Carson City judge, Nevada Supreme Court to hear petitions in death penalty commute decision
A Carson City District Court judge will hear an emergency petition Monday from the Washoe County District Attorney's Office regarding a Nevada Board of Pardons meeting scheduled for Tuesday.
That meeting may decide whether to commute all sentences of death for convicted offenders in Nevada, giving them instead a sentence of life without the possibility of parole.
Judge James Wilson in Department 2 of the First Judicial District Court in Carson City will preside over the hearing, Monday at 3 p.m. in which the Washoe County District's Attorney's Office cites what it says are several defects in regard to noticing requirements for the Nevada Board of Pardons meeting, in which the combination of death sentences item was added to the Dec. 20 agenda on Thursday, Dec. 15.
Two other emergency petitions concerning this have been filed with the Nevada Supreme Court. One was filed by the Clark County District Attorney’s office and raises similar arguments regarding noticing requirements as the petition filed with Judge Wilson, with notice to the victims not being notified in a timely manner.
The other was filed by Jennifer Otremba, whose 15 year-old daughter Alyssa Otremba, was raped and murdered in 2011. The killer, Javier Righetti, was found guilty of capital murder and sentenced to death in 2017.
Jennifer Otremba's petition raises arguments under Marsy’s Law. Marsy’s Law for Nevada is a constitutional amendment that guarantees victims of crime enforceable constitutional rights. This measure was approved during the 2015 and 2017 legislative sessions and was passed by voters in Nevada on Nov. 6, 2018.