News Archives » death penalty
Peace & Life Connections Newsletter October 26th, 2012
We are now reproducing the Consistent Life “Peace & Life Connections” weekly newsletter on our website. If you are interested in more information, or in subscribing to the e-newsletter, please visit www.consistent-life.org/
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Aimee Murphy Speaks to Students for Life
Aimee Murphy, Executive Director of Life Matters Journal and CL Advisory Board member, explained the consistent life ethic at the Students for Life of America Regional Conference in Buffalo, New York. They made a video of it and it’s up on the web, along with a full transcript.
Click here to read more »
Connecticut State Senators Repeal Death Penalty Law April 9th, 2012
On April 5, the Connecticut State Senate voted 20 -16 in favor of repeal of the state’s death penalty law. The bill would replace the death penalty with life in prison without the possibility of parole as the state’s harshest punishment for future crimes. The legislation would not affect sentences of the 11 inmates currently on Connecticut’s death row.
The bill now goes to the Connecticut House of Representatives, where it is considered to have a high level of support, and then to Governor who has said he would sign it into law.
Other states have passed similar measures; among them are Illinois, New Mexico and New Jersey. In California, faith leaders are leading a campaign to gather enough signatures for an initiative to throw out the death penalty by voters on the November ballot.
The Catholic Conference of Connecticut and Religious communities are pleased with the passage of the repeal of the death penalty. The Conference is engaging in a campaign through its website and in advocacy messages in parish bulletins asking parishioners to contact their elected representatives, requesting that they support the bill.
A Good Friday Reflection: End the Use of the Death Penalty March 14th, 2012
A brochure from Catholic Mobilizing Network to End the Use of the Death Penalty is a resource we recommend to enrich Catholics during this liturgical season of Lent. The brochure offers educational, advocacy and theological reflections about the death penalty for Good Friday, which this year falls on April 6.
Death Penalty: Oregon Declares A Moratorium On all Executions December 19th, 2011
On November 22, Governor John Kitzhaber of Oregon announced that no more executions will take place during his term. Catholics and several other opponents of the death penalty praised Governor Kitzhaber for placing a moratorium on the use of the death penalty for the rest of his term.
Portland Catholic Archbishop John Vlazny applauded the decision. Faith groups in Oregon mobilized actions, petitions and letters in support of the moratorium. Oregon now joins 16 other states and the District of Columbia that do not have the death penalty. Of those 16, Illinois had abolished the death penalty most recently, in an action early in 2011.
People of Faith Against the Death Penalty August 30th, 2011
Religious leaders are being invited to join the calling for clemency for Georgia’s Troy Davis. People of Faith Against the Death Penalty and Amnesty International are working with religious leaders to encourage others from all faith traditions to endorse a public letter urging the Georgia Board of Pardons and Paroles to commute the death sentence of Troy Davis.
In March, the U.S. Supreme Court declined to hear Troy Davis’s appeals and set the stage for him to possibly face a fourth execution date at any time. Only the Georgia Board of Pardons and Paroles can stop his execution now. More than 1,500 leaders from around the country have already endorsed the letter. These include leaders of many different faith traditions, including Catholic, Baptist and Methodist clergy and religious communities.
Religious leaders can read and sign the clemency letter for Georgia’s Davis Troy at www.troyletter.org
