The New York Times reports that Illinois has moved to the center of the death penalty debate. "The national debate over the death penalty returns to the stage here, with an unprecedented set of clemency hearings for nearly all 158 prisoners on Illinois' death row scheduled to begin Tuesday."

"Experts on false confessions, torture, mental retardation and witness identification are being flown in from California, New Mexico and Texas. Some 300 lawyers have prepared briefs."

"On trial are not just the people convicted of the murders, but the criminal justice system itself. Beyond the question of guilt or innocence, of course, is the question of proportionality and fairness of the sentencing process," said Rob Warden, director of the Center on Wrongful Convictions at Northwestern University, which is helping coordinate the petitions for clemency. "Isn't it better that we let 10 absolutely guilty men who committed horrible crimes spend the rest of their lives in prison, rather than risk one, a single execution of an innocent person?"

The National Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers today issued a statement on yesterday's federal court decision in Vermont ruling the federal death penalty unconstitutional.

NACDL President Larry Goldman called upon President Bush and Attorney General Ashcroft to implement a national moratorium on the death penalty. In addition to the number of innocents on death row and issues surrounding the mentally ill and juvenile offenders, he said "We should also consider the international climate...As the only NATO member continuing to employ the death penalty, we are jeopardizing the cooperation we seek in the war on terror."

Press Release from the National Coalition to Abolish the Death Penalty:

"The state of Texas is scheduled to carry out the 800th execution in the United States since the U.S. Supreme Court's 1976 Gregg vs. Georgia decision cleared tthe way for the continuation of capital punishment.

Scheduled for execution at 6 p.m. Central Standard Time Tuesday is Rex Mays, originally from Harris County, Texas. If Mays' execution proceeds, it will mark the 51st execution in the United States this year and the 26th in Texas. An additional 12 executions are scheduled in the United States this year, including eight in Texas.

Steven W. Hawkins, executive director of the National Coalition to Abolish the Death Penalty, noted that were it not for Texas, the United States would see a decline in executions in 2002 for the third consecutive year. He said Texas has accounted for 282, or 35.4 percent, of the executions carried out since 1976.

"If you look at where executions are carried out, it is clear that the death penalty is largely a southern phenomenon in the United States," Hawkins said. "It also is a phenomenon largely reserved for people of color and people who do not have access to qualified attorneys."

Hawkins said that following Texas, the top five states that have carried out the most executions are Virginia (86), Missouri (58), Oklahoma (52) and Florida (51). The next five states are Georgia (30), South Carolina (28), Louisiana (27), Alabama (24) and Arkansas (24). These ten states account for 662 of the 799 executions to date, or well over 75 percent.

Illinois governor George Ryan may commute all death sentences before he leaves office.

"Since Illinois resumed capital punishment in 1977, 12 people have been executed and 13 other death sentences were overturned. In some cases, evidence showed they were innocent; in others, courts ruled that they received unfair trials. "

If he does, he has good cause. After declaring a moratorium on the death penalty in 2000, he commissioned a study as to what went wrong with the death penalty in Illinois and how it could corrected. The report was issued in April, 2002 and contained 85 specific recommendations to remedy the problems. Yet none have been implemented.

Governor Ryan is quoted in the article as saying, "I don't know how I could pick and choose. That's why I have to determine whether it's going to be for everybody or for nobody."

Reading between the lines, we think Governor Ryan is saying he will commute all the death sentences in Illinois unless the legislature first enacts a meaningful number of the recommended reforms. That's not unfair. What's the point of having a fact-finding commission if its conclusions and recommendations are just going to be ignored?

We are posting this in its entirety. Stephen Bright is a saint for those on death row. And after reading this post, visit the Southern Center for Human Rights

STATEMENT REGARDING THE EXECUTION OF WALLACE FUGATE
by Stephen B. Bright

August 16, 2002 -- Wallace Fugate died today as a result of massive failures in Georgia’s legal system.

Mr. Fugate, a carpenter, was unable to afford a lawyer. So William Prior, a Superior Court judge, assigned two court-appointed lawyers who represented him no better than a couple of plumbers would have.

His death penalty trial lasted a mere two days- much shorter than many trials for petty crimes. The trial of Sidney Dorsey went on for six weeks and the State was not even seeking the death penalty.

Wallace Fugate’s sentencing hearing lasted just 27 minutes, about the length of a TV sitcom. But this was not a comedy. It was a tragic farce. No person would buy a house or a car based on a 27-minute presentation, but a jury sentenced Wallace Fugate to death on such a presentation.

In the last 30 years, there have been hundreds – perhaps thousands – of cases similar to Fugate’s in which Georgia prosecutors did not seek the death penalty. Some of those cases were resolved with verdicts of manslaughter and sentences of imprisonment with eligibility. But in another failure in the Fugate case, the Georgia Supreme Court conducted only a cursory proportionality review and did not look at any of the scores of far more aggravated cases in which death was not imposed.

The state and federal courts upheld Mr. Fugate’s conviction and sentence even though one of his lawyers was so ignorant of the law that he was featured in Harpers magazine.

The case ended with the Board of Pardons ands denying clemency on after a star-chamber proceeding in which it received unsubstantiated accusations and rumors about Mr. Fugate that he had no chance to deny.

Georgians should be aghast that this shoddy process – flawed from start to finish – lead to a person being killed in the name of the people of Georgia. This is not about whether one of for or against capital punishment. It is about basic fairness and equal treatment.

At one point during this case, the Assistant Attorney General representing Georgia said, "there might be a better way to do it, but better isn't the legal standard." – a shocking indictment of our system that determines whether a person lives or dies.

Today, the Georgia legal system has agreed that "close enough for government work" is acceptable. It has said that the rule of law and the right to a lawyer are meaningless for those who cannot afford to pay the price for a "real lawyer."

The killing of Wallace Fugate lessens us all.

Stephen B. Bright
H. Lee Sarokin Director
Southern Center for Human Rights
83 Poplar Street, N.W.
Atlanta, GA 30303-2122
www.schr.org
404/ 688-1202
fax 688-9440
sbright@schr.org

As Arizona starts the legislative process of re-writing their death penalty law to conform to recent Supreme Court opinions, the conservative Arizona Republic joins the call to end the death penalty altogether.

"Old arguments for execution won't stand up against evidence of mistakes"

We highly recommend Thomas Sullivan's Think First, Execute Later in today's National Law Journal.

Sullivan served on Illinois Governor George H. Ryan's Commission on Capital Punishment. The Commission issued a report recommending 85 reforms. Sullivan calls the report "a wake-up call for every state with the death penalty."

Mr. Sullivan outlines some of the reforms, concluding with:

"Regardless of one's views about capital punishment, we can all agree that its imposition should be fair, just and accurate. But this requires a nationwide commitment. The findings of the Illinois commission provide a well-researched guide for reforms."

In other death penalty news, the states are beginning to revamp their laws as a result of the recent Supreme Court ruling that only juries can determine facts necessary to impose the death penalty. Some will pass constitutional muster (for now) and others will likely fail.

Colorado is in the forefront of taking the safe route and returning to a unanimous jury system. We don't often agree with Governor Bill Owens, but we praise him for taking this position. Of course, he did it because he wanted a new law that allows Colorado to resume legally killing people as soon as possible. We want the death penalty abolished, but since it appears we are going to have one for a while, let's make it as fair as possible and that means putting the fact-finding and decision in the hands of a jury for a unanimous decision.

The Texas Court of Criminal Appeals stayed a man's execution yesterday (with four hours to spare) so that a determination could be made whether the man was mentally retarded. Jose Garcia Briseno would have been the 19th person executed in Texas this year. Texas has the highest number of executions in the country--274 since its death penalty was restored in 1982.

For more on Texas death penalty statistics, check out the Death Row Information website of the Texas Department of Criminal Justice, which lists everything from who's on death row to final meal requests.

That's the concern of Wendy Kaminer in The Switch in today's New York Times Magazine. She is one of a growing number of journalists tracking the public's decreasing support for the death penalty. By the way, we are up to 107 people released from death row after being found factually innocent of their crimes.

We also like Wendy's July 15, 2002 commentary in American Prospect --called Ashcroft's Lies that points out the foolhardiness of throwing more money and power at the FBI, given its abysmal record. Not sure if it's on-line yet, so keep checking back.

James Byrd Jr. was the African-American man chained to a car and dragged for miles until he was dismembered and dead by a white supremist and two other white men in 1998. Two were sentenced to death. One, John W. King, is about to exhaust his state appeals.

Yesterday, James Byrd's son Ross Byrd held a vigil at the state penitentiary in Huntsville protesting King's execution. He was accompanied by Martin Luther King, III. Ross Byrd initially favored the sentence but changed his mind. He now opposes all capital punishment.

This deplorable act of racism and torture was one of the most brutal crimes in recent memory. What changed Byrd's mind?

"When I heard King had exhausted his appeals, I began thinking, `How can this help me or solve my pain?' and I realized it couldn't," Byrd said.

The number of family victims who oppose the death penalty for their loved ones' murders has been steadily growing in recent years. Among the most vocal organizations advancing this welcome shift is Murder Victims' Families For Reconciliation (MVFR).

Founded in 1976 by Marie Deans, the guiding prinicple of the group has been:

"From experience, we know that revenge is not the answer. The answer lies in reducing violence, not causing more death. The answer lies in supporting those who grieve for their lost loved ones, not creating more grieving families. It is time we break the cycle of violence. To those who say society must take a life for a life, we say: "not in our name."

This is a non-profit organization without a religious agenda. Its members come from diverse racial, geographic, economic and religious backgrounds. Their bond has its roots in the loss of a family member due to a criminal act.

Please support them.

On Meet the Press, this morning, Sen. John Kerry responded "absolutely" when Tim Russert asked if he'd favor a moratorium. Kerry also ran off statistics on the 100 death row exonerations and hinted at abolition (versus just a moratorium) as a result of studies.

Very impressive new series "Deadly Distinction" analyzing the Death Penalty, particularly in Texas, began Saturday in the Houston Chronicle. Part 1 is by reporter Mike Tolson and discusses Harris County's role as a pipeline to death row. The four-part series examines why, and explores whether justice is served. The series also notes a new Houston Chronicle opinion poll showing that Harris County residents are less supportive of the death penalty than their fellow Texans.

Mother Jones points out today that we also have to keep working to stop execution of the mentally ill.

20 states now have laws permitting execution of the mentally retarded while 18 states outlaw it. Better yet, 12 states don't have the death penalty at all. Death Penalty Statistics in U.S.

Yesterday's Supreme Court decision in Atkins is a major plus, but there is still a long way to go. Watch out for op-ed pieces today claiming that that the Supreme Court abolished executing juveniles....the Court abolished executing anyone while they are still a juvenile, but it has not abolished executing adults who were juveniles at the time of their crime. Important distinction. Here are the statistics on state allowing execution of juvenile offenders.

Prosecutors are already worried about a flood of appeals. They should be!