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Arkansas Supreme Court Decision Allows New DNA Testing in Case of the ​“West Memphis Three,” Convicted of Killing Three Children in 1993

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On April 18, 2024, the Arkansas Supreme Court decided 4-3 to reverse a 2022 lower court decision and allow genetic testing of crime scene evidence from the 1993 killing of three eight-year-old boys in West Memphis. The three men convicted in 1994 for the killings were released in 2011 after taking an Alford plea, in which they maintained their innocence but plead guilty to the crime, in exchange for 18 years’ time served and 10 years of a suspended sentence. 

Anti-death penalty double bill in the Gaza Strip

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The Palestinian Centre for Human Rights (PCHR), a Gaza-based NGO and a member of the World Coalition, organised two meetings on the death penalty in March.


The first meeting took place on March 10 in the offices of the Palestinian Society for Democracy and Law in Rafah. At least 30 individuals representing a number of NGOs in Rafah attended.

The second meeting was held on March 12, in cooperation with Sharek Youth Forum in Gaza City. At least 30 students and graduates of al-Azhar University in Gaza and a number of civil society activists attended the meeting.

Raising public awareness

The events are part of PCHR's death penalty project, which aims at raising public awareness and creating a public opinion calling for the abolishment of capital punishment from Palestinian laws.
PCHR also seeks to stop extra-judicial executions carried out by Israeli forces against Palestinians.

The meetings discussed the international trend towards the abolition of the death penalty from domestic laws, and the recent United Nations General Assembly resolution calling for a moratorium on executions.

During the meetings, discussions were opened among the participants who were divided between supporters of and opponents to the death penalty.
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