The Supreme Court of Ohio has issued the news release, "Death Penalty Task Force to Meet for First Time." the full text is:
In a cooperative effort between the Supreme Court of Ohio and the Ohio State Bar Association, the Joint Task Force to Review the Administration of Ohio’s Death Penalty will meet for the first time Nov. 3.
The group of 21 judges, prosecuting and defense attorneys, and lawmakers will hold its first working session from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. at the Ohio State Bar Association (OSBA), 1700 Lake Shore Drive, in Columbus.
Chief Justice Maureen O’Connor announced the formation of the Joint Task Force during the annual State of Judiciary in September.
During Thursday’s meeting, the task force will conduct a thorough review of capital punishment to ensure that Ohio’s death penalty is administered in the most fair and judicious manner possible. Members will examine the death penalty process and study current laws on the death penalty and procedures other states across the country use.
“The Joint Task Force will examine the current laws on the subject and the practices in other jurisdictions. It will review and identify areas in need of action and recommend the course of action,” Chief Justice O’Connor said. “The task force will not decide whether Ohio should or should not have the death penalty. It will not be on the table for discussion.”
“Our goal is to take a careful review of the administration of capital punishment in Ohio to ensure fairness in its application,” OSBA President Carol Seubert Marx said.
Once the task force develops a comprehensive set of recommendations over the course of several meetings, members will give their proposals next year to the state for consideration.
The Joint Task Force is chaired by the retired Hon. James A. Brogan of the Second District Court of Appeals in Dayton.
Other members include:
- Sara Andrews - Ohio Department of Rehabilitation and Correction
- Joseph T. Deters - Hamilton County Prosecutor
- Hon. Stephen L. McIntosh - Franklin County Common Pleas Court
- Douglas A. Berman - Ohio State University Moritz Collage of Law
- Hon. Kathleen A. Keough - 8th District Court of Appeals
- John P. Parker - Private practice attorney
- Phyllis L. Crocker - Cleveland Marshal Collage of Law
- Hon. Linda J. Jennings - Lucas County Common Pleas Court
- Samuel H. Porter - Porter, Wright, Morris and Arthur, LLP
- Jon Paul Rion - Rion, Rion and Rion Co., LPA,
- Sheriff Albert J. Rodenberg - Clermont County Sheriff’s Office
- Stephen A. Schumaker - Ohio Attorney General’s Office
- Hon. John M. Solovan - Belmont County Common Pleas Court
- Hon. John J. Russo - Cuyahoga County Common Pleas Court
- Dennis Watkins - Trumbull County Prosecutor
- Sen. Shirley A. Smith - Cleveland
- Sen. Bill Seitz - Cincinnati
- Rep. Lynn Slaby - Akron
- Hon. W. Carlton Weddington - Ohio House of Representatives
- Hon. Roger Wilson - Champaign County Common Pleas Court
"19 named to review death penalty in Ohio," is the title of David Eggert's Columbus Dispatch report.
The 19 members of a state panel that will review whether Ohio’s death penalty is being administered fairly include six judges, three legislators, two prosecutors and a sheriff.
The Ohio Supreme Court and State Bar Association yesterday named members of their previously announced joint task force. The first meeting will be Thursday in Columbus.
“The task force will not decide whether Ohio should or should not have the death penalty,” Chief Justice Maureen O’Connor said in a statement.
Instead, she said, panel members will conduct a thorough review of capital punishment to ensure that the state’s death penalty is administered in the most fair and judicious manner possible.
The task force is expected to make recommendations sometime next year. An exact date has not been determined, court spokesman Chris Davey said.
The AP report, "Ohio death penalty review committee to meet," is via the Cleveland Plain Dealer.
Ohio Supreme Court Chief Justice Maureen O'Connor has convened the task force while making it clear the committee won't debate whether Ohio should have capital punishment.
The committee, to meet publicly on Thursday at the Ohio State Bar Association, includes veteran prosecutors who have long supported the death penalty, along with defense attorneys who have fought its imposition.
The committee also includes judges, lawmakers, a sheriff, academic experts and a representative of the state prison system.
O'Connor, a Republican and a former prosecutor, has said the committee's goal is to produce a fair, impartial, and balanced analysis of the state's 30-year-old law.
Earlier coverage of the Ohio death penalty study commission begins at the link. Related posts are in the study commission index.
Doug Berman, one of the panel members, is the publisher of Sentencing Law and Policy, a daily must read noted in the left-column webroll. I look forward to seeing his writings on the panel's work.
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