Post by Anja Nieser on Sept 19, 2006 17:53:43 GMT -5
Lawyers try to spare Rompilla from death penalty----U.S. Supreme Court
last year tossed sentence for 1988 killing.
Ronald Rompilla, convicted of robbing, torturing and killing an Allentown
bar owner 18 years ago, was in Lehigh County Court on Monday as his
attorneys filed several motions they hope will spare his life.
The U.S. Supreme Court overturned Rompilla's death sentence in June 2005,
saying his attorneys did not meet the standard of reasonable competence
for capital cases. Rompilla must now be resentenced by a jury at a
separate trial, which was scheduled Monday to start Feb. 12.
Carol Marciano, who along with another Allentown lawyer, Tommaso Lonardo,
has been representing Rompilla since February, said she plans to challenge
the constitutionality of lethal injection in Pennsylvania.
Citing pending cases, including one in California where anesthesiologists
refused to give a fatal dose of drugs to the condemned killer, Marciano
argued that the way lethal injections are administered in Pennsylvania
should be considered cruel and unusual punishment.
She requested a hearing to have medical experts examine whether the lethal
mixture can cause pain. The mixture comprises sodium thiopental, a
sedative; pancuronium bromide, an agent that stops breathing; and
potassium chloride, a compound that stops the heart.
Chief Deputy District Attorney Stephen Van Natten argued ''it is a
post-trial issue'' if Rompilla, 58, is sentenced to death.
The motion on lethal injection was one of several argued before Judge Alan
M. Black, who did not rule on any of them. The next hearing is set for
Dec. 28.
Among other motions, Rompilla's lawyers want a rehearing on the
aggravating factors that qualified him for the death penalty: that he had
a significant criminal history, he killed a man during the commission of
another felony, and the victim was tortured. They also want the death
penalty ruled out as an option in the resentencing.
Rompilla was convicted in 1988 of robbing and killing James Scanlon, 61,
in the Cozy Corner Tavern in Allentown in January of that year. Scanlon,
the bar owner, was stabbed repeatedly and set on fire in the bar. Rompilla
also was convicted in 1974 of raping an Allentown woman and burglarizing
her apartment.
His conviction and death sentence for Scanlon's killing led to several
appeals to the state Supreme Court and federal courts. The U.S. Supreme
Court agreed to hear the case after a federal judge set aside the death
sentence and a federal appeals court reinstated it.
In its 5-4 decision, the U.S. Supreme Court found that Rompilla's lawyers
had not properly researched his background enough to save his life during
the sentencing phase of his trial. Rompilla's background included
childhood neglect, alcoholism and mental retardation.
(source: Morning Call)
last year tossed sentence for 1988 killing.
Ronald Rompilla, convicted of robbing, torturing and killing an Allentown
bar owner 18 years ago, was in Lehigh County Court on Monday as his
attorneys filed several motions they hope will spare his life.
The U.S. Supreme Court overturned Rompilla's death sentence in June 2005,
saying his attorneys did not meet the standard of reasonable competence
for capital cases. Rompilla must now be resentenced by a jury at a
separate trial, which was scheduled Monday to start Feb. 12.
Carol Marciano, who along with another Allentown lawyer, Tommaso Lonardo,
has been representing Rompilla since February, said she plans to challenge
the constitutionality of lethal injection in Pennsylvania.
Citing pending cases, including one in California where anesthesiologists
refused to give a fatal dose of drugs to the condemned killer, Marciano
argued that the way lethal injections are administered in Pennsylvania
should be considered cruel and unusual punishment.
She requested a hearing to have medical experts examine whether the lethal
mixture can cause pain. The mixture comprises sodium thiopental, a
sedative; pancuronium bromide, an agent that stops breathing; and
potassium chloride, a compound that stops the heart.
Chief Deputy District Attorney Stephen Van Natten argued ''it is a
post-trial issue'' if Rompilla, 58, is sentenced to death.
The motion on lethal injection was one of several argued before Judge Alan
M. Black, who did not rule on any of them. The next hearing is set for
Dec. 28.
Among other motions, Rompilla's lawyers want a rehearing on the
aggravating factors that qualified him for the death penalty: that he had
a significant criminal history, he killed a man during the commission of
another felony, and the victim was tortured. They also want the death
penalty ruled out as an option in the resentencing.
Rompilla was convicted in 1988 of robbing and killing James Scanlon, 61,
in the Cozy Corner Tavern in Allentown in January of that year. Scanlon,
the bar owner, was stabbed repeatedly and set on fire in the bar. Rompilla
also was convicted in 1974 of raping an Allentown woman and burglarizing
her apartment.
His conviction and death sentence for Scanlon's killing led to several
appeals to the state Supreme Court and federal courts. The U.S. Supreme
Court agreed to hear the case after a federal judge set aside the death
sentence and a federal appeals court reinstated it.
In its 5-4 decision, the U.S. Supreme Court found that Rompilla's lawyers
had not properly researched his background enough to save his life during
the sentencing phase of his trial. Rompilla's background included
childhood neglect, alcoholism and mental retardation.
(source: Morning Call)