A federal judge has ruled that prosecutors can appeal his order to toss out the
death penalty sentence against a man convicted of killing three people in
Massachusetts and New Hampshire during a 2001 crime spree.
On Thursday, Chief U.S. District Court Judge Mark Wolf granted a request from
prosecutors to appeal his October ruling. In that ruling he found that Gary
Sampson was denied his constitutional right have his sentence decided by an
impartial jury and was entitled to a new hearing on the sentence. Wolf entered a
formal order vacating the death sentence Thursday.
Wolf said prosecutors could appeal his ruling to the 1st U.S. Circuit Court
of Appeals. He rejected arguments by Sampson's lawyers that prosecutors could
not appeal until the second sentencing hearing was completed.
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