Alabama AG Seeks Quick Death Penalty Rulings

0:00What's up, Birmingham? This is Birmingham News Today, bringing you the city's fastest updates on what is happening now. Alabama's Attorney General Steve Marshall has asked the 11th Circuit Court of Appeals to issue rulings on long-pending federal challenges in. Several death penalty cases. These involve inmates on death row whose habeas petitions have sat unresolved for years, blocking the state from carrying out executions. One key case is Carrie Spencer, sentenced to death for the 2004 murders of three Birmingham police officers. He filed his federal habeas petition in 2016, and there's still no decision. Another involves Charles Steward, who got the death penalty for killing his ex-wife in Talladega County back in 1990, right in front of their young son. His petition from 2014 also remains open. Marshall says these delays hurt victims' families, who keep calling for updates only to hear that federal courts are holding things up. He points out that the state has already won convictions and defended them on appeal, so it's time for judges to act or step aside.

1:04The Attorney General argues that endless weights amount to quietly ending the death penalty through the back door. He won't let that happen for the state's most serious criminals. Marshall filed the petition last week, pushing for quick resolutions so Alabama can move forward on these executions. Support for this DNN episode comes from our sponsor. Your bedtime ritual just got better. Built in sound, built in comfort. S-O-L-I, solelypillow.com