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Friday, August 27, 2010, 9:13 am |
 Gov. Steve Beshear set a Sept. 16 execution date for convicted rapist and murderer Gregory L. Wilson on Wednesday, but held off signing two other death warrants because there is a shortage of a key drug used in executions.
Beshear signed the warrant for Wilson, 53, saying all his appeals “as a matter of right” had been exhausted. “I have reviewed the facts of this case in detail, and I do not find any such strong extenuating circumstances in this case,” Beshear said in a statement. Wilson was sentenced Oct. 31, 1988, to die for his part in the 1987 kidnapping and murder of Deborah Pooley a year earlier in Kenton County in Northern Kentucky, just across the Ohio River from her hometown of Hamilton, Ohio. A co-defendant in the case, Brenda Humphrey, is serving a life sentence. Wilson and Humphrey forced Pooley, who was living in Northern Kentucky, into the back seat of her car May 29, 1987, and Wilson raped and later strangled her while Humphrey drove. Wilson was arrested two weeks later. Beshear selected Wilson's case from among three recommended for execution warrants by Kentucky Attorney General Jack Conway because it was the oldest. Requests for execution dates are pending for Ralph Baze, convicted of killing a sheriff and a deputy in 1992, and Robert Carl Foley, convicted in 1993 and 1994 of killing six people in two incidents. Beshear said the state has enough sodium thiopental for just one execution. Kentucky's stock expires Oct. 1; a new supply of the drug isn't expected until early 2011. “The Cabinet's repeated attempts to obtain additional thiopental have so far been unsuccessful,” Beshear said. Allison Gardner Martin, a spokeswoman for Conway, said he was notified Wednesday of the decision to sign the warrant for Wilson. She declined further comment, saying the attorney general's office will represent the state in any appeals Wilson files. Wilson's attorney, Dan Goyette of Louisville, did not return an e-mail seeking comment. Wilson's execution would be the first since Kentucky readopted its lethal injection protocol in May, seven months after the Kentucky Supreme Court halted all executions, ruling there were problems with the way the protocol was put in place. -Brett Barrouquere |
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Wednesday, August 25, 2010, 3:45 pm |
 Fleur de Liberties, a benefit for the AmericanCivil Liberties Union of Kentucky (ACLU of KY), will be held Saturday eveningSeptember 11th from 9pm - 2am at the Monkey Wrench, 1025 BarretAvenue, Louisville, Ky 40204. The Fleur de Liberties benefit will bring together localmusicians and businesses to support and celebrate our nation’s foremostdefender of civil liberties while mobilizing young Louisvillians on such issuesas LGBTQ rights, immigrants’ rights, abolition of the death penalty,restoration of voting rights, and reproductive justice among others. Live musical entertainment will be provided by RestAssured, The Commonwealth, Nerves Junior, The Instruction and DJ Sam Sneed. A raffle of locally donated items will benefit theACLU. Raffle items include; tickets to Actors Theatre, gift cards from locallyowned restaurants and retailers, a box at Churchill Downs, and much, muchmore... Five dollars at the door. Free entrance to those who becomecard-carrying members! For more information contact
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or call 581-9746.
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Wednesday, June 30, 2010, 12:25 pm |
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Arizona Racial Profiling Law Threatens Civil Liberties
en espanol
(Kentucky) – In response to civil liberties threats caused by the recent passage of Arizona’s racial profiling law, the American Civil Liberties Union of Kentucky issued a travel alert today informing Kentucky residents of their rights when stopped by law enforcement when traveling in Arizona. The unconstitutional law,known as SB 1070, requires law enforcement agents to demand "papers" from people they stop who they suspect are not authorized to be in the U.S. If individuals are unable to prove to officers that they are permitted to be in the U.S., they may be subject to warrantless arrest withou any probable cause that they have committed a crime.
Although the law is not scheduled to go into effect until July 29, the ACLU of Kentucky is concerned that some law enforcement officers are already beginning to act on provisions of the law. Moreover, there has been a history of rampant racial profiling by law enforcement in Arizona, especially in Maricopa County, as well as a stated anti-immigrant policy of “attrition through enforcement” by Arizona lawmakers meant to create a hostile enough environment for Latinos and other people of color that they voluntarily leave the state.
“It is critical that Kentuckians understand their rights before traveling in Arizona,” said Michael Aldridge, Executive Director of the ACLU of Kentucky.“Kentuckians should be aware that under S.B 1070,people who look or sound “foreign’ are more likely to be stopped for minor infractions like having a broken taillight or littering and then asked for their ‘papers’ if police believe, just by looking at them, that they could be in the country unlawfully.”
In addition to the travel alert, the ACLU has made available in English and Spanish materials on individuals’ rights if stopped by law enforcement in Arizona or other states as a result of SB 1070 or for any other reason. The materials include a downloadable card with instructions – applicable in any state – on coping with vehicle stops and questioning by police, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents or the FBI, as well as a Frequently Asked Questions document about SB 1070.
“Our goal is to protect Kentuckians from unlawful persecution from law enforcement and to make sure they know their rights should they encounter it,” said Aldridge. “A proportion of our residents fit the racial profile that police will inevitably rely on to unlawfully detain travelers in Arizona. Furthermore, we find that individuals are generally unclear on their rights when stopped by law enforcement and as part of our educational effort we welcome the opportunity to provide that information.”
The ACLU and other leading civil rights organizations filed a lawsuit challenging the Arizona law in May, but until the law is struck down,the ACLU warns that individuals traveling in Arizona must be aware of their rights if stopped there.
The travel alert is available at: http://www.aclu.org
Materials informing individuals of their rights when stopped by law enforcement and more information about the Arizona law, including an ACLU video and slide show, can be found at: www.aclu.org/what-happens-arizona-stops-arizona
Materials informing individuals of their rights when stopped by law enforcement optimized for mobile devices is available at: mobile.aclu.org
More information about the ACLU’s lawsuit, including information on co-counsel and plaintiffs, can be found at: www.aclu.org/immigrants-rights-racial-justice/aclu-and-civil-rights-groups-file-legal-challenge-arizona-racial-pr
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