Abdul Awkal was convicted of killing his wife, Latife Awkal, and his brother-in-law, Mahmoud Abdul-Aiz, at the Cuyahoga Domestic Relations Court on January 7, 1992. Abdul Awkal committed these murders at the court house when he learned that his wife, Latife Awkal, had filed for divorce and custody of their 16-month old daughter.
Abdul Awkal chased the pair down, into a room in the courthouse where he shot them both at close range. He was arrested in the courthouse and later confessed to police.
Abdul Awkal
On June 5, 2012, Governor John Kasich gave Abdul Awkal a two week reprieve to his death sentence to have his mental competency ruled on. A question I have is what has the Ohio correctional facility been doing for the past 20 years while Abdul Awkal has been sitting on death row? One might also think that one’s mental condition would change while sitting on death row for 20 years. Not for the better is my first assumption.
Was there any reprieve for Latife Awkal or her brother, Mahmoud Abdul-Aiz, prior to Abdul Awkal ruthlessly shooting them down? How easy it is to forget the victims after time has passed.
This story of an honor killing that occurred over 20 years ago is brought up to give an example that honor killings here in the United States are not a new phenomenon. This has been going on for some time. As time has passed, these incidents of honor killings and honor violence have increased.
We should not sit back in our recliner as we watch the evening news and say since it does not personally affect me, that it does not matter. The court system in the United States has slowly been accepting that they should not get involved and rule on issues of Muslim religious issues.
More posts to come describing other incidents of honor killings and honor violence and then how those cases flow through the United States court system.
I will keep you up to date as to the result of Abdul Awkal’s competency hearings and if his death penalty is ever carried out.
Do you feel that the death penalty is too harsh for Abdul Awkal’s actions? Was he right to murder his wife and brother-in-law as a result of her seeking a divorce?
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Source: Atlas Shrugs.
Image: Crime and Punishment
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