Death Penalty Information Center report

On December 21, the Death Penalty Information Center released its latest report, “The Death Penalty in 2010: Year End Report,” on statistics and trends in capital punishment in the past year.  The report noted there was a 12% decrease in executions in 2010 compared to 2009 and a more than 50% drop compared to 1999. DPIC projected that the number of new death sentences will be 114 for 2010, near last year’s number of 112, which was the lowest number since the death penalty was reinstated in 1976. Death sentences declined in all four regions of the country over the past ten years, with a 50 percent decrease nationwide when the current decade is compared to the 1990s.  Only 12 states carried out executions in 2010, mostly in the South, and only seven states carried out more than one execution. Texas led the country with 17 executions, but that was a significant drop from last year.  The number of new death sentences in Texas this year was 8, a dramatic decline from 1999 when 48 people were sentenced to death.  Since the death penalty was reinstated in 1976, 82% of the executions have been in the South. California has not had an execution in almost 5 years, and the same is true for North Carolina, Maryland, Pennsylvania, and many other states that rarely carry out the death penalty.  “Whether it’s concerns about the high costs of the death penalty at a time when budgets are being slashed, the risks of executing the innocent, unfairness, or other reasons, the nation continued to move away from the death penalty in 2010,” said Richard Dieter, DPIC’s Executive Director and the report’s author.

Practicing Medicine on Death Row

Thursday 09 December 2010

by: Robert Wilbur, t r u t h o u t | News Analysis

Practicing Medicine on Death Row ( Edited: Jared
Rodriguez / t r u t h o u t)

Execution by lethal injection has shone a harsh light on the complicity
of health professionals – physicians, nurses and paramedics – in
carrying out capital punishment. In a 2001 survey in the prestigious
journal, Archives of Internal Medicine, an astonishing 41 percent of
physicians surveyed said that they would assist or even carry out an
execution by lethal injection and there is little evidence that the
percentage has changed significantly since then. Deborah W. Denno JD,
PhD, a leading scholar of death penalty litigation at the Fordham
University School of Law in New York City, remarked that physician
participation in executions is more prevalent than one might think,
although exact numbers are not available because of the secrecy
surrounding executions. And this does not even include the nurses and
paramedics (also known as Emergency Medical Technicians or EMTs) who
head up the execution teams in many states. Interestingly, the
leadership of several major organizations have taken a more enlightened
view on executions than many of their members.
Read More

Restoring fairness to the death penalty

Daniel Ruth St Petersburg Times Correspondent
Restoring fairness to the death penalty,
In Print: Tuesday, November 30, 2010
Imagine lying on a gurney, a needle inserted in your arm. The clock ticks toward the appointed hour. In minutes you’ll be — dead.
The only thing standing between your last breath and a reprieve is the U.S. Supreme Court. Maybe you are guilty of your crimes. Then again, maybe you’re not. And maybe nobody cares.
At a moment like this, that person facing society’s ultimate sanction should have at the very least an expectation he will get a fair shake from the judicial system. After all, once the switch gets thrown, there are no mulligans on death row. Read More

Alternative Christmas Market supports Kindred Spirits

Dear Friends,

For those of you who celebrate Christmas you know how difficult it can be to shop for gifts and you also know the hassle of commercial shopping.  TCADP wants to tell you about the Alternative Christmas Market which has been taking place at John Wesley United Methodist Church for 24 years.  You can purchase gifts or make donations to honor your friends and family members.  One of the organizations you can select for contributions is Kindred Spirits.

Kindred Spirits Charitable Trust is a 501(c )(3) organization that was started many years ago by Audrey Rivers and others who were concerned about indigent prisoners on Florida’s Death Row.  They rely entirely on donations and have no paid staff.  The mission of Kindred Spirits is to provide friendship and support to those on Death Row by writing letters, sending stamps, magazine subscriptions, small amounts of money for canteen purchases, birthday cards, and other small acts of kindness. Read More