Murder Suspect Joe Thomas Asks Judge To Dismiss Possible Death Penalty

Joe Thomas -- the bartender -- has filed several motions in Lake County Court of Common Pleas, including one to dismiss the possibility of a death sentence if he is convicted.

Thomas's attorneys David Doughten and Assistant Lake County Public Defender Charles Grieshammer said a potential death sentence would violate Constitutional and international law in their motion.

"The 14th amendment's guarantee of equal protection requires similar treatment of similarly situated persons. This right extends to the protection against cruel and unusual punishment ... A death penalty imposed in violation of the equal protection guarantee is a cruel and unusual punishment," the motion reads.

"Ohio's capital punishment scheme allows the death penalty to be imposed in an arbitrary and discriminatory manner," Thomas's attorneys continued.

Doughten and Grieshammer also argued:

• the death sentence unfairly victimizes minorities because blacks are 20 percent of the population but 50 percent of death row inmates.
• defendants get a biased jury when discussing the death sentence, because they already sat through their trial. To make it fair, suspects would need two separate juries -- one for the trial, one for sentencing.
• Ohio law unfairly ranks certain types of murder as more heinous. Specifically, the attorneys argue that not everyone accused of committing a murder while committing another felony -- as Thomas is -- should be a candidate for a death sentence.

"The aggravated murder defendant alleged to have killed during the course of a felony is automatically eligible for the death penalty ... (but) the killer who kills with prior calculation and design is treated less severely, which is also nonsensical because his blameworthiness or moral guilt is higher, and the argued ability to deter him less," the motion read.

Thomas's attorneys also filed several other motions. They requested that:

• his .
• they have access to Dr. James Eisenberg, a clinical neuropsychologist, for expert assistance. If the motion is approved, Eisenberg would receive $240 per hour for his services, up to $7,500.
• they have access to police reports for this case and all previous cases involving Thomas. Usually, it is not required to release police reports to the defense. However, because this is a death penalty case, Thomas's attorneys say they should have access to them.

Lake County Assistant Prosecutor Charles Cichocki has not filed a reply to these motions yet. Consequently, Judge Richard Collins Jr. has not made a decision on any of them.