by John Christoffersen, published Monday, May 30, 2011 in the newstimes.com
Relatives of murder victims who oppose execution were eager to meet earlier this month with a Connecticut senator who was a key swing vote on a death penalty bill. They knew she had met with a prominent doctor who has campaigned in favor of capital punishment after his family was killed in a gruesome house invasion.
But they said Sen. Edith Prague was too busy to meet with them. She announced May 11, days after meeting with Dr. William Petit, that she would oppose the bill to repeal Connecticut's death penalty.
The decision by Prague and another lawmaker who met with Petit doomed the bill in the Senate this session. Death penalty opponents were especially disappointed with how the debate ended.
"I have valid views as well," said Catherine Ednie, whose brother was one of five young men killed in Redding by their landlord in 1995 over a rent dispute and wanted to meet with Prague. "I have a very different viewpoint than Dr. Petit."
Gail Canzano, whose brother-in-law was killed in 1999, said everyone sympathizes with Petit and his family, but doesn't think public policy should be decided on the basis of one case.
"There are many families who believe this system is terribly broken and does them a great disservice," Canzano said.
Petit, whose wife and two daughters were killed in their Cheshire home in 2007, played an extraordinary role in stopping strong momentum to end Connecticut's death penalty. Gov. Dannel P. Malloy, who was elected in November, is the first governor in decades to oppose the death penalty. The Legislature had voted to repeal it in 2009, but then Gov. M. Jodi Rell vetoed the bill.
A Quinnipiac University poll in March found 67 percent of registered voters favor the death penalty, a new high for the state.
Connecticut has carried out only one execution in 51 years, when serial killer Michael Ross was put to death by lethal injection in 2005. Some inmates have been on death row for decades as they appeal their sentences.
Petit's wife was raped and strangled. His daughters were tied to their beds with gasoline poured on or around them before their house was set on fire. Petit was beaten with a baseball bat and tied up, but managed to escape to a neighbor's house to get help.
Even though the bill stated that it only affects future capital felony crimes, Prague said Petit was concerned that the second suspect in his family's slaying, Joshua Komisarjevsky, could use the repeal as the basis for an appeal and possibly not face capital punishment. Komisarjevsky's trial starts in September. His co-defendant, Steven Hayes, was sentenced to death last year.
"Whatever he would have asked me to do, I would have done, because that family doesn't deserve any more stress or aggravation," Prague said in announcing her position.
Messages were left for Prague this week, but she could not be reached for comment.
Jeffrey Meyer, counsel to Petit, said at the time that Petit and his sister "deeply admire Sen. Prague and her courage to oppose a measure that would confuse and disrupt the ongoing trial against Joshua Komisarjevsky."
Meyer declined further comment and said Petit did not wish to comment.
Vicky Coward, whose son Tyler was killed in June 2007 in New Haven, a month before Petit's family was killed in the nearby affluent suburb, said Prague's comments showed favoritism.
"All I know is life is life, death is death," Coward said. "I just want things to be fair. Don't forget the inner-city people too. They don't give the inner-city as much attention as they do if something happens in the suburban areas."
Coward said she was angry after her son was killed, but ultimately came to oppose the death penalty for her son's killer.
"Why would I want to inflict the same kind of torture that I'm experiencing on another family that had nothing to do with killing Tyler?" Coward asked.
Ednie, a Stamford resident, said she always opposed the death penalty, even after her brother, David Froehlich, was killed.
She feels that favoring execution "would put me at the same level as the murderer in some ways."
Ednie said her family was angry, too, but counseling and time helped them heal. One of her sisters went on to help grieving children whose parents were killed in the Sept. 11 attacks and another sister became a social worker.
as a result of their brother's murder.
Canzano predicted Connecticut will ultimately abolish the death penalty.
She said her brother-in-law's case ended in two years with a 32-year sentence. Petit will have to endure decades of court hearings for an elusive death penalty, she said.
"Connecticut is not going to do it any faster, and Connecticut is not going to execute anybody either, so what do we do this for," Canzano said.
Tuesday, May 31, 2011
Monday, May 30, 2011
Attempt to Repeal the Racial Justice Act: (What are the issues?)
Although these pieces were written some time ago, the concerns are still the same.
Visit other posts on this topic below on thejourneyofhope blogsite and also visit The People of Faith Against the Death Penalty site pfadp.org
Winston Salem Journal: NC NAACP Statement on HB615
April 6, 2011 by wncdpr
“The extreme right wing that has apparently seized control of the North Carolina Republican Party chose April 4th, a day that lives in infamy in the hearts and minds of all justice-minded Americans, to introduce a law against Racial Justice,” said Rev. Dr. William J. Barber, President of the N.C. NAACP. ”On the 43rd anniversary of Dr. King’s murder, which many historians believe not only killed a prophet but set back the cause of racial and economic justice in America, Tea Party forces attacked the nationally-recognized North Carolina Racial Justice Act. Dr. King, his widow, the late Coretta Scott King, and the millions of participants in the movement he led, would have all supported the Racial Justice Act. This extreme right wing race-baiting attack is misguided, mean, and malicious especially when we know the death penalty is too often applied in a way that is a modern day form of racism and classism.”
Much more at the link: NC NAACP State on HB615
Filed under Racial Discrimination in Capital Cases, Racial Justice Act, Raising Awareness of the Death Penalty
The Truth About HB 615, Falsely Named “An Act to Reform the Racial Justice Act”
April 5, 2011 by wncdpr
Our general assembly is attempting to ignore racial disparities in our system of law. KNOW THE FACTS:
* HB 615 does NOT amend the NC Racial Justice Act, it renders it meaningless. HB615 is, in fact, a repeal of the Racial Justice Act.
* Active litigation of Racial Justice Act claims has been conducted in an efficient and cost-effective manner in front of a single Forsyth County Superior Court judge.
* The Forsyth County judge recently ruled that the Racial Justice Act is constitutional.
* The Forsyth County judge made clear in his ruling that both statistics and individual case facts can be considered in each case.
* The RJA is consistent with McCleskey v. Kemp and the Forsyth County judge said that it is consistent. The US Supreme Court held in McCleskey that this is a matter for state legislatures.
* No one will be released under the Racial Justice Act. The law requires those who prove discrimination to serve the rest of their lives in prison without possibility of parole.
* Because inmates rightfully and legally filed motions under a constitutional law, passage of the proposed amendment would end up costing the state more money in legal actions than it would to continue the Racial Justice Act litigation as it is currently proceeding.
* Major research studies recently found significant racial bias in jury selection and with regards to race of victim in North Carolina. (Michigan State University School of Law, University of Colorado at Boulder) A repeal of the Racial Justice Act would mean that North Carolina chose to ignore demonstrated racial discrimination in our criminal justice system.
* For those who are currently on death row, 33 cases had all-white juries and 40 had juries with a single person of color.
* The Racial Justice Act was enacted with support by a majority of North Carolinians: 58% of polled registered voters said defendants should not be executed if a judge finds that racial bias played a role in their trials. (Public Policy Polling, November 2010)
* We have a history of racism in North Carolina that necessitates the U.S. Department of Justice pre-clear our legislative district maps.
=========
There has been at least one poll out in April to show the validity of the above statements which concludes that Whites and other racial groups should also be allowed similar treatment.
Visit other posts on this topic below on thejourneyofhope blogsite and also visit The People of Faith Against the Death Penalty site pfadp.org
Winston Salem Journal: NC NAACP Statement on HB615
April 6, 2011 by wncdpr
“The extreme right wing that has apparently seized control of the North Carolina Republican Party chose April 4th, a day that lives in infamy in the hearts and minds of all justice-minded Americans, to introduce a law against Racial Justice,” said Rev. Dr. William J. Barber, President of the N.C. NAACP. ”On the 43rd anniversary of Dr. King’s murder, which many historians believe not only killed a prophet but set back the cause of racial and economic justice in America, Tea Party forces attacked the nationally-recognized North Carolina Racial Justice Act. Dr. King, his widow, the late Coretta Scott King, and the millions of participants in the movement he led, would have all supported the Racial Justice Act. This extreme right wing race-baiting attack is misguided, mean, and malicious especially when we know the death penalty is too often applied in a way that is a modern day form of racism and classism.”
Much more at the link: NC NAACP State on HB615
Filed under Racial Discrimination in Capital Cases, Racial Justice Act, Raising Awareness of the Death Penalty
The Truth About HB 615, Falsely Named “An Act to Reform the Racial Justice Act”
April 5, 2011 by wncdpr
Our general assembly is attempting to ignore racial disparities in our system of law. KNOW THE FACTS:
* HB 615 does NOT amend the NC Racial Justice Act, it renders it meaningless. HB615 is, in fact, a repeal of the Racial Justice Act.
* Active litigation of Racial Justice Act claims has been conducted in an efficient and cost-effective manner in front of a single Forsyth County Superior Court judge.
* The Forsyth County judge recently ruled that the Racial Justice Act is constitutional.
* The Forsyth County judge made clear in his ruling that both statistics and individual case facts can be considered in each case.
* The RJA is consistent with McCleskey v. Kemp and the Forsyth County judge said that it is consistent. The US Supreme Court held in McCleskey that this is a matter for state legislatures.
* No one will be released under the Racial Justice Act. The law requires those who prove discrimination to serve the rest of their lives in prison without possibility of parole.
* Because inmates rightfully and legally filed motions under a constitutional law, passage of the proposed amendment would end up costing the state more money in legal actions than it would to continue the Racial Justice Act litigation as it is currently proceeding.
* Major research studies recently found significant racial bias in jury selection and with regards to race of victim in North Carolina. (Michigan State University School of Law, University of Colorado at Boulder) A repeal of the Racial Justice Act would mean that North Carolina chose to ignore demonstrated racial discrimination in our criminal justice system.
* For those who are currently on death row, 33 cases had all-white juries and 40 had juries with a single person of color.
* The Racial Justice Act was enacted with support by a majority of North Carolinians: 58% of polled registered voters said defendants should not be executed if a judge finds that racial bias played a role in their trials. (Public Policy Polling, November 2010)
* We have a history of racism in North Carolina that necessitates the U.S. Department of Justice pre-clear our legislative district maps.
=========
There has been at least one poll out in April to show the validity of the above statements which concludes that Whites and other racial groups should also be allowed similar treatment.
NC Racial Justice Act: To be discussed Wednesday am
What Are They Smoking?
Friday, 27 May 2011
Last week, NC House leaders twisted the rules to help ensure an end to the NC Racial Justice Act.
Get this, Rep. Paul “Skip” Stam (R-Wake) rewrote a senate bill into one calling for repeal of the RJA. Senate Bill 9 was originally entitled "Make Synthetic Cannabinoids Illegal" and passed the Senate in that form. The bill was then gutted and replaced with language similar to House Bill 615, calling to repeal the RJA. If the bill passes the House in this form, then the Senate will not be able to change it.
Take action now – let your legislators know that you do not approve of these sneaky tactics and do not want the Racial Justice Act to be repealed. Current Action in Progress here
To call your NC legislators pertinent to this discussion GO here IF you're having trouble ascertaining your 9 diget postal zip, call your local post office...
Come see for yourself. We expect Senate Bill 9 to be discussed by the House Judiciary Subcommittee B next Wednesday, June 1 at 10 am in room 421 of the Legislative Office Building and encourage you to attend.
Please contact Amanda Lattanzio at amanda (at) pfadp (dot) org or 919.933.7567 with any questions.
If you're able to attend the Wednesday 10 AM hearing, you may want to bring a petition signed by some of your contacts and friends.
To read about other happenings in NC related to the Death Penalty GO to pfadp.org or CLICK here
Friday, 27 May 2011
Last week, NC House leaders twisted the rules to help ensure an end to the NC Racial Justice Act.
Get this, Rep. Paul “Skip” Stam (R-Wake) rewrote a senate bill into one calling for repeal of the RJA. Senate Bill 9 was originally entitled "Make Synthetic Cannabinoids Illegal" and passed the Senate in that form. The bill was then gutted and replaced with language similar to House Bill 615, calling to repeal the RJA. If the bill passes the House in this form, then the Senate will not be able to change it.
Take action now – let your legislators know that you do not approve of these sneaky tactics and do not want the Racial Justice Act to be repealed. Current Action in Progress here
To call your NC legislators pertinent to this discussion GO here IF you're having trouble ascertaining your 9 diget postal zip, call your local post office...
Come see for yourself. We expect Senate Bill 9 to be discussed by the House Judiciary Subcommittee B next Wednesday, June 1 at 10 am in room 421 of the Legislative Office Building and encourage you to attend.
Please contact Amanda Lattanzio at amanda (at) pfadp (dot) org or 919.933.7567 with any questions.
If you're able to attend the Wednesday 10 AM hearing, you may want to bring a petition signed by some of your contacts and friends.
To read about other happenings in NC related to the Death Penalty GO to pfadp.org or CLICK here
Sunday, May 29, 2011
NC Racial Justice Act: More Questions & Answers - original Act & Appeal
Add and Isolate CURRENT legislators to call for entire state which are on the Judiciary Subcommittee B - particularly the Repubs. Mention and study Senate Bill 9.
CURRENT status: Last week, NC House leaders rewrote a senate bill into one calling for repeal of the RJA. Senate Bill 9 was originally entitled "Make Synthetic Cannabinoids Illegal" and passed the Senate in that form. That bill was then gutted and replaced with language similar to House Bill 615, calling to repeal the RJA.
Unlikely that should bill passes the House in this form, the Senate would be able to change it.
TAKE ACTION NOW: CONTACT legislators questioning tactics & urging that the Racial Justice Act NOT be repealed =
http://salsa.democracyinaction.org/o/1576/p/dia/action/public/?action_KEY=6422 or
http://pfadp.org/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=74&Itemid=97
Clergy who endorsed EARLIER Letter in Support of RJA See if you know or are in area of any of these leaders and let them know about the URGENTLY needed action here
Come see for yourself. We expect Senate Bill 9 to be discussed by the House Judiciary Subcommittee B next Wednesday, June 1 at 10 am in room 421 of the Legislative Office Building and encourage you to attend.
CURRENT status: Last week, NC House leaders rewrote a senate bill into one calling for repeal of the RJA. Senate Bill 9 was originally entitled "Make Synthetic Cannabinoids Illegal" and passed the Senate in that form. That bill was then gutted and replaced with language similar to House Bill 615, calling to repeal the RJA.
Unlikely that should bill passes the House in this form, the Senate would be able to change it.
TAKE ACTION NOW: CONTACT legislators questioning tactics & urging that the Racial Justice Act NOT be repealed =
http://salsa.democracyinaction.org/o/1576/p/dia/action/public/?action_KEY=6422 or
http://pfadp.org/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=74&Itemid=97
Clergy who endorsed EARLIER Letter in Support of RJA See if you know or are in area of any of these leaders and let them know about the URGENTLY needed action here
Come see for yourself. We expect Senate Bill 9 to be discussed by the House Judiciary Subcommittee B next Wednesday, June 1 at 10 am in room 421 of the Legislative Office Building and encourage you to attend.
Saturday, May 28, 2011
NC: June 8-10: 3rd National Conference on Restorative Justice
*
“If you want peace, work for justice.”
Henry Louis Mencken
Campbell University, Raleigh, North Carolina!
Norman Adrian Wiggins School of Law
225 Hillsborough St. Ste. 302
Raleigh, NC 27603
919.856.4692
Among the presentations is the experience of South Africans with The Truth and Reconciliation Commission featuring Nontombi Naomi Tutu
here
GO to the home site here
Planned Program pdf here
More Information and Presenters with Photos here
* Photo on top from internet cache (or let me know)
TEXAS: Criminal Justice Reform Bills Pass
Steve Saloom, policy director for the Innocence Project, which has worked with other Texas stakeholders over the last six years to develop an eyewitness ID reform measure that could actually pass, says the incremental change in this bill is a good first step. “This is the best legislation and the most effective that this legislative process would allow for this year,” he said. (excerpt from article below)
BY JORDAN SMITH, 5:19PM, THU. MAY. 26
Two criminal justice reform measures recommended last year by the Tim Cole Advisory Panel are now on their way to Gov. Rick Perry.
Senate Bill 122 by Sen. Rodney Ellis, expanding access to post-conviction DNA testing, and House Bill 215, an effort to improve the reliability of eyewitness identifications, each passed last week and will move to Perry’s desk. The Advisory Panel convened after the 2010 session to recommend improvements to Texas law that might help to prevent wrongful convictions – like that of the panel’s namesake, Tim Cole, who was convicted of a rape he did not commit, died in prison before he could clear his name, and was posthumously exonerated. But whether the reforms – particularly the eyewitness ID bill – will actually help prevent future miscarriages of justice remains to be seen. Ellis’ DNA bill would expand access to post-conviction testing based on claims of innocence, and would require testing whenever there is biological evidence that has not previously been tested, or when the evidence can be subjected to newer techniques that might be more revealing than the results of an older test. As the law currently reads, an inmate can access post-conviction testing only if the testing wasn’t previously available, the tests were not advanced enough to provide probative evidence of guilt or innocence, or the testing was not done through no fault of the defendant.
That last provision in particular has wreaked some havoc in Texas; in the case of death row inmate Hank Skinner – sentenced to death for a 1993 triple murder he says he did not commit – prosecutors blocked Skinner’s efforts for additional DNA testing of crime-scene evidence, saying he defaulted that right when, prior to his original trial, his lawyer chose not to test all items available for testing. Ellis’ bill would strip the narrowing language from the statute, ensuring that “if there is DNA evidence available to prove someone’s innocence, it can and will be tested,” Ellis said in a press release. “No longer will the door to justice be shut just because of a procedural error.” (SB 122 passed on a unanimous vote in the Senate in April and made it out of the House May 20, on a vote of 145-4.)
This is no small issue in Texas where, to date, there have been 46 DNA exonerations. Faulty eyewitness ID was implicated in the vast majority of those wrongful convictions, but it’s unclear whether Gallego’s HB 215 would be an effective tool to end mistaken IDs. (The bill passed the House in March with only Leo Berman, R-Tyler, voting against it, and passed out of the Senate unanimously last week.) The bill requires police agencies to adopt – by Sept. 1, 2012 – a “model” policy for administering live and photo lineups. The problem, however, is that there is no enforcement mechanism – no sanction for agencies that do not adopt such a policy – and, importantly,there is nothing in the bill that would keep out of court eyewitness IDs not obtained using best practices.
Still,Steve Saloom, policy director for the Innocence Project, which has worked with other Texas stakeholders over the last six years to develop an eyewitness ID reform measure that could actually pass, says the incremental change in this bill is a good first step. “This is the best legislation and the most effective that this legislative process would allow for this year,” he said.
http://www.austinchronicle.com/blogs/news/2011-05-26/criminal-justice-reform-bills-pass/ or CLICK here
BY JORDAN SMITH, 5:19PM, THU. MAY. 26
Two criminal justice reform measures recommended last year by the Tim Cole Advisory Panel are now on their way to Gov. Rick Perry.
Senate Bill 122 by Sen. Rodney Ellis, expanding access to post-conviction DNA testing, and House Bill 215, an effort to improve the reliability of eyewitness identifications, each passed last week and will move to Perry’s desk. The Advisory Panel convened after the 2010 session to recommend improvements to Texas law that might help to prevent wrongful convictions – like that of the panel’s namesake, Tim Cole, who was convicted of a rape he did not commit, died in prison before he could clear his name, and was posthumously exonerated. But whether the reforms – particularly the eyewitness ID bill – will actually help prevent future miscarriages of justice remains to be seen. Ellis’ DNA bill would expand access to post-conviction testing based on claims of innocence, and would require testing whenever there is biological evidence that has not previously been tested, or when the evidence can be subjected to newer techniques that might be more revealing than the results of an older test. As the law currently reads, an inmate can access post-conviction testing only if the testing wasn’t previously available, the tests were not advanced enough to provide probative evidence of guilt or innocence, or the testing was not done through no fault of the defendant.
That last provision in particular has wreaked some havoc in Texas; in the case of death row inmate Hank Skinner – sentenced to death for a 1993 triple murder he says he did not commit – prosecutors blocked Skinner’s efforts for additional DNA testing of crime-scene evidence, saying he defaulted that right when, prior to his original trial, his lawyer chose not to test all items available for testing. Ellis’ bill would strip the narrowing language from the statute, ensuring that “if there is DNA evidence available to prove someone’s innocence, it can and will be tested,” Ellis said in a press release. “No longer will the door to justice be shut just because of a procedural error.” (SB 122 passed on a unanimous vote in the Senate in April and made it out of the House May 20, on a vote of 145-4.)
This is no small issue in Texas where, to date, there have been 46 DNA exonerations. Faulty eyewitness ID was implicated in the vast majority of those wrongful convictions, but it’s unclear whether Gallego’s HB 215 would be an effective tool to end mistaken IDs. (The bill passed the House in March with only Leo Berman, R-Tyler, voting against it, and passed out of the Senate unanimously last week.) The bill requires police agencies to adopt – by Sept. 1, 2012 – a “model” policy for administering live and photo lineups. The problem, however, is that there is no enforcement mechanism – no sanction for agencies that do not adopt such a policy – and, importantly,there is nothing in the bill that would keep out of court eyewitness IDs not obtained using best practices.
Still,Steve Saloom, policy director for the Innocence Project, which has worked with other Texas stakeholders over the last six years to develop an eyewitness ID reform measure that could actually pass, says the incremental change in this bill is a good first step. “This is the best legislation and the most effective that this legislative process would allow for this year,” he said.
http://www.austinchronicle.com/blogs/news/2011-05-26/criminal-justice-reform-bills-pass/ or CLICK here
Wednesday, May 25, 2011
ACTION update: PRESS RELEASE: NC Racial Justice Act - Arrests at NC General Assembly
David LaMotte (Be sure to see his: "Why I Am in Jail" below as well as the video from the struggle to pass the NC Racial Justice Act)
May 27, 2011 ACTION UPDATE from People of Faith Against the Death Penalty (NC) What Are They Smoking? Last week, NC House leaders twisted the rules to help ensure an end to the NC Racial Justice Act.
Get this, Rep. Paul “Skip” Stam (R-Wake) rewrote a senate bill into one calling for repeal of the RJA. Senate Bill 9 was originally entitled "Make Synthetic Cannabinoids Illegal" and passed the Senate in that form. The bill was then gutted and replaced with language similar to House Bill 615, calling to repeal the RJA. If the bill passes the House in this form, then the Senate will not be able to change it.
TAKE ACTION NOW – let your legislators know that you do not approve of these sneaky tactics and do not want the Racial Justice Act to be repealed. Come see for yourself. We expect Senate Bill 9 to be discussed by the House Judiciary Subcommittee B next Wednesday, June 1 at 10 am in room 421 of the Legislative Office Building and encourage you to attend. Please contact Amanda Lattanzio at amanda@pfadp.org or 919.933.7567 with any questions.
People of Faith Against the Death Penalty
www.pfadp.org
110 W. Main St., Suite 2-G, Carrboro NC 27510
(919) 933-7567
==========
EARLIER:
Two folks we work with in NC with various Peace/Justice and Rights efforts were arrested yesterday at the NC General Assembly: David LaMotte of NC Council of Churches and Timothy Hodges of Johnston Co. NAACP. Please send out an alert to various rights groups. Letters to Editor, Op Ed, calls, letters from all over the country especially needed at this time.
Losing the NC Racial Justice Act would be a let-down far and wide and would only increase the chances of the trend toward preemptive prosecutions related to religious and racial profiling - especially toward Blacks, Muslims and Hispanics.
http://www.indyweek.com/citizen/archives/2011/05/24/rev-barber-others-arrested-at-the-general-assembly-video or CLICK here
http://citizenjames72.blogspot.com/2011/05/naacp-leader-barber-arrested-in.html or GO here
See David's article at:
http://www.nccouncilofchurches.org/2011/05/why-i-am-in-jail/ or GO here
See also David's facebook page:
http://www.facebook.com/home.php#!/davidlamotte or GO here
and his web site: http://www.davidlamotte.com/tag/nc-racial-justice-act/ or CLICK
here
You Tube Video with Ed Chapman illustrating the need for the NC RJA here
Western North Carolinians for Death Penalty Repeal - HB 615 does NOT amend the NC Racial Justice Act, it renders it meaningless FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: March 28, 2011. CONTACT: ACLU of Western North Carolina - GO hereng the NC Racial Justice Act (with parallels re. issues, tactics, helpful commentary (the US - ACLU is highlighted as the FIRST to be aware of the See also here
Monday, May 23, 2011
Immigrant inspires with forgiveness for killer
published in The Dalles Morning News on May 20th
The capacity for compassion and forgiveness can reach almost unbelievable proportions.
The post-9/11 shooting spree by Mark Stroman was a predatory act of ghastly viciousness. To a Dallas County jury, the two lives that Stroman took demanded a sentence of death by injection.
But to a shooting victim who survived — a man who was targeted because of the color of his skin — the violence was a moment of confused, misguided hatred.
It’s time for the hate to stop, says Rais Bhuiyan, a native of Bangladesh.
With his attacker set to die in Huntsville this summer, Bhuiyan has begun a quiet campaign to spare the man’s life.
We wish to give that campaign voice. It delivers a potent message to a nation still torn by the loss of 9/11. It resists the cycle of revenge that doesn’t stop until someone has the courage to say enough.
That’s Bhuiyan’s message: enough. He attributes his conviction to his Islamic faith and his willingness to forgive. Ironically, it was that religious faith that Stroman targeted when he started staking out shopkeepers he assumed to be believers in Islam after Sept. 11, 2001.
It’s a further irony that Stroman killed a non-Muslim, Vasudev Patel, 49, a Hindu from India . He also executed Waqar Hasan, 46, a native of Pakistan.
Bhuiyan, 37, was ambushed while working the counter of a Far East Dallas Texaco station. He recalls Stroman saying just one thing before firing a single blast from a derringer packing a shotgun shell: “Where are you from?”
Had he been able to answer, Bhuiyan might have said he emigrated from Bangladesh after serving as a pilot in his native country’s air force. He might have said he came here because an education and career in America had been a dream.
Despite the ugliness that festers in this country, Bhuiyan’s belief in America has not withered. Now a citizen with a technology career, he overlooks the blindness in his right eye, the shotgun pellets he carries in his face and the fear that stalks him. He wants to help build a better society. Overcoming ignorance and pain, he says, is vital if the nation wants to heal.
That is thoroughly American optimism. Our nation should embrace it regardless of the country and religious faith it comes from.
In this campaign, Bhuiyan is not out to abolish the death penalty (a penalty this newspaper believes should end because it can’t be reliably, evenly applied). His campaign is not about revamping the justice system. It’s more personal than that.
Bhuiyan hopes to meet with Dallas County District Attorney Craig Watkins and Gov. Rick Perry — both supporters of the death penalty — to press the case for sparing his attacker’s life. An uphill quest? Yes. But this country wasn’t built by newcomers with modest dreams.
The capacity for compassion and forgiveness can reach almost unbelievable proportions.
The post-9/11 shooting spree by Mark Stroman was a predatory act of ghastly viciousness. To a Dallas County jury, the two lives that Stroman took demanded a sentence of death by injection.
But to a shooting victim who survived — a man who was targeted because of the color of his skin — the violence was a moment of confused, misguided hatred.
It’s time for the hate to stop, says Rais Bhuiyan, a native of Bangladesh.
With his attacker set to die in Huntsville this summer, Bhuiyan has begun a quiet campaign to spare the man’s life.
We wish to give that campaign voice. It delivers a potent message to a nation still torn by the loss of 9/11. It resists the cycle of revenge that doesn’t stop until someone has the courage to say enough.
That’s Bhuiyan’s message: enough. He attributes his conviction to his Islamic faith and his willingness to forgive. Ironically, it was that religious faith that Stroman targeted when he started staking out shopkeepers he assumed to be believers in Islam after Sept. 11, 2001.
It’s a further irony that Stroman killed a non-Muslim, Vasudev Patel, 49, a Hindu from India . He also executed Waqar Hasan, 46, a native of Pakistan.
Bhuiyan, 37, was ambushed while working the counter of a Far East Dallas Texaco station. He recalls Stroman saying just one thing before firing a single blast from a derringer packing a shotgun shell: “Where are you from?”
Had he been able to answer, Bhuiyan might have said he emigrated from Bangladesh after serving as a pilot in his native country’s air force. He might have said he came here because an education and career in America had been a dream.
Despite the ugliness that festers in this country, Bhuiyan’s belief in America has not withered. Now a citizen with a technology career, he overlooks the blindness in his right eye, the shotgun pellets he carries in his face and the fear that stalks him. He wants to help build a better society. Overcoming ignorance and pain, he says, is vital if the nation wants to heal.
That is thoroughly American optimism. Our nation should embrace it regardless of the country and religious faith it comes from.
In this campaign, Bhuiyan is not out to abolish the death penalty (a penalty this newspaper believes should end because it can’t be reliably, evenly applied). His campaign is not about revamping the justice system. It’s more personal than that.
Bhuiyan hopes to meet with Dallas County District Attorney Craig Watkins and Gov. Rick Perry — both supporters of the death penalty — to press the case for sparing his attacker’s life. An uphill quest? Yes. But this country wasn’t built by newcomers with modest dreams.
NC Racial Justice Act blowing in the wind?
If you're in NC try to locate the phone numbers/emails for the NC House Judiciary Committee B If short of time, you may want to call/email only the Republicans because it does sound like in this case the Demos are a solid block against the Repeal. I was on phone long time - esp. with one staffer who mainly was trying to convince me that since God was sovereign - we needn't push for any certian result and that the office had plenty of research so let it be however things come out. Hopefully just mainly listening allowed my few points to make a difference?
This is such a crucial vote...plz do your part...
=================
Attorneys speak out on N.C. racial bias law repeal
Lawmakers consider overturning 2009 legislation
Published Monday, May 23, 2011 12:22 pm
by Gary Robertson, Associated Press
RALEIGH, – Prosecutors, defense attorneys and relatives of murder victims are speaking out for and against Republican legislation that would cancel a 2009 law that North Carolina death-row inmates are using to challenge their sentences on the basis of racial bias.
A House judiciary committee received comments on the repeal of the 2009 Racial Justice Act, which would eliminate a method whereby defendants can offer statistical evidence to show race played a key factor in putting a disproportionate number of people from a racial group on death row or on trial for their lives. No vote on the legislation was taken.
Most of North Carolina's death row inmates filed paperwork under the law to overturn their sentences, including some offenders who are the same race as their victims and have never previously offered allegations of racial discrimination in subsequent appeals, according to a district attorney who spoke at the hearing.
Seth Edwards, the district attorney for Beaufort, Hyde, Martin, Tyrrell and Washington counties, said there are already legal safeguards in place to ensure defendants in capital cases are tried fairly and without regard to skin color, including in the choice of jurors.
“I can assure you that in these capital murder cases, these cases are about the actions of the defendant,” said Edwards, president of the North Carolina Conference of District Attorneys. “They are not about the race of the defendant. They are not about the race of the victim.''
Edwards held up a picture of the victim of a 2001 Washington County murder who was suffocated in plastic wrapped around his head. The victim and the defendant, who is now on death row, are black.
“Do you believe that the defendant was sentenced to death in this case because of his race?” he asked. “I submit not.”
Defense attorneys said the potential repeal would reverse efforts by the General Assembly to ensure the criminal justice system is legitimate. No one is denying murder cases involve brutal crimes, said Henderson Hill, a Charlotte defense lawyer who has represented death row inmates.
Hill said the Racial Justice Act gives defendants and their attorneys access to science to provide proof that there are traditions and practices in law offices and counties that disenfranchise black residents, such as by keeping them off of juries. A judge who finds race was a key factor in the case can reduce a death row inmate's sentence to life in prison without parole.
“Every homicide case has bad pictures,'' Hill said. “This bill is not about guilt or innocence. The question is whether the system is legitimate.''
A recent Michigan State University showed a defendant is 2.6 times more likely to be sentenced to death if at least one of the victims is white. The study also showed that out of the 159 people on death row, 31 had all-white juries and 38 had only one person of color on their jury.
After the hearing, family members of murder victims who support the Racial Justice Act held a news conference.
Therese Bartholomew of Charlotte, who said she pursued a master's degree in criminal justice after her brother was shot to death in 2003 to better understand the system, said she was offended by the complaint from prosecutors that white death row inmates also were using the law to challenge their convictions.
“Isn't the point that we're all supposed to have equal access to justice?” she asked. “That's supposed to be the point, regardless of our skin.''
Associated Press writer Emery P. Dalesio contributed to this report.
This is such a crucial vote...plz do your part...
=================
Attorneys speak out on N.C. racial bias law repeal
Lawmakers consider overturning 2009 legislation
Published Monday, May 23, 2011 12:22 pm
by Gary Robertson, Associated Press
RALEIGH, – Prosecutors, defense attorneys and relatives of murder victims are speaking out for and against Republican legislation that would cancel a 2009 law that North Carolina death-row inmates are using to challenge their sentences on the basis of racial bias.
A House judiciary committee received comments on the repeal of the 2009 Racial Justice Act, which would eliminate a method whereby defendants can offer statistical evidence to show race played a key factor in putting a disproportionate number of people from a racial group on death row or on trial for their lives. No vote on the legislation was taken.
Most of North Carolina's death row inmates filed paperwork under the law to overturn their sentences, including some offenders who are the same race as their victims and have never previously offered allegations of racial discrimination in subsequent appeals, according to a district attorney who spoke at the hearing.
Seth Edwards, the district attorney for Beaufort, Hyde, Martin, Tyrrell and Washington counties, said there are already legal safeguards in place to ensure defendants in capital cases are tried fairly and without regard to skin color, including in the choice of jurors.
“I can assure you that in these capital murder cases, these cases are about the actions of the defendant,” said Edwards, president of the North Carolina Conference of District Attorneys. “They are not about the race of the defendant. They are not about the race of the victim.''
Edwards held up a picture of the victim of a 2001 Washington County murder who was suffocated in plastic wrapped around his head. The victim and the defendant, who is now on death row, are black.
“Do you believe that the defendant was sentenced to death in this case because of his race?” he asked. “I submit not.”
Defense attorneys said the potential repeal would reverse efforts by the General Assembly to ensure the criminal justice system is legitimate. No one is denying murder cases involve brutal crimes, said Henderson Hill, a Charlotte defense lawyer who has represented death row inmates.
Hill said the Racial Justice Act gives defendants and their attorneys access to science to provide proof that there are traditions and practices in law offices and counties that disenfranchise black residents, such as by keeping them off of juries. A judge who finds race was a key factor in the case can reduce a death row inmate's sentence to life in prison without parole.
“Every homicide case has bad pictures,'' Hill said. “This bill is not about guilt or innocence. The question is whether the system is legitimate.''
A recent Michigan State University showed a defendant is 2.6 times more likely to be sentenced to death if at least one of the victims is white. The study also showed that out of the 159 people on death row, 31 had all-white juries and 38 had only one person of color on their jury.
After the hearing, family members of murder victims who support the Racial Justice Act held a news conference.
Therese Bartholomew of Charlotte, who said she pursued a master's degree in criminal justice after her brother was shot to death in 2003 to better understand the system, said she was offended by the complaint from prosecutors that white death row inmates also were using the law to challenge their convictions.
“Isn't the point that we're all supposed to have equal access to justice?” she asked. “That's supposed to be the point, regardless of our skin.''
Associated Press writer Emery P. Dalesio contributed to this report.
Tuesday, May 17, 2011
ACTION TODAY NC: Stop the attacks on the RJA - the NC Racial Justice Act
Ken Rose See ABA Journal - Current Debate just below
REMEMBER the victory, the many folk who supported the NC Racial Justice Act?
Here's a reminder of this recent triumphant history - GO:
here
Here's some of the Current Debate - GO:
here
NOW this amazing Act and Role-Model for other states is in jeopardy.
PLEASE HELP:
Stop the Repeal of the NC Racial Justice Act
HOUSE BILL 615, which will repeal the Racial Justice if passed, is in the House Judiciary Subcommittee B and has been rescheduled to be heard this WEDNESDAY, May 18.
Take action now. Click just below to instantly send custom messages to your legislators to stop this bill, HB615, or to call them - their phone numbers will appear alongside the targeted messages.
We need the RJA now as much as ever.
Speak up today. Contact your legislators right now by simply Calling Them UP - often this is the easiest and most effective way to act in such cases
You may wish to save this info on State Legislation here below:
#
North Carolina General Assembly - House
ncga.state.nc.us
Raleigh, North Carolina 27601-1096. The House of Representatives consists of ...
www.ncga.state.nc.us/house/house.html or CLICK here
OR CLICK TO ACT and to find your legislator(s) here (If you're having difficulty like me, CALL Amanda and let her know.)
IF in the area of Raleigh: Please come to the hearing this Wednesday at 10 am in Room 421 of the Legislative Office Building behind the Legislative Building, 16 W. Jones St., Raleigh.
For more information, contact Amanda Lattanzio at amanda@pfadp.org or 919.933.7567.
People of Faith Against the Death Penalty
www.pfadp.org
110 W. Main St., Suite 2-G, Carrboro NC 27510
(919) 933-7567
Tuesday, May 10, 2011
The Horrific Legacy of the Extra-Judicial Killing of OBL
The Targeted Assassination of Osama Bin Laden
BY Marjorie Cohn Originally published by author MONDAY, MAY 9, 2011
(posted other places such as Common Dreams and Counter Currents by Tuesday)
EXCERPT to REMEMBER: "U.S. Supreme Court Justice Robert H. Jackson, who served as chief prosecutor at the Nuremberg War Crimes Tribunal, told President Harry Truman: “We could execute or otherwise punish [the Nazi leaders] without a hearing. But undiscriminating executions or punishments without definite findings of guilt, fairly arrived at, would … not set easily on the American conscience or be remembered by children with pride.”
When he announced that Osama bin Laden had been killed by a Navy Seal team in Pakistan, President Barack Obama said, “Justice has been done.” Mr. Obama misused the word, "justice" when he made that statement. He should have said, "Retaliation has been accomplished." A former professor of constitutional law should know the difference between those two concepts. The word "justice" implies an act of applying or upholding the law.
Targeted assassinations violate well-established principles of international law. Also called political assassinations, they are extrajudicial executions. These are unlawful and deliberate killings carried out by order of, or with the acquiescence of, a government, outside any judicial framework.
Extrajudicial executions are unlawful, even in armed conflict. In a 1998 report, the United Nations Special Rapporteur on extrajudicial, summary or arbitrary executions noted that “extrajudicial executions can never be justified under any circumstances, not even in time of war.” The U.N. General Assembly and Human Rights Commission, as well as Amnesty International, have all condemned extrajudicial executions.
In spite of its illegality, the Obama administration frequently uses targeted assassinations to accomplish its goals. Five days after executing Osama bin Laden, Mr. Obama tried to bring “justice” to U.S. citizen Anwar al-Awlaki, who has not been charged with any crime in the United States. The unmanned drone attack in Yemen missed al-Awlaki and killed two people “believed to be al Qaeda militants,” according to a CBS/AP bulletin.
Two days before the Yemen attack, U.S. drones killed 15 people in Pakistan and wounded four. Since the March 17 drone attack that killed 44 people, also in Pakistan, there have been four drone strikes. In 2010, American drones carried out 111 strikes. The Human Rights Commission of Pakistan says that 957 civilians were killed in 2010.
The United States disavowed the use of extrajudicial killings under President Gerald Ford. After the Senate Select Committee on Intelligence disclosed in 1975 that the CIA had been involved in several murders or attempted murders of foreign leaders, President Ford issued an executive order banning assassinations. Every succeeding president until George W. Bush renewed that order. However, the Clinton administration targeted Osama bin Laden in Afghanistan, but narrowly missed him.
In July 2001, the U.S. Ambassador to Israel denounced Israel’s policy of targeted killings, or “preemptive operations.” He said “the United States government is very clearly on the record as against targeted assassinations. They are extrajudicial killings, and we do not support that.”
Yet after September 11, 2001, former White House press secretary Ari Fleischer invited the killing of Saddam Hussein: “The cost of one bullet, if the Iraqi people take it on themselves, is substantially less” than the cost of war. Shortly thereafter, Bush issued a secret directive, which authorized the CIA to target suspected terrorists for assassination when it would be impractical to capture them and when large-scale civilian casualties could be avoided.
In November 2002, Bush reportedly authorized the CIA to assassinate a suspected Al Qaeda leader in Yemen. He and five traveling companions were killed in the hit, which Deputy Defense Secretary Paul Wolfowitz described as a “very successful tactical operation.”
After the Holocaust, Winston Churchill wanted to execute the Nazi leaders without trials. But the U.S. government opposed the extrajudicial executions of Nazi officials who had committed genocide against millions of people. U.S. Supreme Court Justice Robert H. Jackson, who served as chief prosecutor at the Nuremberg War Crimes Tribunal, told President Harry Truman: “We could execute or otherwise punish [the Nazi leaders] without a hearing. But undiscriminating executions or punishments without definite findings of guilt, fairly arrived at, would … not set easily on the American conscience or be remembered by children with pride.”
Osama bin Laden and the “suspected militants” targeted in drone attacks should have been arrested and tried in U.S. courts or an international tribunal. Obama cannot serve as judge, jury and executioner. These assassinations are not only illegal; they create a dangerous precedent, which could be used to justify the targeted killings of U.S. leaders.
BY Marjorie Cohn Originally published by author MONDAY, MAY 9, 2011
(posted other places such as Common Dreams and Counter Currents by Tuesday)
EXCERPT to REMEMBER: "U.S. Supreme Court Justice Robert H. Jackson, who served as chief prosecutor at the Nuremberg War Crimes Tribunal, told President Harry Truman: “We could execute or otherwise punish [the Nazi leaders] without a hearing. But undiscriminating executions or punishments without definite findings of guilt, fairly arrived at, would … not set easily on the American conscience or be remembered by children with pride.”
When he announced that Osama bin Laden had been killed by a Navy Seal team in Pakistan, President Barack Obama said, “Justice has been done.” Mr. Obama misused the word, "justice" when he made that statement. He should have said, "Retaliation has been accomplished." A former professor of constitutional law should know the difference between those two concepts. The word "justice" implies an act of applying or upholding the law.
Targeted assassinations violate well-established principles of international law. Also called political assassinations, they are extrajudicial executions. These are unlawful and deliberate killings carried out by order of, or with the acquiescence of, a government, outside any judicial framework.
Extrajudicial executions are unlawful, even in armed conflict. In a 1998 report, the United Nations Special Rapporteur on extrajudicial, summary or arbitrary executions noted that “extrajudicial executions can never be justified under any circumstances, not even in time of war.” The U.N. General Assembly and Human Rights Commission, as well as Amnesty International, have all condemned extrajudicial executions.
In spite of its illegality, the Obama administration frequently uses targeted assassinations to accomplish its goals. Five days after executing Osama bin Laden, Mr. Obama tried to bring “justice” to U.S. citizen Anwar al-Awlaki, who has not been charged with any crime in the United States. The unmanned drone attack in Yemen missed al-Awlaki and killed two people “believed to be al Qaeda militants,” according to a CBS/AP bulletin.
Two days before the Yemen attack, U.S. drones killed 15 people in Pakistan and wounded four. Since the March 17 drone attack that killed 44 people, also in Pakistan, there have been four drone strikes. In 2010, American drones carried out 111 strikes. The Human Rights Commission of Pakistan says that 957 civilians were killed in 2010.
The United States disavowed the use of extrajudicial killings under President Gerald Ford. After the Senate Select Committee on Intelligence disclosed in 1975 that the CIA had been involved in several murders or attempted murders of foreign leaders, President Ford issued an executive order banning assassinations. Every succeeding president until George W. Bush renewed that order. However, the Clinton administration targeted Osama bin Laden in Afghanistan, but narrowly missed him.
In July 2001, the U.S. Ambassador to Israel denounced Israel’s policy of targeted killings, or “preemptive operations.” He said “the United States government is very clearly on the record as against targeted assassinations. They are extrajudicial killings, and we do not support that.”
Yet after September 11, 2001, former White House press secretary Ari Fleischer invited the killing of Saddam Hussein: “The cost of one bullet, if the Iraqi people take it on themselves, is substantially less” than the cost of war. Shortly thereafter, Bush issued a secret directive, which authorized the CIA to target suspected terrorists for assassination when it would be impractical to capture them and when large-scale civilian casualties could be avoided.
In November 2002, Bush reportedly authorized the CIA to assassinate a suspected Al Qaeda leader in Yemen. He and five traveling companions were killed in the hit, which Deputy Defense Secretary Paul Wolfowitz described as a “very successful tactical operation.”
After the Holocaust, Winston Churchill wanted to execute the Nazi leaders without trials. But the U.S. government opposed the extrajudicial executions of Nazi officials who had committed genocide against millions of people. U.S. Supreme Court Justice Robert H. Jackson, who served as chief prosecutor at the Nuremberg War Crimes Tribunal, told President Harry Truman: “We could execute or otherwise punish [the Nazi leaders] without a hearing. But undiscriminating executions or punishments without definite findings of guilt, fairly arrived at, would … not set easily on the American conscience or be remembered by children with pride.”
Osama bin Laden and the “suspected militants” targeted in drone attacks should have been arrested and tried in U.S. courts or an international tribunal. Obama cannot serve as judge, jury and executioner. These assassinations are not only illegal; they create a dangerous precedent, which could be used to justify the targeted killings of U.S. leaders.
Friday, May 06, 2011
Women and the Death Penalty
Photos from Death Penalty Info Center
The latest edition of the Death Penalty Information Center's series of podcasts, DPIC on the Issues, is now available. This podcast addresses Women and the Death Penalty, including a short history of women executed in America, the possibility of gender bias, and differences between women and men in support of the death penalty. Generally, this series of podcasts offers brief, informative discussions of key death penalty issues. Other recent episodes include discussions on Mental Illness and Lethal Injection. Click here to listen to DPIC's latest podcast. You can also subscribe through iTunes to receive automatic updates when new episodes are posted and receive access to all previous episodes. Other audio and video resources, along with all of DPIC's podcasts, can be found on our Multimedia page.(DPIC, posted May 6, 2011). If you have suggestions for topics you would like to see addressed in future podcasts, contact us at dpic@deathpenaltyinfo.org. See also Women on this site:
deathpenaltyinfo.org or GO here
Tuesday, May 03, 2011
Son of murdered woman opposes death penalty
by Marcy Martinez
posted on ValleyCentral.com on May 2nd
In 1991, Chris Castillo had to bury his 52 year old mother Pilar.
The Brownsville registered nurse had moved to Houston where she was the President of the Mexican American Chamber of Commerce and served on a review board for the Houston Police Department.
Chris drove from Beaumont to Houston to find out that his mom had been brutally murdered inside her home..
"She was strangled to death in her bed and one of the things they did was they robbed the home and they had her sign some checks so she knew what was going on," said Castillo.
His mom's murder case has gone cold with the alleged killers fleeing the country possibly back to Honduras, but if they are ever found , Chris does not want them to be executed.
He's in his mom's hometown of Brownsville speaking out against the death penalty.
"It costs 2 to 3 times more to execute somebody on death row, versus, life in prison and I'd like to see that money spent on cold cases and victims rights and services."
Chris went through years of depression after his mom's murder and then found an escape, mentoring inmates in prison.
"It really changed the hatred inside of me to peace, and that's all I can do so that I can live day by day."
Now he spends his days telling his mother's story as part of the Texas Coalition to Abolish The Death Penalty in hopes of getting more people to see as he does, that taking another life is not going to bring Pilar back, and will only make more people suffer as he did.
It's something he believes his mom would have encouraged, that's to be a survivor and not a victim.
"I think she was for righteousness."
posted on ValleyCentral.com on May 2nd
In 1991, Chris Castillo had to bury his 52 year old mother Pilar.
The Brownsville registered nurse had moved to Houston where she was the President of the Mexican American Chamber of Commerce and served on a review board for the Houston Police Department.
Chris drove from Beaumont to Houston to find out that his mom had been brutally murdered inside her home..
"She was strangled to death in her bed and one of the things they did was they robbed the home and they had her sign some checks so she knew what was going on," said Castillo.
His mom's murder case has gone cold with the alleged killers fleeing the country possibly back to Honduras, but if they are ever found , Chris does not want them to be executed.
He's in his mom's hometown of Brownsville speaking out against the death penalty.
"It costs 2 to 3 times more to execute somebody on death row, versus, life in prison and I'd like to see that money spent on cold cases and victims rights and services."
Chris went through years of depression after his mom's murder and then found an escape, mentoring inmates in prison.
"It really changed the hatred inside of me to peace, and that's all I can do so that I can live day by day."
Now he spends his days telling his mother's story as part of the Texas Coalition to Abolish The Death Penalty in hopes of getting more people to see as he does, that taking another life is not going to bring Pilar back, and will only make more people suffer as he did.
It's something he believes his mom would have encouraged, that's to be a survivor and not a victim.
"I think she was for righteousness."
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