Results 1 to 7 of 7

Thread: Mark Allen Pinnell - Oregon

  1. #1
    Guest
    Join Date
    Oct 2010
    Posts
    5,534

    Mark Allen Pinnell - Oregon





    Facts of the Crime:

    Convicted in 1992 in the 1988 murder of John Wallace Ruffner, a Tualatin man Pinnell and co-defendant Donald E. Cornell met through a sex ad in "Swing and Sway" magazine.

  2. #2
    Administrator Moh's Avatar
    Join Date
    Oct 2010
    Location
    Germany
    Posts
    13,014
    On June 9, 2006, Pinnell filed a habeas petition in Federal District Court.

    http://dockets.justia.com/docket/ore...cv00828/78774/

  3. #3
    Administrator Heidi's Avatar
    Join Date
    Oct 2010
    Posts
    33,217

    Oregon death row inmate Mark Pinnell seeks clemency, first since governor halted executions

    Mark Pinnell, who has spent more than two decades on Oregon's death row, is asking Gov. John Kitzhaber for clemency, the first person to do so since the governor declared a moratorium on executions in November 2011.

    His argument? The cover of the thick, white binder that his federal public defender delivered to the governor's office Friday states it simply: "Uneven Justice" reads the banner headline.

    Beneath it are side-by-side photos. One of Pinnell, in his Oregon State Correctional Institution's blue inmate shirt, under the words "Condemned to Die." The other, his co-defendant, Donald E. Cornell, in a buttoned-down dress shirt and identified as a "Free Man."

    The two men robbed and killed 65-year-old John Wallace Ruffner at his Tualatin apartment in 1985.

    But while Pinnell was tried by a jury that convicted him of multiple aggravated murder counts, including aggravated murder by torture and was sentenced to death, Cornell was tried later and acquitted of all aggravated murder charges.

    Cornell was found guilty of the less-serious felony murder charge after his attorney successfully persuaded a different jury that the killing was unintentional. The attorney also argued at trial that the victim's death was not prolonged but happened quickly, thus not rising to torture.

    Cornell, 63, was released from prison nearly two years ago on Sept. 23, 2011, after serving a life sentence with the possibility of parole after 25 years. He served 25 years, 11 months.

    "It was the same witnesses. It was the same evidence. It was the same circumstances," says Cornell, in a videotaped statement included as part of Pinnell's request for clemency. "The only difference was the attorneys."

    And Pinnell's current federal public defender, Teresa A. Hampton, says the case is an excellent illustration of how arbitrary and inconsistent the justice system can be.

    While Pinnell had a relatively inexperienced defense attorney, Cornell's attorney was the late Timothy Alexander, then a veteran with years of experience litigating capital murder cases as a prosecutor and defense counsel. He got to observe Pinnell's trial, hear the state's testimony and plan a better defense, argues Hampton, a supervising attorney in the federal public defender's office in Idaho's Capital Habeas Unit.

    Fast-forward more than two decades, and Alexander, a senior judge, ruled in August 2012 that death row inmate Gary Haugen had the right to reject Kitzhaber's reprieve, and his execution could proceed. Alexander's ruling was overturned by the Oregon Supreme Court.

    Yet in his ruling, Alexander wrote that he agreed with many of the governor's concerns and shared his hope that lawmakers would abolish Oregon's death penalty.

    At the time the Haugen case was before Alexander, Pinnell's federal public defenders had reached out to him while they were preparing Pinnell's clemency request.

    In e-mails to Pinnell's federal public defenders, Alexander wrote before his death in September 2012 that he had used Cornell's and Pinnell's cases as "an example of the inconsistency of the system when individuals are tried separately for the same criminal conduct."

    Alexander wrote to Pinnell's lawyers that the difference in experience between he and Pinnell's defense attorney at trial, Chris Burris, was substantial. Though Burris met the qualifications to be appointed in a capital murder case, Alexander wrote, "that does not mean he was ready to handle a case as difficult as Mr. Pinnell's."

    "... the conduct of Pinnell and Cornell was virtually identical, and their individual criminal records were similar; there is no reason for the difference in sentences," Alexander wrote.

    Burris, now a trial attorney in Clackamas County, declined comment, referring questions to Pinnell's current lawyer.

    Cornell, in videotaped comments presented to the governor, characterized himself and Pinnell in the mid-80s as "a couple of idiots living a dope-fiend life," out to rob vulnerable men.

    "Didn't mean to kill anyone," Cornell said.

    Ten days before the two killed Ruffner, they had robbed a Clackamas County man, who they met the same way, responding to a sex ad in the "Swing N Sway" magazine. They gagged the man, but he survived and, as they suspected, did not report the crime. He was gay and a member of the military.

    The duo then contacted Ruffner through a sex ad in the same magazine and arranged to meet him at his apartment on Sept. 19, 1985. When they arrived about 10 p.m., Ruffner opened his door, Pinnell grabbed him, and Cornell pushed his way in.

    Cornell said he punched Ruffner in the stomach and took him to the ground. Together, he said, they tied his hands and feet behind his back with electrical cords ripped from appliances. When Ruffner began to yell, they said they shoved tissue paper in his mouth and covered it with a scarf.

    They then ransacked his apartment. Ruffner died of asphyxiation.

    Pinnell was convicted in 1988 of Ruffner's killing and sentenced to death. The Oregon Supreme Court overturned the death sentence and sent the case back for a new sentencing hearing in 1992. During that hearing, jurors never heard that Pinnell's co-defendant had been acquitted of aggravated murder or that he had received a life sentence with a possibility of parole. The second jury again sentenced Pinnell to death in 1992.

    Pinnell filed a clemency request in 1995 to then-Gov. Barbara Roberts. The Washington County District Attorney objected, noting that Pinnell had described the Ruffner crime as a "generic murder," and that a vast volume of information had been presented at his trial and sentencing hearings.

    This time, Pinnell is asking Kitzhaber to at least spare his life, or give him a chance to seek parole, like Cornell could.

    "Mark's case is the ultimate example of an uneven justice system exacting the ultimate price: death," Hampton wrote in the request.

    Kitzhaber's office declined comment, other than confirming receipt of Pinnell's request. "We did receive it and it will be put through the normal process," governor's spokeswoman Amy Wojcicki said Friday.

    The governor's website says clemency is considered an "extraordinary remedy of last resort," and urges those seeking it to exhaust all other legal remedies first. Pinnell still has a federal court of appeals case pending.

    Since Oregon reinstated the death penalty in 1978 and 1984, there have been no commutations, said Aliza B. Kaplan, associate professor at Lewis & Clark Law School. She said there have been governors in other states, including Florida and Georgia, who have commuted death sentences that were disproportional to the sentence given to an equally or more culpable co-defendant.

    Once Cornell was released from custody, the federal public defender's office began pursuing a clemency request for Pinnell. Pinnell's age and deteriorating health are also factors, said Hampton, who is pursing the petition because the federal public defender's office in Oregon could not due to a conflict of interest.

    And certainly, with Kitzhaber halting executions in November 2011, the timing of Pinnell's clemency seemed ripe.

    "I think it certainly moves the conversation forward, don't you?" Hampton said in an interview Friday.

    Today, the two former crime partners are living very different lives.

    Cornell completed his parole Nov. 27, 2012. He resides in Portland, and does sales for a telemarketing company. On the side, he sells prison-made leather belts and wallets to local shops.

    Pinnell's last disciplinary problem behind bars was in 2002. He's taught himself how to read and write while on death row and has reconnected with his daughter. His chronic obstructive pulmonary disease has gotten worse, requiring him to use inhalers, his attorney said.

    "I'm not proud to say it took me so long to face up to facts and fully accept that Mr. Ruffner is dead because of my choices and my actions," Pinnell wrote in his request. "Never did we think anyone would die ... I am truly sorry for his death."

    http://www.oregonlive.com/pacific-no...te_mark_p.html
    An uninformed opponent is a dangerous opponent.

    "Y'all be makin shit up" ~ Markeith Loyd

  4. #4
    Moderator Ryan's Avatar
    Join Date
    Oct 2013
    Location
    Newport, United Kingdom
    Posts
    2,454
    Oldest man on Oregon's death row appeals to governor for release to hospice

    By Maxine Bernstein
    The Oregon Live

    Mark Pinnell, the oldest inmate on Oregon's death row, is making a last-ditch appeal to spend his final days outside of prison in hospice as he dies from severe chronic pulmonary disease.

    Pinnell, 67, was among the first to seek clemency after former Gov. Kitzhaber declared a moratorium on executions in November 2011. His co-defendant is a free man, having left prison in 2011 after serving nearly 26 years behind bars.

    On Thursday, Pinnell's federal public defender sent a letter to Gov. Kate Brown's office by email, asking for her urgent review. Pinnell Thursday was moved off death row to the Oregon State Penitentiary's infirmary, the letter said. He has been on death row since 1988.

    Kitzhaber in February denied Pinnell's request, saying he was unable to review his application before the end of his term. Pinnell renewed a clemency request to Brown in August, and her office responded that a review could take up to six months.

    "Mark does not have six months. His disease will kill him long before his federal litigation is concluded; long before focus groups, constituency round tables or social science research can be initiated, much less completed, on the efficacy or failure of the death penalty in Oregon. His disease will kill him long before the next election,'' lawyer Teresa A. Hampton wrote.

    "A decision is necessary today. Mark has secured palliative care housing in the community. He is in the end-stages of life and poses no threat to the community. He asks simply, 'Please, let me die on the outside, with my friends and family near me when I pass.' "

    Pinnell's August request for clemency, titled "Mercy for a dying man,'' noted that he was rushed to Salem General Hospital twice in July for extended stays. His lawyer provided the governor's office with medical records that reflect his dire prognosis and argued that the prison is incapable of providing the "escalating care and equipment'' that Pinnell's condition requires.

    "In short, he is dying,'' Hampton wrote in August to Brown. "The only question left to be answered is where Mark will die.''

    In his own letter to the governor on Aug. 5, Pinnell wrote, "I am a weak, old man. I pose no threat to society. I am very ashamed and sorry for what I did. I'm asking for mercy. Please release me from prison so that I can spend my last days near my family rather than at the Oregon State Penitentiary.''

    Pinnell and co-defendant Donald E. Cornell both robbed and killed 65-year-old John Wallace Ruffner in his Tualatin apartment in 1985. A jury convicted Pinnell of multiple aggravated murder counts, including aggravated murder by torture, and he was sentenced to death. Cornell was tried later and acquitted of all aggravated murder charges by another jury.

    Pinnell was appointed an attorney with no capital punishment experience, while Cornell was represented by a seasoned capital punishment attorney, Pinnell's current lawyer has argued.

    Cornell was found guilty of felony murder, a less serious charge, after his attorney successfully argued that the killing was unintentional. The attorney also argued at trial that the victim's death wasn't prolonged but happened quickly, thus not rising to torture. Cornell was released from prison on Sept. 23, 2011, after serving a life sentence with the possibility of parole after 25 years. He served 25 years and 11 months. He was released from parole a year later.

    In Thursday's appeal to Brown, Pinnell's lawyer requested a response from the governor while Pinnell is still alive.

    "Time has run out for relief to come from the legal system,'' she wrote. "At this point, only you can answer this request. If nothing else, Mark deserves an answer before he dies.''

    http://www.oregonlive.com/portland/i...th_row_ap.html

  5. #5
    Administrator Michael's Avatar
    Join Date
    Oct 2010
    Location
    Germany
    Posts
    1,515
    It´s always confusing when people who showed no mercy expect mercy....
    No murder can be so cruel that there are not still useful imbeciles who do gloss over the murderer and apologize.

  6. #6
    Senior Member Frequent Poster Fact's Avatar
    Join Date
    Mar 2012
    Posts
    486
    It's going to be very interesting to see how the cost analyses of LWOP versus capital punishment change when you have tens of thousands of very old, chronically ill inmates requiring very expensive medical care who cannot legally be released.

    Prisons are going to need to hire more (well paid) doctors and nurses and create more hospital beds, which are much more expensive than beds in a regular prison.
    Last edited by Fact; 10-09-2015 at 07:59 AM.

  7. #7
    Administrator Helen's Avatar
    Join Date
    Jan 2013
    Location
    Toronto, Ontario, Canada
    Posts
    20,875



    Oregon's oldest death row inmate Mark Pinnell died in custody


    By Maxine Bernstein
    oregonlive.com

    Mark Allen Pinnell, Oregon's oldest death row inmate, died in custody Monday morning, about two months after the governor denied his request to spend his final days outside of prison in hospice care.

    Pinnell, 67, died of natural causes about 10:55 a.m. in the Two Rivers Correctional Institution's infirmary, according to the Oregon Department of Corrections.

    He'd been suffering from severe chronic pulmonary disease, his lawyer said.

    In mid-October, Gov. Kate Brown denied Pinnell's request to move off death row and spend his last days in hospice outside of prison. He cited his deteriorating condition.

    In a letter typed a day later
    , Brown wrote that an immediate commutation of Pinnell's sentence wasn't warranted.

    "The power to grant executive clemency is a responsibility that I take very seriously,'' Brown wrote. "I believe that a Governor's clemency power should be exercised sparingly. The separation of powers inherent in our system of government and respect for the workings of the judicial system require that the Governor's clemency power be used in only the most extraordinary of circumstances.''

    Pinnell was among the first to seek clemency after former Gov. John Kitzhaber declared a moratorium on executions in November 2011. He has been on death row since 1988.

    Pinnell and co-defendant Donald E. Cornell both robbed and killed 65-year-old John Wallace Ruffner in his Tualatin apartment in 1985. Cornell is a free man, having left prison in 2011 after serving nearly 26 years behind bars.

    Most recently, Pinnell had been at Two Rivers' infirmary, receiving palliative care, said Betty Bernt, spokeswoman for the Oregon Department of Corrections.

    He was placed in his own room that's larger than a cell, with a hospital bed and walls with murals, Bernt said. He had access to immediate health care, but security was present anytime anyone was in the room with him, she said. The prison's superintendent and medical services manager were monitoring his situation weekly, she said.

    Kitzhaber in February denied Pinnell's clemency request, saying he was unable to review Pinnell's application before the end of his term. Pinnell renewed a clemency request to Brown in August, and her office responded that a review could take up to six months.

    Pinnell's August request for clemency, titled "Mercy for a dying man,'' noted that he was rushed to Salem General Hospital twice in July for extended stays. His lawyer provided the governor's office with medical records that reflected his dire prognosis and argued that the prison was incapable of providing the "escalating care and equipment'' that Pinnell's condition required.

    In his own letter to the governor on Aug. 5, Pinnell wrote, "I am a weak, old man. I pose no threat to society. I am very ashamed and sorry for what I did. I'm asking for mercy. Please release me from prison so that I can spend my last days near my family rather than at the Oregon State Penitentiary.''

    http://www.oregonlive.com/pacific-no...row_inmat.html
    "I realize this may sound harsh, but as a father and former lawman, I really don't care if it's by lethal injection, by the electric chair, firing squad, hanging, the guillotine or being fed to the lions."
    - Oklahoma Rep. Mike Christian

    "There are some people who just do not deserve to live,"
    - Rev. Richard Hawke

    “There are lots of extremely smug and self-satisfied people in what would be deemed lower down in society, who also deserve to be pulled up. In a proper free society, you should be allowed to make jokes about absolutely anything.”
    - Rowan Atkinson

Thread Information

Users Browsing this Thread

There are currently 1 users browsing this thread. (0 members and 1 guests)

Posting Permissions

  • You may not post new threads
  • You may not post replies
  • You may not post attachments
  • You may not edit your posts
  •