LAW WISE    
Published by the Kansas Bar Foundation
Editor: Gayle B. Larkin, Attorney at Law, Lawrence
Coordinators: Ron Keefover, Kansas Supreme Court and Art Thompson, Kansas Bar Foundation
February 2000
Greetings from the Kansas Supreme Court and the Kansas Bar Association. The staff at Law Wise hopes that the new year finds each of you excited about the coming year and coming editions of Law Wise! Our theme for this edition of Law Wise is Capital Punishment. If there are any law-related topics that you would like to see included in a future edition of Law Wise, please feel free to contact Gayle B. Larkin, Editor.

In this issue:

 

Capital Punishment in Kansas: Nuts and Bolts and More

In February of 1863, Carl Home was executed in Leavenworth, Kansas. Home was the first man in Kansas to be executed. Between February of 1863 and August of 1870, a total of nine men were executed under the then existing capital punishment statute. Then, in 1872, Governor James Harvey signed a law that required individuals facing the death penalty be held for one year at the Kansas State Penitentiary and that the Governor sign a death warrant before the execution. No governors signed such a warrant. Then, in 1907, the death penalty in Kansas was abolished. In its stead was a sentence of life in prison for those convicted of murder in the first degree.

Thereafter, in 1935, the Kansas legislature again enacted a provision for the death penalty. The first execution to take place under that law occurred on March 10, 1944. Between that time and June of 1965 a total of 15 men were executed under Kansas law.

In 1972, the United States Supreme Court held certain statutory death penalty schemes to be unconstitutional in Furman v. Georgia, 408 U.S. 238 (1972). Kansas followed suit the following year in State v. Randol, 212 Kan. 461, 513 P.2d 248 (1973). Thus, from 1973 until 1994, death was not a possible sentence in Kansas. Then, on July 1, 1994, the death penalty in Kansas was reinstated. Currently, there are seven circumstances which a murder conviction may give rise to death by lethal injection in Kansas. Each of the circumstances requires that the killing be done intentionally and with premeditation.
  1. In the commission of a kidnaping;
  2. Pursuant to a contract or an agreement to kill;
  3. By a confined inmate;
  4. Of a rape or sodomy victim;
  5. Of a law enforcement officer;
  6. Of more than one person; or
  7. Of a child under the age of 14 years of age. See K.S.A. 21-3439.

There are two limitations on who can be executed in Kansas. First, juvenile murderers are not subject to the death penalty. See K.S.A. 21-4622. Second, if an inmate is determined to be "mentally retarded," as defined by K.S.A. 21-4623, that inmate cannot be executed.

According to the Kansas Department of Corrections, death row inmates in Kansas are housed at the El Dorado Correctional Facility, in El Dorado, Kansas. Additionally, the Kansas Department of Corrections is currently renovating a portion of the Lansing Correctional Facility to house the execution site. Since the legislation reestablishing capital punishment in Kansas became effective, six capital cases have been tried, and three offenders have been sentenced to death. Currently, on death row in Kansas are Gary Kleypas, Gavin Scott, and Michael Marsh. John Börk is one of the attorneys in the Kansas Attorney General's office who try death penalty cases. Additionally, the county and district attorneys in each county may try death penalty cases. According to Mr. Börk, an additional four death penalty cases are awaiting trial. Finally, since the death penalty was reinstated in 1994, no one has been executed in Kansas. Mr. Börk stated that the appeals involved in a capital case may last anywhere from six to ten years.

The Kansas Death Penalty Defense Unit is made up of four defense attorneys. Ron Wurtz, a member of the Kansas Death Penalty Defense Unit stated that the most difficult part of trying a capital case is knowing that a perfect trial is impossible, but in a death case, a mistake may lead to the execution of a client.

In addition to the 24 men executed under Kansas law since 1862, 13 people have been hanged as the result of military court martial convictions and six others have been executed in Kansas as the result of convictions under federal law. The last men to be executed in Kansas were James D. Latham and George R. York. On June 22, 1965, they were hanged as the result of convictions from Russell County. The gallows used to conduct the last legal executions in Kansas are now being held by the Kansas State Historical Society.

 

gavel     Case on Point     gavel

Perhaps the most famous capital punishment case in Kansas history is the case of State of Kansas vs. Richard Eugene Hickock and Perry Edward Smith. Truman Copote, through his book, In Cold Blood, made the murders of Herbert Wesley Clutter, Bonnie Mae Clutter, Nancy Mae Clutter, and Kenyon Neal Clutter known throughout the nation. The following is adapted from the Kansas Supreme Court case which upheld the convictions and death sentences of Hickock and Smith:
While serving time in the Kansas State Penitentiary on another sentence Richard Eugene Hickock celled with an inmate who had worked for Herbert Wesley Clutter and got the impression from such cellmate that Clutter was a wealthy wheat farmer, who kept a safe containing large sums of money in his home, located near Holcomb, Kansas. Hickock devised a plan whereby he and a friend would, upon his being discharged from the penitentiary, go to Holcomb, tie the Clutter family up, rob the safe and leave no witnesses to the crime.

Sometime after being released from the penitentiary, Hickock wrote to Perry Edward Smith, then in Nevada, telling him he had a 'score.' On November 12, 1959, Smith came to Kansas and called Hickock who was working in a body shop at Olathe. The two men did some work on Hickock's 1949 Chevrolet automobile. Then on Saturday afternoon, November 14, they left Hickock's home at Edgerton, Kansas, for Holcomb. They told Hickock's parents they were going to Fort Scott to see Smith's sister, who actually lived in California.

En route to the Clutter farm the two men stopped and purchased nylon rope, two inch adhesive tape, a small pocket knife, and some rubber gloves.

About midnight the defendants arrived in Garden City where they stopped at a filling station to buy gas. They then drove to Holcomb and up a lane leading to the Clutter residence, which was about one-half mile west of the south edge of that town. After reaching that point they noticed a light in the tenant house, to the southwest of the main residence, and started to leave. However, the light in the tenant house went out before they were half way out of the drive, so they turned around and went back, parking their car in the drive on the west side of the Clutter home. Upon leaving Edgerton, Hickock had placed his twelve gauge shotgun and his eight inch blade hunting knife in the car, together with a box of shells and a hunting vest.

Soon after they parked in the drive defendants entered the Clutter residence through the unlocked west door of that building, taking the shotgun and hunting knife with them. They then got Mr. Clutter out of his bed in the downstairs bedroom, took him into a room used for an office, and searched for the safe. Failing to find one, they interrogated him about its location. Upon being told there was no safe, they obtained some money from Mr. Clutter's billfold. Then they took him upstairs where Mrs. Clutter, Nancy and Kenyon were sleeping. After arousing the three persons mentioned, they put all the members of the family in the second floor bathroom and then searched the house for the safe and more money. They found some money but no safe. The Clutters were bound and gaged, and eventually killed by Hickock and Smith. All told, they had been at the Clutter residence approximately one hour. Hickock and Smith returned to the Kansas City area. Several days later the defendants left the Kansas City area and drove directly to Mexico City where they sold Hickock's car and the radio and binoculars, the two latter items to a traffic policeman. They then went to California; back to Iowa; back to Kansas City, and then to Las Vegas, Nevada, where, on December 30, 1959, they were arrested. Subsequently they were brought back to Garden City where they had been charged with murdering the four members of the Clutter family.

Hickock and Smith were tried together and the trial commenced on March 22, 1960. At the close of all evidence, the court gave the jury full and complete written instructions, to which no objections were made, and, after closing arguments, directed it to proceed, in charge of a sworn bailiff, to the jury room to consider its verdicts. In due course, the jury returned separate verdicts, finding each defendant guilty of murder in the first degree on all of the four counts charged in the information and, under the provisions of G.S.1949, 21-403, fixed the punishment for each defendant on each count at death.

On appeal, Hickock and Smith claimed that they were denied a fair trial. Specifically, they alleged that (1) the trial court erred in failing to appoint a psychiatrist, (2) the trial court erred by denied Hickock’s request for a continuance of the trial, (3) the trial court erred by failing to change venue, (4) the media attention prevented them from receiving a fair trial, and (5) the trial court erred by excluding and allowing certain evidence. The Kansas Supreme Court was not persuaded by their allegations of error, and upheld their convictions and sentences. On April 14, 1965, Hickock and Smith were hanged for the murders of Herbert Wesley Clutter, Bonnie Mae Clutter, Nancy Mae Clutter, and Kenyon Neal Clutter.

For more information on the legal issues raised in this case see State v. Hickock & Smith, 188 Kan. 473, 363 P.2d 541 (1961).

Another case that is significant in reviewing the history of capital punishment and Kansas, is federal case of United States v. Stroud. The information below was taken from The Journal of the Kansas Bar Association, Vol. 69, No. 1, January 2000.

Robert Franklin Stroud had a long and violent history before he ever arrived in Kansas. In 1908, at the age of 18, he killed a man in the Alaska Territory. At that time, sentences for crimes committed in the Alaska Territory were served at the United States penitentiary at McNeil Island, Washington. Then, in 1909, while being housed in the McNeil Island penitentiary, Stroud attacked a fellow inmate with a pocket knife, stabbing the man seven times in the back. After this attack, Stroud was transferred to the maximum security prison in Leavenworth, Kansas. In 1916, Stroud attacked again. This time, the victim was prison guard Andrew F. Turner. While at the dining hall, Stroud requested permission to rise from his table. Permission was granted, and Stroud approached Turner. During their discussion, Stroud flashed a sharpened piece of steel from beneath his prison coat and stabbed Turner in the heart. Stroud later wrote with grim sarcasm, “The guard took sick and died all of a sudden . . . of heart trouble.” After Stroud murdered Turner, Stroud was kept in segregated quarters in the prison.

Stroud was first tried and convicted of first degree murder in May, 1916. The judge in that case sentenced Stroud to be “hanged by the neck until he is dead.” However, in December, 1916, Stroud’s conviction was overturned and in May, 1917, Stroud returned to the courtroom for a second trial.

At the conclusion of the second trial, Stroud was again convicted of first degree murder. This time, however, the jury spared Stroud’s life. Accordingly, Stroud was sentenced to life in prison. Stroud appealed this conviction, too. And, again, Stroud was granted a new trial. Stroud was convicted of first degree murder for the third. This time the jury did not spare his life. Accordingly, the judge sentenced Stroud to die. Stroud filed a third appeal. On appeal, one of Stroud’s contentions was that his death sentence violated the constitutional protection against double jeopardy, in that the second jury had returned a verdict of “guilty . . . without capital punishment.” The United States Supreme Court was not convinced and the upheld Stroud’s death sentence.

Stroud was sentenced to hang on April 23, 1920. One week before the scheduled execution, President Woodrow Wilson, commuted Stroud’s sentence to life in prison.

Perhaps more interesting than the legal history of Stroud’s case is what came after President Wilson commuted Stroud’s sentence. One day while alone in the exercise yard, Stroud rescued a pair of baby sparrows. Stroud took the birds to his cell and raised them. Over the course of the following 22 years, while remaining in segregation, Stroud studied birds and developed a bird medicine entitled “Stroud’s Specific.” Eventually, Stroud was given a second cell for his birds, while transforming his own cell into a laboratory where he studied birds and their diseases. At one point, Stroud requested that he be assigned a prison employee, “college educated, not lazy , of pleasant disposition and inquiring mind” to be assigned to by him the administration to conduct his business affairs. His request was denied. While incarcerated, Stroud wrote journal articles and books on birds.

In 1942, the Bureau of Prisons transferred Stroud to Alcatraz. Stroud was assigned to the third floor of D block, in segregation, where men were confined to their cells 24 hours a day. Stroud was afforded two visits to the exercise yard and one shower every week. Stroud was allowed no birds, no laboratory, and no tools. Stroud was permitted to have writing materials and books. Stroud unsuccessfully filed a habeas corpus petition in the United States District Court in Northern California. Stroud continued, through various court proceedings to obtain a release from prison or to change his current conditions in prison. Stroud’s attempts were fruitless.

Stroud remained in prison until his death on November 21, 1963.

For more information on Robert Franklin Stroud see “Stroud’s Specific,” The Journal of the Kansas Bar Association, Vol. 69, No. 1, January 2000, pages 20-31; Stroud v. United States, 245 Fed. 990 (8th Cir. 1916); Stroud v. United States, 245 U.S. 680 (1918); Stroud v. United States, 251 U.S. 15 (1919); Stroud v. Johnson, 139 F.2d 171 (9th Cir. 1943); Stroud v. Johnston, 163 F.2d 312 (9th Cir. 1947); Stroud v. Swope, 187 F.2d 850 (9th Cir. 1951); Stroud v. United States, 283 F.2d 137 (10th Cir. 1960); Stroud v. United States, 365 U.S. 864 (1961); Stroud v. Mayden, 35 F.R.D. 378 (W.D. MO 1964), T. Gaddis, Birdman of Alcatraz (1955). Birdman of Alcatraz, a 1962 movie adaption of T. Gaddis’ book; R. Stroud, Diseases of Canaries (1933); and R. Stroud, Stroud’s Digest on the Diseases of Birds 366 (1943).


Training Opportunities

Each summer, Street Law Inc., a premier non-profit law-related education organization headquartered in Washington DC and the U.S. Supreme Court Historical Society sponsor two five-day Summer Institutes for Teachers at Georgetown University Law Center.

Among other things, participants at these institutes:
  • Hear the justices announce final decisions of the term from a seat in the courtroom and take a VIP tour of the Supreme Court;
  • Question a prominent Supreme Court litigator about the court’s inner workings;
  • Debate the leading cases from the 1999-2000 term with prominent liberal and conservative commentators;
  • Discuss the Supreme Court in American life with a Washington newspaper reporter;
  • Question key Senate Judiciary Committee staffers in a session held in the U.S. Capitol about the confirmation process for justices;
  • Analyze media coverage of the Court;
  • Develop lessons on the Supreme Court to use in your classroom; and
  • Attend a private reception with a justice at the court, courtesy of the Supreme Court Historical Society.

Dates of this summer’s institutes are: June 15-20 or June 22-27, 2000. They are for secondary teachers or school social studies supervisors. Participants stay at Georgetown Law Center studio apartments. Registration is $150 and lodging for all five nights is just $165. If interested, this year’s budget may allow for us to pick up your expenses. For further information, contact Ron Keefover, Office of Judicial Administration, or Eric Ward, Kansas Bar Association.

Resources at the Law-Related Education Inventory

The Law-Related Education Inventory has the following items which might be useful in teaching your students about crime and punishment, including capital punishment:
  1. Sentenced to Die: Capital Punishment. This videocassette is on the death penalty. Library number: 364.6/Se57.
  2. Criminal Law (Part I and Part II). These videocassettes are designed for high school students and contain information about substantive and procedural criminal law. The library numbers are: 348.04/C887cpI and 348.04/C887cpII.
  3. Plea Bargaining: A Game of Criminal Justice. This game is a simulation of the process of nonadjudicative convictions. Its purpose is to aid the nonlawyer in understanding how and how the criminal justice system works. The call number for this game designed for high school students is 345.072/K155p.
  4. Murder: A Mock Trial. This item is a simulation and role-playing experience for high school students based upon hypothetical facts concerning a murder trial. Library number: 364/R117m.

The Law-Related Education Inventory has many resources to help teach about law-related topics. To order a catalog call Tara Ward at the Kansas Bar Association, (785) 234-5696. The Kansas Bar Association and the lawyers in your community sponsor the Law-Related Education Inventory. The clearinghouse will mail free copies of law-related posters, games, mock trials, booklets, lesson plans, and other aids. It is open Monday through Thursday, 8:00 a.m. to 7:00 p.m., and Friday, 8:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. The director of the Teachers College Resource Center, which houses the Law-Related Education Inventory, Marla Darby, can be reached at Darbymar@esumail.emporia.edu/

Lesson Plan #1

The Death Penalty: Just Punishment?
Grade level: Grades 9-12

Overview: The activities in this lesson introduce the student to the issue of the death penalty. This lesson is designed to help students evaluate the death penalty in order to determine if it is an appropriate and just punishment for capital crime.

Objectives: The student will . . .

  1. Consider various issues involved in the application and administration of the death penalty;
  2. Gather and analyze information on the Web in order to come to a greater understanding of the complexities involved in this issue;
  3. Develop a position on either side of the argument for or against the death penalty, which the student must defend.

Warm Up Activity (Anticipatory Set): What Do You Think? (5-10 minutes)

Post the following statement on the board, overhead or on paper for the students. “The death penalty is a very emotional issue for Americans. You probably already have your own opinions on the topic. It is important to consider both sides as we explore this issue. Create a chart on your paper with headings for and against the death penalty. Using short phrases or sentences, list several (at least three) arguments on BOTH sides of your chart.”
After students have listed their arguments, allow students to share their views as the class fills in a chart on the board or overhead together. Instruct students to add arguments to their own chart as they are posted. To close the discussion, have students place a check mark next to the arguments they agree with.
After the lesson is completed, it may be interesting to review the chart again and ask students if they want to change any of their check marks to indicate a shift in opinion on the death penalty.

Main Activity

View the videocassette THE DEATH PENALTY: American Justice (A & E Home Video) to get a feel for the history of the death penalty. Focus on the importance of the appeals process in the Chessman case.
View the CD-ROM FIRST PERSON: MUMIA ABU-JAMAL--Live from Death Row (Voyager Media) and have students discuss whether his case merits a new trial. The case is a good introduction to the various sociocultural factors which impact the issue of the death penalty in the U.S. Students can also gather complementary information on this case by researching newspaper archives.

Guided Practice: Simulation--Arguing before the Supreme Court

Tell the students that they are going to engage in a simulation where lawyers present their viewpoints before the Supreme Court. Inform them that they will be developing positions on the death penalty that are based on research of pervious and current cases. These positions must be incorporated into a document called a "brief." A brief is a position paper that is submitted to the Supreme Court to assist the justices in arriving at a decision.
Students will be working in cooperative teams of four students per team. Each student must have a role to play. Students can share the roles during the duration of the activities, or they can decide on which role they want and stay with that role. It is up to the team.
The roles include but are not limited to the following:
  1. Spokesperson: Presents oral arguments before the court and the class.
  2. Mouse commander: clicks on Web sites and keys in Web addresses.
  3. Word processor: typist on the keyboard when developing the position paper.
  4. Information manager: Reads information from computer screen or textbook to the group. This person also feeds typist information when researching and developing the position.
  5. Question Manager: deals with technical and research problems before they go to the teacher. This person also provides moral support and settles interpersonal conflicts between team members.
Assigning Positions Teams of four students each will result in a total of six or seven teams depending on class size. The teacher should assign each group a position, either for or against the death penalty. The teacher can have teams pull slips of paper with "for" or "against" marked on them, or the teacher can allow students to choose their positions. Either way, three teams (or four) must end up taking the "in favor" side, and three teams (or four) must end up with the "oppose" position.

Putting the Activity On Line

If the teacher has access to a Web server, develop a Web site where the students' legal briefs can be posted. Use Microsoft Word or Word Perfect to save the students' briefs as hypertext documents. Include a page where Web visitors can submit their votes and opinions by e-mail and maintain an informal poll on the issue.
Take another quick poll and see if positions have changed. Ask those who've changed their position why.

Wrap-Up Activity--An Informal Poll

Direct the students to carry out an informal poll with these directions. The attitude toward the death penalty throughout its history vacillates and continues to be polarized. Different cultures and countries hold varied views and have taken different judicial stands on the issue. Take a quick poll of all of your fellow students whether it is ever justified to sanction a criminal act with the death penalty. Have someone note the results. Continue keeping track of the results over all classes doing the research. Allow students to poll students outside of class if the activity continues over a series of class periods.

Developing Written Briefs for the Supreme Court

Once students have completed the investigation of the Web sites listed above, allow them to have time to coordinate their facts within their groups. Once each student has identical facts, have the students write on the computer a brief that represents the opinion of the group. Each group might want to take on the name of an organization such as "Coalition Against Legalized Murder" (CALM).
Students should develop their own paragraphs based on their findings. They can place their rough drafts on index cards, which can be moved around an organized before placing them on the computer. Even after the rough draft has been placed on computer disk, it can still be revised and edited to create a coherent legal brief.
Have each group present their brief to the class. One team favoring the death penalty will start, followed by a group against the death penalty. Subsequent groups should follow in like fashion.
Have the non-presenting groups act as the Supreme Court by asking up to five questions per group. Each group gets ten minutes to present before questions are asked.

Handout

 
Supreme Court Solicitation for Briefs:
We, the Judges of the Supreme Court of the United States of America do hereby request briefs from lawyer-designates on the equity of capital punishment. It is the intent of the court that each official group of council present its position, arguing whether or not it is ever justified to sanction a criminal act with the death penalty.

The Task
Divide up into teams of four. You will begin to construct your argument by considering a couple of hypothetical situations, and then researching documents and making queries on the internet. Together with the fellow council of your team, put together a brief for presentation to the Supreme Court, setting out your group's position on the death penalty. The ability to defend your argument will depend to a good degree on the information you have gathered to support your position.
As you formulate your brief, keep in mind both sides of the argument. Being able to defend your position against the opposing view is useful for testing the validity of your argument. The judges of the Supreme Court will challenge you to do so. Ponder on the following hypothetical situations to begin to frame your thoughts on the issue:
You are the defense council of a prisoner on death row you feel has been falsely convicted. Using the appeals process, what argument would you use to convince a judge to grant a stay of execution?
You are the prosecution in a capital offense trial. What argument would you make to a jury, given the facts of a specific case [found on the internet], to convince them that the death penalty should be applied?

The Process
Once it's known whether your group will defend or prosecute the death penalty, begin by dividing up the task of gathering information to support your argument. Each student or pair of students should attempt to find information or a web site on the internet favorable to your position.
As you do your research, look for information which will help you elaborate and frame your argument to present to the Supreme Court. Keep track of where you got your information, take good notes, download documents or information pertinent to your argument.
After you have gathered the information, share what you've found with your group. As a group discuss the points raised by the information you've gathered and consideration of the issues at play in the "Task" section.
Finally, to gear up for your final presentation to the Supreme Court, confront your group's argument with that of an opposing group. Is there a way in which you can present your argument in a convincing and clear manner? Can you provide concrete information to support your argument? Consider the use of specific case examples. Remember there are two sides to every argument and that to best defend your argument it helps to consider the other side.

Resources

Here are some web sites to get you started. You may have to roll up your sleeves and sharpen your net search skills to find information other than that found at these sites. The questions are to help you think about the issues at play when it comes to the death penalty and its application in capital offense trials. They do not require complete answers, but it will be helpful to take notes on your thoughts about them.
  1. As a concrete example, consider the Mumia Abu-Jamal case:
    Mumia Abu-Jamal: History and Updates
    http://www.bluemarble.net/~mitch/iww/mumiapage.html
    Ona Move: Mumia Abu-Jamal
    http://userwww.sfsu.edu/~filmyer/mumia.html
    Death Blossoms: Reflections from a Prisoner of Conscience
    http://www.bruderhof.org/pphouse/newpubs/blossoms/aboutmum.htm
    Here are some important questions to help you frame your argument:
    Why has Abu-Jamal's case attracted so much attention from important figures in society worldwide?
    If Judge Sabo violated Abu-Jamal's constitutional rights, what is the relevance of the appeals process in his case?
    If Abu-Jamal's defense council has found ample new evidence, as he claims, to merit a new trial, why is the appeals process important?
    What if there were no appeals process in the U. S., would that make for a fair judicial system?
  2. Read the online information about death penalty statistics and seeming bias in its application. While reading, think about what factors other than those cited might contribute to a higher proportion of people of color receiving the death penalty in capital offense cases.
    Death Penalty, Racist?
    http://www.abolition-now.com/reports/racist.html
    Death Penalty Foes Envision Potential Abolition In New Jersey
    http://www.abolition-now.com/news/nj-abolition-fight.html
    Capital punishment has a long history of class and race bias
    http://www.lclark.edu/~comm/comm300/amy/bias.html
    Consider these questions that arise when examining the issues of race and class as they relate to the application of the death penalty:
    Is the fact that proportionately more minorities receive the death penalty evidence of racial discrimination in the application of capital punishment?
    Are there ever any mitigating circumstances to consider in application of the death penalty?
    Why does it appear that proportionately more lower class and people of color are involved in capital crime cases?
  3. Visiting the site below, flesh out some of the reasons why the death penalty has been reinstated in much of the U.S. Addressing these issues might help you to complete your brief for the Supreme Court.
    Deterrence and the Death Penalty: The Views of the Experts
    http://sun.soci.niu.edu/~critcrim/dp/dppapers/mike.deterence
    Summarize the arguments in support of the death penalty as a deterrent to crime.
    Summarize the arguments which don't support the death penalty's effectiveness as a deterrent to crime.
    Is the death penalty cruel and unusual punishment as referenced in the Constitution of the United States?
    What factors, given your knowledge of current events, might contribute to support or lack of support for the death penalty?
  4. To conclude, examine the more philosophical arguments below on the death penalty.
    The Case Against The Death Penalty
    http://www.aclu.org/issues/death/death1.html
    John Stuart Mill: Speech In Favor of Capital Punishment
    http://ethics.acusd.edu/Mill.html

Learning Advice
You may find that the information from the different web sites needs complementary information from other sources.
You will also find it important to work cooperatively in your group because one person cannot find all the necessary information in the time which your teacher has given you to do the work!
Make sure you use the time wisely in and out of class!

Conclusion

After you have finished your research and brief formulation, do the following:
  1. The attitude toward the death penalty throughout its history vacillates and continues to be polarized. Different cultures and countries hold varied views and have taken different judicial stands on the issue. Take a quick poll of all of your fellow colleagues whether it is ever justified to sanction a criminal act with the death penalty. Have someone note the results.
  2. Assuming the rest of the class is the Supreme Court, present your brief in ten minutes or less to them. The Supreme Court should be allowed five questions which you must answer. Each group should get a chance to present its position.
  3. Take another quick poll and see if positions have changed. Ask those who've changed their position why.

Reflection

  • What did you learn during this activity that surprised you the most?
  • How well did your group work together?
  • Why is group research important?
  • What can you do to improve your group research and work in the future?
  • How did the Internet sites help you?
  • Now that you have examined both sides of the issue, what is your personal position on the death penalty? Can you back it up with a sound argument?

   Terrific Technology for Teachers

In addition to the web sites listed in the Lesson Plan included in this edition of Law Wise, the following are also good sources of information on the Internet regarding the death penalty:
  1. The Court TV web site has detailed information on each states’ death penalty legislation. That site can be found at http://www.courttv.com/choices/yourturn/buffalo/links.html.
  2. Click on the Ethics Update site at http://ethics.acusd.edu/death_penalty.html to find an exhaustive listing of capital punishment web sources of information.
  3. PBS’ web site includes a link to statements by Supreme Court justices about the death penalty. http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/pages/frontline/angel.

Court of Appeals Welcomes You

The Kansas Court of Appeals, a ten-member, intermediate appellate court sits in three-judge panels throughout the state. Every three weeks, hearings are conducted at four or five locations throughout the state. The Court of Appeals regularly sits in Wichita, Topeka, and Kansas City. Additionally, the court also sits at other locations throughout the state. The court is pleased to have students attend the hearings. In February, 2000, the Court of Appeals will be holding court on February 7, 8, and 9, 2000, in Topeka, Wichita, Salina, and Kansas City. In March, the court will be hearing oral arguments on March 14 and 15, 2000, in Topeka, Wichita, Hutchinson, and Kansas City. Later this spring, the court will be in session on April 11 and 12, 2000, and May 16 and 17, 2000.

The Kansas Supreme Court is the highest court in the state, and includes seven members. Students also are welcome at oral arguments before the Supreme Court. The high court holds its hearings only in Topeka. The Supreme Court will be hearing oral arguments during the weeks beginning March 6, 2000, April 17, 2000, May 30, 2000, September 11, 2000, October 23, 2000, and December 4, 2000.

If you have any questions concerning the Kansas appellate courts, or if you would like to bring your class to either the Kansas Supreme Court or the Kansas Court of Appeals, please contact Ron Keefover, Education and Information Officer of the Office of Judicial Administration, 301 West 10th Avenue, Topeka, Kansas 66612-1507, (785) 296-4872. You can also contact Mr. Keefover at via e-mail at keefoverr@kscourts.org.

For the Record Now Available     

The Kansas Bar Association has completed the new booklet similar to "On Your Own" for junior high school students titled For the Record". For the Record addresses issues faced by students in the sixth through ninth grade and their legal responsibilities such as,
"Can my parents oppose my taking certain school classes?"
Kansas' law provides that children may not be required to take part in activities that violate their religious beliefs. However, the law does not provide this exemption for course work. Regulations of the Kansas State Department of Education provide that parents may choose not to have their children participate in mandatory sex education programs. Other religious exceptions may be recognized by court decision. At this time, there is no general exception for parental preference."

To receive copies of For the Record or On Your Own, which is for high school students, for your students or youth group contact the Kansas Bar Association at (785) 234-5696.

Law Wise is published by the Kansas Bar Foundation during the school year. Published free, on request, for teachers or anyone interested in law-related education, it is edited by Gayle B. Larkin, Lawrence, (785) 865-3970. For further information about any projects or articles, contact Ron Keefover, Education and Information Officer of the Office of Judicial Administration, Topeka, (785) 296-4872, or Eric Ward, Public Services Director of the Kansas Bar Association, Topeka (785) 234-5696. Law Wise is printed at the Kansas Bar Foundation, 1200 Southwest Harrison, P.O. Box 1037, Topeka, Kansas 66601-1037.