Judge: Death row inmate who wants to die can reject clemency
SALEM, Ore. (AP) — A death-row inmate can reject a reprieve from the death penalty issued by the governor, an Oregon judge ruled Friday.
Senior Judge Timothy Alexander said convicted killer Gary Haugen is not required to accept clemency from Gov. John Kitzhaber.
Last year, Haugen said he would voluntarily waive legal appeals that could delay his execution for years and fought to speed his punishment in protest of a criminal justice system that he says is broken.
But Kitzhaber, who opposes capital punishment, said no executions would occur while he is governor.
Weeks before Haugen was scheduled to die by lethal injection, Kitzhaber issued an order preventing the execution for the rest of his time in office and said he hoped voters would decide to repeal the death penalty.
Kitzhaber spokeswoman Amy Wojcicki says the governor will likely appeal and is confident that his authority will ultimately be upheld
In his ruling, the judge said he agrees with many of Kitzhaber's concerns about the death penalty but that precedents from higher courts support Haugen's right to reject the governor's clemency.
Haugen was serving a life sentence for the 1981 murder of his former girlfriend's mother when he was sentenced to death for the 2003 killing of a fellow inmate.
Oregon has executed two people since voters reinstated the death penalty in 1984.
Both of them, like Haugen, abandoned their appeals.
Copyright 2012 The Associated Press
Good job judge Alexander. Now it is time to follow through with the punishment Kitzhaber. Who do you think you are anyway?
How arrogant Kitzhaber is to say that he knows better than the people. He is NOTHING MORE than a public SERVANT of the the people of Oregon who has FORGOT HIS PLACE.
Kill this P.O.S. as soon as possible. Save the taxpayers the burden of housing, and feeding him for the rest of his life. After all, we voted for this. It' the will of most people here in our State. If anyone deserves to be "killed back", it's this guy.
i think our govenor should keep out of the business of who dies and who doesn't , after a court of law has convicted them. i voted for him now three times but never again for anything
Hey Gov. Kitzhaber In case you were not informed of this you work for the people of Oregon and we voted on the subject of the death penality and who the F are you to change what the people of Oregon voted on screw you!!
now will you please put this less than human down he does not want to be here anymore why are we the TAX PAYERS still paying for this guy. hey i've got an idea the Gov. should pay for this guys tab till it's solved.!!
then maybe the dumb ass Gov. will get off his thumbs=)
@IAMHIGH Kitzrecyclehobber is a Progressive (code word for Socialist), and he is not going to listen to you or I. He does not care how the people voted on the death penalty. All he care about is maintaining the Progressive majority in the State of Oregon so he and others like him can continue their corrupt ways. They have had almost total control for the last 30 years and look where we are. Schools have gone bad, unions are close to bankrupting the state, and as long as they are in office it will only get worse. They have to be voted out, but I am not sure that is possible anymore, it is going to take years to get the state back.
 @souptonuts  @IAMHIGH and we the people voted this idiot back in
@Iam1woody Ditto there woodman !!
@givupongod @Iam1woody Then burn it to the ground and let's start over ( now you know i'm just kidding)...Wink,Wink =)
@givupongod @Iam1woody @IAMHIGH You are right, there are about 5 or 6 counties out of 36 that control the vote in the state now, Multnomah, Lane, Benton, Washington, and Clackamas mostly control everything now. Pretty lame.
@givupongod @Iam1woody @IAMHIGH I hate portland
 @Iam1woody  @IAMHIGH One of the biggest problems in this state. The progressives in Portland decide every election.
@IAMHIGH me neither but our fellow orgoneans did
@Iam1woody @souptonuts Not me!! i never voted for that dumb ass he be better off working a chick-fil-A kissing a chicken...cluck,cluck,cluck Mr Gov.