Please Stop the Execution of Oscar Smith
As Tennesseans of many faith traditions celebrate their holy seasons this spring, the State of Tennessee prepares to resume executions. Oscar Smith is scheduled to be executed on April 21, 2022, with four other executions scheduled to follow this year.
Mr. Smith has been on Tennessee’s death row since 1990 and is the oldest person on Tennessee’s death row, having just celebrated his 72nd birthday in March.
TADP has created an easy way for you to send a letter to Governor Lee, asking him to grant clemency, or at least a temporary reprieve, in order for the courts to address critical legal issues in Mr. Smith’s case.
You can send a letter to Governor Lee at https://actionnetwork.org/
Scheduled Executions in 2022
Oscar Smith, April 21
Harold Wayne Nichols, June 9
Byron Black, August 18
Gary Sutton, October 6
Donald Middlebrooks, December 8
Updates
Pervis Payne
After a 2021 law advocated by TADP, Tennessee Disability Coalition, the Tennessee Black Caucus of State Legislators, and others, was enacted, modernizing Tennessee’s definition of intellectual disability in the criminal code, Pervis Payne petitioned the court to consider his intellectual disability claim. The court agreed that he met the standard for intellectual disability and removed him from death row, after he spent over 30 years there. He was resentenced in 2022 and will be eligible for parole in five years.
Abu-Ali Abdur’Rahman
Mr. Abdur’Rahman’s death sentence was removed and he was resentenced to three consecutive life sentneces because of the overt racial bias and other prosecutorial misconduct at his trial. Mr. Abdur’Rahman spent over 30 years on death row before this critical issue of fairness was finally addressed.