Spaziano hearing set, but stay rejected
Dublin Core
Title
Spaziano hearing set, but stay rejected
Subject
Capital Punishment
Description
The Florida Supreme Court refused to stay the execution of Joseph Spaziano but ordered a lower court to hold a hearing into his claim of innocence.
Creator
The Associated Press
Source
The Palm Beach Post
Publisher
HIST 298, University of Mary Washington
Date
09-09-1995
Rights
The materials in this online collection are held by Special Collections, Simpson Library, University of Mary Washington and are available for educational use. For this purpose only, you may reproduce materials without prior permission on the condition that you provide attribution of the source.
Format
300 DPI
1 JPG
Language
English
Coverage
Palm Beach, FL
Text Item Type Metadata
Text
[heading]
Spaziano hearing set, but stay rejected
State/Regional News
The Associated Press
[start of the first column]
Tallahassee- The Florida Supreme Court refused Friday to stay the execution of Joseph "Crazy Joe" Spaziano but ordered a lower court to hold a hearing within a week into his claims of innocence.
In an unsigned opinion, the justices all agreed a trial judge should consider the recent recantation of a key prosecution witness who said he lied during Spaziano's trial nearly 20 years ago.
But the state's high court split 4-3 in its refusal to delay the execution.
Spaziano, 49 is schudled to die in Florida's electric chair on Sept. 21 for the murder-mutilation of an 18-year-old Orlando woman in August 1973.
"We decline at this time to grant a stay of execution, but allow the trial court an opportunity to
[end of the first column]
[start of the second column]
address this issue,' the majority said in a ruling that came just 26 hours after oral arguments.
Chief Justice Stephen Grimes and Justice Ben Overton, Major Harding, and Charles Wells supported the majority ruling.
The other three justices said they agreed a lower court should review the recanted testimony but argued against setting a deadline for the hearing.
In a minority opinion supported by Justices Leander Shaw and Harry Lee Anstead, Justice Gerald Kogan said he believed Spaziano should be given an indefinite stay of execution.
Spaziano is condemned for the murder of Laura Lynn Harberts, whose body was found in an Altamonte Springs dump.
The key witness at Spazino's trial was Anthony DiLisio, who recanted his testimony earlier this year, prompting Gov. Lawton Chiles to suspend Spaziano's fourth death warrant.
However, after an investigation by the Florida Department of Law Enforcement into the recent comments by DiLisio, Chiles said he had no doubts about the case and signed a fifth death warrant last month.
Richard Martell, who oversees the state lawyers who defend death sentences, said he eas still studying the decision. Michael Mello, the Vermont law professor who represents Spaziano, did not respond to a request for reaction.
[end of the article]
Spaziano hearing set, but stay rejected
State/Regional News
The Associated Press
[start of the first column]
Tallahassee- The Florida Supreme Court refused Friday to stay the execution of Joseph "Crazy Joe" Spaziano but ordered a lower court to hold a hearing within a week into his claims of innocence.
In an unsigned opinion, the justices all agreed a trial judge should consider the recent recantation of a key prosecution witness who said he lied during Spaziano's trial nearly 20 years ago.
But the state's high court split 4-3 in its refusal to delay the execution.
Spaziano, 49 is schudled to die in Florida's electric chair on Sept. 21 for the murder-mutilation of an 18-year-old Orlando woman in August 1973.
"We decline at this time to grant a stay of execution, but allow the trial court an opportunity to
[end of the first column]
[start of the second column]
address this issue,' the majority said in a ruling that came just 26 hours after oral arguments.
Chief Justice Stephen Grimes and Justice Ben Overton, Major Harding, and Charles Wells supported the majority ruling.
The other three justices said they agreed a lower court should review the recanted testimony but argued against setting a deadline for the hearing.
In a minority opinion supported by Justices Leander Shaw and Harry Lee Anstead, Justice Gerald Kogan said he believed Spaziano should be given an indefinite stay of execution.
Spaziano is condemned for the murder of Laura Lynn Harberts, whose body was found in an Altamonte Springs dump.
The key witness at Spazino's trial was Anthony DiLisio, who recanted his testimony earlier this year, prompting Gov. Lawton Chiles to suspend Spaziano's fourth death warrant.
However, after an investigation by the Florida Department of Law Enforcement into the recent comments by DiLisio, Chiles said he had no doubts about the case and signed a fifth death warrant last month.
Richard Martell, who oversees the state lawyers who defend death sentences, said he eas still studying the decision. Michael Mello, the Vermont law professor who represents Spaziano, did not respond to a request for reaction.
[end of the article]
Original Format
Newspaper
Contributor of the Digital Item
Moore, Kyle
Student Editor of the Digital Item
Williams, Megan
Files
Citation
The Associated Press, “Spaziano hearing set, but stay rejected,” HIST299, accessed July 7, 2024, http://hist299.umwhistory.org/items/show/215.