The Justice Department’s move to withdraw death penalty requests that had been pending in seven cases around the country, along with Attorney General Merrick Garland’s recently announced moratorium on all federal executions, would seem to make it unlikely that former Kamaaina Termite owner Michael Miske will face a possible death penalty if convicted.
Miske and ten co-defendants were named in a 22-count indictment in June 2020 alleging they were part of a criminal gang, controlled and directed by Miske, which was responsible for a variety of crimes including kidnapping, murder and murder-for-hire, drug trafficking, armed robbery, weapons offenses, and bank fraud.
Miske faces 17 charges, including four death-penalty eligible counts stemming from the alleged kidnapping and murder of 21-year old Jonathan Fraser.
Prosecutors allege Miske planned the murder “as retribution for Miske’s mistaken belief that Fraser was the driver of a vehicle involved in a serious accident in which Miske’s son, Caleb, eventually died as a result.”
Miske allegedly purchased a $425,000 boat to dispose of Fraser’s body, provided a place for Fraser and his girlfriend to live “where Miske could keep tabs on him” before the kidnapping, and directed other members of his criminal organization to obtain a van used to kidnap Fraser and later torch it to destroy any evidence.
One of Miske’s former associates was charged separately and has already pleaded guilty, and admitted Miske directed him to help to plan and facilitate Fraser’s murder. A Miske co-defendants has also pleaded guilty, and admitted he turned down an offer of $50,000 to take part in the kidnapping. A third man, who has not been charged in the case, has publicly said he turned down a similar offer. Miske is charged with later attempting to murder him in an ambush during the filming of a movie at Kualoa Ranch in 2017.
In May 2021, the US Attorney’s Office said in a court filing that it had submitted its recommendation regarding the death penalty and was awaiting a decision by the Department of Justice in Washington. Individual recommendations are reviewed before being submitted to a central death penalty committee, which then makes a recommendation to the Attorney General. The substance of the recommendation from Hawaii’s US Attorney was not disclosed.
Hawaii abolished capital punishment in 1957, a factor that could be expected to play a role in the decision on Miske’s case.
But the new moratorium on executions, along with the government’s decision to reverse course and withdraw seven previous death penalty recommendations, appears to make it unlikely that government will seek the death penalty in this case.
Each of the four death penalty-eligible charges carries a sentence of life in prison upon conviction if the government does not ask for death.
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Declining to use the death penalty at all is a false compassion and does society no great good. If our laws are not formidable in the least they will be disregarded by the arrogant and the proud, to the detriment of all.
Clearly the threat of the death penalty did nothing to deter Miske. No reason to think it has that impact on folks like him.
No HI death penalty and Feds very rarely do it, so not a counterexample. It’s a general tone in law enforcement and incentive to abide by law. Our police chief and prosecutors and multiple nonprofit and government grant embezzlers obviously do not see the law as formidable in the least.
But even in time periods where the Feds or other states did it, there was no measurable effect on crime deterrence. It gives society a false sense of security.
I support the death penalty in certain situations. For example everyone that engaged in violence on Jan. 6 should be executed.
That would be the cop who murdered Ashlee Babbitt, an unarmed female Air Force veteran.
“That would be the cop who murdered Ashlee Babbitt, an unarmed female Air Force veteran.”
A) I don’t care what her veteran status was. Irrelevant. She crossed the red line and paid for it. Notice none of her fellow “patriots” dared to?
B) The security officer that shot her should be commended for doing his job as he should have. Who knows what the terrorist Babbitt had in her backpack?
Next up: The prosecution and jailing of co-conspirators Mo Brooks, Josh Hawley, Jim Jordan, Donald Trump, et al. for inciting insurrection and being complicit in all the deaths that occurred that day.
“I support the death penalty in certain situations. For example everyone that engaged in violence on Jan. 6 should be executed.”
Hear hear!!
The Trump administration executed 13 inmates in his last year in office and had scheduled to do several more. William Barr had no problem with it.
There’s a chance Miske could’ve offered to cooperate if he thought the death penalty was likely to be the outcome. With that off the table the chance of him rolling on anyone higher is basically gone. The Feds won’t give him a deal to avoid a life sentence.