Journal file photo
Pleau
PROVIDENCE, R.I. -- Lawyers for accused murderer Jason Pleau asked a federal judge Wednesday to declare the death penalty unconstitutional, arguing it is applied arbitrarily and is more likely to come into play in murder cases in which the victim is white.
"It is one of those dirty little secrets of our justice system," said David Hoose, adding that capital punishment should not be sought in Rhode Island, where it has been outlawed.
Prosecutor Jacabed Rodriguez responded that the Supreme Court has repeatedly upheld the death penalty.
"Federal law," she said, "cannot be imposed in one state and not another. It has to be uniformly imposed."
Prosecutors are seeking the death penalty against Pleau, accused of killing a gas station manager while robbing him outside a Woonsocket bank.