Free Motion to Preserve - District Court of Colorado - Colorado

Case 1:00-cr-00531-WYD

Document 1681

Filed 02/13/2006

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IN THE UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT FOR THE DISTRICT OF COLORADO Criminal Action No. 00-CR-0531-D UNITED STATES OF AMERICA, Plaintiff, v. WILLIAM CONCEPCION SABLAN RUDY CABRERA SABLAN, Defendants.
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William Sablan's Notice Of Intent To Preserve And Reassert His Previous Motions Challenging The Constitutionality Of The Federal Death Penalty Act And The Federal Death Penalty Experience [Wm DP-14] __________________________________________________________________ Defendant William Sablan ("William"), through undersigned courtappointed counsel, respectfully notifies the Court that by filing his Phase III motions, he does not waive any of the statutory and/or constitutional challenges he has previously raised regarding the Federal Death Penalty Act, ("FDPA"), 18 U.S.C. § 3591, et. seq., and to the federal death penalty generally. As grounds, counsel state: 1. On June 7, 2005, this Court issued a Scheduling Order. It required that all motions challenging the legality and constitutionality of the FDPA and the
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federal death penalty ­ what have been referred to as Phase II motions ­ be filed by August 29, 2005. William met this deadline.1 On December 5 - 8, 2005, the Court heard testimony and argument on those motions, but has yet to issue its rulings. 2. The Court's June 7, 2005 Scheduling Order also established a February 13, 2006 deadline for filing motions relating to penalty-phase procedures and evidence. ("Phase III motions"). 3. This is problematic for the defense, however, because Phase III motions are necessarily based on the FDPA, as written, and assume the constitutionality of the federal death penalty. 4. William wishes to comply with the Court's order and is timely filing his Phase III motions. He does so, however, with the intent of preserving and reasserting his Phase II motions, and without waiving, explicitly or implicitly, any

The motions raised the following challenges: Wm DP-1 (FDPA facially unconstitutional); Wm DP-2 (federal death penalty operates in a fundamentally arbitrary and capricious manner); Wm DP-3 (death penalty constitutes cruel and unusual punishment and is a per se violation of due process); Wm DP-4 (filed under seal) (death penalty unconstitutional as applied); Wm DP-5 (FDPA, as applied, precludes consideration of mitigating evidence); Wm DP-6 (second superseding indictment insufficient); Wm DP-7 (aggravating factor of especially heinous or depraved vague and overbroad); Wm DP-8 (government's notice substantively amends the indictment's aggravating factor); Wm DP-9 (FDPA does not provide for use of nonstatutory aggravating factors) Wm DP-10 (future dangerousness not presented to grand jury); Wm DP-11 (notice relates to indictment that has been superseded) Wm DP-12 (grand jury without authority to make death-eligibility findings); Wm DP-13 (constitution of CNMI forbids application of death penalty).
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of the challenges raised in them. WHEREFORE, William preserves and renews his previous challenges to the FDPA and to the constitutionality of the federal death penalty. Dated: February 13, 2006 Respectfully submitted, Patrick J. Burke Dean Neuwirth Burke & Neuwirth P.C. 1660 Wynkoop Street, Suite 810 Denver, CO 80202 303-825-3050 By: s/ Susan L. Foreman 1660 Wynkoop Street, Suite 810 Denver, CO 80202 303-825-3050 Counsel for William Sablan CERTIFICATE OF SERVICE I hereby certify that on February 13, 2006, I electronically filed the foregoing Notice Of Intent To Preserve and Reassert His Previous Motions Challenging The Constitutionality Of The Federal Death Penalty Act and the Federal Death Penalty Experience [Wm DP-14] with the Clerk of the Court using the CM/EFC system which will send notification of such filing to the following email addresses: [email protected] [email protected] [email protected]
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Nathan Chambers Chambers, Dansky & Mulvahill 1601 Blake Sreet, Suite 300 Denver, CO 80202 303-825-2222

Case 1:00-cr-00531-WYD

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[email protected] By: s/ Susan L. Foreman

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