Death Penalty

Britany Klarich
Criminal Justice- 1010-F16
Assistant Professor John N. Minichino
December 4, 2016

KLARICH
The purpose for selecting the death penalty as my topic for my

eportfolio assignment was in large part due to my wavering opinion on the

matter. What I hope to gain through this assignment is a better
understanding and overall knowledge for the topic so that I can feel more
partial one way or another towards the practice. Perhaps my wavering
opinion comes from my ability to empathize with others. When I reflect on
the punishment I find myself wondering how I would feel if I was in the shoes
of both the offender and the victim. In both scenarios I can sympathize when
I consider the specifics surrounding the upbringing of the offender, the
details of the crime, those affected by situation, and whether the evidence in
the trial supports the death penalty.
To begin I would like to explore the statistics surrounding the
backgrounds of those facing the death penalty. According to
dealthpenaltyinfo.org the margin of white to blacks that are on death row is
surprisingly even. The website indicates that 41.79 percent of those on
death row are black and 42.34 percent are white. Which leaves the
remaining percentage towards Hispanics and other races. What I found to be
even more surprising while viewing the statistics is the difference of death
penalty convictions that are handed down when the race of the victim is
considered. The text states in figure 11.9 that only 15 percent of blacks
victims, murders received the death penalty where 76 percent of white
victims, murders received the death penalty. When you consider the overall
percentage of victims 48 percent black and 48 percent white, that statistic is

staggering (p 388). However, the text also points out that it is difficult to
prove and evaluate whether race is a deciding factor with the death penalty
due to other considerations. Such as, the criminal background of the
defender, the quality of the defense provided during the trial, and the
circumstances surrounding the crime (p.388). Which I feel are all equally
important factors when considering the seriousness of the punishment.
In addition, to considering the race of the offenders William H. Holmes
of the Criminal Justice Center at the University of Massachusetts indicates
more correlation with education and income levels of those on death row (p
388). Statistics indicate that the median education level for death row
inmates to be at a 12th grade level. Less than 10 percent in that statistic is
the 36 percent that have an educations level of 9-11th grade
(deathpenaltyinfo.org). My assumption prior to viewing these statistics was
the median level would be much lower than 12th grade.
The remaining areas in question on whether I believe in the death
penalty or not are things I would have to consider on a case-by-case
scenario. So in order to do this I randomly selected three separate death row
inmates listed on the Winter 2016 quarterly report by the Criminal Justice
Project (deathpenaltyinfo.org) First, I decided to look locally and selected
Dave Taberon Honie from Utah. Second, I wanted to select someone from a
state that has a higher execution rate so I went with a black male named
Bartholomew Granger, Lastly, I selected Andrew Witt from the US Military
because I was unaware they had a separate death row.

KLARICH
Starting with Utahs only Native American on death row, inmate Dave

Taberon Honie. Dave is currently a 41 year old who was convicted of one
count of aggravated murder at age 24. The summary details on
corrections.utah.gov website indicate he was intoxicated when he broke into
the home of his ex-girlfriends mother home using a rock to break a glass
door. The Grandmother grabbed a butcher knife in an effort to protect
herself and her three granddaughters. Once inside the home Honie gained
control of the knife and used it as the murder weapon. The grandmother was
stabbed through the neck, which was described by the medical examiner as
going through to the spine. She was also mutilated in her genitals and
sexually assaulted. It is unknown whether the sexual assault and mutilation
occurred prior to being murdered. One of the three granddaughters was also
reported sexually assaulted. The police report state two of the children had
blood splatters on them and one of the three children was covered in blood
(corrections.utah.gov). The documents describe the scene as Drops of
blood were found throughout the house: on the kitchen floor, on kitchen
drawers, on the bathroom floor, in the bathroom sink, and on the walls near
the bathroom and where the body was found. Blood was also smeared on
closet doors (corrections.utah.gov). Which, indicates to me that it was a
brutal attack and the victim fought for her life. With the level of brutality
involved with this murder and sexual assault and confession to the crimes, I
find it reasonable to believe the crimes were committed with mens rea. The
punishment of death was a fair form of punishment in this trial.

Texas is third in the leading number of prisoners on death row with a

total of 263 prisoners (deathpenaltyinfo.org) Bartholomew Granger one of
those prisoners is said to have opened fire with a illegally purchased semiautomatic weapon outside a courtroom because his daughter was scheduled
to testified against him for sexual assault. During the attack Granger
attempted to kill the mother of his daughter, daughter and trial judge but
ended killing an elderly bystander Minnie Ray. Bartholomew after shooting
his daughter realizing she was still alive while lying on the ground ran over
her body using his pick up truck. The incident left his daughter in a coma for
three months. After hitting his daughter with the pick up truck he fled the
scene and entered a construction business where he took hostages. He was
eventually injured by the people he took as hostages and police gained
custody of the suspect (Granger vs. The State of Texas). CBS News reported
that he denies killing Minnie and has multiple outbursts in court during his
trial and sentencing hearing. With his history of abuse and premeditated
intent for mens rea I find his sentence to be reasonable.
Finally, the case of Andrew Witt who stabbed to death Senior Airman
Andrew Schliepsiek and his wife, Jamie. The murder took place at the
Schliepsiek neighbors home Senior Airman Jason King whom was seriously
injured in the altercation. According to Stars and Stripes New Andrew had
suffered a traumatic brain injury only four months earlier when he crashed
his motorcycle. The Newspaper also reports that Witts mother suffered from
mental illness when he was a teenager and spent time in a mental health

KLARICH

care facility. From my time personally working with traumatic brain injury
patients at Primary Childrens Hospital I can attest to the mental status
changes that takes place with TBI (Traumatic Brain Injuries). It is not
uncommon to have extreme mood swings, which can results in violent
behavior as well as the inability to make sound decisions. The newspaper
reports the defense attorneys did not present these facts during the initial
trial. It also states that during appellate courts that his motorcycle crash was
not serious and Witt was treated and released the same day of the accident.
The appellate courts mention this information given to a jury during the
initial trial would not have impacted the decision in the death penalty. Witt
was believed to have stalked the couple and premeditated their murders.
While this case features brutality like the other two ultimately I feel his
traumatic brain injury could have been a contributing factor to his impaired
decision-making. It is evident that mens reas was a factor in the decision of
the death penalty with the allegation of stalking the couple and hiding his car
prior to the crime. However, I feel this particular case is unreasonable to
carry out the death penalty given his background was not fully served as
evidence during the trial. Had a medical professional testified on behalf of
Witt I feel the jury may have been more persuaded to sentence Witt to life
sentence rather than death.
I found while researching the individual cases featured in my paper
and additional cases that more than not I agreed with the verdicts. Overall
what I determined was that I have to give credit to the criminal justice

system and the panel of jurors that they are making decisions based on the
facts presented in court. I believe that when jurors and judges are given the
tough task of deciding on the life or death of a person they consider all the
evidence and dont make the decision lightly. Overall, I think people should
be held accountable for their actions as long as the punishment is within the
limits of the constitution. It is also the rights of society and the victims to
seek retribution for the crimes by allowing them a way to move forward from
the incident. There is a sense of protection knowing extreme consequences
exist for acts of brutality and hopefully that acts as a deterrent overall.

Works Cited
"Bartholomew Granger Update: Houston Man Sentenced to Death in
Courthouse Killing."
CBS News. Crimesider Staff. CBS Interactive, 7 May 2013. Web. 07 Dec.
2016.

KLARICH

Court of Criminal Appeals. Jefferson County: n.p., 22 Apr. 2015. PDF.

Deathrow. N.p.: Utah Department of Corrections, June 2011. PDF.
Death Row U.S.A. Winter 2016. N.p.: The Criminal Justice Project of the
NAACP Legal
Defense and Educational Fund, Inc., 2016. PDF.
Gaines, Larry K., and Roger Leroy Miller. : Cengage Learning, 2013.
Montgomery, Nancy. "Air Force Court Reinstates Airman's Death Sentence for
2004
Killing." Stars and Stripes. N.p., 3 July 2014. Web. 07 Dec. 2016.
"State of Utah, v. Honie." Justia Law. N.p., 11 Jan. 2002. Web. 06 Dec. 2016.
"What's New." DPIC | Death Penalty Information Center. N.p., 2016. Web. 06
Dec. 2016.