Panel disusses death penalty

Three experts on Ohio's death penalty laws say the state is failing to apply them fairly. They spoke at the Moritz College of Law Saturday.

Andrew Welsh-Huggins, a reporter for the Associated Press, was the first to discuss the issue. After introducing the issue of race in the death penalty through a short story, he explained that the race of the victim is a major determinant of whether an individual receives a death penalty sentence.

"There is a bias against victims who are minorities or African-Americans," Welsh-Huggins said.

Welsh-Huggins explained that a person's chance of getting sentenced to death is dependent on the state county.

Tim Young, the director of the office of the Ohio Public Defender, also spoke about the death penalty. He argued that death penalty sentences are highly dependent on the set of judges who listen to the cases. Young said that judges rotate so frequently that a death penalty sentence or non-sentence could be completely reversed after a second case in front of new judges.

Doug Berman, a law professor at the Moritz College of Law, talked about the financial side of the death penalty.

"It is a very costly process," Berman said. "It should not be done on the cheap."

Berman agreed with the other speakers that Ohio has not done well with the death sentence.

"Everybody involved is really trying their best," Berman said. "And yet, it is still not done well."

There are five death penalty executions scheduled for this year in Ohio. Welsh-Huggins and Young said they do not think the number of individuals will increase significantly, at least within the state.

"The death penalty, right or wrong, has to be fair," Young said.