Bending the Arc

Late last month, the Supreme Court ordered a new trial for Oklahoma death row inmate Richard Glossip. Mr. Glossip’s case attracted broad support after the state’s top law enforcement official revealed prosecutorial misconduct. What’s even more incredible about this case is that Glossip had been scheduled for execution nine times. He was hours from being executed in 2015 when prison officials discovered they had received the wrong lethal drug, a mistake that led in part to a six-year moratorium on executions in the state. Read the full story here: https://archive.ph/HjiHm 

In response to the overturning of Mr. Glossip’s execution, Abraham Bonowitz, Executive Director of Death Penalty Action, issued a powerful statement for us all to think about. He wrote, “Richard Glossip had three last meals. We must not forget how close he has been to an execution. The courts in Oklahoma were perfectly fine with killing Richard Glossip. Numerous others have been executed with evidence of innocence even more compelling. This is a remarkable rebuke to the ideas that new evidence is irrelevant and there comes a time when finality is more important than getting it right.

However, the truth is that for this moment to come, it took a film to catch the eye of someone with the ear of right wing pro-death penalty legislators who put their careers on the line once they understood the truth. It took numerous long-form journalists writing about this case over the years.  It took massive resources, including a private law firm tasking dozens of lawyers reviewing every shred of evidence in the case. It took unusual voices like those pro-death penalty legislators, Dr. Phil, the pro-execution Oklahoma Attorney General and at least one major political donor influencing whether that AG would even take the meeting ("you are the only reason I'm here," said OK AG Gentner Drummond). Truly, it took an alignment of the stars.

Good for Richard Glossip and his family. We applaud and congratulate the legal team and everyone involved in reaching this moment. But we must also ask, what will it take for every other death-sentenced prisoner with a reasonable innocence claim to get a similar level of intense scrutiny?  How many innocents have been killed or will be killed because no filmmaker happened upon their case?  What is there for Rocky Myers, Toferest Johnson, Thomas Lane and others in Alabama, Anthony Apanovitch and the Lucasville Five in Ohio, Tommy Ziegler in Florida, David Wood, Rodney Reed and others in Texas, etc?

Some will say this proves the system works, but that's the wrong lens.  It proves the system is broken, but less so if you get lucky and attract the massive support necessary to overcome injustice. Given that, how long will we allow executions?  We must abolish the death penalty. Just sayin'.”

You are encouraged to follow the work of Death Penalty Action. Sign petitions, call Governor’s offices, join prayer vigils. HELP ABOLISH THE SENSELESS, INHUMANE, UNJUST DEATH PENALTY.

Day of Empathy is the nation’s largest day of action for criminal justice reform, and this wouldn’t be possible without everyone’s collective effort in fighting for what’s right. It brings together people from all walks of life who have been negatively impacted by America’s criminal justice system – from survivors of violent crime to those who are currently incarcerated individuals to the loved ones on the outside who advocate for their freedom and systemic reforms, from children of incarcerated parents to people on mass supervision to all community members impacted by crime, public safety issues, and violence.

Wisconsin’s Day of Empathy is March 13, 2025 with focus on Transforming Supervision. You are invited to join state partners for a legislative day at the Wisconsin State Capitol to uplift your voice alongside justice-impacted people, families, and allies to discuss with legislators how supervision (probation, parole and extended supervision) should be changed to transform our state towards public safety and thriving communities for all people. There will be a Supervision Activity, Lunch with legislators Simulation and Educational Legislative Visits.

The schedule looks like this:

• 9:30am-10:00am Registration Open
• 10:00am-10:30am Meet & Greet
• 10:30-10:45am Welcome
• 10:45am-11:15pm Legislative & Supervision Training
• 11:15am-12:30 Supervision Activity
• 12:30pm-1:30pm Lunch with Legislators
• 1:30pm-3:30pm Legislative Visits
• 3:30pm-4:00pm Debrief and Closing

Register here
 

President Biden ran on a campaign promise to abolish the federal death penalty. On December 23, following weeks and months of public pressure, and just before Christmas, he commuted 37 of the 40 people on death row. This has caused many mixed feelings. While many are grateful for the progress, others feel he needs to finish the job. Leaving three of what some consider “the worst of the worst,” plus 4 on military death row, still makes killing justify killing.

The organization, Death Penalty Action was started in 2017. They work to stop executions and abolish the death penalty through advocacy, education, and action. They are also strong supporters of death by incarceration, not execution.

Hear Abe Bonowitz, Director of Death Penalty Action, in an NPR interview Christmas morning.

Following President Biden’s commutations, Death Penalty Action offered a powerful press conference. 

For the many that work so hard against the death penalty this was a victory, but with the next president coming in with his promise to execute as many as possible, we need President Biden to finish the job before he leaves office. In line with our corporate stance on the death penalty, CSA has signed this organizational sign-on letter to President Biden.

Individually, you can write to President Biden and urge him to:

• Commute the sentences of those remaining on federal and military death rows;
• Deauthorize all pending federal capital trial cases and establish guidelines prohibiting authorization of any new death penalty prosecutions during your administration;
• Rescind the lethal injection protocol; rescind the “Manner of Execution” regulation that took effect in December 2020; rescind internal DOJ guidelines on litigating death row cases that took effect in December 2020
• Order the Federal Bureau of Prisons to demolish the federal execution chamber and the building in which it is housed at the Federal Correctional Institution at Terre Haute

ACT NOW

You are encouraged to contact your senator and ask them to co-sponsor S.1723 and vote yes when it comes to the Senate floor for a vote.

By supporting this legislation, we are taking a momentous step as a Nation toward recognizing and honoring boarding school survivors, descendents and those who never had the chance to return home. Survivors and their descendants deserve the opportunity to heal from historical injustices in a way that is meaningful and aligned with their cultural values.

This federal commission will:

• Locate church and government records
• Examine the location of children forcibly placed in U.S. Indian boarding schools
• Hold culturally-appropriate public hearings to collect testimony from survivors and descendants
• Gather institutional knowledge from subject matter experts
• Document the boarding schools’ ongoing impacts
• Tell the truth by sharing findings publicly with cultural sensitivity
• Provide a final report with a list of recommendations for healing

For your reference, the National Native American Boarding School Healing Coalition (NABS) U.S. Truth & Healing Commission Bill advocacy toolkit is available here.

Follow Senate floor schedules and webcasts here: https://www.senate.gov/legislative/floor_activity_pail.htm 
 

A select number of US states demonstrate a chilling commitment to the death penalty with at least seven scheduled executions this summer.

The Congregation of Sisters of St. Agnes opposes the death penalty. In Pope Francis’ revised Catechism of the Catholic Church, paragraph number 2267, he reminds us: “The Church teaches, in light of the Gospel, that the death penalty is inadmissible because it is an attack on the inviolability and dignity of the person, and she works with determination for its abolition worldwide.”

Still, the death penalty is legal in 27 U.S. states with Texas being responsible for the most executions over the years. The vast majority of states with capital punishment continue on a downward trend of executions, but Texas and Alabama have continued to go against the trend by carrying on with scheduled execution dates. Oklahoma, Florida, and Missouri have also executed people in the past year.

Polling indicates that public skepticism of the fairness and propriety of the death penalty continues to increase. And increasingly, bipartisan coalitions in legislatures are pushing to abolish it in states that haven’t already.

Advocates know that when we come together, we’re powerful. Women religious have always led the way in ensuring the dignity of persons, human rights, and justice are served.

Please consider calling or writing the governors or Boards of Pardons and Petitions in states that have scheduled executions to ask that they do everything within their power to stop the up to seven executions scheduled in their states this summer. For more information and resources, visit csasisters.org/dignity

Additionally, please sign any of the several petitions that Action Network has created for cases that have unique circumstances that must be considered before taking another life. They are:

Ramiro Gonzalez scheduled for execution June 26 in Texas.
Richard Rojem scheduled for execution June 27 in Oklahoma
Ruben Gutierrez scheduled for execution on July 16 in Texas
Keith Gavin scheduled for execution on July 18 in Alabama
Arthur Burton scheduled for execution on August 7 in Texas

Follow all execution petitions here: https://deathpenaltyaction.org/take-action/execution-petitions/ 

Lastly, please join Amnesty International and remind President Biden of his promise to work to eliminate the death penalty at the federal level.

Created in God’s image, humans have inherent dignity and worth. This belief of the Catholic Church lays the foundation for all its other teachings. The Sisters of St. Agnes and their Associates honor the sacredness of human life from conception to natural death. The sisters’ actions demonstrate their reverence for life and their commitment to a consistent ethic of life.

An execution calendar is maintained on the CSA website: www.csasisters.org/dignity Updates are provided from groups like Death Penalty Action. CSA Sisters and Associates participate in letter writing to inmates on death row; letter writing is always encouraged and directions can also be found on the website.

New and revised dates are being added to the execution schedule and new and current petitions await your signature. Please click to sign and share these petitions.

Additionally, please join Death Penalty Action to Demand Absolute Standards to stop profiting from executions!

Wear the Message with Abolition Gear - ORDER HERE.
 

Young adults can write an original poem about the death penalty for a chance to win $1,000.

Our Catholic faith teaches that all people are created in the image and likeness of God, instilled with dignity and worth that can never be taken away, even when someone commits a serious crime. The Catechism of the Catholic Church clearly states that the death penalty is "inadmissible" and an attack on the dignity of life. Inspired by our faith and Church teaching, we are called to work for the abolition of capital punishment.

Know a young adult between the ages of 18-30 who would be passionate about ending the death penalty? Are they inspired by faith to work for justice solutions that are rooted in mercy and redemption? Encourage them to submit an original poem to Catholic Mobilizing Network before the contest deadline of March 25, 2024. Winners announced in April.

See last year’s winners and read their poems here.