Today, the U.S. Supreme Court, by a ruling of 8-1, struck down Florida’s death penalty system, saying in their majority opinion that Florida judges play too great a role in sentencing while juries can only give recommendations.
The court majority decided in Hurst v. Florida that, “The Sixth Amendment protects a defendant’s right to an impartial jury. This right required Florida to base Timothy Hurst’s death sentence on a jury’s verdict, not a judge’s fact finding. Florida’s sentencing scheme, which required the judge alone to find the existence of an aggravating circumstance, is therefore unconstitutional.” Continue reading
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Longtime St. Petersburg Police K9 Handler James Olson passed away in his home last week. He was 48 years old. Jimmy, as he was known by those of us who worked with him, was a consummate police officer, K9 handler, son, and father.
My daughter’s college held a Christmas Gala last week where she was a member of the chorus. It was a beautiful show celebrating the season’s good will toward men (and women). The audience was filled with festively-dressed folks, many of them smiling seniors. Was it wrong for me to be thinking about radicalized violence?
The story here, for me, is the Centers for Disease Control publishing data showing current gun deaths at rates lower than the 1970s, 1980s, and 1990s. The Mainstream Media would have you believe we are suffering through the worst gun violence in American history. In fact, the Washington Post Blog’s headline for the above graphic was, “
