Supreme Court Won't Spare Beltway Sniper

Muhammad will be executed tonight in Virginia

(NEWSER) - Virginia Gov. Tim Kaine has denied clemency for Beltway sniper John Allen Muhammad, clearing the way for Muhammad's execution at 9pm tonight. Muhammad, whose appeal was rejected by the Supreme Court yesterday, will die by lethal injection, reports the Richmond Times-Dispatch . His 2002 shooting spree with younger accomplice Lee Boyd Malvo left 10 people dead. Malvo is serving a life sentence. More»

Liberal stalwart, at age 89, admits, 'I'm not exactly a kid'

(NEWSER) - John Paul Stevens, the senior justice on the Supreme Court and the bench's liberal lion, says he gave serious thought to retiring—in the late 1980s, when he was 65 years old. Instead, while younger colleagues have packed their bags, Stevens has become the court's master tactician, cobbling together narrow majorities for decisions on civil rights, the death penalty, and Guantanamo Bay. Now approaching 90, Stevens suggests to USA Today that he's ready to leave: "That can't be news. I'm not exactly a kid." More»

(NEWSER) - John Allen Muhammad, the mastermind behind the sniper attacks that rocked the Southeast in 2002, will be executed on Nov. 10, the AP reports. The attorney general’s office had requested a Nov. 9 execution, but a Virginia judge chose to set it a day later so that it would fall on a Tuesday, allowing for last-minute appeals. Muhammad’s lawyer says he’ll appeal to the Supreme Court and ask Gov. Tim Kaine for clemency. More»

Constitution doesn't forbid executing the innocent: Scalia

(NEWSER) - The Supreme Court’s ruling that Troy Davis deserves a new hearing raises questions about how far the legal system is willing to go to make sure an executed man is actually guilty, writes David Von Drehle for Time. Under a 1996 law limiting death-penalty appeals, Davis is out of options. But the Supreme Court left itself the option—unused until yesterday—of issuing a writ of habeas corpus if it believes the prisoner may be innocent. More»

Supreme Court gives convicted cop killer a stay of execution

(AP) - The Supreme Court says condemned inmate Troy Davis should get another chance to prove his innocence before the state of Georgia executes him. The high court today ordered a federal judge in Georgia to determine whether there is evidence that proves Davis did not kill a police officer in 1991. Davis was condemned to death for that murder, but supporters have argued for a new trial after several witnesses took back their testimony. More»