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HomeMy WebLinkAboutAgenda - 11-03-1999 - 8cORANGE COUNTY BOARD OF COMMISSIONERS ACTION AGENDA ITEM ABSTRACT Meeting Date: November 3, 1999 SUBJECT: Moratorium on Executions DEPARTMENT: County Manager ATTACHMENT(S): 9/28/99 Letter from PFADP Proposed Resolution Action Agenda Item No. - C. PUBLIC HEARING: (Y /N) No INFORMATION CONTACT: County Manager, ext 2300 Pt-ADP Background Materials TELEPHONE NUMBERS: Hillsborough 732 -8181 Chapel Hill 968 -4501 Durham 688 -7331 Mebane 336- 227 -2031 PURPOSE: To consider a resolution endorsing a moratorium on executions. BACKGROUND: Stephen Dear, Executive Director of People of Faith Against the Death Penalty, has written a letter to the Board of Commissioners requesting that they adopt a proposed resolution that would endorse a moratorium on executions in North Carolina. Additional background materials provided by the organization are attached. County staff have developed a resolution for Board adoption. FINANCIAL IMPACT: None on Orange County financial operations. RECOMMENDATION(S): The Manager recommends that the Board adopt the attached resolution. FROM : PFADP FAX NO. : 919 933 5611 Sep. 28 1999 02:26PM P1 2 People of faith Against the Death Penalty September 28, 1999 Orange County Board of Commissioners P.O. Box 8181 Hillsborough, NC 27278 Dear Commissioners, A growing international movement is now calling on local governments to support a moratorium on executions. Recently,. the city councils of Carrboro (unanimously), Chapel Hill (unanimously), and Durham (8 -3) passed resolutions- supporting. a moratorium on executions. We would like to ask the. Orange County Board of Comiissioners to do the same at its meeting on Tuesday, .October 5, 1999. We ask that the enclosed resolution be included at or new the top of the agenda for that meeting. A moratorium is akin to a temporary cease fire in time of war: It is. an opportunity to examine how the death penalty is unfairly practiced. One of the most compelling reasons that death penalty .advocates and opponents are joining in support of a moratorium is the fact that so far at least. 80 people'in America have been released from death .row since 1970 because they were proven to be innocent, in many cases-by investigators outside the judicial system. More and more death row inmates are being proven innocent. In Wilktsbo ro, N.C., on May 14, 1999, a superior court judge overturned Charles Munsey's death sentence because he recognizes that Munsey, was falsely convicted, that prosecutors knowingly withheld exculpatory evidence, and that there is overwhelming evidence that Munsey is innocent. (Tragically, Mr. Munsey.died of pneumonia in prison this month while awaiting a new trial.) A number of political leaders who favor the death penalty in principle, as well as the American Bar Association, have begun advocating for a moratorium: Recently, the Nebraska, state legislature approved a two - year moratorium that was co- sponsored by a Republican advocate of the death penalty. The.introduction of Carrboro" s moratorium resolution was facilitated by a pro -death penalty member of the Board of Aldermen. Durhaxn's. resolution was, introduced by a Republican. Orange County congregations that have. passed moratorium resolutions include Chapel Hill Friends Meeting, Holy Family Catholic Church (Hillsborough), and University Presbyterian Church (Chapel Hill); several others are. expected in upcoming weeks. So-far, scores of Orange County residents have signed a petition calling on the UnitedNations to pass a moratorium resolution next year. People of Faith Against the Death Penalty and North Carolinians Against the Death Penalty ask- you to . . join your constituents'who are calling for a moratorium. Thank you for your consideration. Should you have any questions please call me at 933 -7567: Sisperely, gt en I?ear Executive. Director -I' 7' /A East Fmuk- in St. Chgvi Hill, North Canrlirm 21514 Phone /fax 919.93.,•7367 A Runr.n.AM of 'rtis NGu•.rn t.ARoLtNA COV14C1S. AP C lIYACHAS AL/CEM. GORDON, CHAR S7EPHENH. HALKlons,, DICE CHAIR MARGARET W. BROWN MOSES CAREY, JR. BARRYJACOSS ORANGE COUNTY COMMISSIONERS P.O. BOX 8181 200 S. CAMERON STREET HILLSBOROUGH, N.C. 27278 tat MEMORANDUM T0; President William J. Clinton Govemor of North Carolina James B. Hunt, Jr. U.S. Senators and Representatives from Orange County N. C. State Senators end Representatives from Orange County FROM: Alico M. Gordon, Chair /EKG Orange County Board of Commissioners DATE: November 12, 1999 SUBJECT: Adopted Resolution The Orange County Board of Commissioners, meeting in regular session on November 3, 1999, adopted "A Resolution Calling for a Moratorium on Executions." Your consideration of this resolution will be greatly appreciated. You Count In Orange County AREA CODE (919) 732-8181:968-4501: 688-7331:227-2031: FAX (919) 644-0246 Ext. 2130 n A RESOLUTION CA4ING FOR A MORATORIUM ON EXECUTIONS WH;EREA;%, Throughout the a society sought ` s has so � ht to use pence - for crimes committed against citkens; and WHEREAS, ln.197,Z the United Stat".6uprome Court has reed tn'Furman v. Georgia that th4; procedurea used to implement the death .penalty were unconstitutional thereby halting executiona.M this nation until 1976.when the Supreme Court ruled in Q Qeor �C the use of the death,:penalty could be utilizdd:'` subject to safsguards ,.•for'-the tion of -the rights of the accused; and �} W"EREAS, The`u46(the dealt perielty as a capital punishment for therwiNful; deliberate and premedit#ted killing or:killing while committing another felony has been 4. deemed appropriately the..people of North Carolina and all of those currently awalting execution in North CaroljnaWwere convicted and sentenced ender the state's revised, capital punishment law which becne effective June 1, 1977; and WHEREAS, Since the reestablishment of the death penalty iq Ndth 'Carolina there haven technological advances, suc hu use of DNA testing, to assist in the,". determination of guy rind tt anhan bd ability of the accused to receive the necessary :.legal assistance i+ defend their rights as provided under the Constitution of the United States and the ConsfiPution of the State of North- Cbrolina; and WHEREAS, Even with, these advancements, recent events have show': that circumstances do- exist in which people coi1victed of capital crimes have beenwrongly< ° accused alit# ontencedd to death even though innocent; and WHEREAS,. Further discussion and deliberation of this 4ont6ntious Issue in light of these factors irmerited and the need to review the laws oi� this. State and the various court pr6ceedings and rulings affecting the usWof this punishment should be undertaken as expeditiously as possible due to the fact, „that approximately 197 persons in North Caroling are awaiting execution; and r WHERI FA 4, ”— ,Senators Eleanor Kinnaird and Howard N. Lee, have sponsored a bill in the 1999 Sessio n x of the General Assembly (Senate Bill 1102), � z c establishing a- moratorium'tm execrations in North Carolina; and WHEREAS, the Serrate has refwed the above mentioned biltto the Jud ciery Committee ll,, for further study; and NOW, THEREFORE, THE-6RANGE COUNTY .BOARD OF COUNTY ` COMMISSIONERS RESOLVE6: section 1. The- Board of County Commissioners calls on Governor Hur*and`our state 3 ,r legislators, President Clinton and our legislators in Congress, to enact and adopt legislation imposing. a moratoriWn on,execuions --at least until this state and the nation implement policaesand procures which: • Ensure that death penafty.cases are administered fairly and ftpartiatly, in accordance v40 basic due process; ,: u f FROM : PFADP FAX N0. :,919 933 5611 Sep. 28 1999 02: 29PM P4 North Carolina Voices for a Moratorium on Executions 5 "[The] insightful dialogue by legislators, lawyers, and professors [held at UNC- Chapel Hill in 1998 and contained in the book Unjust in the Much: The Death Penalty in North Carolina] amply justifies the American Bar Association's call for a moratorium on the death penalty in North Carolina. It is simply not fair and it doesn't even work. " -- Dean Smith, Coach Emeritus, UNC -CH "I think a moratorium is... appropriate.... I am not an absolutist on the death penalty, but I believe the way it's being applied is often very uncertain and very unfair and not to mention racist and hits people who are poor." — Allen Spault, Carrboro Board of Aldernwn ' l7cgardless of whether you think the death penalty acts as a deterrent or not, which I don't think it dots, since the risk of human error is so great I really appreciate what (moratorium proponents) are doing." — Jacqueline Gist, Carrboro Board of Aldermen "I support wholeheartedly the ... call for a moratorium on the death penalty.... First, although the penalty is occasionally 'deserved,' it is unevenly, even whimsically, applied. Second, when it is mistakenly imposed upon an innocent person, the miscar- riage has no possibility of cure or amelioration." — Paul Hardin, Chancellor Emeritus, UNC - Chapel Hill "The death penalty discriminates against poor people, non-white people, and all those who do not have the resources or understanding to demand their proper rights under existing law.... It doesn't even work." —Lee Smith, Author, Hillsborough "In spite of our courts and our legislature [trying to] eliminate arbitrariness, if you're a person of means in this state you simply will not be sentenced to death no matter what you do.... The death penalty is reserved for the poor... (anti) most of the time it is reserved for people who are not from the community in which they are tried.... Because they are not of the community it's very easy to pass them as inhuman, something other than human, not one of us." — Marshall Dayan, Attorney, Schley, N.C. (Orange County) "I have many problems with the death penalty: the finality of inevitable mistakes, the often unfair administration of justice, the uneven access to legal expertise...... — Christopher C. Fordhain, III, Chancellor Emeritus, UNC- Chapel Hill "We're proud that our two home communities have the courage... to stand up against injustice. We're also proud that a Chapel -Hill -based group, People of Faith Against the Death Penalty, is leading the moratorium effort in this state. Roses... to State Sen. Ellie Xitmaird, who introduced moratorium legislation in the Senate." — The Chapet Hill News (June 18, 1999) "Whether we have a death penalty or not should depend on the informed citizen's judgment rather than the citizenry that's in the dark about it, a citizenry that has capital punishment that is exercised at two in the morning and run in margins and in the hallways of the court house in the dark shadows. Given the principles of our nation, held by people who feel strongly in favor of capital punishment, this system is indecent. This system is unacceptable." -- Lou Bilionis, Professor of Law, UNC- Chapel Hill "The (former N.C. Supreme. Courtl Chief Justice [James Exum) said he spent 70 percent of the court's time on the death penalty, not because they thought it was worth 70 percent of the time but because other people who don't have to carry out the policies have brought it forward. The death penalty has had a terrible distorting effect on our courts and on the practice of law in North Carolina both, and that's something you don't hear talked about very much. I think it's really been quite destructive, and continues to be." — Malcolm Ray "Tye" Hunter, Appellate Defender for the State of North Carolina, Chapel Hill "(The death penalty) remains arbitrary .... this jury says 'yes.' this jury says 'no.' It is still, even at its best, a crap shoot." — Adam Stein, Attorney, Chapel Hill "Wc've had [27] years now since... Furman in '72.... The burden of proof ought to shift to those who think capital punish- ment is needed, is useful. Has it really been? Are we really more safe, more just? Have we had a decrease in the rate of criminal homicide that's not tied to the demographics of the population?" -- Jade Boger, Professor of Law and Associate Dean of Academic Affairs, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill "Halt state executions. the system is flawed... The system is flawed because the system is us. We're the jurors. We're the judges. We're the prosecutors and defense attorneys. All of us are fallible, liable to be blinded sometimes by prejudice or presump- tion. We get tired. We cut corners. We get things wrong. And when the penalty is death, thaw is no acceptable error rate. One innocent man killed is too many.,' -- News & Record, Greensboro (May 22, 1999) "The General Assembly ought to approve (Sen. Kinnaird's bill to declare a moratorium on executions) and send it to Gov. Hunt with dispatch. The issue here is essentially about the fairness in the administration of the death penalty.... One can't help wondering... how many other innocents remain on death row or have been executed.... The criminal justice system, developed and adminixtered by human beings, is inevitably imperfecct.... A moratorium on the death penalty is a good idea." -- Winston -Sakm Journal (May 23, 1999) 'the moratorium idea is a very important idea .... alt's important that N.C. take a stand on it, and 1 hope the stand will he favorable, and that the Congress of the [U.S.] does that also." —Hon. Harry Martin, N.C. Supreme Court Justice Emeritus FROM : PFADP FAX NO. : 919 933 5611 Sep. 28 1999 02:27PM 6 "If (Charles) Munsey spent three years on death row for a crime he didn't commit, how many other innocent people are still there? And how many has North Carolina already executed? Those and other uncertainties — concerning full disclosure of exculpa- tory evidence and equal access to high - quality legal representation, for example —build a strong case for halting use of the death penalty. At the least, its use ought to be suspended until the issues can be studied and citizens —in whose name executions are carried out —can be reasonably assured that the death penalty is not being applied in discriminatory ways." — The News df Observer, lWeigh (June 1, 1999) "What happened to (Charles) Munsey is a textbook example of why the death penalty is so arbitrary and capricious.... The attorney general's office owes him and everyone else in North Carolina an explanation of how something that should happen only in the movies not only came to life, but came very close to death." — The HeraW- -Sun, Durham (May 25, 1999) "What happens when someone unjustly convicted has no one to raise questions? This ought to concern every fair - minded person. Since the development of DNA testing, scores of inmates on Death Row have had their convictions revered.... How many others have been wrongly convicted? How many have been executed? That's why legislative proposals for a moratorium on executions make sense.... Nebraska's legislature has approved such a moratorium. So should North Carolina...; ' — The Charlotte Obso ver (May 25, 1999) "I think that our [city council's] concern with crime and our concern with reducing violence in our community does make it appropriate for us to support this moratorium. I think that we have a vested interest as city council members, our staff, our police department, in fact, all citizens in the City of Durham have a vested interest in this issue. It's an issue that needs to be addressed so that we can find more appropriate ways.., to reduce the violence in our society." — Pamela Blyth, Durham City Council "I certainly am in favor of criminals being punished, but we all know that death is irreversible. If a person is found innocent following an execution there's nothing that can be done. So I certainly think that this is something that needs to be studied and that something better can come out of the process." — Mary Jacobs, Durham City Council "I have come to believe that such support for the death penalty as there is in this state is, as I have said before, a mile wide and an inch deep. I think there is a lot of sort of surface support, but it doesn't really go all that deep. That the state administers the death penalty hardly diminishes its brutality,... When the state says this or that human being is not worth saving, it cheapens the rest of us ;, it brutalizes the rest of us; and we become a more violent society" — Honorable James Exum Jr, former Chief Justice of the N.C. Supreme Court "In the [23] years since the Supreme Court reinstated the death penalty, the evidence is incontrovertible that the application of the death penalty has been biased towards minorities. In the same period, it is also incontrovertible that the death penalty has often been applied to defendants who were innocent. I do not believe that a penalty so final and flawed should continue. I ap- plaud the American Bar Association for calling for a national moratorium on the death penalty." — Honorable Melvin L. Watt, Member of Congress, Charlotte "When you look at the fact that African - Americans make up a disproportionate share of our prison population, that they are unfairly represented in our courts, that they are unfairly represented in penalties by death, where does it stop? African Americans have been looking at the death penalty for a number of years, and we look at it basically as a legalized way of killing African Americans.... Any time there's an innocent matt, an innocent woman, being put to death, that's something you can't correct. And that happens. So where will the next time be that an innocent person will be put to death and all of a sudden we find out that he or she shouldn't? How can we correct that wrong? We can't." --Skip Alston, President, State Conference of NAACP Branches "Me death penalty is clearly discriminatory.... Numerous studies have documented this fact. If a suspect is poor or a member of a minority group, the death penalty is much more likely to be imposed." —4tatement of Senior N.C. Religious Leaders "Any legal system claiming to represent what is roost noble in a society fails when embracing and welcoming the cruelty of planned death for a member of that society." — Clyde Edgerton, Author "There's something here that's often lost when we look simply at the statistics. When we look at the large numbers of people [on death row] and we see things are out of balance; when we look at the numbers of people of color on death row and when we look at the numbers of people from small, rural counties who land on death row, we can se from a racial point of view, from a beographical point of view, certainly from an income point of view--here are the disproportionate effects" — Henderson Hill, Attorney, Charlotte "Apparently we want to be able to execute minors in this country, and even though almost all of the rest of the world are signing conventions that it's wrong, the United States is not one of those countries. It's a disgrace in my view that this country, which is supposed to be the premier country in the world, does not recognize that it's immoral and wrong." — Tom Loftin, Attorney, Durham "We get one thing for the death penalty for our money. We get more rage and violence, more anger, and more killing. The death penalty is an embarrassment. It is a failure. It is a waste of resources. It is a blight upon us as a civilization." (FOR MORE INFO CONTACT PFADP (919) 933 -7547) — Wade Smith, Attorney, Raleigh FROM : PFADP FAX NO. : 919 933 5611 Sep. 28 1999 02:30PM Reasons to Support a Moratorium on Executions in N.C. A Moratorium Has Growing Bipartisan Support So far, moratorium resolutions have been supported by more than 550 city councils, universities, civic groups, congregations, and other organizations, including: City of Durham, N.C. Town of Chapel Hill, N.C.* Town of Carrboro, N.C.* 20+ N.C. Congregations N.C. Council of Churches Nebraska State Legislature American Bar Association City of New Haven, Ct. Illinois House of Representatives U.N. Commission for Human Rights City of Mt. Rainier, Md. *unanimous vote Recognizing the injustices inherent in the administration of the death penalty, pro - capital punishment elected officials from N.C. local governments as well as Chicago Mayor Richard Daley and Republican state legislators through out the country provide bipartisan support for moratoria on executions. A moratorium bill has been introduced into the N.C. General Assembly and is being debated in several other states. Wag Loale Are Sentenced to Death and Executed ✓ Since 1970, 80 people have been freed from death row because they were proven to be innocent by college student and others working outside the justice system. ✓ In North Carolina, at least three people have been released from death row sincel970 because they are innocent. ✓ So far this century at least 23 people have been executed who were later proven to be innocent. ✓ For every seven people executed since 1976, one has been released because of innocence. Death Sentences Are Given to the Poor, Not the Rich ✓ In N.C., about 98 percent of those facing capital charges cannot afford their own attorney. ✓ No state -- including North Carolina —has met standards developed by the American Bar Association for appoint- ment, performance and compensation of counsel for indigent prisoners. The Death Penalty is Applied in a Radst Manner ✓ The U.S. General Accounting Office reports "a pattern of evidence indicating racial disparities in charging, semen, ing and imposition of the death penalty." (1990) ✓ The U.S. Supreme Court has acknowledged the validity of data demonstrating the continued reality of racial bias h death sentences. (McCleskey v. Kemp) ✓ In North Carolina, a person charged with killing a white person is 4.4 times more likely to receive the death penalt: ✓ Seventy -six percent of people executed by the State of North Carolina have been African American and 60 percent N.C.'s death row is minority. (N.C. Department of Corrections) ✓ Nationwide, 82 percent of those put to death had been convicted of murdering a white person, even though people color are the victims in more than half of all homicides. Other Reasons to Soaport a Moratorium ✓ More innocent people will be imprisoned and executed because prisoner appeals have been severely curtailed, eves cases where prisoners present compelling evidence of innocence. ✓ In 1996, new legislation drastically limited federal court review of death penalty appeals and gutted public funding legal aid services for death row prisoners. ✓ The U.S. and N.C. violate international laws by executing juveniles and the mentally retarded. ✓ A majority of countries support the UN Commission for Human Rights in calling for a moratorium. For dies of a moratorium resolution, sources for statistics, or more informahbn contact the People of Faith Against the Death Penagtyr at (919) 933 - 7567.1571/2 E. Franklin St, Chapel Hill, NC 27514, www.pfadp.org, email.• sjd c,pfadp.org