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Pennsylvania high court halts execution of man convicted of killing 13
AP ^ | 12/1/4

Posted on 12/01/2004 12:48:09 PM PST by SmithL

HARRISBURG -- A day before he was scheduled to die, the Pennsylvania Supreme Court on Wednesday blocked the execution of a man convicted of killing 13 people in a shooting rampage in 1982.

The justices sent the case back to the trial court for a hearing on whether 62-year-old George E. Banks is mentally competent.

Banks was convicted of killing five of his children, four current or former girlfriends and four others in Wilkes-Barre. The former prison guard said he wanted to protect his children from the abuse he suffered as a biracial child.

He was scheduled to die by lethal injection. But his mother asked for a reprieve, arguing her son was too mentally ill to pursue appeals. On Monday, a judge said the request for a stay had been filed too late.

Ray Hall, whose son was among Banks' victims, said the delay was a bitter disappointment.

(Excerpt) Read more at sfgate.com ...


TOPICS: Constitution/Conservatism; Crime/Corruption; Culture/Society; Government; News/Current Events; US: Pennsylvania
KEYWORDS: judicialactivist
These judges sure love murderers.
1 posted on 12/01/2004 12:48:09 PM PST by SmithL
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To: SmithL
But his mother asked for a reprieve, arguing her son was too mentally ill to pursue appeals.

He's 62. How old is his mother? 85?

Shouldn't they hold a hearing on whether she is still competent to ask for a reprieve?

2 posted on 12/01/2004 12:50:30 PM PST by wideawake (God bless our brave soldiers and their Commander in Chief)
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To: SmithL

When will we hear a judge say "fry the bastard"?


3 posted on 12/01/2004 12:50:34 PM PST by abnegation ("Nothing in life is so exhilarating as to be shot at without result," Churchill)
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To: SmithL

Too crazy to die? What a concept!


4 posted on 12/01/2004 12:52:14 PM PST by AppyPappy (If You're Not A Part Of The Solution, There's Good Money To Be Made In Prolonging The Problem.)
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To: SmithL

Don't ya think that this guy's mental state would have been decided by now, a mere 22 years after the murders?


5 posted on 12/01/2004 12:52:37 PM PST by bushisdamanin04
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To: SmithL
The justices sent the case back to the trial court for a hearing on whether 62-year-old George E. Banks is mentally competent.

Well if he`s mentally competent to kill 13 people then he`s more than mentally competent to face his executioner. After all, it`s something he has a lot of experience doing.

6 posted on 12/01/2004 12:52:51 PM PST by Imaverygooddriver (I`m a very good driver and I approve this message.)
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To: SmithL

If 13 murders isn't enough to execute this jerk, how many would it take to make the Penna. Supreme Court agree to a death sentence?


7 posted on 12/01/2004 12:55:20 PM PST by curmudgeonII (Sometimes too much is enough.)
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To: SmithL

I think the Judge in this case should be awarded custody of the killer. Then the killer should be placed under house arrest at his new home with the Judge and his family.


8 posted on 12/01/2004 12:55:49 PM PST by msnimje
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To: SmithL

Many of those that he killed were his children and the mothers of his children.


9 posted on 12/01/2004 12:55:57 PM PST by Born Conservative (Entertainment is a thing of the past, today we've got television - Archie Bunker)
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To: SmithL

Huh? For cryin' out loud, he has been on death row since the early 80s. Wouldn't mental incompetency have shown up long before this. What a ploy to keep this murderer from due justice.


10 posted on 12/01/2004 1:13:38 PM PST by lilylangtree (Veni, Vidi, Vici)
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To: SmithL

Worth enough votes to turn Pennsylvania "red" in 2008.


11 posted on 12/01/2004 1:36:05 PM PST by pabianice
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