Published Friday, March 05, 2010 3:16 PM

Judge declares death penalty unconstitutional

By JUAN A. LOZANO
Associated Press

HOUSTON -- A state district judge in Houston is answering a torrent of high-profile criticism after he declared the death penalty unconstitutional.

Judge Kevin Fine said during a court hearing Friday he is not legislating from the bench and there is no precedent to guide him in resolving the issues raised by defense attorneys in a pre-trial motion in a capital murder case.

Fine has been heavily criticized since Thursday, when he grant a motion by attorneys for a man accused of fatally shooting a Houston woman and wounding her sister in June 2008.

Harris County District Attorney Patricia Lykos, as well Texas Attorney General Greg Abbott and Gov. Rick Perry criticized Fine's ruling, calling it judicial activism.

---

Notice about comments: Theeagle.com is pleased to offer readers the ability to comment on stories. We expect our readers to engage in lively, yet civil discourse. Theeagle.com cannot promise that readers will not occasionally find offensive or inaccurate comments posted in the comments area. Responsibility for the statements posted lies with the person submitting the comment, not theeagle.com. If you find a comment that is objectionable, please click "report abuse" and we will review it for possible removal. Please be reminded, however, that in accordance with our Terms of Use and federal law, we are under no obligation to remove any third party comments posted on our website. Full terms and conditions can be read here. The Eagle is proud to offer our users enhanced commenting features. You can now build user-to-user connections, follow friend's recent posts, add an avatar that fits your personality, and more. If you have posted here before you’ll need to sign up again and if you’ve never posted start now by signing up!.