Rich’s Cup of Tea

Kidnapping — GUILTY

Capital sexual battery — GUILTY

It was a just conclusion to an emotionally charged, eight-day trial.

At long last, Smith, then 39, had been convicted of the heinous kidnapping, rape and murder of 11-year-old Carlie Brucia 22 months earlier.

Jurors recommended the death sentence Dec. 1.

Circuit Court Judge Andrew Owens concurred March 15, 2006, adding two life sentences.

And now the Public Defender’s Office in Bartow seeks a new trial.

For that monster?

Good God.

Among the issues:

n The FBI forensics expert who testified was not the person who did the DNA testing that helped convict Smith.

n Whether a medical examiner’s opinion should’ve been used since Carlie’s corpse was badly decomposed.

nThat statements by Smith’s brother should’ve been suppressed, given his cooperation with law enforcement.

I respect the importance of due process and that death sentences are appealed automatically.

Legally, it’s how the system works.

Morally, however, something is wrong with this picture.

Very wrong.

Fortified by a strong case, the state met its burden, proving “beyond a reasonable doubt” Smith was Carlie’s killer.

Yet the justice system seeks to give him more consideration than he gave her.

A new trial?

To what end?

Smith is where he belongs — on death row at a maximum security prison.

That this convicted murderer might win a new trial would be outrageous, a travesty, and a rebuke to Carlie’s family and a community that was traumatized by his atrocity.

On Dec. 1, 2005, before jurors deliberated Smith’s punishment, Assistant State Attorney Debra Riva asked them to imagine what was going through Carlie’s mind at the end, facing her horrible fate.

“She’s old enough to know what is happening to her,” Riva said. “When he placed the ligature around her neck, she knew what was going to happen next.”

The large, bold-faced headline in the next day’s Bradenton Herald still strikes home like a sledgehammer in its absolute finality:

JURY: DEATH

Let it be.

Rich’s Note: I have nothing to add to this article other than it is brilliantly written, and I agree with the author’s points completely.

Source:  Bradenton.com, Sunday, January 11, 2009.

Tags: Crime and Punishment by Rich
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A man who killed an 11-year-old girl after her abduction was caught on camera and broadcast nationwide, is asking that his death sentence be overturned. As Mike Vasilinda tells us, an attorney for condemned killer Joseph Smith argued before the Florida Supreme Court, that there were so many problems with the trial, Smith deserves a new one.

This video sent shockwaves through parents nationwide. Carlie Brucia’s abduction caught on security cameras as the 11-year-old took a shortcut home.

Joseph Smith was caught days later and allegedly confessed to raping and murdering the 11-year-old. His alleged confession to family was a point of contention as lawyers appealed Smiths death Sentence to the Florida Supreme Court.

“The fact that his brother might have made this up is for the jury,” Public Defender Deborah Brueckheimer said.

Smith’s lawyer also raised questions about the handling of DNA that linked Smith to the killing suggesting it could have been mishandled by the FBI lab. Another objection was over graphic photos of the body shown to jurors.

“They just went too far,” Brueckheimer said.

It brought this response from one justice.

“I have yet to see photographs from any of these cases that I would say are pleasant,” Supreme Court Justice Fred Lewis said.

Here in the Capitol, House and Senate budget cutters are arguing over whether the should cut funds for prison drug treatment programs.

In 2001, when Smith was in prison, lawmakers cut all prison drug rehab funding. Whether drugs played a part in Carlie’s killing was part of the appeal.

“We know he had a long history of drug abuse of all sorts starting at a very early age,” Asst. Attorney General Carol Dittmar said.

Afterward, attorneys were reluctant to talk.

The court could rule at any time.

The court itself seemed concerned that the trial judge sited six aggregating factors in imposing death and that at least two of them may have been improper, including a prior conviction in which Smith pleaded no contest.

The state argued the 11-year-olds murder was well thought out in advance since Smith attacked her from behind with a shoe lace and strangled her while her hands were bound.

Rich’s Note: Well, we all knew this was coming (standard procedure for capital cases).  Problems with the trial?  Seemed to be pretty “textbook” to me.  Brother made up the confession?  I heard an audio clip of him telling his mom “it was an accident”.  Drug abuse for many many years?  I don’t flippin’ care, that’s not an excuse for raping and murdering a child!!!

They are also arguing that at least one of the aggravating factors (previous felony conviction) is incorrect.  The court subsequently found him guilty.  That is a conviction.  Possession of cocaine is a felony.  Therefore, we have a FELONY CONVICTION.  See http://www.wisegeek.com/what-is-a-no-contest-plea.htm.

Being the avid proponent of the Death Penalty that I am, if any case deserves capital punishment, it is this one.  Please, men and women of the Supreme Court, keep him on death row!

Source:  Capitol News Service (flanews.com), Wednesday, January 7, 2009.

Tags: Crime and Punishment by Rich
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