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Communist Vietnam's secret death penalty conveyor belt: How country trails only China and Iran for 'astonishing' number of executions

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Prisoners are dragged from their cells at 4am without warning to be given a lethal injection Vietnam's use of the death penalty has been thrust into the spotlight after a real estate tycoon was on Thursday sentenced to be executed in one of the biggest corruption cases in the country's history. Truong My Lan, a businesswoman who chaired a sprawling company that developed luxury apartments, hotels, offices and shopping malls, was arrested in 2022.

Paul G. Smith, Jr., Death Row, San Quentin, California

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"I am but one soul in that hell. I have only ever been that one soul. I will die that one soul. And I will defend that one soul.

Would you just accept your fate, lay down and get executed?
Would you speak out, try to fight back and hope there are people out there willing to fight the battle with you?

I know that some people will say, "They did not put you there, you put yourself there!".
I have heard that so much and that would be true - if I had DONE the crime.
But I did not.

I know, I am not a perfect person. I have more faults than you can imagine. But I do try to be as honest as I can.

I am not that hard to find. I am a real person not just some bites on a server somewhere.
I would welcome your support.
You can write me a letter if you desire, it takes little time.
Or you can respond on this site and I will get the message.

I am trying to do what it takes to enable myself the opportunity to fight back and I am truly hoping to find people like you that will step up and help, that will not be cowed by the seemingly impossible task of taking on something as big as an ideological and political belief.

I know you doubt you can even do anything that will aid me. And you are correct. You alone are unlikely to be able to do this alone but I am hoping that many people will join in.
A collective effort is easier than taking on the world alone.

I am asking you to help me.

I do not like asking for help. My pride always seems toget in the way.

But without your help all I have is my pride and a date with the executioner."

Paul G. Smith, Jr.

Visit Paul's Website

This Website is also available in German.
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Communist Vietnam's secret death penalty conveyor belt: How country trails only China and Iran for 'astonishing' number of executions

Published
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Prisoners are dragged from their cells at 4am without warning to be given a lethal injection Vietnam's use of the death penalty has been thrust into the spotlight after a real estate tycoon was on Thursday sentenced to be executed in one of the biggest corruption cases in the country's history. Truong My Lan, a businesswoman who chaired a sprawling company that developed luxury apartments, hotels, offices and shopping malls, was arrested in 2022.
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Japan | Death-row inmates' lawsuit targeting same-day notifications of executions dismissed

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The Osaka District Court on Monday dismissed a lawsuit by death row inmates that claimed same-day notifications of executions violate the Constitution — the first ruling of its kind. The plaintiffs filed the lawsuit against the government in hopes of sparking a wider discussion on the rights of death row prisoners. They also sought ¥22 million in compensation and plan to appeal to a higher court.
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Texas | State district judge recommends overturning Melissa Lucio’s death sentence

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In a rare joint statement, the district attorney and the defense agreed that prosecutors withheld evidence that could point to a Rio Grande Valley woman’s innocence in the death of her toddler. A district judge who previously presided over a woman’s capital murder case recommended last week that the Texas Court of Criminal Appeals overturn Melissa Lucio's 2008 conviction after a district attorney’s office admitted that prosecutors withheld evidence from her defense.
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Iran | Probable Child Offender and Child Bride, Husband Executed for Drug Charges

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Iran Human Rights (IHRNGO); April 15 2024: Marjan Hajizadeh and Esmail Hassaniani, a couple sentenced to death for drug-related charges in a joint case, were executed in Zanjan Central Prison.  Marjan is reported to have been 16 at the time of arrest, which IHRNGO is working to confirm. If verified, she will be the first child offender executed for drug charges since 2014. She was also a child bride forced into marriage.
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U.S. Supreme Court to hear Arizona death penalty case that could redefine historic precedent

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The U.S. Supreme Court will hear oral arguments centering on an Arizona death row prisoner that could set new precedent to determining ineffective assistance of counsel.  A Mohave County Superior Court jury convicted Danny Lee Jones for the 1992 murders of Robert Weaver and his daughter Tisha, as well as the attempted murder of Weaver’s grandmother. A judge sentenced Jones to death for the two murders.
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Bill Moves Forward to Prevent Use of Nitrogen Gas Asphyxiation in Louisiana Executions

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There’s an effort underway, in the current legislative session in Baton Rouge, to reverse course on the controversial execution method with Senate Bill 430. When Louisiana legislators approved the use of nitrogen gas asphyxiation as an execution method during a second special legislative session in February, the move attracted national attention; not the least because it has only been used in the U.S. once. That’s when Alabama executed convicted killer Kenneth Eugene Smith on January 25th of this year. Now there’s an effort underway, in the current legislative session in Baton Rouge, to reverse course on the controversial execution method with Senate Bill 430.
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Iraq postpones vote on bill including death penalty for same-sex acts

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BAGHDAD, April 15 (Reuters) - Iraqi lawmakers postponed voting on Monday on a bill that includes the death penalty or life in prison for same-sex relations - a measure that diplomats from Western countries said could have serious consequences for Iraq's political and economic ties if it goes through. Parliament was in session on Monday, with the bill - an amendment to an anti-prostitution law - second on its agenda.
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Alabama lawmakers reject bill which would allow some death row inmates to be resentenced

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HUNTSVILLE, Ala. (WAFF) - An Alabama House committee rejected a bill that would have impacted sentences for dozens of death row inmates. The proposal would have required courts to resentence people sentenced to death by a judge who overrode a jury’s recommendation of life in prison. That practice was outlawed in 2017. Representative Chris England passionately argued it should be retroactively applied for more than 30 death row inmates who were sentenced to death over a jury’s recommendation.
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