California death penalty ruled unlawful
LOS ANGELES -- A federal judge ruled California's death penalty unconstitutional Wednesday, writing that lengthy and unpredictable delays have resulted in an arbitrary and unfair capital punishment system.
The decision by U.S. District Judge Cormac Carney represents a legal victory for those who want to abolish the death penalty in California and follows a similar ruling that has suspended executions in the state for years.
Ruling in a case brought against the warden of San Quentin state prison by Ernest Dewayne Jones, who was condemned in 1994, Carney called the death penalty an empty promise.
"Inordinate and unpredictable delay has resulted in a death penalty system in which very few of the hundreds of individuals sentenced to death have been, or even will be, executed by the State," wrote Carney, an appointee of former President George W. Bush.
He continued, writing that "arbitrary factors, rather than legitimate ones like the nature of the crime or the date of the death sentence, determine whether an individual will actually be executed."
Another federal judge put California's death penalty on hold in 2006 when he ruled its lethal injection procedures needed an overhaul.
Obama rolls out slew of climate initiatives
President Barack Obama announced a series of climate-change initiatives Wednesday aimed at guarding the electricity supply; improving local planning for flooding, coastal erosion and storm surges; and better predicting landslide risks as sea levels rise and storms and droughts intensify.
The actions, involving a variety of federal agencies, were among the recommendations of the president's State, Local and Tribal Leaders Task Force on Climate Preparedness and Resilience, a group of 26 officials who have worked since November to develop the proposals.
One of the projects involves shoring up the power supply during climate catastrophes, and the Agriculture Department on Wednesday awarded $236.3 million to improve electricity infrastructure in the rural areas of eight states. A government study released in May concluded that climate change will strain utility companies' ability to deliver power as extreme weather damages power lines and higher temperatures drive surges in demand.
Ex-governor tied to black push for Cochran
JACKSON, Miss. -- Former Mississippi Gov. Haley Barbour's political machine paid to turn out the black vote for Republican Sen. Thad Cochran's re-election bid, according to campaign finance reports. Cochran's vanquished rival insisted that was improper and said a legal challenge to the loss remained likely.
Barbour, a political force in his state and a favorite of national donors, backed Mississippi Conservatives and his nephew, Henry Barbour, was a top official there. Mississippi Conservatives sent almost $145,000 to All Citizens for Mississippi, a late-to-arrive group that urged black voters to turn out for the June 24 runoff between Cochran and Tea Party favorite state Sen. Chris McDaniel.
The Barbour-led group was the sole source of money for the outreach efforts toward black and Democratic voters.
McDaniel's lawyers and advisers on Wednesday met with reporters and said a challenge remained likely.
Dozens rescued from Georgia casino boat
SAVANNAH, Ga. -- After more than 16 hours, passengers stranded on a casino boat that ran aground off Georgia's coast were ferried to shore Wednesday aboard two Coast Guard cutters.
About 94 of The Escapade's 96 passengers and 27 crew members arrived at the dock shortly after 4 p.m., nearly 24 hours after the boat left for its maiden voyage of its operator's new Savannah service Tuesday night. A second cutter carrying 20 more people arrived shortly afterward. Four people were ferried ashore by helicopter.
Some of the passengers rubbed their eyes as they walked slowly off the boat, and a woman who didn't stop long enough to give her name said she was tired. A woman wearing a crew shirt, who also did not give her name, remarked, "I just want to go home."
Attempts to tow the boat failed when the tow lines broke, so those aboard were transferred first to small boats that hold about eight people, then to the two larger vessels, Petty Officer 1st Class Lauren Jorgensen said.
A Section on 07/17/2014