China News Service, July 13th. According to the Associated Press, on the 12th local time, a federal appeals court in the United States ruled that the first execution of the death penalty in the United States federal government in 17 years can be carried out as scheduled on July 13th local time, overturning the previous The lower court suspended the order.
According to reports, the criminal to be executed is Daniel Lee. He is a white supremacist who killed a gun dealer, his wife and 8-year-old daughter in 1996. In 1999, he was sentenced to death. He is currently being held in a prison in Indiana. Daniel Lee will receive an injection death sentence in prison on the 13th.
Earlier on July 10, Indiana Chief District Judge Jane Magnus-Stinson ruled that the death penalty would be suspended. The reason is that the family of the victim wants to watch the execution process, but during the epidemic, there is a risk of infection when traveling. But then, the United States Department of Justice argued that the judge’s order distorted the law and asked the Court of Appeal to immediately overturn the ruling.
According to reports, the US Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit held that the appeal from the victim’s family “lacked any controversial legal basis” and the ruling was rash. The Ministry of Justice pointed out that the Prison Administration has adjusted relevant measures for the victim’s family and implemented additional safety agreements regarding the new crown epidemic. The family’s concerns “are not more important than the public interest” and the sentence imposed in this case according to law should be enforced.
However, in a court filing filed on the 12th, officials of the Ministry of Justice stated that a staff member involved in the preparation of the death penalty tested positive for the new coronavirus. However, the Ministry of Justice said that this situation does not mean that the government’s timetable for execution of the death penalty will be further delayed because the staff member was not in the execution room at that time, nor was he in contact with anyone in the special team dealing with death penalty.
The report pointed out that the family of the victim planned to travel and rushed to Indiana to witness the execution in a small room. In this small room, it is almost impossible to implement social distance measures. Relevant documents show that the families of the victims argued that they were not trying to overturn the death sentence, but were “seeking to exercise their legal rights to participate in the execution of Daniel Lee’s death sentence, so that they (family) can get together at a moment of sorrow. Together."
The report said that the families of the victims will appeal to the Supreme Court. Family lawyer Baker Cooles said: "The federal government has put this family in a dilemma. They must choose between witnessing Daniel Lee's right to be executed and his health and safety." "Because the government plans to The death penalty was carried out during the epidemic, and the three women (families of the victims) had to risk their lives" from other states to Indiana.
On July 25, 2019, the United States Department of Justice announced that it would resume the federal death penalty and take the lead in executing five death row prisoners who admitted to killing children. This will be the first federal death penalty in the United States since 2003. The case of Daniel Lee is included.