Ohio Inmate Fights Execution Based on Age
Ohio death row inmate Gary Otte is motioning to have his death penalty rescinded for the third time before his execution date on September 13, 2017. Otte robbed and murdered two people on consecutive nights in 1992 and was convicted on two counts of aggravated murder and sentenced to death when he was 20 years old. The state of Ohio allows the penalty for those older than eighteen.
A recent court decision in Commonwealth of Kentucky v. Bredhold found that the death penalty is unconstitutional for a defendant who was younger than 21 at the time of his offense. It cites that based on current scientific understanding that the brain and emotional development of young offenders reduces their accountability for the death penalty.
Otte is arguing that his death sentence is a violation of the Eighth and Fourteenth Amendments. His lawsuits goes further to note that scientists have discovered brain systems and structures that are involved in self-regulation and higher-order cognition which continue to mature through the late teens and mid twenties. So this lack of brain development diminishes the ability to exercise self-control and weigh the risks and rewards of alternative courses of action.
Otte is seeking an order that declares that Ohio's death penalty statue unconstitutional because of he was 20 years old when he committed his crimes.
Comments from Allen:
You may be asking yourself: how can a decision in Kentucky be any authority for what the State of Ohio should do with someone convicted of capital murder? That would be a very good question, as a Kentucky court has no authority to tell an Ohio court what to do.
That is why Idaho judges tell their law clerks, who do research for them, to focus upon caselaw from Idaho when looking to decide cases before them.
In this case, the Kentucky court decided its inmate's fate under the United States Constitution, which applies nationwide. Further, the Kentucky court made use of a United States Supreme Court decision, and expanded upon that decision based upon some additiona medical evidence. The United States Supreme Court cases serve as the ultimate authority on U.S. constitutional issues.
The Kentucky decision is not dispositive here; it is instructive. That means the Ohio court can look at its reasoning and decide for itself whether or not it is persuaded by Kentucky's logic. If it is, Gary lives. If it is not, he dies.
This case is an example of lawyers whose job is to prolong their client's life for as long as possible. They wholeheartedly believe they are doing the Lord's work, and they may well be doing so. They take cases in which their client is normally and unquestionably guilty of a horrendous crime, and they stand between that client and a lethal dose of some nasty chemical. While most lawyers violate the canons of ethics if they enter litigation merely to delay proceedings; not so with these lawyers. They are quite creative in causing delays of one year, three years, ten years, etc. In some cases, they have successfully stopped the death penalty altogether, because it has been administered in a way that endangers those who do not deserve death. Frankly, I have the greatest respect for these lawyers. They have the best of intentions and have caused courts to be very careful in meting out the death penalty, and that is as it should be. They keep courts honest and in a very real sense, protect you and I from the ultimate injustice.
https://www.courthousenews.com/ohio-inmate-fights-execution-based-age-time-murders/
https://www.courthousenews.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/08/GaryOtte.pdf
https://deathpenaltyinfo.org/node/6835
http://www.kentucky.com/news/local/crime/article165492482.html
A recent court decision in Commonwealth of Kentucky v. Bredhold found that the death penalty is unconstitutional for a defendant who was younger than 21 at the time of his offense. It cites that based on current scientific understanding that the brain and emotional development of young offenders reduces their accountability for the death penalty.
Otte is arguing that his death sentence is a violation of the Eighth and Fourteenth Amendments. His lawsuits goes further to note that scientists have discovered brain systems and structures that are involved in self-regulation and higher-order cognition which continue to mature through the late teens and mid twenties. So this lack of brain development diminishes the ability to exercise self-control and weigh the risks and rewards of alternative courses of action.
Otte is seeking an order that declares that Ohio's death penalty statue unconstitutional because of he was 20 years old when he committed his crimes.
Comments from Allen:
You may be asking yourself: how can a decision in Kentucky be any authority for what the State of Ohio should do with someone convicted of capital murder? That would be a very good question, as a Kentucky court has no authority to tell an Ohio court what to do.
That is why Idaho judges tell their law clerks, who do research for them, to focus upon caselaw from Idaho when looking to decide cases before them.
In this case, the Kentucky court decided its inmate's fate under the United States Constitution, which applies nationwide. Further, the Kentucky court made use of a United States Supreme Court decision, and expanded upon that decision based upon some additiona medical evidence. The United States Supreme Court cases serve as the ultimate authority on U.S. constitutional issues.
The Kentucky decision is not dispositive here; it is instructive. That means the Ohio court can look at its reasoning and decide for itself whether or not it is persuaded by Kentucky's logic. If it is, Gary lives. If it is not, he dies.
This case is an example of lawyers whose job is to prolong their client's life for as long as possible. They wholeheartedly believe they are doing the Lord's work, and they may well be doing so. They take cases in which their client is normally and unquestionably guilty of a horrendous crime, and they stand between that client and a lethal dose of some nasty chemical. While most lawyers violate the canons of ethics if they enter litigation merely to delay proceedings; not so with these lawyers. They are quite creative in causing delays of one year, three years, ten years, etc. In some cases, they have successfully stopped the death penalty altogether, because it has been administered in a way that endangers those who do not deserve death. Frankly, I have the greatest respect for these lawyers. They have the best of intentions and have caused courts to be very careful in meting out the death penalty, and that is as it should be. They keep courts honest and in a very real sense, protect you and I from the ultimate injustice.
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Allen Browning is an attorney in Idaho Falls, Idaho who handles personal injury and criminal defense. He has over 30 years of experience and handled thousands of cases. Allen handles cases from all over Idaho. Call (208) 542-2700 to set up a free consultation if you are facing legal trouble or you have been involved in an accident.
Also, check out browninglaw.net for more information about Allen and Browning Law.
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Sources for more information:https://www.courthousenews.com/ohio-inmate-fights-execution-based-age-time-murders/
https://www.courthousenews.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/08/GaryOtte.pdf
https://deathpenaltyinfo.org/node/6835
http://www.kentucky.com/news/local/crime/article165492482.html
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