User talk:Smb2a

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[edit] Death Row in CT

Hi. I saw your recent edits to the CT Death Row article. Was that tenth guy actually sentenced to death? I thought that, so far, a jury recommended it ... but a judge did not yet formally sentence him. Do you know? Thanks. Please reply at my Talk Page. (Joseph A. Spadaro (talk) 17:17, 14 February 2008 (UTC))

I'm not sure if the judge has officially sentenced him yet, but unless Judge Carmen Espinosa finds a serious legal issue with the trial or sentencing, under state law she will have no choice but to formally sentence him to death. —Preceding unsigned comment added by Smb2a (talk • contribs) 03:09, 25 February 2008 (UTC)

I just found out that he was officially sentenced to death row today -- March 28, 2008. Thanks. (Joseph A. Spadaro (talk) 03:47, 29 March 2008 (UTC))

[edit] Minimum age for death penalty in Connecticut

Can anyone find information on the minimum age for the death penalty in Connecticut in the decade before Roper v Simmons? I was suprised to find that New Hampshire had the Juvenile Death Penalty and I believe I read somewhere that Connecticut did too. smb2aSmb2a (talk) 15:25, 28 March 2008 (UTC)

Check out this page: http://www.deathpenaltyinfo.org/article.php?scid=27&did=203 [1]. It says that prior to Roper vs. Simmons (2005), there were three states (Connecticut, New York, and North Carolina) that set age 16 as the minimum age for execution. Thanks. (Joseph A. Spadaro (talk) 18:29, 28 March 2008 (UTC))

No, that just means they can be tried as adults. It has nothing to do with the death penalty. I made the same mistake myself Smb2a (talk) 01:01, 30 March 2008 (UTC)

Actually, that does mean that they can be tried as adults ... but ... it has everything to do with the death penalty. I called the State of Connecticut Law Library at the Connecticut Supreme Court in Hartford, CT. I spoke with one of the lawyers and one of the reference law library directors there. They were very helpful and we talked for about 20 minutes to half-an-hour ... about this exact issue. This is basically what they said. Before Roper vs. Simmons, Connecticut did not have a specific law / statute that states what the minimum age is for execution. (And still doesn't, by the way.) The only people that are eligible for execution are those that are sentenced through the adult court (and not those through juvenile court). Anyone who gets into adult court -- and is otherwise eligible -- can receive the death penalty. So, at the age of 16, certain criminals can get transferred into adult court ... and they can get the death sentence. Those who cannot get into adult court and are "stuck" in juvenile court cannot get the death penalty. Thus, those age 16 are eligible for adult court and, thus, those age 16 are eligible for the death penalty. Since Connecticut did not have a specific law to indicate the age, all that I described above was the state of the law at the time (before Roper vs. Simmons). Hope this is helpful. If you want to talk with anyone there yourself, I am sure they will tell you exactly what I just told you above. See this website: [2]. Their phone number is: 860-757-6590. Thanks. (Joseph A. Spadaro (talk) 05:44, 30 March 2008 (UTC))

Thanks for your help, I'll add a section about that when i can.

Smb2a (talk) 12:56, 30 March 2008 (UTC)