USA - South Carolina. The State Supreme Court has overturned the death penalty for Raymondeze Rivera, 34, black.

The South Carolina Supreme Court has overturned the death penalty for Raymondeze Rivera, 34, black. Rivera was sentenced to death on Feb. 18, 2010 (see) after an Anderson County jury found him guilty of the Dec. 13, 2006 murder of  Kwana Burns. When Rivera was on trial for Burns' killing, he was already serving a life sentence for a murder charge. He was convicted of killing Asha Wiley, who was strangled to death 2 days before Burns. According to the Supreme Court decision, announced today, Judge Alexander Macaulay mistakenly refused to allow Rivera to testify at his 2010 trial. "Appellant (Rivera) elected to testify, yet (defense) counsel refused to call him to the stand," according to the Supreme Court decision. "Despite appellant's persistence, the trial court acquiesced in counsel's decision and refused to allow appellant to testify."