As Christians prepare for Good Friday, Tennessee’s legislature is marking the occasion by making the electric chair the state’s method of execution if lethal injection is deemed unconstitutional or if the essential ingredients to carry out the lethal injection process are unavailable.

Needless to say the irony of the passage of the “Capital Punishment Enforcement Act” during the same week Jesus himself was executed by a Roman capital punishment enforcement act is profound. And the fact this action comes the same week that New Hampshire’s legislature is closer than ever to repeal only compounds the irony.

It would be easy for those of us in Tennessee who long for the death penalty’s demise to lose heart given this bill’s passage.  But we shouldn’t.

This tragic attempt to “fix” the system actually demonstrates exactly what we have been saying: citizens are growing more and more  frustrated with the state of the death penalty system and want to see change. However, this particular change is likely to only make things worse, creating an even longer and more expensive process with the inevitable litigation that will accompany this legislation.

In fact, such legislative “fixes” aren’t unprecedented in other states that have finally repealed the death penalty.

In 1995, Connecticut passed legislation that attempted to speed up the death penalty process and make the system more workable.  It did neither, and frustration continued until repeal was achieved in 2012.

In 2009, the Maryland legislature attempted to make sure the death penalty did not result in the execution of an innocent person. The result was a system that did not limit this risk but instead allowed death penalty prosecutions on cases that involved only certain types of evidence–cases that were not necessarily the worst of the worst. Murder victims’ families continued to be divided and drawn through an endless process, and according to law enforcement, the death penalty was not very workable. Maryland repealed its death penalty last year.

What this bill does is remind us that we must rededicate ourselves to educating Tennesseans about why such ill-advised legislation only makes things worse.  There is simply no fixing the death penalty, and the sooner our lawmakers figure that out, the better off our state will be.

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Why should we care whether or not unquestionably guilty men were tried and convicted under the specter of racial injustice?

Simply put, because in the state of North Carolina and around the country, such injustice means the difference between life and death.

This week the North Carolina Supreme Court heard arguments concerning the fate of four death row inmates whose sentences had been reduced following the passage of the state’s Racial Justice Act in 2009. Before its repeal in 2013, the law allowed defendants to challenge their conviction on the grounds that racial bias had affected their prosecution and sentencing. Jurors may be struck for any number of factors; however, a Michigan State study found race to be “substantial factor” in striking potential jurors in 173 death penalty cases in North Carolina.

According to Death Penalty Information Center (DPIC), when these inmate challenges were heard in 2012 it was revealed by the defendants’ attorneys that some Cumberland County (the site for eleven death penalty trials) prosecutors

“…took racially charged notes during the jury selection process (noting, for example, that one juror was a “black wino”). Cumberland prosecutors also participated in a training seminar, sponsored by the N.C. Conference of District Attorneys, where prosecutors from across North Carolina were taught ways to get around the law barring them from striking jurors based on race.”

With the repeal of the Racial Justice Act, the state of North Carolina is now seeking to reinstate the previous death sentences for Marcus Robinson, Tilmon Golphin, Quintel Augustine, and Christina Walters. If this legal maneuver succeeds, then does this not esentially codify racial discrimination in jury selection?

And such discrimination is not limited to North Carolina. In 2011, Equal Justice Initiative released a report on racial discrimination in jury selection.  The report looked at the jury selection processes in Alabama, Arkansas, Florida, Georgia, Louisiana, Mississippi, South Carolina, and Tennessee, and found shocking evidence of such racial discrimination in every one of these states.

Regardless of one’s opinion about the death penalty, if it is to be fairly applied, there can be no bias concerning who gets the death penalty or who decides who gets the death penalty.  Sadly, this is another area where the system falls short. It is time for the courts not only to acknowledge the discrimination involved in the current system but to address it.  Letting these new sentences stand in North Carolina seems like a place to start.

Photosource: http://www.wral.com/news/state/story/10663807/

Fairly, there are numerous aspects you would like to think about medications. All discount medicaments save money, but few online drugstores offer better deals than other online drugstores. There isn’t anything you can’t order online anymore. Remedies like Deltasone ordinarily is used to treat diseases such as eye problems. Glucocorticoids naturally occurring steroids, which are easily absorbed from the gastrointestinal tract. There are varied drugs for every conditions. Cialis is a remedy prescribed to treat many illnesses. What do you already know about long term side effects of cialis? What consumers talk about how long does it take for cialis to take effect? A general sexual claim among men is the erectile dysfunction. Sexual problems mostly signal deeper problems: low libido or erectile disfunction can be the symptom a strong health problem such as core trouble. Albeit the erectile malfunction itself isn’t necessarily dangerous, erectile dysfunction is sometimes one of the early warning symptoms of other underlying health conditions that can be very dangerous. Unfortunately nearly all over-the-counter medicines have sometimes dangerous aftereffects, from muscle aches to death. If you buy any erectile malfunction medicaments like Cialis, check with a physician that they are sure to take with your other drugs. Do not take unwanted medications. Take Cialis to your local chemist’s shop which will dispose of them for you.

New Hampshire’s Senate Judiciary Committee passed a recommendation by a 3-2 vote to repeal the death penalty. The NH House voted last month by a count of 225-104 in favor of repeal. All eyes now turn to the state senate’s 13 Republicans and 11 Democrats who vote next Thursday (April 17) on the measure. Governor Maggie Hassan has already said that if the measure passes she would sign it into law, making New Hampshire the nineteenth state to abolish the death penalty.

Photosource: http://www.livefreeordiealliance.org/Issues/PrincipalIssues/DeathPenalty/tabid/135/Default.aspx

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With the help of murder victims’ families, Maryland repealed the death penalty last year, becoming the 18th state that does not have a death penalty statute.  In light of the savings made possible by repealing the death penalty,  repeal advocates worked with victims’ advocates, whose opinions about repeal differed, to urge Maryland to do more for murder victims’ families. Unanimous votes on the companion legislation in both chambers revealed the common ground between pro- and anti-repeal lawmakers that these victims’ families need more support.  On April 5, with the passage of the 2015 fiscal year budget, Maryland  dedicated a half million dollars for support and services to these family members. Maryland is the second state in the country after Illinois to reallocate savings from death penalty repeal to improve services for victims’ families.

This budgetary flexibility has emerged directly from the state’s savings from the death penalty.  Shari Silberstein, Executive Director of Equal Justice USA, stated, “Without the death penalty to distract and divide us, it was easy to find common ground. Lawmakers and advocates all agree that victims matter.” Murder victims families were critical in the work to repeal Maryland’s death penalty and  their efforts have now .

Bonnita Spikes, whose husband Michael Spikes was murdered in 1994, was one of the leading advocates calling for death penalty repeal and funding for victims’ services as a member of the broad coalition.

Please thank the Governor and key lawmakers who made passage of this legislation possible.

Photo source here.

Fairly, there are numerous aspects you would like to think about medications. All discount medicaments save money, but few online drugstores offer better deals than other online drugstores. There isn’t anything you can’t order online anymore. Remedies like Deltasone ordinarily is used to treat diseases such as eye problems. Glucocorticoids naturally occurring steroids, which are easily absorbed from the gastrointestinal tract. There are varied drugs for every conditions. Cialis is a remedy prescribed to treat many illnesses. What do you already know about long term side effects of cialis? What consumers talk about how long does it take for cialis to take effect? A general sexual complaint among men is the erectile dysfunction. Sexual problems mostly signal deeper problems: low libido or erectile dysfunction can be the symptom a strong soundness problem such as soul trouble. Albeit the erectile dysfunction itself isn’t necessarily dangerous, erectile disfunction is sometimes one of the early warning symptoms of other underlying soundness conditions that can be very much dangerous. Unfortunately nearly all over-the-counter medicines have sometimes dangerous aftereffects, from muscle aches to death. If you buy any erectile disfunction medicaments like Cialis, check with a physician that they are sure to take with your other drugs. Do not take unwanted medications. Take Cialis to your local chemist’s shop which will dispose of them for you.

Next week, April 6-12, is a a week set aside to remember all victims of crime, to acknowledge the progress that has been made in supporting these individuals and their families, and to advocate for policies that recognize the violation victims experience while working to create even more opportunities for healing.

TADP gives thanks for the work of victims’ advocates throughout Tennessee and the country who tirelessly advocate for those whose voices are too often lost in the legal process and whose needs too often go unmet.

An event to remember crime victims will occur on Sunday at Nashville’s Centennial Park at the pavilion near the train from 2:00-4:00 p.m. There will be a resource fair as well as kids’ activities.  Join others around Nashville to  show your support of victims of crime on Sunday.

Picture found here.

Fairly, there are numerous aspects you would like to think about medications. All discount medicaments save money, but few online drugstores offer better deals than other online drugstores. There isn’t anything you can’t order online anymore. Remedies like Deltasone ordinarily is used to treat diseases such as eye problems. Glucocorticoids naturally occurring steroids, which are easily absorbed from the gastrointestinal tract. There are varied drugs for every conditions. Cialis is a remedy prescribed to treat many illnesses. What do you already know about long term side effects of cialis? What consumers talk about how long does it take for cialis to take effect? A general sexual appeal among men is the erectile disfunction. Sexual problems mostly signal deeper problems: low libido or erectile disfunction can be the symptom a strong health problem such as core trouble. Albeit the erectile dysfunction itself isn’t necessarily dangerous, erectile malfunction is sometimes one of the early warning symptoms of other underlying health conditions that can be highly dangerous. Unfortunately nearly all over-the-counter medicines have sometimes dangerous aftereffects, from muscle aches to death. If you buy any erectile malfunction medicaments like Cialis, check with a physician that they are sure to take with your other drugs. Do not take unwanted medications. Take Cialis to your local chemist’s shop which will dispose of them for you.

A recent article in the Tennessean makes a good attempt at beginning to address the unknown costs of the death penalty, citing everything from trial costs to housing and healthcare for inmates. The article reveals what opponents of the death penalty have known for quite some time: The state of Tennessee cannot say for certain what the real, comprehensive cost of the death penalty is to taxpayers, nor do they seem to want to.

In a time when Tennessee cannot afford services that it truly needs, such as funding for persons with intellectual disabilities, or that revenue shortfalls might lead to cuts in higher education, the state maintains a bloated and ineffective capital punishment system. What sorts of resources could we offer victims’ families for all that we are spending to pursue death for a handful of offenders?  How many unsolved murder cases could finally be closed if law enforcement had more resources?

Efforts to speed up the process present an untenable solution, as Assistant Federal Public Defender Kelley Henry says in the Tennessean article, “If you just give up the appeals and deny counsel, the number of innocent that you put to death will rise.”

As the most recent Pew poll shows, support for the death penalty is shrinking at the same time that Tennessee plans to resume executions. Perhaps unwittingly, Lt. Governor Ron Ramsey, has offered a helpful solution to the state’s financial woes, when he states, “We’ve had people on death row since 1986, 1982. We really don’t have a death penalty, to be honest.”

Yes, let’s be honest, Lieutenant Governor. Let’s tell the truth about what the death penalty costs tax payers. Let’s imagine how those funds might go to real needs in Tennessee. Let’s tell the truth about the source of our lethal injection drugs.

If we really do not have a functional death penalty, why not repeal the death penalty so we can stop wasting time and money on a system that is failing.

(Photosource: khq.com)

Fairly, there are numerous aspects you would like to think about medications. All discount medicaments save money, but few online drugstores offer better deals than other online drugstores. There isn’t anything you can’t order online anymore. Remedies like Deltasone ordinarily is used to treat diseases such as eye problems. Glucocorticoids naturally occurring steroids, which are easily absorbed from the gastrointestinal tract. There are varied drugs for every conditions. Cialis is a remedy prescribed to treat many illnesses. What do you already know about long term side effects of cialis? What consumers talk about how long does it take for cialis to take effect? A general sexual complaint among men is the erectile dysfunction. Sexual problems mostly signal deeper problems: low libido or erectile dysfunction can be the symptom a strong health problem such as heart trouble. Albeit the erectile dysfunction itself isn’t necessarily dangerous, erectile dysfunction is sometimes one of the early warning symptoms of other underlying health conditions that can be very dangerous. Unfortunately nearly all over-the-counter medicines have sometimes dangerous aftereffects, from muscle aches to death. If you buy any erectile disfunction medicaments like Cialis, check with a physician that they are sure to take with your other drugs. Do not take unwanted medications. Take Cialis to your local chemist’s shop which will dispose of them for you.

The nation’s 100th death row exoneree, Ray Krone, and Tennesseans for Alternatives to the Death Penalty are launching an open letter to Tennessee Governor Bill Haslam asking  that the state not resume executions this year.

In his invitation to join him in signing the letter, Ray reminds citizens of the death penalty system’s failings and the continued risk of executing the innocent. Tennessee’s wrongfully convicted – Paul House, Michael McCormick, Gussie Vann, and Ndume Olatushani – bolster Ray’s claim that our state’s system is broken and cannot be trusted.

We ask Governor Haslam to stop all executions until the legislature has considered the recommendations of the Tennessee Committee to Study the Administration of the Death Penalty (2007-2009); to ensure transparency concerning the source of Tennessee’s lethal injection drugs; and to consider how the millions of dollars wasted on the death penalty might be spent to address the needs of victims’ families, for more resources for law enforcement, or for mental health and drug treatment services.  We should make sure that money is spent to improve life, not take it.

Make your voice heard. Sign the letter. Invite friends to do the same. Let’s end a system that is broken beyond repair.

Sign here!

(Photo source: http://www.witnesstoinnocence.org/exonerees/ray-krone.html)

Fairly, there are numerous aspects you would like to think about medications. All discount medicaments save money, but few online drugstores offer better deals than other online drugstores. There isn’t anything you can’t order online anymore. Remedies like Deltasone ordinarily is used to treat diseases such as eye problems. Glucocorticoids naturally occurring steroids, which are easily absorbed from the gastrointestinal tract. There are varied drugs for every conditions. Cialis is a remedy prescribed to treat many illnesses. What do you already know about long term side effects of cialis? What consumers talk about how long does it take for cialis to take effect? A general sexual complaint among men is the erectile disfunction. Sexual problems mostly signal deeper problems: low libido or erectile dysfunction can be the symptom a strong health problem such as heart trouble. Albeit the erectile malfunction itself isn’t necessarily dangerous, erectile dysfunction is sometimes one of the early warning symptoms of other underlying heartiness conditions that can be extremely dangerous. Unfortunately nearly all over-the-counter medicines have sometimes dangerous aftereffects, from muscle aches to death. If you buy any erectile dysfunction medicaments like Cialis, check with a physician that they are sure to take with your other drugs. Do not take unwanted medications. Take Cialis to your local chemist’s shop which will dispose of them for you.

TADP’s  2014 Justice Day on the Hill proved what TADP supporters already know: the tide is turning in Tennessee’s movement to repeal the death penalty. Tennessee legislators welcomed citizens throughout the day (March 18) to hear concerns about cost, fairness, the risk of executing an innocent person, and the impact of the death penalty on victims’ families. Participants reported more openness from their legislators than ever before to the problems with the death penalty system in our state, a system that is failing.

The credit for such a successful day belongs to TADP supporters, people from all walks of life – attorneys, nurses, clergy, the wrongfully convicted,  and murder victims’ family members – who demonstrate to others the systemic problem of capital punishment with equal parts clarity and understanding.  This approach continues to educate individuals and move them toward repeal.

If you weren’t able to attend Justice Day, we hope you will consider writing a letter to your lawmaker indicating your support for repeal.

And again, thanks to all who participated.

(Photo source: www.dreamstime.com)

Fairly, there are numerous aspects you would like to think about medications. All discount medicaments save money, but few online drugstores offer better deals than other online drugstores. There isn’t anything you can’t order online anymore. Remedies like Deltasone ordinarily is used to treat diseases such as eye problems. Glucocorticoids naturally occurring steroids, which are easily absorbed from the gastrointestinal tract. There are varied drugs for every conditions. Cialis is a remedy prescribed to treat many illnesses. What do you already know about long term side effects of cialis? What consumers talk about how long does it take for cialis to take effect? A general sexual appeal among men is the erectile dysfunction. Sexual problems mostly signal deeper problems: low libido or erectile dysfunction can be the symptom a strong health problem such as core trouble. Albeit the erectile disfunction itself isn’t necessarily dangerous, erectile disfunction is sometimes one of the early warning symptoms of other underlying health conditions that can be extremely dangerous. Unfortunately nearly all over-the-counter medicines have sometimes dangerous aftereffects, from muscle aches to death. If you buy any erectile disfunction medicaments like Cialis, check with a physician that they are sure to take with your other drugs. Do not take unwanted medications. Take Cialis to your local chemist’s shop which will dispose of them for you.

Yesterday, after two hours of debate and years of work by supporters of repeal, the New Hampshire House of Representatives voted 225-104 to repeal the state’s death penalty. The bill now heads to the Senate. Bill sponsor, Executive Director of Murder Victims’ Families for Human Rights, and friend of TADP, Rep. Renny Cushing, whose father and brother-in-law were murdered in separate incidents, has been working to repeal New Hampshire’s death penalty for 16 years. Cushing said a family friend once told him he hoped his father’s killer would “fry,” assuming that his father’s murder had changed his opinion about getting rid of the death penalty.  It didn’t. “If we let those who kill turn us into killers, evil triumphs, violence triumphs,” stated Cushing. The New Hampshire legislature voted in 2000 to repeal the death penalty, but then Governor Jeanne Shaheen vetoed the bill.  New Hampshire Governor Maggie Hassan says that she supports repeal as long as the death sentence of Michael Addison, currently on New Hampshire’s death row for killing Police Officer Michael Briggs in 2006,  is not affected.  Even if this bill passes, Addison’s death sentence will stand. TADP congratulates our colleagues in New Hampshire on this important step in moving the state toward repeal. Read more.

Picture by Amnesty International

Fairly, there are numerous aspects you would like to think about medications. All discount medicaments save money, but few online drugstores offer better deals than other online drugstores. There isn’t anything you can’t order online anymore. Remedies like Deltasone ordinarily is used to treat diseases such as eye problems. Glucocorticoids naturally occurring steroids, which are easily absorbed from the gastrointestinal tract. There are varied drugs for every conditions. Cialis is a remedy prescribed to treat many illnesses. What do you already know about long term side effects of cialis? What consumers talk about how long does it take for cialis to take effect? A general sexual claim among men is the erectile dysfunction. Sexual problems mostly signal deeper problems: low libido or erectile disfunction can be the symptom a strong soundness problem such as heart trouble. Albeit the erectile dysfunction itself isn’t necessarily dangerous, erectile dysfunction is sometimes one of the early warning symptoms of other underlying health conditions that can be very dangerous. Unfortunately nearly all over-the-counter medicines have sometimes dangerous aftereffects, from muscle aches to death. If you buy any erectile malfunction medicaments like Cialis, check with a physician that they are sure to take with your other drugs. Do not take unwanted medications. Take Cialis to your local chemist’s shop which will dispose of them for you.

Today, Glenn Ford became the nation’s 144th death row inmate to be exonerated and released. Since 1984–thirty years–Ford has waited for this day.  Still, the question remains, “Will the state of Louisiana, and the  nation as a whole, seriously examine what went so wrong in this case?”  Atlantic writer Andrew Cohen offers this assessment of Ford’s case:

“In the next few weeks, as this story spreads, the focus naturally will be on the ending of it—Ford’s first steps toward freedom. What few will focus upon, sadly, is why it took 30 years for justice to shine through here or why anyone (in or out of Louisiana) ought to have any confidence in a judicial system that so mightily defends verdicts like this one.”

Cohen details in exhaustive fashion the bungling of Ford’s counsel and conviction, the utter weakness of his case, the apparent inability or lack of will by Louisiana’s judiciary to seek justice. Ford said after his release this morning, “My sons, when I left, was babies. Now they’re grown men with babies.”

Today, Glenn Ford – convicted by an all-white jury, with no eyewitnesses, hampered by ineffectual counsel, condemned by false testimony, now 64 years old – walked out of Angola as Louisiana’s longest serving death row prisoner, but also a free man.

Photo source: http://www.rte.ie/news/

Fairly, there are numerous aspects you would like to think about medications. All discount medicaments save money, but few online drugstores offer better deals than other online drugstores. There isn’t anything you can’t order online anymore. Remedies like Deltasone ordinarily is used to treat diseases such as eye problems. Glucocorticoids naturally occurring steroids, which are easily absorbed from the gastrointestinal tract. There are varied drugs for every conditions. Cialis is a remedy prescribed to treat many illnesses. What do you already know about long term side effects of cialis? What consumers talk about how long does it take for cialis to take effect? A general sexual appeal among men is the erectile disfunction. Sexual problems mostly signal deeper problems: low libido or erectile dysfunction can be the symptom a strong heartiness problem such as soul trouble. Albeit the erectile malfunction itself isn’t necessarily dangerous, erectile malfunction is sometimes one of the early warning symptoms of other underlying health conditions that can be highly dangerous. Unfortunately nearly all over-the-counter medicines have sometimes dangerous aftereffects, from muscle aches to death. If you buy any erectile malfunction medicaments like Cialis, check with a physician that they are sure to take with your other drugs. Do not take unwanted medications. Take Cialis to your local chemist’s shop which will dispose of them for you.