National Post

British grandmother to be executed by firing squad for smuggling cocaine after Bali court rejects appeal
An Indonesian court upheld the death sentence against a British woman convicted of smuggling $2.5 million worth of cocaine into the resort island of Bali, a court official said Monday.

The Bali High Court rejected an appeal from Lindsay June Sandiford, 56, who was convicted in January by a district court and sentenced to face a firing squad, said court spokesman Makkasau. 

Sandiford was arrested last May when 3.8 kilograms of cocaine was discovered stuffed inside the lining of her luggage at Bali’s airport. During the trial, she said she was forced to carry the drugs by a gang that threatened to hurt her children. (Sonny Tumbelaka / AFP / Getty Images files)

An interesting defence: U.S. man says he is too fat to be executed
A condemned Ohio inmate who weighs 480 pounds (218 kilograms) and has a history of difficulty losing weight argues he would face a “torturous and lingering death” if executed in January.

Ronald Post, who shot and killed a hotel clerk in northern Ohio almost 30 years ago, said his weight, vein access, scar tissue, depression and other medical problems raise the likelihood his executioners would encounter severe problems. He’s also so big that the execution gurney might not hold him, lawyers for Post said in federal court papers. (AP Photo/Ohio Dept. of Rehabilitation and Corrections)

Graphic: The death penalty across the world
How does the world view capital punishment? What are the numbers of deaths around the world? The National Post’s graphics team takes a close look at the death penalty.

Matt Gurney: Bringing back the death penalty a debate worth having
As a general rule, one doesn’t need to remind politicians that publicly advocating for suicide is usually a bad idea. On Wednesday, Conservative senator Pierre-Hugues Boisvenu, however, proved an exception.

Mr. Boisvenu, heading into a caucus meeting on Wednesday, was asked by a reporter if the Tories had any intention of bringing back the death penalty in Canada. He said that he himself did not support the death penalty. But in certain cases — where rehabilitation is not an option — the Senator added in French, “Basically I think that every murderer should have a rope in his cell and he can decide on his own life. But I’m against the death penalty.”

So he doesn’t support killing criminals, per se. He just supports them not being alive anymore.

Canadians do seem to be willing to have a discussion about capital punishment. A survey by Angus Reid in 2010 found that a strong majority of Canadians — a full 62% — are supportive of capital punishment for homicide.

The U.S. state of Georgia executed convicted murderer Troy Davis on Wednesday in a case that drew international attention because of claims by his advocates that he may have been innocent. Jessica McGowan/Getty Images