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The Indiana Information Center on the Abolition of Capital Punishment (IICACP) exists to expose the injustice associated with the application of the death penalty in Indiana. IICACP is open to anyone who is opposed to the death penalty.
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Back Issues
Quarterly Newsletter of the Indiana Information Center for the Abolition of Capital Punishment
I was born and raised in northern Maine. Maine abolished the death penalty in the 1890’s when a botched execution caused public revulsion for it. For several years in the late 1970’s, a legislator from the Portland area in southern Maine routinely introduced bills to reinstate the death penalty. The bills were all routinely roundly attacked in the press and overwhelmingly rejected in the legislature. Around my hometown, the legislator who introduced them was popularly referred to as “that nut down-state,” (“down-state” is any place south of Houlton). I come by my abolitionism naturally. At the University of Maine at Orono in the 1980’s, I majored in activism, spending most of my time on anti-apartheid activities. (In 1985, the University acceded to years of student and public pressure and divested itself of $1 million of South Africa investments.) I also helped start an Amnesty International group at UMO and became its first death penalty coordinator. The death penalty is all but non-existent in New England: Connecticut and New Hampshire have the death penalty but only Connecticut actively pursues death sentences. So, executions were remote events, mostly theoretical abstractions for a New Englander. They remained so when I attended law school in New Hampshire, a state with a death penalty. When the man who lived across the street from my then-fiance’s Concord apartment killed his estranged wife and three very young children, the death penalty was not even mentioned as a possible punishment. Executions remained abstractions even after I started work in the capital unit of the Indiana Public Defender and saw the effect of Gregory Resnover’s execution on my colleagues. All that changed on June 13, 2003. Some people recall exactly where they were and what they were doing when President Kennedy was shot. Others recall the precise time when the space shuttle Columbia exploded. I recall in vivid detail the days, particularly the last minutes and seconds, leading up to the execution of my client Joe Trueblood. It was hot, even for June in Indiana. The heat hit us in a wave as Joe’s two other attorneys, his priest and I left the building we had been waiting in for the short walk to the building housing the execution chamber. I felt an incongruous sense of physical relief as we left the oppressive heat and entered the air-conditioned building. As we were silently directed down a dim corridor, along which guards were stationed, I heard music playing. I thought the guards were being cavalier and started to get angry until I recognized the song. It was the Bob Seeger song that was one of Joe’s last requests. At the end of the corridor was the “viewing area”: 10 cheap kitchen chairs arranged in two rows in front of a large window with venetian blinds. The only illumination was from a bright light from the other side of the blinds. The chairs in the front row were so close together that we had to move them apart to avoid bumping shoulders. This prompted the guards to make a move towards us but hey relaxed when we sat down. A few moments after we sat down, the venetian blinds were drawn open and I felt a physical shock as if I had touched a live electrical wire. Joe was tightly strapped down to a cross-like gurney; a tube ran from an IV to a needle in his arm. He was singing along with the music but the opening of the blinds alerted him to our presence and he managed to lift his head a little to look at us and waggle his fingers in a wave. He then lay back and continued to sing with the music. To the right of the window, with his back to us, was a man in a suit with a stethoscope around his neck. He said something that sounded like “go on number two” but it was difficult to hear over the music and my own convulsive sobbing. Joe’s lips continued to move in time with the music but gradually became slower until they stopped. His body quivered for a moment and then was still. The man in the suit called out something that sounded like a time. The venetian blinds snapped shut. Later that day, at the court hearing on whether the state had the authority to autopsy Joe, I would testify that Joe’s death was quiet and peaceful; I told Joe’s family the same thing. That was a lie. The state took a healthy human being, strapped him down to prevent him from reacting or resisting, then poisoned him. There was nothing peaceful about it. There was nothing humane about it. It was violent, brutal and degrading. As I sat in those cheap kitchen chairs, I promised I would try to stop it. PLEASE NOTE OUR NEW ADDRESS IICACP IICACP HAS OFFICE SPACE & A NEW ADDRESS!! IICACP has reached a milestone with the acquisition of office space. Through the generosity of the ACLU of Indiana, we now have an office in the basement of their building at 1031 E. Washington Street, Indianapolis. We are also able to use the conference room for our membership and board meetings, and did so for the first time for the June 10th membership meeting. The consensus then was that it is a most comfortable meeting place. Many of us took the nickel tour of our basement digs and were happy to find a home for accumulated IICACP “stuff.” We will need to do some clean- up and fix-up work, and you will no doubt be hearing of opportunities to participate in that. That accomplished, our potential for effective advocacy increases dramatically. We can truly become an information center, a place to organize, store and make available our resources, brochures, flyers, a place for committee and small group meetings, workspace for preparing the newsletter mailing, making signs, preparing tabling kits, etc. We plan to establish office hours with members volunteering a few hours per month to that. The possibilities are endless. The ACLU-I and IICACP share the goal of abolishing the death penalty. This move will strengthen the force for abolition. We share the basement with Pages to Prisoners, which collects and distributes books to prisoners, matching prisoner requests with donated material. We have good neighbors. We encourage members to bring your extra books to meetings to donate. There is a particular demand for Bibles and dictionaries. Our new address appears on front of this newsletter. Our mailbox with the UPS Store expires in July and there is no forwarding available, so it is important to start using the new address immediately. COMING EVENTS DATES SET FOR CAPITAL PUNISHMENT EVENTS IN FEBRUARY, 2007 By Ed Towne, IICACP Board Member IICACP is participating with members of the faculty and staff of Butler University in the planning of several events in various venues in Indianapolis that will deal with the problematic reality of the death penalty. Three featured speakers will make presentations on February 21 (Donald Cabana), February 28 (David Kaczynski), and March 2 (to be announced). An Oxford Style Debate will be held on Friday, February 23, with prominent community leaders, lawyers, and legislators participating. Three powerful films dealing with capital punishment will be shown on February 26, 27, and March 1. These events will be held at 7:30 pm. The Indianapolis Opera Ensemble will offer a performance of "The Penal Colony" on Thursday, February 22, and Sunday, February 25. PREPARE FOR SISTER HELEN PREJEAN’S VISIT IN NOVEMBER By Angie Grogan, IICACP Board Member We are extremely fortunate to have three opportunities to hear Sister Helen Prejean speak in the Indianapolis area in November. On Friday, November 10, Sister Helen Prejean will be speaking at the Indiana University- Indianapolis Law School at 3:30 pm. The next day, Sister Prejean will be the keynote speaker for the Annual Meeting for IICACP. The Annual Meeting will begin at 9 am and her speaking time is tentatively scheduled for noon on Saturday, November 11. That evening at 7:00 pm, Sister Prejean will be speaking at Our Lady of Mount Carmel Church in Carmel. Please look in the next newsletter for more information about all of these visits. EQUAL JUSTICE USA MID-WEST FIELD ORGANIZER BEGINS Eunice Timony-Ravenna Starts Work as EJUSA’s Mid-West field organizer on July 10th. After a brief training and orientation period at EJUSA’s national office, she will begin work in the field in four Mid-Western states, including Indiana. Eunice previously worked for the International Justice & Peace Center in Cincinnati, Ohio, where she worked closely with Ohioans To Stop Executions and with EJUSA. IICACP welcomes a new ally in the fight to stop state-sponsored murder. We hope she will be able to come to IICACP’s August membership meeting. MEMBERSHIP DUES REMINDER IICACP depends on your membership dues to continue abolition work, including educating the public and the legislature, publishing this newsletter and sponsoring public events, such as Sister Helen Prejean’s November visit, the Death Row Art show and the numerous death penalty related events planned for February, 2007. We’ve obtained office space which will provide us a place for meetings and central storage of literature. All of this requires money. Please take a few moments, fill out the form below and renew--or start--your membership today. And please feel free to donate more than the suggested membership amounts. Thank you for your continuing generosity. OPPOSING THE DEATH PENALTY IN THE FACE OF MASS MURDER by Debby Peddie, IICACP Board Member On June 4TH, I tabled for IICACP at St. Luke’s United Methodist Church. As we were setting up, my tablemate said, “Well, you certainly have your work cut out for you today.” It was three days after the horrendous murders of seven family members on Hamilton Avenue, on the east side of Indianapolis. I had known when I listened to early news reports of the crime, that the prosecutor would almost certainly call for the death penalty, and I would oppose that as I oppose all death sentences. I also knew people would challenge my stand on the grounds that some murders cross that line and justify a death sentence. I have, we all have, unfortunately been there before. As the execution of Timothy McVeigh approached, a reporter from The Indianapolis Star called me as a person who had written letters to the editor opposing capital punishment. She tried to get me to renounce my stand on the grounds that some murders cross the line and, in those cases, anyone and everyone can support a death sentence. I have an inkling of where she was coming from. Opposing the death penalty does not make me immune to the pain, anguish, shock, and anger all civilized human beings feel on hearing of murder. In those early moments, when one is filled with grief and anger that is hard to control and contain, one needs a focus for that anger, and it naturally falls on the suspect. One needs to do something, and since life cannot be restored to the victims, the focus is on where something can be done, and that is on the suspect. For most of us, there will always be a disconnect here, it is not fair that the murderer gets to live and the victim is dead. But life is not fair. We all know that. Why do some people live long and happy lives, and some people suffer and die early? Why are some people geniuses and some people mentally deficient? Rabbi Harold Kushner in his book, “Why Do Bad Things Happen To Good People?” addressed this question magnificently and for me convincingly, and I recommend it. We all know just from living day by day, that there are many things we can do to make life more fair, and there are some times when life is unfair and there is nothing we can do about it, except love and support one another. But when we can make life better, more fair, we must try. It is from that well of truth that my work to abolish the death penalty springs. And that work is never harder than when I am asked, “but what about the victims?” We must remember the victims and respect their survivors, and this should probably become an adjunct to our abolition work. Some people ask why we spend so much time and effort on saving the murderer’s life. Just as I would try to stop any murder, I must try to stop murder by execution. Take the death penalty out of our criminal justice system, and we will not have to spend that time and energy, not to mention the money, trying to stop it. Sadly, we cannot restore life to the victims. But there are many things we can do to prevent murder in the future. It costs the state an average of $500,000 more to carry out a death sentence than to incarcerate a person for life. We know the death penalty Is not a deterrent to murder. The state of Indiana executed five men last year, but that did not stop the Hamilton Avenue murders. Nor is society made any safer by killing a person rather than locking him or her up. But that $500,000 could go a long way toward making society safer and preventing murder: more police in neighborhoods, help for children when intervention is first indicated, support for families. We need to put our money and efforts at the front end of the problem where there is a real possibility of preventing murder, instead of committing another murder by state execution. For a long time my stand on the death penalty was, it is wrong, case closed, next question, what else is there to say? The reality is that we are continuing to execute people and continuing to debate the issue, so plenty more needs to be said. A year ago we were struggling to revive this newsletter, an important tool in our work. We are now preparing to change the format and expand our reach through bulk mailing and wider distribution. In the new format, we would like to have an op-ed type page or section Where we can carry on this conversation. We will continue to solicit specific pieces, but also invite you to participate by submitting opinions and essays based your experience and thoughts on abolition.
26th National Convocation of Jail and Prison Ministry By Julia Pearson, IICACP Treasurer &R in Hope” was the theme of the 26th National Convocation of Jail and Prison Ministry held May 21-25, 2006, in Myrtle Beach, South Carolina. The group was joined this year by the American Catholic Correctional Chaplains Association for prayer,education, and mutual encouragement. The Convocation was initially sponsored by the National Federation of Priests' Councils in 1979. It evolved into an independent ecumenical movement that meets annually around the country. From this core of faith, men and women of all religions advocate for reconciliation in the criminal justice system, reaching out in love to both victims and offenders. Goals include abolishing the death penalty and stopping the construction of prisons and jails. Participants come together yearly to determine the Convocation's direction as they collectively hold the vision of a restorative criminal justice system and seek alternatives to incarceration. Prior to its existence, there was no structure where either volunteer correctional ministers or institutional correctional chaplains had a forum to address issues and injustices in criminal justice. The Convocation opened with an address by Bishop Robert Baker, STD, of the Diocese of Charleston, South Carolina. Before his appointment as Bishop, Baker was the Chaplain for Death Row at the Florida State Prison in Starke, Florida and helped organize the Prison Ministry in St. Augustine's County Jail. Stephen Dear, Executive Director of People of Faith Against the Death Penalty, spoke about North Carolina's moratorium efforts. Dear has led more than two dozen delegations of religious leaders to clemency hearings with North Carolina's governors and has spoken across the country on the death penalty. Highlighting PFADP's slogan: “Take Action, Not Lives,” Dear facilitated workshops on concrete actions to take locally to abolish the death penalty. Dale Racinella, author of “The Biblical Truth About America's Death Penalty” (Northeastern University Press: 2004), spoke on “The Last Week of an Execution.” Racinella has served for thirteen years as a spiritual counselor and Catholic lay chaplain in Florida's prisons. In 1998, he began ministering to the 350 men on Florida's death row and the 2000 men in Florida's long-term solitary confinement. He spoke of how he and his wife, Dr. Susan Racinella, minister during executions: he serves as spiritual advisor to the condemned, and his wife serves as a lay minister to the condemned's family and loved ones. They also minister to the families and loved ones of murder victims. David Kaczynski, brother of Ted Kaczynski, and Executive Director of New Yorkers Against the Death Penalty, along with Gary Wright, who was seriously injured by one of Ted Kaczynski's bombs in 1987, spoke movingly about reconciliation between all victims of crime. Currently, they are writing a book on violence and healing. David Kaczynski and Gary Wright joined three others for a particularly moving panel discussing their individual personal journeys toward reconciliation and healing. Others were: Fr. Andrew Volkommer, who ministered to David C. Hill on South Carolina’s death row through Hill's execution and funeral; Celia McWee was the mother of Jerry McWee, executed in South Carolina in 2005. Ms. McWee’s daughter was murdered 29 years ago, the victim of domestic violence; her son-in-law spent only two days in jail for this crime. Diane Bauer spoke of her sister who was murdered by her ex-husband in front of their children. Her journey of wanting and needing to forgive this man was not strongly supported. Following Convocation tradition, an interfaith public witness against the death penalty took place in Chapin Park in Myrtle Beach. Participants wore their Convocation tee shirts and carried signs bearing anti-death penalty slogans along a major highway. The public witness also featured Gospel-flavored singing and readings/prayer/liturgy with Stephen Dear. Bruce Pearson, former coordinator of the SC Coalition Against the Death Penalty spoke on the issue from a South Carolina perspective. The 27th National Convocation of Jail and Prison Ministry is planned for May 6-9, 2007 at the Franciscan Renewal Center in Scottsdale, Arizona. DEATH PENALTY NEWS (Most of the information for Death Penalty News is from Paula Sites’ articles published in the Indiana Defender, monthly publication of the Indiana Public Defender Council, which Paula is Assistant Executive Director of. Paula generously allows us to use her articles for the Indiana Abolitionist.) Public Opinion and the Death Penalty In a May Gallup Poll, 65% of respondents said they support the death penalty in principle, a number that has remained fairly steady since 2000. However, when asked to choose between the death penalty and life without parole, only 47% favored the death penalty, the lowest number in twenty years. A roughly equal number, 48% said they would choose life without parole. 64% said they do not believe that the death penalty deters murder, a dramatic change from the past two decades. 63 % said they believe that an innocent person has been executed in the past five years. Despite this, 60% said they thought the death penalty is applied fairly in this country, and 51% believe that it is not used often enough. If 65% still support the death penalty yet 64% believe it does not deter murder, then the logical conclusion is that supporters of the death penalty simply want revenge. Wrinkles Juror Confesses to Sister Helen During Sister Helen Prejean’s recent visit to Valparaiso University, a former capital juror stepped forward to “confess” that he had sentenced a man to die. Rev. Joseph Cunningham, a Valparaiso pastor who had served on the Vanderburgh County jury that sentenced Eric Wrinkles to death, interrupted Sr. Helen’s presentation to talk with her about his capital jury service. He had opposed the death penalty in principle, Rev. Cunningham told her, but he voted for death for Wrinkles after helping convict him of the shooting deaths of his ex-wife and her sister and brother-in-law. In particular, he said the gruesomeness of the final victim’s death, shot in the face as she ran from Wrinkles, caused him to vote for death. He described himself as a “wounded soul” who relived the experience of the trial every day, and who dreads the day Wrinkles might be executed. Sr. Helen tried to comfort Rev. Cunningham, telling him, “Your decision partly came out of a very traumatized man.” Pending Capital Cases There are currently 15 Indiana capital cases pending trial, retrial, or resentencing in Indiana: 5 in Lake County, 4 in Marion County, and one each in Clark, Fulton, Parke, Posey, Spencer, and Tippecanoe Counties. A full listing of pending cases with the names of the defendants and their legal teams as well as other information on Indiana’s death row is on the Indiana Public Defender Council’s website under “Death Penalty Information,” accessible through a link on IICACP’s website. Paul McManus’ death sentence vacated A post-conviction judge found that, under Indiana law, Paul McManus was mentally retarded and vacated his death sentence. McManus was sentenced to death in Vanderburgh County in 2002 for the murders of his estranged wife, Melissa, and their daughters Lindsey, 8, and Shelby, 2. McManus was represented in post-conviction proceedings by Deputies Public Defender Steve Schutte, past IICACP Vice-President and current board member, and Joanna Green, IICACP member. The State has appealed. US SUPREME COURT TURNS DOWN TIMBERLAKE APPEAL On May 1, the U.S. Supreme Court refused to hear Norman Timberlake’s appeal from the denial of federal habeas relief. His attorneys have asked the Indiana Supreme Court for permission to file a successive post-conviction relief petition. In recent practice, the Court has not set an execution date until it has decided whether to allow a successive post-conviction petition. Timberlake was sentenced to death in 1995 for the murder of Indiana State Trooper Michael Greene. 7th Circuit Affirms Michael Lambert’s Death Sentence The 7th Circuit has again affirmed Michael Lambert’s death sentence for the 1990 of Muncie Police officer Gregg Winters. The Indiana Supreme Court set an execution date for Lambert in June, 2005. He then sought clemency while also filing a new habeas petition in federal court. The district court dismissed the petition and Lambert appeal that dismissal to the 7th Circuit. The 7th Circuit issued a stay of execution that was announced in the middle of Lambert’s clemency hearing just days before his scheduled execution. The Court the allowed the appeal to proceed and heard oral argument. Lambert’s attorneys will ask the full court to reconsider the appeal. Supreme Court Decides Lethal Injection Related Case In a June 12th ruling, the US Supreme Court unanimously decided in Hill v. McDonough that a death row prisoner may challenge a state’s lethal injection procedures as a civil rights claim in federal court. The Court further held that a death row prisoner need not specify an acceptable alternative to the challenged lethal injection procedure. However, the Court did not rule on the legality of lethal injection and also held that the filing of such a lawsuit does not entitle the prisoner to a stay of execution. The Court noted that there is a strong presumption against a stay where an action could have been brought at a time when the merits of the claim could have been considered without a stay. This holding appears to explain the Supreme Court’s actions in Marv Bieghler’s case. The Supreme Court decided to hear Hill the day before Bieghler’s scheduled execution. Based on that decision, Bieghler’s attorneys filed a civil rights suit and convinced the 7th Circuit to issue a stay of execution. In a midnight ruling, the Supreme Court overturned the stay and Bieghler was executed minutes later. In light of the Hill decision, the fact that Bieghler had previously raised a lethal injection claim appears to have weighed heavily in the Court’s decision to overturn the stay. |
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