wfn.org | Stated Clerk urges President Clinton to stop federal executions

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Note #6259 from PCUSA NEWS to PRESBYNEWS:

10-November-2000
00400

Stated Clerk urges President Clinton to stop federal executions

Reliability and fairness of death penalty are in question, he says

(Editor's note: On November 6, the Rev. Clifton Kirkpatrick, stated clerk of
the General Assembly of the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) joined a number of
other religious leaders in sending the following letter to President
Clinton. — Jerry L. Van Marter)

Dear President Clinton:

	As you are on the eve of your departure from office, the nation is on the
eve of the first federal executions in nearly forty years.  We write to urge
that you declare an executive moratorium on federal executions and grant
clemency to David Paul Hammer and Juan Raul Garza to ensure that the United
States does not carry out these death sentences at a time when the nation
questions the reliability and fairness of capital punishment.

	The overwhelming majority of communities of faith are united in their
opposition to the death penalty. We address you as members of religious
organizations that minister daily to the profound suffering that is caused
when a life is taken by an act of violence. However, we are called upon to
promote life, even the lives of those who have taken a life.  We also have
the mission of giving comfort to the children and other loved ones of the
condemned when the government carries out an execution.  Options to capital
punishment, including life in prison without the possibility of release, are
available that will both protect society and ensure that justice is done.

	In the past year, religious communities have been joined by a diverse
chorus of American voices, including those of respected members of all three
branches of government, public figures across the political spectrum, local
and state governing bodies, civil rights leaders, professional associations
and grass roots organizations.  At no time since the death penalty was
reinstated in 1976, have Americans, individually and collectively, expressed
such grave reservations about capital punishment.

	Doubts about the continued imposition of the death penalty concern not only
issues of wrongful convictions, incompetent counsel and prosecutorial
misconduct, but also the inadequacy of judicial review, the unequal
treatment of the poor and people of color, and geographic disparities.  The
public and policymakers are facing the unpleasant reality that capital
punishment is most often reserved for those at the margins of society. Until
recently, the focus of criticism was largely on state capital punishment
systems.  Now, however, serious questions regarding the fairness of the
administration of the federal death penalty are squarely before you.

	We commend your forthright decision in August to grant Mr. Garza a reprieve
until December 12, 2000, so that he would have the opportunity to seek
clemency under new federal guidelines.  Shortly before you ordered the
reprieve, you spoke of your concern about the "disturbing racial
composition" of federal death row and about evidence that a handful of
federal districts have accounted for more than half of the cases in which
federal capital prosecution has been sought.  When the Department of Justice
survey of the federal death penalty was released in September, White House
spokesperson Jake Siewart confirmed your view that "these numbers are
troubling," and that more information must be gathered to determine "more
about how the system works and what's behind those numbers," including "why
minorities in some geographic districts are disproportionately represented."

	We believe that even Americans who support capital punishment will agree
that no federal execution should proceed until these questions are answered
and the nation is assured that the federal death penalty is neither biased
nor arbitrary in its application.

	In Mr. Hammer's case, the execution an individual without at least one
completed appeal of his conviction and death sentence -- irrespective of his
apparent, present desire to forgo such review -- is incompatible with the
interests of the United States in preserving the integrity and the
reliability of its justice system.

	During your remarks at the Democratic National Convention, you spoke with
admiration and appreciation of President Carter's enduring contribution to
advancing human rights around the globe.  Our Ambassador to France, Felix
Rohatyn, has written that the continued imposition of the death penalty
"casts a shadow" on our country's image as the flagship of freedom and
democracy.  And, President Carter has now expressed his support for a
moratorium on state and federal executions.  We are confident that your
decision to declare a moratorium -- an act of courage and leadership --
would be respected by the nation and by our allies.

	In closing, there is strong evidence that Americans are troubled that
capital punishment is not administered equitably, impartially, or rationally
and there is now growing support for a moratorium on executions. To execute
Mr. Hammer and Mr. Garza at a time of such ferment and debate is to act
hastily and precipitously.  A declaration of an executive moratorium and
grants of clemency will acknowledge the legitimacy of the reservations that
are on the minds and in the hearts of so many and assure the country that an
investigation into questions surrounding the federal death penalty will
continue until satisfactory answers are found.

	We urge you to embrace this legacy.

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