Florida: Amos King And Linroy Bottoson

[sherri13]

2 Florida Executions Scheduled for Next Week
Executions Would End Five Month Suspension Of Capital Punishment
Posted: 5:30 a.m. EDT July 2, 2002
Updated: 10:16 a.m. EDT July 2, 2002

TALLAHASSEE, Fla. -- Florida officials Monday scheduled the executions of two
murderers next week, ending a five-month suspension of capital punishment.
Gov. Jeb Bush signed death warrants for Amos King and Linroy Bottoson just
three days after the U.S. Supreme Court lifted stays barring their execution.
The warden at Florida State Prison then scheduled Bottoson to die by lethal
injection at 6 p.m. EDT Monday and King to die at 6 p.m. EDT Wednesday King
was originally scheduled to be executed in late January and Bottoson in early
February. But the U.S. Supreme Court granted both men stays - King a day
before his scheduled execution and Bottoson about three hours before his. The
reason for the stays was the court's consideration of an appeal by Arizona
death row inmate Timothy Ring. Last Monday, the justices ruled in the Ring
case, finding the capital punishment laws in Arizona and four other states
unconstitutional because eligibility for death sentences was determined by
judges rather than juries. The status of the death penalty laws in Florida
and three other states where juries have limited roles in sentencing with
judges making the final decision was unclear. But Friday the court lifted
King's and Bottoson's stays. Death penalty attorneys said that action only
sent the issue into the state courts to be settled; attorneys and officials
for the state, however, said the development indicated Florida's law was
valid. Kevin Beck, an attorney for King, said he would file an appeal in
state court Tuesday, arguing that Florida's death penalty law is
unconstitutional in light of last week's Ring ruling. At the very least, the
executions should be delayed to allow lawyers and judges time to understand
the implications of last week's decision, Beck said. "It is almost beyond my
belief that these two individuals would be executed given the questions that
exist, arising out of the Ring decision," Beck said. Bottoson's attorney,
Peter Cannon, wasn't available Monday. But he predicted Friday that the issue
was headed to the Florida Supreme Court. Bottoson, 62, had been scheduled to
die Feb. 5 for the 1979 murder of Catherine Alexander, the postmistress of
the Eatonville post office north of Orlando. Bottoson kidnapped the
74-year-old woman while robbing the post office of $144 and 37 money orders
worth $400 each. He stabbed her 14 times and ran over her with his car. King,
47, was originally scheduled to die Jan. 24 for the 1977 murder of Natalie
Brady, 68, who was raped, stabbed and beaten in her Tarpon Springs home,
which was then set afire. King was an inmate at the Tarpon Springs Community
Correctional Center, a work release facility just 1,500 feet from the home
where Brady lived alone. A staffer doing a bed check found King's bed empty.
When the staffer found King outside the building, King attacked him. A few
minutes later, police and fire units arrived at Brady's burning house and
found her body.

[aprilcat]

ugh...knowing this just turns my stomach since Florida is where my friend is...i hate the death penalty...i will have both of these men in my thoughts....

[vnvdvc]

I'm sorry about that, Aprilcat. i hated to read this , too.