The crimes Harlan committed, Vigil said, were "among the most grievous, heinous and reprehensible" he had seen in his 18 years as judge. "If any case merits the death penalty, there cannot be serious debate about this case being that case."
But while jurors can use their personal convictions in deliberations, they can't use texts that weren't introduced at trial.
"Jury resort to biblical code has no place in a constitutional death penalty proceeding," Vigil ruled. The quoted Levitical passages, he said, "more than simply encourage jurors to follow the instructions of the court. … The biblical passages involved not only encouraged the death penalty but required that it be imposed when another life is taken. The passages also directed jurors to take guidance from, and obey, the government. They left the jurors no discretion."
CBS News legal commentator Andrew Cohen sums up the reasoning:
Jurors in capital cases are supposed to act as the moral conscience of their community. And they are permitted to bring with them into the deliberation room whatever religious or spiritual beliefs they may have. That's what voir dire is for—to permit the judge, and sometimes the attorneys themselves, to ask potential jurors whether their religious beliefs may interfere with their ability to follow the judge's instructions as to the law of the case. But using your own personal religious beliefs as a moral compass to guide your decision in a capital case is one thing; using the Bible as an offensive weapon to cajole fellow jurors into voting for death is another.
In any case, Assistant Adams County District Attorney Steve Bernard promised to appeal the ruling to the Colorado Supreme Court.
"We respectfully disagree with the court's determination of the facts in this case," he told The Denver Post. "There was a statement about the presence of Bibles, but I don't think the testimony was clear that there was one there, and if so, if it was used, and if so, if it was read from."
"Prosecutors argued that the Bible reading was done for comfort or inspiration and was a harmless error in the face of the overwhelming evidence against Harlan justifying the death penalty," the Rocky Mountain News reports.
Harlan isn't alone. In 2000, the Supreme Court of Georgia and the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals overturned death penalties because prosecutors quoted Scripture. But that same year, Ohio's Supreme Court said such references didn't matter. The U.S. Supreme Court hasn't ruled, and in 1999 turned away a Nebraska case in which a judge quoted Scripture in sentencing.
The Prayer of Bruce Instead of using one of those 555 phone numbers like you see in most movies, the creators of Bruce Almighty decided to use a more realistic-sounding phone number for God. It turns out the number was too realistic—it actually exists in many states—usually on mobile phones. Now the owners of those phones are getting inundated with calls for God.
"A lot of them sound very serious about this thing, and that's what I can't understand. How can they go to a movie and believe that's real?" Myrtle Hallman, who owns the number in Columbia, North Carolina, told The Charlotte Observer. "I can't conceive of grown-ups really thinking that's true."
The best story belongs to a guy actually named Bruce. He's not God, but he knows where to find him. Bruce MacInnes is pastor of Turner's Chapel Church in Sanford, North Carolina. "I had another call from a man who asked to talk to God," MacInnes told the Associated Press. "I told him if he was serious I would be happy to talk with him about God. I said if he wasn't serious he could just hang up. He hung up."
Hallman says she got through to someone. According to The State of South Carolina, she told someone who asked to speak to God, "You get down on your knees and you talk to God, and he'll hear you-because he's everywhere. He doesn't just live here, so get down on your knees. If I could get down on mine, I would, but I can't, and I think he understands that. God is supposed to hear us wherever we are."
More articles
Anglican leadership debates gay couples:
Anglican Church won't bless gay couples | Leaders of the world's Anglican churches said Tuesday that they cannot support ceremonies blessing homosexual relationships, which one bishop in Canada has permitted (Associated Press)
Church should accept gays - archbishop | According to a biography of Dr Rowan Williams serialized in The Times newspaper, the head of the church believes faithful gay partnerships could be accepted by many Christians (BBC)
A man of God: The making of Rowan Williams | From very religious child to Archbishop of Canterbury, our correspondent traces the roots of the Christian compassion that explain why Rowan Williams wants the church to soften its line on homosexuality (Rupert Shortt, The Times, London)
How the Church has lifted bans laid down by Bible | Rowan Williams is probably right to predict that these teachings will eventually have the same status as former teachings on slavery, usury and hellfire (Ruth Gledhill, The Times, London)
Presbyterian panel OKs gay ordination | The committee's recommendation will be considered by the full General Assembly later this week as its meeting in Denver continues (The Denver Post)
The 'loving rebuke' | Earlier this month, a group of religious figures gathered in Washington, D.C., in order to publicly condemn recent remarks on Islam and Mohammed by evangelical leaders, including me (Jerry Falwell, WorldNetDaily.com)
Another 'survey' of Christians | In total disregard of the Gujarat High Court's orders, the Patan district police have launched yet another "survey" of the Christians and the institutions run by the community even as the State authorities denied issuing any such instruction (The Hindu, India)
In service of faith | Christian, Jewish congregations unite to serve community; volunteers will work at nursing homes, visit hospitals (Akron Beacon Journal, Ohio)
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'I fell for their love' | Guven Yay, a former Muslim from Turkey, came to Wichita and found a new faith at Olivet Baptist Church (The Wichita Eagle)
Church and state:
Firefighters file lawsuit over chaplains in their ranks | Complaining officers object to the chaplains' wearing religious insignia while on duty and say it is only a short step from counseling fellow firefighters to proselytizing them (The New York Times)
Also: Chaplain's corps faces lawsuit | Six firefighters want it replaced with religious counselors (The San Luis Obispo Tribune, Calif.)
Graduation prayer a tricky issue, but consider this approach | The best place for prayers, sermons on graduation weekend is at privately sponsored, voluntarily attended baccalaureate service held after school hours (Charles Haynes, First Amendment Center)
Can we afford (not) to study religion? | Upon the simple constitutional principle that Congress shall not make laws either respecting the establishment of religion or prohibiting its free exercise, we Americans have developed arsenals of arguments to aim at each other (William B. Lawrence, The Dallas Morning News)
Church, state 'should stay separate' | No church leader should ever be appointed governor-general because it would muddy the waters between church and state, Catholic Archbishop of Sydney George Pell said today (The Daily Telegraph, Australia)
Music:
Crowds mourn rapper | "Get back out there on those same streets and let it be known that Christianity is cool," says the Rev. Matthew M. Odum. "You can be saved and still be a player. You don't have to be in the church to become the church." (The Augusta Chronicle, Ga.)
How Prague Bible survived to tell of great flood | A flood-damaged 500-year-old Czech Bible, regarded as one of the jewels of central European Christianity, has been saved by British and other experts in a painstaking restoration project using freezers and vacuums to bring them back to their old glory (The Daily Telegraph, London)
War takes its toll on the Garden of Eden | The existence of a site that has an ancient claim to be the most famous garden in the world shows the extraordinary tourist potential that Iraq has, when it is not at war or ruled by a genocidal dictator (The Times, London)
An untended treasure | Nineveh in Mosul today is largely an untended treasure, suffering from years of neglect, haphazard excavation and periodic looting and vandalism (The News Tribune, Tacoma, Wash.)
TV ads put church in the game | Black Summit church advertises during NBA playoffs to attract more men to the services (The Star-Ledger, New Jersey)
Porn ban for phone masts on churches | A mobile telephone company has been ordered to restrict the transmission of pornography if it wants to place masts on two Yorkshire churches (The Daily Telegraph, London)
Don't rock the flock, angry parishioners tell their meddling dean | The dean did have his supporters, who called on the congregation to support Mr Jensen in his ambitions to turn the cathedral into the centre of evangelism in the Sydney diocese. For the most part, the dean himself sat silent and attentive as the long list of grievances was aired (The Sydney Morning Herald)
Interior allows grants to churches | The decision reverses a 1995 opinion by the Justice Department that barred active houses of worship from receiving historic preservation grants (The Washington Post)
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Also: In shift, U.S. to offer grants to historic churches | Breaking with longstanding policy, the Bush administration will allow federal grants to be used to renovate religious sites that are designated historic landmarks (The New York Times)
Also: U.S. changes policy in grant to church | It is part of a campaign by the president "to remove barriers that have prevented faith-based groups from being treated fairly in the public square," says Jim Towey (Associated Press)
Europe may be key to revival of church | Closer ties with Christian Europe offers the best hope of arresting the decline of church attendance in Scotland, an expert on the history of religion claimed last night (The Herald, Glasgow)
Bennett's good works | Yes, Bill Bennett was a soft touch for high-stakes slots, but let the record show he has also been a softie when it comes to helping others (John DiIulio, The Washington Post)
Texas gathering motivates 25,000 college-age faithful | One area man said the convergence of OneDay03 on this small town 70 miles northeast of Dallas seemed "sorta like Woodstock, without the drugs, sex and deviant element." (The Washington Times)
Also: 'Solemn assembly' | Area groups pray with Christians from all over the world at OneDay03 (Tuscaloosa News, Ala.)
Faith and finances | Christian advisors use faith to guide advice they provide to clients (CanWest News Service)
Billy Graham and the last crusades | Getting to the pulpit these days is more difficult than ever for 84-year-old evangelist Billy Graham (Reuters)
Prison revival offers hope, sense of peace | In six two-hour sessions, the evangelists attracted more than 700 of about 1,000 inmates, including some of the state's most dangerous murderers, kidnappers and rapists (TCPalm.com)
“He Gets Us,” an effort to attract skeptics and cultural Christians, launches nationally this month. But Christians still have questions about how the church markets faith.
“He Gets Us,” an effort to attract skeptics and cultural Christians, launches nationally this month. But Christians still have questions about how the church markets faith.
Favoring big-name authors and “influencers” might be good for the bottom line, but not always for the books—and readers—themselves.
Looking to the monarchy can show us the pitfalls of prideful politics.
