Virginians for Alternatives to the Death Penalty Pe ae
Background Information
VIRGINIANS FOR
ALTERNATIVES
Mission statement: TO THE DEATH PENALTY
Virginians for Alternatives to the Death Penalty (VADP) is a statewide citizens’ organization
dedicated to educating the public about alternatives to the death penalty.
History:
VADP was formed in 1991 to organize opposition to capital punishment. Since then VADP has
built a network of citizens across the Commonwealth to work for abolition of the death penalty.
Legal status:
Originally incorporated as a 501(c)(4) nonprofit, VADP changed its legal status to a 501(c)(3)
organization — receiving its status confirmation letter from the IRS on August 12, 2014.
In addition, VADP is registered with the Virginia Office of Regulatory and Charitable Programs as
required under the Virginia Solicitation of Contributions Law.
Strategy:
VADP seeks an end to the death penalty through education, organizing, and advocacy. The
organization works very closely with the Virginia Catholic Conference and the ACLU of Virginia
in media outreach and legislative strategy at the General Assembly.
On January 17, 2019 the Virginia state Senate approved a bill to ban the execution of people with
severe mental illness from capital punishment on a bipartisan 23-17 vote. VADP plans to have
bipartisan patrons introduce legislation to abolish the death penalty in the 2020 legislative session.
Background information:
Since the U.S. Supreme Court allowed the states to reintroduce capital punishment in 1976, Virginia
has executed 113 people — second most in the nation behind only Texas. Those sentenced to death
are overwhelming the poor, people of color, and those with mental illness.
Only 35% of the 133 political jurisdictions in the Commonwealth have had someone executed since
1976. Three jurisdictions (Prince William, Chesterfield & Virginia Beach) have 23% of Virginia’s
executions. Seven jurisdictions (Prince William, Chesterfield, Virginia Beach, Fairfax, Hampton,
Pittsylvania, & Portsmouth) account for 41% of the state’s executions.
The death penalty is a failed government program that is prohibitively expensive, random &
discriminatory in its application, and ineffective in deterring violent crime. In addition, the
mandatory appeals in capital cases turn killers into media celebrities and ensure that the family
members of murder victims endure years of glaring media attention while the required appeals wind
their way through state and federal court systems.
Virginians for Alternatives to the Death Penalty (VADP)
P.O. Box 12222 ¢ Richmond, VA 23241
(434) 960-7779 ¢ office@vadp.org * www.vadp.org
Michael Stone, Executive Director
CC BY-NC-SA 4.0