OMNI
DEATH
PENALTY WATCH
Compiled
by Dick Bennett for a Culture of Peace and Justice
What’s at stake: Execution can never be humane. One, it is unconstitutional because cruel and unusual punishment.
Contents of Death
Penalty Watch July 29, 2016
DPIC
Death Penalty Information Center
OPPOSTION TO DEATH PENALTY
Religious
Groups
Holy See to UN: Stop the Executions
Ferrone vs
Death Penalty and Life Imprisonment
Other
Groups Opposed to Capital Punishment
October 10,
2016, 14th World Day Against the Death Penalty
Death Row
Stories
Murder Victims’
Families for Reconciliation (MVFR)
One for Ten
(exonerated death row prisoners)
Information
31 States with
Death Penalty, 19 Ban DP
Death Penalty
Decreasing
A Glimpse of
OMNI Death Penalty Actions (its Human Rights Committee) 2008
FAITHS VS. DEATH
PENALTY
Holy See to UN: Countries should strive to end
the death penalty.
http://www.news.va/en/news/holy-see-to-un-countries-should-strive-to-end-the
Vía ThePopeApp From Anne Marie
http://www.news.va/en/news/holy-see-to-un-countries-should-strive-to-end-the
Vía ThePopeApp From Anne Marie
Pat Ferrone. “’Blessed
Are the Merciful.’” Agape Community, The Servant Song (Spring 2015). Focusing first on Dzhokhar’s trial, then a comprehensive
refutation of the death penalty and life imprisonment. --Dick
OTHER OPPOSITION
Read letter in NAD-G 7-21-16 by OMNI member Linda Barnes on the "legalized murder" of capital punishment.
Read letter in NAD-G 7-21-16 by OMNI member Linda Barnes on the "legalized murder" of capital punishment.
·
World Day
14th World Day Against the Death Penalty: Terrorism
On 10 October 2016, the 14th World Day Against the Death Penalty
is raising awareness around the application of the death penalty for
terrorism-related offences, to reduce its use.
- Running against the abolitionist worldwide movement,
some governments have in recent years resorted to use of the death penalty
following terrorist attacks on their countries, in the name of protecting
their countries and peoples. In the last ten years, Bangladesh, India,
Nigeria, Tunisia and others have adopted laws that expanded the scope of
the death penalty, adding certain terrorist acts to the list of crimes
punishable by death. More recently, Pakistan and Chad resumed executions
in the name of the fight against terrorism, putting an end to moratoriums
that had lasted for years.
The death penalty in practice
• 104 countries have abolished the death penalty for all crimes;
• 6 countries have abolished the death penalty for ordinary crimes;
• 30 countries are abolitionist in practice;
• 58 countries and territories are retentionist;
• 25 countries carried out executions in 2015;
• The 5 top executioners in 2015 were China, Iran, Saudi Arabia, Pakistan and the USA;
• 65 countries and territories retain the death penalty for terrorism. Of these:
- 16 countries are abolitionist in practice;
- 1 country is abolitionist in law for ordinary crimes.
To know more about the death penalty...
... all over the world: read the facts & figures
... and terrorism: read the leaflet, the detailed factsheet
Take action to stop crime, not lives:
1. Organize a public debate and a movie screening with exonerees, victims of terrorism, murder victim’s families, experts, to raise awareness on the reality of the death penalty
2. Organize an art exhibition (photo, drawings, posters) or a theatre performance from Dead Man Walking to Victor Hugo
3. Organize a demonstration, a sit-in, a ‘die-in,’ a flash mob
4. Join the events prepared for the abolition of the death penalty worldwide
5. Support urgent appeals and take part in social media action in the lead up to 10 October
6. Write to a prisoner on death row
7. Donate to the World Coalition against the Death Penalty or another group working to end the death penalty.
8. Follow the social media campaign on Facebook and Twitter: #nodeathpenalty
9. Mobilize the media to raise awareness on the issue of the death penalty
10. Participate in “Cities Against the Death Penalty/Cities for Life” on 30 November 2016
Call for initiatives
> On 10 October 2016, take action against the death penalty!
Join hundreds of initiatives organized worldwide
> Wherever you are
In Africa, America, Asia, Oceania or Europe
> Whoever you are
NGOS, teachers, lawyers, local representatives, parliamentarians, artists, reporters, religious leaders, citizens
> Whatever your plans are
Debates, concerts, press conferences, demonstrations, petitions, educational and cultural activities...
Get in touch with the World Coalition to tell us about events scheduled on October 10.
Human Rights, Death Row Stories
CNN, August 12, 2015: Execution of Humans Not Humane, Cannot Be
Death Row Stories explores
cases that pose hard questions about the U.S. capital punishment system.
Throughout the
history of capital punishment in America, states have reviewed and revised
execution methods in the interest of finding a more "humane" option.
Thanks Dick … Here’s a link to some clips from
that show.
Here’s the clip with my interview
in it:
MVFR MURDER
VICTIMS’ FAMILIES FOR RECONCILIATION
 |
MVFR News &
Updates
Dear Friend,
As 2013 draws to a close and I look back on MVFR’s work over
the past twelve months I am filled with gratitude for all of our Members and
Supporters!
Our Members continue to lift their voices to improve our
criminal legal system and replace capital punishment, advocating for policies
and practices that actually address victim/survivors’ needs. Our Supporters
enhance our ability to lift our Members’ voices.
I thank you for every action you have taken to support our
Members and our
Your contributions allow us to
create spaces for our Members to speak up and educate their communities,
elected officials, and the media on the needs of family members of murder
victims, the lack of meaningful services for victims following violent crime,
and what equal justice looks like for victim/survivors following the murder
of a loved one.
Every person who is a part of MVFR as a
Member or as a Supporter is part of the team that helps bring value to the
work we do every day – thank you!
Sincerely,
Scott Bass Executive Director 919-760-5430 |
MVFR's
members are persons whose loved ones have been taken by murder and who
believe the death penalty is a response to murder that only creates more
harm. MVFR members help their friends, co-workers, media and policymakers
understand the negative impact that capital punishment has on the families of
murder victims and the executed. MVFR is a non-partisan, 501(c)3 nonprofit
organization that offers public education and advocacy on the death penalty
and the needs of murder victim family members.
More information about our
work can be found at www.mvfr.org
or by contacting Marcelle Clowes at mclowes@mvfr.org
877-896-4702
|
|
MVFR News &
Updates
Dear Friend,
Momentum for ending the death penalty has never been stronger. In the past six years, six states have ended the death
penalty. Murder
victim family members were crucial participants in each of those states.
Your support helps MVFR ensure that victim/survivor voices are
heard and engaged in a way that respects them and honors their loved ones.
MVFR works to support and engage murder victim family members, like the group
of victim/survivors who helped
Other states – perhaps your state – are sure to follow. We are
at work around the country – in the headlines and behind the scenes – to end
the death penalty and encourage better responses to violence and policies
that keep us all safer.
Elizabeth Brancato, an MVFR Member in
We need your financial support so that murder victims’
families’ voices are heard across the country in support of alternatives to
the death penalty – alternatives that better address the harms caused by
violence and that make all our families safer.
In the coming months, MVFR Members will work to end capital
punishment in Delaware, while also working in Kansas, Colorado, Oregon, North
Carolina, Ohio, Texas and beyond in efforts to end the death penalty. We work
to lay the foundation for repeal campaigns and to reduce usage of the death
penalty in states where repeal is not yet achievable.
MVFR’s work is not always front page news. Whether at the
front of a repeal celebration or behind the scenes working effectively to
create deeper understanding of what families and communities need after
violence, our work is vital and makes a difference.
Sincerely,
Scott Bass
Executive Director Murder Victims’ Families for Reconciliation |
MVFR's
members are persons whose loved ones have been taken by murder and who
believe the death penalty is a response to murder that only creates more
harm. MVFR members help their friends, co-workers, media and policymakers
understand the negative impact that capital punishment has on the families of
murder victims and the executed. MVFR is a non-partisan, 501(c)3 nonprofit
organization that offers public education and advocacy on the death penalty
and the needs of murder victim family members.
More information about our
work can be found at www.mvfr.org[org.salsalabs.com]
or by contacting Marcelle Clowes at mclowes@mvfr.org
877-896-4702
|
|
www.oneforten.com/
One For Ten is a series of
online documentaries meeting people who were on death row in America despite
being innocent.
|
One
For Ten is a series of online documentaries meeting people ...
|
One
For Ten DVD ( PAL – Worldwide)£10. This DVD ...
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|
Will
Francome has been involved in film-making and anti-death ...
|
Delbert
Lee Tibbs was convicted in 1974 of the murder of a 27-year ...
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TIME
ON DEATH ROW: 20 YEARS. RELEASED: 2012. FILM ...
|
Gary
Drinkard was sentenced to death in 1995 for the robbery ...
|
(Ed Martone & Stacey Smith - NJADP)
31 States
with the Death Penalty and 19 States with Death Penalty Bans
·
CITE
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FACEBOOK
·
TWITTER
·
GOOGLE+
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EMAIL
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PRINT
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The death penalty is legal in 31 states and illegal in 19 states
and the District of Columbia
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 |
III. Sources
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31
|
states have the death penalty
|
Alabama,
Arizona, Arkansas, California, Colorado, Delaware, Florida, Georgia, Idaho,
Indiana, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi, Missouri, Montana, Nevada,
New Hampshire, North Carolina, Ohio, Oklahoma, Oregon, Pennsylvania, South
Carolina, South Dakota, Tennessee, Texas, Utah, Virginia, Washington, Wyoming
|
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19
|
states and DC have abolished the death penalty
|
Alaska,
Connecticut, District of Columbia, Hawaii, Illinois, Iowa, Maine, Maryland,
Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Nebraska, New Jersey, New Mexico, New
York, North Dakota, Rhode Island, Vermont, West Virginia, Wisconsin
|
|
MORE:
DEATH
PENALTY DECREASING
www.nytimes.com/...death-penalty.../use-of-the-de...
The New
York Times
Apr 6, 2014 - The rarity of the death penalty's use belies its
alleged purposes of ... allow it, and its use was rare and decreasing even where it was
allowed.
www.amnestyusa.org/.../death-penalty/...deat...
Amnesty
International USA
A majority of the U.S.
public now prefers alternatives over the death penalty as the best
punishment for the crime of murder. More and more U.S. states are ...
July
29, 2016
A
Piece of OMNI/DEATH PENALTY History, July and August 2008. (With 8 death row inmates moving rapidly
toward execution Fall 2016, it is time to revive our human rights committee. Opposition to the death penalty is not futile. The executions are decreasing).
HUMAN
RIGHTS COMMITTEE MEETING
REPORT JULY 16, 2008
Mark Swaney,
Coord; Dick Bennett.
Two related
series of actions emphasizing PREVENTION were agreed upon:
[Actions taken in bold.]
- Response to John Threet (Mark)
1.
Hold
press conference with new batch of petitions
[Mark has petitions 8-28-08.]
2.
Complain to Threet’s professional
assoc.—Ark. ABA
3.
Study
Marcyniuk case and write report
4.
Contact
the Public Defender’s office for a meeting, Denny Hyslip is to call me. [8-28, PD won’t return calls. Will persist.]
5.
Plan vigil for next execution.
- OMNI Support (Dick)
1.
Death
Penalty Special Newsletter
2.
Including: Questionnaire (beginning with Do you support
or oppose the DP?)
3.
Increase
attention to victims
4.
Suggest a DP film for VU (letter to
Gerry Sloan)
5.
Contact ACADP Pres. to possibly speak
here: David Rickard at drickard@aristotle.net Protest at every future
capital trial. Carl Barnwell agreed to.
6.
Add motivated members to HR Committee
[solicited a member from St. Paul ’s, Lowell
7.
Letter to Gov. Beebe and Clemency Bd. to
spare Williams’ life for imprisonment without parole. Letter below.
OMNI
members agreed that our present method of sporadic reaction and public
demonstration only on execution day could not be effective, and we must develop
a steady opposition to the DP.
DICK’S LETTER
TO Gov. Beebe and Clemency Bd
Governor
Mike Beebe
The OMNI Center
Doctors hired
by his defense attorneys believe he is mentally disabled.
In 1993 Arkansas
In 2002 the
U.S. Supreme Court ruled that it was unconstitutional to execute the mentally
disabled.
We hope you
will recommend life without parole.
Gladys Tiffany,
President
Reference:
Jon Gambrell (AP). "Group: Spare Inmate." The Morning
News (July 31, 2008).
OMNI’S
LETTER TO PAROLE BOARD AND GOVERNOR AND BETSEY WRIGHT’S RESPONSE
Dick,
the board is made up of political people with political appointments to serve
on the board. The letter definitely had an effect. In the future,
it will be necessary to send individual letters (not form letters) to each
member of the board, and not just one letter to all. But the OMNI letter
was a definite help. I am so pleased that Frank's attorney got out of the
traditional rut and really did something innovative for Frank and for the
education of the public. I hope she will keep it up. I have very
little hope that Beebe will grant clemency to Frank, but I know that the only
way he would do that is to attach it to the executions of Don Davis and Jack
Jones.
after a month without a computer, i am about to get this one set up and
working....
-----
Original Message -----
From: Dick Bennett
To: 'Mark Hamilton Swaney' ; betsey wright ; 'Gladys tiffany' ; Heffernanann@aol.com ; 'Melanie Dietzel'
Sent: Thursday, August 07,
2008 8:52 PM
Subject: OMNI'S LETTER
Who knows if
our letter to the Clemency Board had any effect. But we can be proud that
we tried to prevent that execution instead of waiting to lament
it. Thanks to all.
Dick Bennett
VIGIL
FOR EXECUTION OF FRANK WILLIAMS SEPT. 9, 2008
Sept. 9; don't
miss the story on front page of today's NW ARk edition of Dem-Gaz
Vigil should
feature speaker from advocates for mentally disabled and another by foe of racial
discrimination; will send excerpts later...
Sunday,
December 14, 2008 - 07:39:16
Who should get
death?
Betsey Wright,
Bill Clinton's former gubernatorial chief of staff, wrote me yesterday about
the changing standard of capital prosecutions in Washington County. She asked
that the remarks be off the record. She apparently decided later to discuss the
issue with a reporter in Northwest Arkansas. Wright is a death penalty opponent
and spends most of her time these days working with Death Row inmates
The story is
here and worth a read.
She was moved
to comment by the death penalty meted out last week in the slaying of a UA
student.
"I'm
confused by the prosecuting attorney's lack of standards and equity," said
Wright, who lives in Rogers. "He backed away from the death penalty for
two people who killed small children, giving them plea bargains for life
without parole. Yet, he pursued a death sentence for this mentally ill man.
"I don't
think we know what his standard is. Of course, the fact that each prosecuting
attorney operates differently is what makes the death penalty so political and
easy to use as a threat to get leverage."
You may support
the death penalty. But if you think it is applied evenly and rationally, you
haven't been paying attention.
Posted by Max
Brantley | Permalink | Comments [18]
Betsey Wright
For research
purposes, specific subjects can be located in the following alphabetized index,
and searched on the blog using the search box. The search box is located
in the upper left corner of the webpage.
Newsletter Index: http://omnicenter.org/dick-bennetts-peace-justice-and-ecology-newsletters/dicks-newsletter-index/
Newsletter Index: http://omnicenter.org/dick-bennetts-peace-justice-and-ecology-newsletters/dicks-newsletter-index/
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