Abolish the Death Penalty

Want to be involved? Here are the three things you can do to become well-informed and active:
1) Please visit the NCADP http://www.ncadp.org/execution_alerts.html . The NCADP creates and action alert for every impending execution in the US. You can sign up to receive a monthly (very low volume) email from them with that month's execution list/alerts. This is the easiest way to start.
2) To become even more informed, there is a much much higher volume email list that will send every single article published on the death penalty along with upcoming events is the Abolish List: http://npogroups.org/lists/info/abolish . Within weeks you'll be so well-informed I guarantee you won't be able to stop talking about it!
3) If you need any facts or figures, reports, or basically any other information the best spot is www.deathpenaltyinfo.org . The Death Penalty Information Centre (DPIC) is anti-death but the info published is truthful and not overly biased.
THE BASICS ON DEATH ROW IN THE U.S.A.:
U.S.A. death row population in 2007: 3,350(Death Penalty Information Center)
EXECUTIONS:
Executions in 2007: 25 (as at June 21, 2007) (Death Penalty Information Centre) - EXECUTION 1,082 since 1976.
The highest crime rate in the U.S. is in the southern region which also boasts the highest number of executions – nearly 80% of all executions in the U.S. (Death Penalty Information Centre)
RACE:
Blacks are incarcerated at much higher rates than whites in the United States. At year-end 2004, 3,218 per 100,000 black men were incarcerated, 1,220 per 100,000 Hispanic men were incarcerated, and only 463 per 100,000 white men were incarcerated. (U.S. Department of Justice)
Since 1976 there have been 348 black defendants and 585 white defendants executed. Of these, there were 212 black victims and 1,214 white victims. Twelve white defendants have been executed for killing a black victim and 210 black defendants have been executed for killing a white victim. In 2002 blacks were six times more likely to be murder victims than whites and seven times more likely to commit homicide than whites. (U.S. Department of Justice)
CLASS:
This is an area which is most prejudicial to defendants. In most cases defendants in cases where the death penalty is sought cannot afford counsel so they are appointed attornies. These attornies are not required to have ANY capital trial experience - most have very little. Further, many have been found to omit MAJOR parts of a defence, including the presentation of mitigating facts during the sentencing phase among other deadly errors. There are many documented cases where counsel has been known to sleep through trials, show up drunk or high on such drugs as cocaine, and are otherwise completely inadequate. FINALLY, there are very few laws that punish counsel (or prosecutors for that matter) who do not provide adequate representation.
JUVENILES:
The United States Supreme Court FINALLY ruled in 2005 that it was cruel and unusual punishment to execute those who had committed their crimes under the age of 18 years. The last juvenile execution in Louisiana occurred on May 18, 1990. (Death Penalty Information Centre)
PUBLIC SUPPORT:
According to a recent Gallop Poll, 71% of the United States public supports the death penalty when only 26% oppose it. (Death Penalty Information Centre)
When given the option of a sentence of life without the possibility of parole only 50% of the respondents declared they would prefer the death penalty.
COSTS:
The cost of conducting a capital trial is staggering when compared to those of a non-capital case. Here are some examples given by the Death Penalty Information Center (Death Penalty Information Centre):

- New Jersey: cost tax payers over $253 million since 1993 over and above the cost of non-capital cases (i.e. life without parole option). Further, out of the 197 capital cases tried, 60 death sentences were given, and 50 of those death sentences were later overturned.
- Tennessee: death penalty cases cost about 48% more than non-capital cases.
- Kansas: death penalty cases cost about 70% more than non-death penalty cases. On average the trial costs were $508,000 compared to $32,000.
- Indiana: death penalty cases cost 38% more than non-death penalty cases and an average of 20% are overturned and sentenced to life.
- North Carolina: spends on average $2.16 million more on a death penalty case than on a non-death penalty case.
- Florida: spends about $51 million a year on death penalty cases. They estimate the cost in Florida to be about $24 million per execution (considering the low number of actual executions compared to the number of capital trials).
- California: spends $90 million more annually than they would if all first-degree murders resulted in a life without parole sentence. $78 million of that cost is incurred at the trial level.
- Texas: capital trials cost about three times the amount of imprisoning someone for life at the highest possible level of incarceration.
- Nationwide: it is estimated that over $1.6 billion is spent annually over and above the cost that would be incurred without capital punishment.

INNOCENCE:
In February, 2006 the 123rd person was released from death row in the United States because of evidence of his innocence. (Death Penalty Information Centre)
It is estimated that at least 20 cases that resulted in execution had overwhelming evidence of the defendant’s innocence. (National Coalition to Abolish the Death Penalty)
MEDICAL PROFESSION ETHICS:
CHICAGO, July 17 /U.S. Newswire/ -- Following is a statement of William G. Plested, III, M.D., president, American Medical Association:
"The American Medical Association is troubled by continuous refusal of many state courts and legislatures to acknowledge the ethical obligations of physicians, which strictly prohibit physician involvement in a legally authorized execution. The AMA's policy is clear and unambiguous - requiring physicians to participate in executions violates their oath to protect lives and erodes public confidence in the medical profession.
"A physician is a member of a profession dedicated to preserving life when there is hope of doing so. The use of a physician's clinical skill and judgment for purposes other than promoting an individual's health and welfare undermines a basic ethical foundation of medicine - first, do no harm.
"The guidelines in the AMA Code of Medical Ethics address physician participation in executions involving lethal injection. The ethical opinion explicitly prohibits selecting injection sites for executions by lethal injection, starting intravenous lines, prescribing, administering, or supervising the use of lethal drugs, monitoring vital signs, on site or remotely, and declaring death.
"As the voice of American medicine, the AMA urges all physicians to remain dedicated to our ethical obligations that prohibit involvement in capital punishment."
Click here to visit the Abolish Blog! and HERE to visit and join the Abolish group! GET INVOLVED TODAY!!!!
Don't wait any longer, please visit the National Coalition to Abolish the Death Penalty (click above) where there are easy to follow execution alerts posted for every pending execution in the United States. You may use their online form and simply fill in your name and send an email directly to the Governors and Pardon & Parole Boards in the necessary States OR you may edit the letters and send them yourself.
To become more internationally involved in the death penalty issue(China's execution record is appalling... did you know they have mobile execution trailers?) please visit Amnesty International (click banner above). They post worldwide action alerts and you can also become more deeply involved by joining the Urgent Action Network where you'll receive weekly or monthly alerts for actions you should take.
Please note that Amnesty International does not issue execution alerts for all cases. They concentrate more on the cases where there are extreme circumstances (e.g. gross prosecutorial misconduct, mental retardation, political prisoners, and formerly juveniles).