“When we focus on revenge instead of healing, we never heal”
July 31, 2019
In 1986, my 70-year-old mother was asleep in her own bed when a teenaged neighbor broke into her home, raped her, and then beat her
In 1986, my 70-year-old mother was asleep in her own bed when a teenaged neighbor broke into her home, raped her, and then beat her
The Department of Justice announced today that it has scheduled five executions in December and January; the first federal executions since 2003. “The federal death
Death penalty lawyer and DPF board member Robert M. Sanger believes that the moratorium Gov. Gavin Newsom announced in March created “a paradigm shift in
“In Los Angeles County, which is known as a bastion of progressivism, we have a system that is churning out more death sentences than any
Three weeks ago, the U.S. Supreme Court overturned the 2010 conviction of Curtis Flowers, who has been tried six times for a 1996 quadruple murder
Two milestones were reached in June, starkly illustrating how broken the death penalty in the United States is. In North Carolina, prosecutors formally dismissed all
New Mexico closed its death row late last month. The last two condemned prisoners, Timothy Allen and Robert Fry, had their sentences vacated by the
In his chapter, “Capital Punishment,” in the American Bar Association’s The State of Criminal Justice 2019, Ronald J. Tabak reviews significant developments through the past
A report published today by the ACLU, “A Closer Look at Los Angeles County’s Troubling Death-Penalty Track Record,” finds that under LA District Attorney Jackie
President Joseph Biden is the first occupant of the Oval Office in American history to openly and publicly oppose the death penalty and advocate its abolition. What will he do to translate his policy into action. Read Here
A House bill seeking abolish the death penalty in Virginia was introduced by lawmakers in the General Assembly. Backed by Governor Northam, the bill was referred to the Senate Committee on the Judiciary five days ago. Today, Martin Luther King Day, the committee passed Senate Bill 1165 bill by a margin of 10-4. Read Here
Justice Sotomayor offered a fierce dissent before the Trump Administration carried out its 13th Federal Execution since July. Read Here
Early Saturday the Trump administration executed Dusting Higgs. Mr. Higgs was convicted and condemned for killing three women in 1996. With a sworn affidavit by the actual shooter, Mr. Higgs had a strong case as to why he should be spared. The actual shooter was sentenced to life in prison. Mr. Higgs case was reviewed by the U.S. Supreme Court. Once again, SCOTUS did not dig in to the facts.
“We need to do everything in our power to root out white supremacy in all its forms, and that includes ending the death penalty for good. President Biden can do this with the stroke of a pen.” – Representative Cori Bush Watch Now
This week, Donald Trump sanctioned the execution of the only woman on federal death row: Lisa Montgomery. She was the 11th prisoner to be killed since the president restarted federal executions in July 2020. Listen to a report by Ed Pilkington, Chief Reporter for the Guardian. Read Here
Trump’s increase in federal executions exposes the racism, classism, inability to deter crime, and high cost of capital punishment. Read Here
Lisa Montgomery’s first experiences of sexual abuse occurred indirectly when she was three years old. She would lie in bed at night beside her beloved half-sister Diane, close enough to touch, while Diane, then eight, was being raped by their male babysitter. Read Here
“The idea of execution promises catharsis. The reality of it delivers the opposite, a nauseating sense of shame.” Read Elizabeth Bruenig’s Op-ed in the New York Times about witnessing the execution of Alfred Bourgeois. The Man I Saw Them Kill. Read Here