'No place except hell' for Polly Klaas' killer as judge denies petition to recall death sentence

A judge in California has rejected a petition to recall the death sentence for a man convicted of kidnapping and killing a 12-year-old girl.

The judge was considering the death sentence handed to Richard Allen Davis who was convicted for the 1993 kidnap and killing of Polly Klaas . The crime, which involved kidnapping the child from her bedroom at knifepoint, sent shockwaves across the nation.

In 1996, a jury found Davis guilty of first-degree murder and "special circumstances" including kidnapping, burglary, robbery, and attempting a lewd act on a child. At the time of the abduction and murder, Davis was on parole and had a long history of kidnap and assault dating back to the 1970s. He was subsequently sentenced to death.

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Davis' lawyers argued in a court filing in February that his death sentence should be recalled due to recent changes in California sentencing laws that eliminate some sentencing enhancements. They also pointed out the current moratorium on the death penalty in California.

In 2019, California Governor Gavin Newsom placed a halt on executions, labeling the death penalty as "a failure" that discriminates against defendants who are mentally ill, Black and brown, or unable to afford expensive legal representation. However, this policy could be changed by a future governor.

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The Sonoma County District Attorney's Office countered in a court filing that the arguments put forth by Davis' attorneys are "nonsensical" and that the laws they reference do not apply to Davis's death sentence for the murder of Polly Klaas. On Friday, Sonoma County Deputy District Attorney Sarah Brooks argued in court that Davis' lawyers were incorrectly referencing a 2022 law that allows for sentence reassessment in cases where special enhancements influenced the punishment. She described their petition as a "collateral attack on the 1996 conviction and sentence to death."

Judge Benjamin Williams concurred with this view and dismissed their petition. He clarified that rather than seeking a resentencing for Davis, prosecutors were attempting to nullify the penalty phase of the trial. Davis was absent from the hearing.

Marc Klaas, father of Polly Klaas, audibly gasped as the judge delivered his verdict. Accompanied by about a dozen supporters donning buttons featuring Polly Klaas' picture or red T-shirts emblazoned with the Klaas Kids Foundation logo, he expressed relief and gratitude towards the prosecutors and the judge.

"Our judge and our prosecutor were so decisive in their arguments and in their decision that there's really no place for this guy to go except to hell, of course," Marc Klaas shared with reporters post-hearing. Polly Klaas was kidnapped from her bedroom in Petaluma, located 40 miles north of San Francisco, by Davis in October 1993. She was strangled to death during the course of the horrific crime.

On that fateful night, a slumber party was being held at her residence with her mother in an adjacent room. The girl's mysterious disappearance ignited a nationwide hunt energized by thousands of volunteers. Two months after the incident, Davis was apprehended. He led police officers to the shallow grave, 50 miles north of her residence in Sonoma County, where the child's body was buried.

The egregious case became a significant catalyst for California adopting the "three strikes" law in 1994, levying increased penalties on repeat offenders. This proposal received support and approval from voters and legislators alike.

No executions have been carried out in California since the tenure of Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger in 2006. Although lifting the speed of executing controversial capital punishment was narrowly ratified in a 2016 ballot measure, no death row inmate has faced impending execution. As per the latest statistics, approximately one in four inmates on death row across the US are housed in California, showing a swell in numbers since the state's last execution.