came home. Luke seemed 'really happy' that Goncalves - who had previously rejected his romantic overtures - had arrived.

'He ran into the kitchen. I heard four shots, then he turned and started shooting at me,' the woman testified.

Luke returned to the woman he had just raped and shot her five times as she clutched a giant teddy bear.

She broke into tears and hugged the large bear when she saw it in court on Wednesday, wrapped in an evidence bag. 

'When he shot me in the head, I hugged tight my teddy bear … It was so many shots,' she said.

Keith Luke

INTERNET SOURCE:

http://bostonherald.com/news_opinion/local_coverage/2013/05/da_neo_nazi_murderer_deserved_death_penalty

DA: Neo-Nazi murderer deserved death penalty

Thursday, May 30, 2013 -- Anonymous (not verified)

Sections: 

Local Coverage

Friday, May 31, 2013 

Author(s): 

O’ryan Johnson

The Brockton neo-Nazi who raped a woman, murdered her sister and shot an elderly homeless man to death shows why Massachusetts needs the death penalty, said Plymouth County District Attorney Timothy Cruz.

“Keith Luke … got a significant sentence today, but he really did not get the sentence he deserved,” Cruz told the Herald yesterday after Luke received two life sentences for the murders and 210 years for armed assault with intent to murder, aggravated rape, kidnapping, home invasion and a series of gun charges.

“We deserve in Massachusetts to have state prosecutors have the ability to apply a death penalty in certain limited situations,” Cruz said.

Luke, 26, was convicted of the January 2009 rampage that started when he barged into the home of a former neighbor, repeatedly raping her, shooting her, and then killing her sister, Selma Goncalves, when she interrupted his assault. As Luke fled that day, he shot and killed Arlindo Goncalves, no relation to Selma, before opening fire on Brockton police as they chased him.

Cruz said criminals such as Luke who carry out the most outrageous crimes and plan more demand that prosecutors have the ultimate punishment at their disposal.

“I think when you are a serial killer, when you are a predator, you need to face the most serious penalty you can face. That, of course, is the death penalty,” Cruz said. “It fits the parameters of that, in that he was a serial killer, killing more than one person. I think that is a very serious offense, not only killing those people in this instance, but the plan that night was to go to the temple on the other side of Brockton and kill a bunch of Jewish individuals who were going to bingo. It could have happened, but for the fact of the brave people in the city and the Brockton police officers who stopped him that day when he was trying to get through.”

The woman Luke bound, raped and shot in the head — who played dead to escape his wrath — testified against him and read a statement yesterday in court.

“I will never hug, kiss, nor talk to my sister again. My sister Selma will never graduate from college. My sister Selma will never have children. She will never marry. She will never have a family of her own,” she said. “There are no words to describe the evil monster that destroyed the lives of so many innocent people.”

INTERNET SOURCE:http://www.enterprisenews.com/news/x2038011423/Luke-trial-renews-death-penalty-debate#axzz2V2zi1p8X

Luke trial renews death penalty debate

 By Erin Shannon

Enterprise Staff Writer

 

Posted Jun 01, 2013 @ 06:00 AM

BROCKTON — 

Luke, 26, was sentenced on Thursday to two consecutive life sentences without parole for two murders – and 158 years for other convictions – for his 2009 rampage of hate that left two people dead and a third victim severely injured.

But is that enough?

Plymouth County District Attorney Timothy Cruz doesn’t think so. He says Luke’s case justifies the death penalty.

“I think he earned it and deserved it and unfortunately he didn’t get it,” Cruz told The Enterprise on Friday.

Luke, who did not testify at his trial, was found guilty of murder in first degree by premeditation, murder by deliberate premeditation, five counts of armed assault with intent to murder, armed home invasion, armed kidnapping with sexual assault, two counts of aggravated rape, indecent assault and battery on person 14 and over, and unlawful possession of a firearm and of ammunition. He was found not guilty of armed assault with intent to murder.

State Rep. Christine Canavan, D-Brockton, said she has voted in support of the death penalty since she took office in 1993. She agreed with Cruz.

“If there was somebody that was so unbelievably evil, violent and dangerous like him, then they would deserve it,” said Canavan. “What he did was savage. He would be a good candidate for it.”

Cruz said that there should be circumstances involving serial killers or multiple murders in which a jury could decide on the death penalty.

“I believe when you are dealing with people like Luke who behave in that fashion in our civilized society, state prosecutors should have the opportunity, in limited circumstances, to seek the ultimate penalty,” said Cruz.

He proposed a system in which there would be a regular trial to prove guilt beyond a reasonable doubt – followed by a second penalty-phase trial in which, to consider capital punishment, the individual would have to convicted beyond all doubt through statements from the defendant or forensic evidence.

“Ultimately it would be up to the jury,” said Cruz. “Right now we don’t have that ability for any crimes unless they fall into federal parameters.”

Juror No. 11 Phil Shannon, of Carver, said Luke deserved the ultimate punishment.

“If it was up to me, I would give him the death penalty,” said Shannon.

The district attorney said Luke now poses a risk to prisoners and corrections officers.

“He is a racist sexual predator and serial killer who stated that he enjoyed doing this and had no remorse and would probably do this again if he has the opportunity,” Cruz said.

Cruz said he hopes to see a measure to have the death penalty in certain cases on a ballot for voters to decide.

“I think the (death penalty) would have been the just result for Luke in this case,” he said.

Erin Shannon may be reached at eshannon@enterprisenews.comor follow on Twitter @Erin_Enterprise.

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PACIFISM AND THE WAR (BY GEORGE ORWELL: 25 JUNE 1903 TO 21 JANUARY 1950) [SOLDIERS’ ARTICLE OF THE MONTH ~ JANUARY 21, 2014]

January 20, 2014, 1:51 pm

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≪ Previous: THE BROCKTON NEO NAZI: KEITH LUKE (MURDERED TWO PEOPLE ON JANUARY 21, 2009)

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Orwell's press card portrait, taken in 1933

INTERNET SOURCE:http://www.orwell.ru/library/articles/pacifism/english/e_patw

George Orwell

Pacifism and the War

About a year ago I and a number of others were engaged in broadcasting literary programmes to India, and among other things we broadcast a good deal of verse by contemporary and near-contemporary English writers — for example, Eliot, Herbert Read, Auden, Spender, Dylan Thomas, Henry Treece, Alex Comfort, Robert Bridges, Edmund Blunden, D. H. Lawrence. Whenever it was possible we had poems broadcast by the people who wrote them. Just why these particular programmes (a small and remote out-flanking movement in the radio war) were instituted there is no need to explain here, but I should add that the fact that we were broadcasting to an Indian audience dictated our technique to some extent. The essential point was that our literary broadcasts were aimed at the Indian university students, a small and hostile audience, unapproachable by anything that could be described as British propaganda. It was known in advance that we could not hope for more than a few thousand listeners at the most, and this gave us an excuse to be more ‘highbrow’ than is generally possible on the air.

Since I don’t suppose you want to fill an entire number of P.R. (Partisan Review) with squalid controversies imported from across the Atlantic, I will lump together the various letters you have sent on to me (from Messrs Savage, Woodcock and Comfort), as the central issue in all of them is the same. But I must afterwards deal separately with some points of fact raised in various of the letters.

Pacifism.Pacifism is objectively pro-Fascist. This is elementary common sense. If you hamper the war effort of one side you automatically help that of the other. Nor is there any real way of remaining outside such a war as the present one. In practice, ‘he that is not with me is against me’. The idea that you can somehow remain aloof from and superior to the struggle, while living on food which British sailors have to risk their lives to bring you, is a bourgeois illusion bred of money and security. Mr Savage remarks that ‘according to this type of reasoning, a German or Japanese pacifist would be “objectively pro-British”.’ But of course he would be! That is why pacifist activities are not permitted in those countries (in both of them the penalty is, or can be, beheading) while both the Germans and the Japanese do all they can to encourage the spread of pacifism in British and American territories. The Germans even run a spurious ‘freedom’ station which serves out pacifist propaganda indistinguishable from that of the P.P.U. They would stimulate pacifism in Russia as well if they could, but in that case they have tougher babies to deal with. In so far as it takes effect at all, pacifist propaganda can only be effective againstthose countries where a certain amount of freedom of speech is still permitted; in other words it is helpful to totalitarianism.

I am not interested in pacifism as a ‘moral phenomenon’. If Mr Savage and others imagine that one can somehow ‘overcome’ the German army by lying on one’s back, let them go on imagining it, but let them also wonder occasionally whether this is not an illusion due to security, too much money and a simple ignorance of the way in which things actually happen. As an ex-Indian civil servant, it always makes me shout with laughter to hear, for instance, Gandhi named as an example of the success of non-violence. As long as twenty years ago it was cynically admitted in Anglo-Indian circles that Gandhi was very useful to the British government. So he will be to the Japanese if they get there. Despotic governments can stand ‘moral force’ till the cows come home; what they fear is physical force. But though not much interested in the ‘theory’ of pacifism, I aminterested in the psychological processes by which pacifists who have started out with an alleged horror of violence end up with a marked tendency to be fascinated by the success and power of Nazism. Even pacifists who wouldn’t own to any such fascination are beginning to claim that a Nazi victory is desirable in itself. In the letter you sent on to me, Mr Comfort considers that an artist in occupied territory ought to ‘protest against such evils as he sees’, but considers that this is best done by ‘temporarily accepting the status quo’ (like Déat or Bergery, for instance?). a few weeks back he was hoping for a Nazi victory because of the stimulating effect it would have upon the arts:

As far as I can see, no therapy short of complete military defeat has any chance of re-establishing the common stability of literature and of the man in the street. One can imagine the greater the adversity the greater the sudden realization of a stream of imaginative work, and the greater the sudden katharsis of poetry, from the isolated interpretation of war as calamity to the realization of the imaginative and actual tragedy of Man. When we have access again to the literature of the war years in France, Poland and Czechoslovakia, I am confident that that is what we shall fined. (From a letter to Horizon.)

I pass over the money-sheltered ignorance capable of believing that literary life is still going on in, for instance, Poland, and remark merely that statements like this justify me in saying that our English pacifists are tending towards active pro-Fascism. But I don’t particularly object to that. What I object to is the intellectual cowardice of people who are objectively and to some extent emotionally pro-Fascist, but who don’t care to say so and take refuge behind the formula ‘I am just as anti-fascist as anyone, but—’. The result of this is that so-called peace propaganda is just as dishonest and intellectually disgusting as war propaganda. Like war propaganda, it concentrates on putting forward a ‘case’, obscuring the opponent’s point of view and avoiding awkward questions. The line normally followed is ‘Those who fight against Fascism go Fascist themselves.’ In order to evade the quite obvious objections that can be raised to this, the following propaganda-tricks are used:

1.    The Fascizing processes occurring in Britain as a result of war are systematically exaggerated.

2.    The actual record of Fascism, especially its pre-war history, is ignored or pooh-poohed as ‘propaganda’. Discussion of what the world would actually be like if the Axis dominated it is evaded.

3.    Those who want to struggle against Fascism are accused of being wholehearted defenders of capitalist ‘democracy’. The fact that the rich everywhere tend to be pro-Fascist and the working class are nearly always anti-Fascist is hushed up.

4.    It is tacitly pretended that the war is only between Britain and Germany. Mention of Russia and China, and their fate if Fascism is permitted to win, is avoided. (You won’t find one word about Russia or China in the three letters you sent to me.)

Now as to one or two points of fact which I must deal with if your correspondents’ letters are to be printed in full.

My past and present. Mr Woodcock tries to discredit me by saying that (a) I once served in the Indian Imperial Police, (b) I have written article for the Adelphiand was mixed up with the Trotskyists in Spain, and (c) that I am at the B.B.C. ‘conducting British propaganda to fox the Indian masses’. With regard to (a), it is quite true that I served five years in the Indian Police. It is also true that I gave up that job, partly because it didn’t suit me but mainly because I would not any longer be a servant of imperialism. I am against imperialism because I know something about it from the inside. The whole history of this is to be found in my writings, including a novel (Burmese Days) which I think I can claim was a kind of prophecy of what happened this year in Burma. (b) Of course I have written for the Adelphi. Why not? I once wrote an article for a vegetarian paper. Does that make me a vegetarian? I was associated with the Trotskyists in Spain. It was chance that I was serving in the P.O.U.M. militia and not another, and I largely disagreed with the P.O.U. M. ‘line’ and told its leaders so freely, but when they were afterwards accused of pro-Fascist activities I defended them as best it could. How does this contradict my present anti-Hitler attitude? It is news to me that Trotskyists are either pacifists or pro-Fascists. (c) Does Mr Woodcock really know what kind of stuff I put out in the Indian broadcasts? He does not — though I would be quite glad to tell him about it. He is careful not to mention what other people are associated with these Indian broadcasts. One for instance is Herbert Read, whom he mentions with approval. Others are T. S. Eliot, E. M. Forster, Reginald Reynolds, Stephen Spender, J. B. S. Haldane, Tom Wintringham. Most of our broadcasters are Indian left-wing intellectual, from Liberals to Trotskyists, some of them bitterly anti-British. They don’t do it to ‘fox the Indian masses’ but because they know what a Fascist victory would mean to the chances of India’s independence. Why not try to find out what I am doing before accusing my good faith?

‘Mr Orwell is intellectual-hunting again’ (Mr Comfort). I have never attacked ‘the intellectuals’ or ‘the intelligentsia’ en bloc. I have used a lot of ink and done myself a lot of harm by attacking the successive literary cliques which have infested this country, not because they were intellectuals but precisely because they were not what I mean by true intellectuals. The life of a clique is about five years and I have been writing long enough to see three of them come and two go — the Catholic gang, the Stalinist gang, and the present pacifist or, as they are sometimes nicknamed, Fascifist gang. My case against all of them is that they write mentally dishonest propaganda and degrade literary criticism to mutual arse-licking. But even with these various schools I would differentiate between individuals. I would never think of coupling Christopher Dawson with Arnold Lunn, or Malraux with Palme Dutt, or Max Plowman with the Duke of Bedford. And even the work of one individual can exist at very different levels. For instance Mr Comfort himself wrote one poem I value greatly (‘The Atoll in the Mind’), and I wish he would write more of them instead of lifeless propaganda tracts dressed up as novels. But his letter he has chosen to send you is a different matter. Instead of answering what I have said he tries to prejudice an audience to whom I am little known by a misrepresentation of my general line and sneers about my ‘status’ in England. (A writer isn’t judged by his ‘status’, he is judged by his work.) That is on a par with ‘peace’ propaganda which has to avoid mention of Hitler’s invasion of Russian, and it is not what I mean by intellectual honesty. It is just because I do take the function of the intelligentsia seriously that I don’t like the sneers, libels, parrot phrased and financially profitable back-scratching which flourish in our English literary world, and perhaps in yours also.

1942

THE END

IN LOVING MEMORY OF GEORGE ORWELL (25 JUNE 1903 TO 21 JANUARY 1950) [PRO DEATH PENALTY QUOTE ~ JANUARY 21, 2014]

January 20, 2014, 1:51 pm

≫ Next: MARCH FOR LIFE (WASHINGTON D.C) (EVERY YEAR ON JANUARY 22)

≪ Previous: PACIFISM AND THE WAR (BY GEORGE ORWELL: 25 JUNE 1903 TO 21 JANUARY 1950) [SOLDIERS’ ARTICLE OF THE MONTH ~ JANUARY 21, 2014]

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PHOTO SOURCE: http://izquotes.com/quote/139782

QUOTE:“We sleep peaceably in our beds at night only because rough men stand ready to do violence on our behalf.”

This has commonly been attributed to Orwell but has not been found in any of his writings. Quote Investigator found the earliest known appearance in a 1993 Washington Times essay by Richard Grenier: "As George Orwell pointed out, people sleep peacefully in their beds at night only because rough men stand ready to do violence on their behalf." The absence of quotation marks indicates Grenier was using his own words to convey Orwell's opinion; thus it may have originated as a paraphrase of his statement in "Notes on Nationalism" (May 1945): "Those who "abjure" violence can only do so because others are committing violence on their behalf." There are also similar sentiments expressed in an essay which Orwell wrote on Rudyard Kipling, quoting from one of Kipling's poems: "Yes, making mock o' uniforms that guard you while you sleep." In the same essay Orwell also wrote of Kipling: "He sees clearly that men can only be highly civilized while other men, inevitably less civilized, are there to guard and feed them."

AUTHOR:Eric Arthur Blair (25 June 1903 – 21 January 1950), known by his pen name George Orwell, was an English novelist, essayist, journalist and critic. His work is marked by lucid prose, awareness of social injustice, opposition to totalitarianism, and commitment to democratic socialism.

Commonly ranked as one of the most influential English writers of the 20th century and as one of the most important chroniclers of English culture of his generation, Orwell wrote literary criticism, poetry, fiction and polemical journalism. He is best known for the dystopian novel Nineteen Eighty-Four (1949) and the allegorical novella Animal Farm (1945), which together (as of 2009) have sold more copies than any two books by any other 20th-century author. His book Homage to Catalonia (1938), an account of his experiences in the Spanish Civil War, is widely acclaimed, as are his numerous essays on politics, literature, language, and culture. In 2008, The Times ranked him second on a list of "The 50 greatest British writers since 1945".

Orwell's work continues to influence popular and political culture, and the term Orwellian— descriptive of totalitarian or authoritarian social practices — has entered the language together with several of his neologisms, including cold war, Big Brother, thought police, Room 101, doublethink, and thoughtcrime.

MARCH FOR LIFE (WASHINGTON D.C) (EVERY YEAR ON JANUARY 22)

January 21, 2014, 8:05 am

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PHOTO SOURCE: http://www.marchforlife.org/

Date	Every year since January 22, 1974 (anniversary of Roe v. Wade).
Location	Washington, D.C.
Website	www.marchforlife.org

The March for Life is an annual pro-life rally protesting abortion, held in Washington, D.C., on or around the anniversary of the United States Supreme Court's decision legalizing abortion in the case Roe v. Wade. The march is organized by the March for Life Education and Defense Fund. The overall goal of the march is to overturn the Roe v. Wade decision. The 38th annual March for Life occurred on Monday, January 24, 2011—instead of the usual January 22—because Congress is not in session on weekends. The 2013 march was moved to January 25, 2013, to accommodate the Presidential Inauguration. The March for Life typically previously drew around 250,000 attendees each year, with attendance increasing over the past few years.

The march has previously drawn around 250,000 people annually since 2003, though estimates put both the 2011 and 2012 attendances at 400,000 each. The 2013 March for Life drew an estimated 650,000 people.

History

The first March for Life, which was founded by Nellie Gray, was held on January 22, 1974, on the West Steps of the Capitol, with an estimated 20,000 supporters in attendance.

During the 33rd annual March for Life in 2006, the nomination of Judge Samuel A. Alito to the Supreme Court caused a major positive shift, because of the expectation that Alito would "win Senate approval and join a majority in overturning Roe."

Around the time of the 35th annual March for Life in 2008, a Guttmacher Institute report was released, which revealed that the number of abortions performed in the United States dropped to 1.2 million in 2005. This was the lowest level of abortions since 1976. Although this seemed like a victory, many march participants stressed that the figures were not a large enough decline. Many marchers said they would not stop protesting until abortions were illegal.

During the 2009 March for Life, the threat of passage by the 111th United States Congress of the Freedom of Choice Act—a bill that would "codify Roe v. Wade" by declaring a fundamental right to abortion and lifting many restrictions on abortion—served as a key rallying point, because pro-lifers worried that the legislation would eliminate certain abortion restrictions like parental notification for minors and repeal the Partial-Birth Abortion Ban Act.

From year to year, phrases on signs at the march have included “We Choose Life”, “End Abortion Now”, “Your Mom Chose Life”, “Give Life, Don’t Take It”, "Stop Abortion Now",“Defend Life”, “Women Deserve Better Than Abortion”, “Michigan Loves Our Pro-Life President”, “Respect Life, Diocese of Pittsburgh”, “Abortion Kills”, “Stop Unborn Child Abuse”, and “Equal Rights for Unborn Women”. Others compared abortions to “Hitler's Holocaust”. Many sing and chant phrases such as “Pro-choice, that's a lie, babies never choose to die!”

Itinerary

The March for Life proceedings begin around noon. They typically consist of a rally at the National Mall near Fourth Street. It is followed by a march which travels down Constitution Avenue NW, turns right at First Street and then ends on the steps of the Supreme Court of the United States, where another rally is held. Many protesters start the day by delivering roses and lobbying members of Congress.

March for Life crowd shot of the beginning of the march in Washington, D.C. taken January 22, 2009. This year's weather was 42 degrees and clear, bringing crowds in the tens of thousands, according to the Associated Press and upward of 420,000 (estimated by American Life League’s crowd counters).[citation needed]

Attendance

From 2003 to 2009, the March for Life brought in around 250,000 attendees each year. However, the events of the past few years have drawn in more people, with 2011's event bringing in up to 400,000 protestors. The 2013 March for Life drew an estimated 650,000 people.

Approximately 5,000 participated in the 14th annual march in 1987, despite a snowstorm. Many teenagers and college students attend the march each year, typically traveling with church/youth groups. Washington Post columnist Robert McCartney estimated that about half of the marchers are under age 30.

Orthodox clergy and laity at the March for Life in 2012.

Notable speakers

Notable speakers at the rally in front of the Capitol before the march have included PresidentGeorge W. Bush, Alveda King (niece of Martin Luther King Jr.), and the parents of Terri Schiavo. There are typically several members of Congress who speak at the march.

George W. Bush was out of town during six consecutive marches (2000–2006) during his tenure. However, he spoke via telephone line amplified by loudspeakers. In 2004, he thanked participants for their “devotion to such a noble cause” from Roswell, New Mexico. During his telephone addresses, he tended to speak broadly of opposing abortion as opposed to offering any specific efforts being made to overturn the Roe v. Wade decision.

Ronald Reagan was also known to deliver telephone addresses to the march crowds. At the 14th annual march in 1987, he vowed to help “end this national tragedy". Jesse Helms, then Senator of North Carolina, also spoke at the 14th annual rally. He called abortion an “American holocaust".

At the 30th annual march in 2003, speakers included Representative Chris Smith, Republican of New Jersey, and Randall Terry, the founder of Operation Rescue. In his speech, Terry targeted the youth in the audience, calling them to “fight for all you're worth."

At the 31st annual march in 2004, 15 lawmakers, all Republican, spoke. Many of them stressed the importance of backing and voting for only candidates whose platform supported antiabortion in the November elections. Among the lawmakers who spoke were Representatives Todd Tiahrtof Kansas, and Patrick J. Toomey of Pennsylvania. Tiahrt, who also spoke at the 30th annual march, urged marchers to “help pro-lifers in your state”; Toomey supported these remarks, saying to vote for pro-life candidates in order to reclaim the Senate and, in turn, the courts.

At the 33rd annual march in 2006, Representative Steve Chabot, an Ohio Republican and prominent pro-life advocate in the United States House of Representatives, spoke to the masses on overturning Roe v. Wade. He stated that what he called the killing of millions of babies should be "sufficient justification for overruling that awful case". Nellie Gray, the founder of March for Life, spoke of "feminist abortionists", foretelling that the United States would hold them accountable for their actions in trials equivalent to the Nuremberg Trials.

At the 36th annual march in 2009, approximately 20 Congressmen spoke. They talked about the "challenges pro-life advocates face under the Obama administration". Specific speakers at the 36th annual included Representative F. James Sensenbrenner, Jr., Wisconsin Republican and former chairman of the House Judiciary Committee, and Gray.

President Barack Obama was asked by Nellie Gray to speak at the 36th annual march, but he did not attend. Instead, he released a statement supporting abortion rights. He said that abortion represents a broad principle: "government should not intrude on our most private family matters".

Notable speakers at the 38th annual march in 2011 included House Majority Leader Eric Cantor, House Majority Whip Kevin McCarthy, and several other members of Congress.

Speakers at the 40th March for Life in 2013 included Speaker of the United States House of Representatives John Boehner (via a pre-recorded video address), former United States Senator and candidate for the 2012 Republican Party presidential nomination Rick Santorum, as well as other members of Congress.

Youth rally and mass at the Verizon Center. January 23, 2006.

Media attention

March for Life has received relatively little media attention over the years. The typical coverage consists of a “story with a tiny little comment from one individual marcher”, Gray has said. The 36th annual march in 2009, which brought in very little media coverage, was just two days after President Barack Obama's inauguration, which brought in swarms of media representatives. The 40th annual march in 2013, which brought in 650,000 people, after 54,559,615 abortions since Roe v. Wade saw that The New York Times ignored the march for the fifth consecutive year in its print edition, whereas The Associated Press institutionalizes its bias for the protesters by keeping in its style manual that journalists should “use anti-abortion instead of pro-life and abortion rights instead of pro-abortion or pro-choice,” according to The Associated Press (AP) Stylebook’s 44th edition.

To counter the relative lack of media coverage, one of the March for Life's supporters, the Family Research Council, organized a “Blogs for Life” conference in Washington, D.C. The main goal of the conference was to “bring pro-life bloggers together to talk over strategies” for securing more effective media coverage and advancing anti-abortion issues. Such strategies include securing media coverage through legislative means or by tapping into new media outlets.

Associated events

Various pro-life organizations hold events before and after the March. Such events include a Luau for Life at Georgetown University and a candlelight vigil at the Supreme Court. In addition, the March for Life Education and Defense Fund hosts a dinner each year.

Eastern Orthodox events

The Orthodox presence at the March for Life is a long one with representation from many jurisdictions every year. The evening before the March, there is often at least one Vespers service at a local D.C. church. During the March there is a Panakhida for the Unborn performed along the way. Seminarians from Christ the Saviour Seminary, Holy Cross Seminary, St. Tikhon's Orthodox Seminary, and St. Vladimir's Orthodox Seminary are invariably in attendance along with their families, hierarchs, clergy, and monastics from all over the country. Metropolitan Jonah of Washington (Orthodox Church in America) has been a speaker at the pre-March invocations in recent years. The Carpatho-Russian Diocese and Greek Archdiocese also have a strong connection to the March for Life and have been at the forefront of the pro-life movement. Metropolitan Nicholas of Amissos (American Carpatho-Russian Orthodox Diocese) was a constant presence during his episcopate dating back to 1987.

Signs opposing Freedom of Choice Act (2009)

Roman Catholic events

Preceding the March for Life, there are several Masses; two of which are celebrated at the Basilica of the National Shrine of the Immaculate Conception as well as the Verizon Center in Chinatown. The Catholic Archdiocese of Washington hosts a Youth Rally and Mass every year at the Verizon Center, attended by approximately 20,000 young people, where a message from the Pope is relayed.

In 2009, the apostolic nuncio to the United States, Archbishop Pietro Sambri, read Pope Benedict XVI's message, which told attendants that he was “deeply grateful” for the youths'"outstanding annual witness for the gospel of life". In 2008, the Pope's message thanked attendants for “promoting respect for the dignity and inalienable rights of every human being.” In 2011, an event parallel to the Verizon Center event was held at the D.C. Armory; a total of over 27,000 young people attended the events.

In response to a growing number of pilgrims traveling to the area for the March for Life, in 2009 the Roman Catholic Diocese of Arlington began to host the “Life is VERY Good” Evening of Prayer, the night before the March. In 2013, a Morning Mass and Rally (preceding the March for Life) was added and held at the Patriot Center on the campus of George Mason University, including Arlington Bishop Paul Loverde and more than 100 bishops and priests from across the nation. Life is VERY Good, which began with 350 participants in 2009, gathered in excess of 12,000 between its two events, held before and after the March, in 2013.

Students for Life conference           

Students for Life of America, the largest association of pro-life groups or clubs on college campuses, holds an annual conference for pro-life youth on the week of the march, generally the Saturday after the 22nd of January. Attendance at the conference has exploded in recent years according to Kristan Hawkins, president of SFLA, who announced at the 2010 conference that attendance has gone from about 400 in 2007 to over 1,200 in 2010; in 2011, there were 1,800 attendees.

Virtual March for Life

In 2010, Americans United for Life launched an online virtual March. Pro-lifers unable to attend the event in person could create avatars of themselves and take part in a virtual demonstration on a Google Maps version of the Washington Mall. The online event attracted approximately 75,000 participants.

Personhood Now! banner in front of the United States Supreme Court during the 2010 March for Life.

DFLA banner at the 2006 March for Life, courtesy of Democrats for Life of America.

Pro-life Rabbis (2008)

Students from the University of Notre Dame at the March for Life in Washington, D.C.. January 2013

A young girl holds up a pro-life sign at the March for Life in Washinton, D.C. (2013)

RANDY GREENAWALT (KILLED, ESCAPED AND KILLED AGAIN. EXECUTED IN ARIZONA ON JANUARY 23, 1997)

January 22, 2014, 1:09 pm

≫ Next: RONALD KEITH SPIVEY (EXECUTED IN GEORGIA ON JANUARY 24, 2002)

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On this date, January 23, 1997, a Prison escapee and repeat offender, Randy Greenawalt was executed by lethal injection in Arizona. This is another perfect example of letting a dangerous killer be kept alive. Please go to this blog post to learn more.