The Timely Justice Act, a grotesquely named bill passed by the Florida Legislature, could get to Gov. Rick Scott as soon as this week for him to sign into law. The measure would require a governor to sign a death warrant within 30 days of a review of a capital conviction by the State Supreme Court, and the state would be required to execute the defendant within 180 days of the warrant.
Also this week, an inmate on Florida’s death row, Clemente Javier Aguirre-Jarquin, presented DNA evidence that could exonerate him. He was convicted in 2006 of murdering two women, based largely on circumstantial evidence. On Monday, he was in court seeking a new trial because the DNA evidence showed that blood at the crime scene — none of it his — was that of a victim’s daughter, who, his lawyers argue, likely committed the murders.
Mr. Aguirre-Jarquin’s case offers good reason for Governor Scott to veto the bill. The state’s indisputably defective death penalty system is made more horrifying by attempts to rush inmates to execution. There is a strong chance that Mr. Aguirre-Jarquin will become the 25th death-row inmate exonerated in Florida since it reinstated capital punishment in 1973. More death-row inmates have been exonerated in Florida than in any state.
"Now, it's Gov. Scott's turn to show leadership on the budget," is the South Florida Sun-Sentinel editorial.
South Florida survived the Florida Legislature. Up next is Gov. Rick Scott who can turn a bill into law and a lawmaker's budget request into reality — or not.
Over the next two weeks, the governor will either approve, or kill, a number of legislative initiatives. Some, like the restoration of more early voting days or raising teacher salaries, deserve quick approval. Other bills and budget projects may not do so well.
And:
Death Penalty Cases — Florida leads the nation in the number of death-row inmates later found innocent, and Broward County leads the state in the number exonerated based on DNA evidence. That our government could have killed even one innocent person is reason enough to veto HB 7803, which shortens the appeals process for death-row cases and speeds up executions. Speed is not the most important factor in carrying out the death penalty. Accuracy is.
The somewhat misleading AP headline, "Inmates urge Scott to veto Timely Justice Act," is by Kelli Kennedy, actually refers to exonerees. It's via the Palm Beach Post.
Two exonerated former death row inmates are urging Gov. Rick Scott to veto legislation that would accelerate the state's capital punishment process. The system has been criticized for allowing some condemned inmates to languish for decades on death row.
Seth Penalver spent 13 years there and says he would have died an innocent man if the Timely Justice Act had been law.
Critics fear speeding up the process could condemn innocent people.
Florida has 405 inmates on its death row, more than any other state except California. It takes an average of 13 years for inmates to move from sentencing to execution.
Earlier coverage from Florida begins at the link.
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