Posted on 12/09/2005 7:30:04 AM PST by SmithL
Sacramento -- Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger spent more than an hour with lawyers for Stanley Tookie Williams and prosecutors pushing for his death sentence Thursday, hearing final arguments before he makes a decision on Williams' bid to avoid lethal injection.
Schwarzenegger now has fewer than four days to weigh Williams' past as a convicted four-time murderer and gang leader against his present work as an anti-gang crusader. Williams, who has written eight children's books from his Death Row cell, is pleading for clemency based on his value as "a unique voice'' against street violence, one of his attorneys said.
The hearing, in which both sides made their case to Schwarzenegger and four lawyers who work for the governor, took place in private. The governor was handed a letter from Williams during the meeting.
Schwarzenegger made no public appearances Thursday, and while attorneys held press conferences in front of more than 25 television cameras and dozens of reporters, no one would divulge details of the meeting held in the Ronald Reagan Cabinet Room inside the governor's suite of Capitol offices.
Williams' case has received worldwide attention and his notoriety and scheduled execution at 12:01 a.m. Tuesday has California prison officials preparing for potential violence inside facilities. Celebrities have been drawn to Williams' cause -- he met privately with rapper Snoop Dogg Wednesday and with actor Jamie Foxx Thursday at San Quentin State Prison.
In the Capitol, a deputy district attorney from Los Angeles made the case against clemency, declaring that Williams was guilty of "extremely brutal crimes against people who were defenseless.''
"Very simply, in our opinion, there are certain murders -- not every murder -- where an individual's conduct is just so abhorrent, where the crime is so brutal, it simply justifies the ultimate punishment,''
(Excerpt) Read more at sfgate.com ...
I hope they riot. That way they are serving notice on us that they also need to be locked up.
Yup. Why flirt with the prospect of riots, etc. when the end result will be the same. He ought to make sure in his clemency declaration that Tookie will die in prison and that a future governor cannot pardon him. (If that's possible.)
If I were Arnold, I would repay the Fraternal Order of Police's campaigning against Prop 75 by pardoning every damn cop killer in the state.
Whell heh heh helllllllll... Thank God you're in no position to do THAT!!! (whew!)
Rest assured, the riots will be Bush's fault.
(Groan, that's an oldie.)
.
What they ought to do with Tookie though, is subcontract the job out to the ChiComs, who would part him out to the highest bidder. There's probably thousands of folks who would pay large sums of money for a piece of him. Any piece of him.
The way I've read it explained here on FR is that professors in some areas of study are eligible to nominate candidates, and some lefty one keeps nominating Tookie to try to thwart execution.
He wont. And there will be no riots over this guy. It's all hype.
I love how Doug McIntyre called it this morning - Tookie's got a date with Old Pointy. LOL.
Is he still "Red Eye Radio" on KABC during the wee hours?
Being as I used to leave home before 5:30, I'd catch him quite often.
If violence occurs becaust Tookie finally got what he so richly deserved, Fine! That is what they have police, sheriff deputies, and highway patrolmen for. And if necessary, morges and graveyards.
There is always room for one more in the jailhouse.
If Tookie's worshippers decide to riot, let them.
My personal feeling is that Arnold will grant him clemency and the next Governowill pardon him.
Tune in, everyone, for the famous TOOKIE MUST DIE HOUR thread on FR. John and Ken do it every day on KFI at 5pm Pacific. We usually have a grand time.
Once he is dead from lethal injection, all protests will stop and he will be forgotten about.
Just like that "reborn" lady in Texas, I-forget-her-name.
Once. Just once, I would like to see one of the Hollyweird celebs' pet rattlesnakes turn on them after being sprung thanks to one of these moan-and-groan fests.
(Speaking of Hollyweird, ain't it interesting how jobs for the working stiffs in the industry are leaching out of California faster than Alec Baldwin after a GWB win. Yet none of the crowd who cry in their beer over murdering scum are lifting a finger to do anything to stem the outflow of entertainment industry jobs.)
Nope, Doug McIntyre got kicked upstairs! He is now "McIntyre in the Morning" on KABC, doing morning drive. He is so intelligent and funny that it's often a very nice way to wake up. He sticks to his beliefs and has great credibility, even though he is not a strict conservative. He's definitely on our side more often than not, though.
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