VIRGINIANS FOR
f ALTERNATIVES
TO THE DEATH PENALTY
2020-21 Annual Report
VADP board, staff members, and guests celebrate online
after the House of Delegates joined the Senate in
passing the death penalty abolition bill.
Virginians for Alternatives to the Death Penalty
P.O. Box 12222
Richmond, VA 23241
(434) 960-7779
office@vadp.org
www.vadp.org
A Message from t
e VADP President
Dear Abolition Colleagues,
We have achieved what once seemed impossible.
Virginia has become the first Southern state to
abolish capital punishment and the significance of
this historic moment cannot be overstated.
For decades, VADP, along with allies, has worked
tirelessly to bring an end to the death penalty in
the Commonwealth. This
effort was deliberate and
strategic. People from
different backgrounds,
geographic regions, belief
systems, and political
views united on the sole
issue of abolishing the
death penalty to create a
more just and humane society.
.
a
Iam tremendously grateful for the hard work and
dedication of VADP’s staff: Executive Director
Michael Stone and Field Director Dale Brumfield
as well as its volunteer Board of Directors. Their
thoughtful leadership and unwavering commit-
ment were vital to our success. Many thanks are
owed to our donors and members whose continued
support was essential to securing this victory.
I joined the cause 11 years ago as a student at the
Virginia Capital Case Clearinghouse, a legal clinic
that provided support to attorneys representing
capital murder defendants at trial. Prior to law
school, I had not given much thought to the death
penalty. I learned about its grim legacy, its racist
roots, and its overtly prejudicial use.
Most disturbing to me was that the modern death
penalty was still plagued by these issues and had
“legalized” other unconscionable acts. It was not
until 2005 that it became unconstitutional to
execute children in the United States.
In the late 1990’s the Commonwealth of Virginia
tried to execute Darryl Atkins, an intellectually
disabled Black man from York County. His case
gained national attention when the United States
Supreme Court issued a blanket prohibition on
the execution of intellectually disabled persons.
I witnessed the biased and arbitrary manner in
which the death penalty was sought and ultimately
imposed. I heard horrific stories from colleagues
about Virginia’s bloody spree in the 1990’s, once
killing 14 condemned prisoners in a single year.
I have experienced how capital prosecutions can
traumatize everyone involved — the victims’ loved
ones, defendants, their families, jurors, lawyers,
court staff, police officers, and the community.
A government’s decision to have a death penalty
is not a criminal justice or political issue. It is a
question of human rights and moral principle.
In abolishing the death penalty, we have finally
ended a barbaric, ineffective, and cruel practice
that has systematically targeted minorities. Let
the Commonwealth of Virginia be an example
of reconciliation to the country. We can make
amends for wrongs of the past and advance
toward a more humane, just, and unbiased future.
— Kristina Leslie, VADP President
Rachel Sutphin accepts the VADP
2020 Citizen Advocate of the Year award.
VADP 202!
1 Annual Report
Winning Death Penalty Abolition
Dear VADP Supporters,
Thirty years ago the founders of what came to be
known as VADP took the first steps toward ending
state-sponsored killing. Our
journey is now almost over,
thanks to all of you and many
others who supported us in
every way over these decades.
Here is how we were able to
achieve this milestone, which
is having a huge impact on the
national abolition movement.
Like everyone else, we had to dramatically adjust
our work in response to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Fortunately, Field Director Dale Brumfield and I
had been working from home for several years,
but we had to learn how to convene people online
and give virtual presentations.
In the spring I produced online Insider Updates
and Abolition University sessions about the
national abolition movement and how our work
in Virginia advances the broader national mission.
The Richmond Times-Dispatch carried VADP
President Kristina Leslie’s op-ed, “Death penalty
repeal is essential to racial healing,” on July 2.
“Nowhere is racial bigotry more insidious than in
the application of America’s harshest punishment
— death,” she wrote.
The Washington Post published an op-ed by board
member Paul O’ Shea, “The time has come to end
Virginia’s death penalty,” on July 26. “[Abolition]
will be an historic step in acknowledging the
systemic injury inflicted on Black Virginians over
centuries,” he wrote.
In September VADP allied with Virginia Interfaith
Center for Public Policy to link abolition with
wider criminal justice reform. Justice Reform
Organizer Rev. LaKeisha Cook became a key ally
in our work to build support within the A frican-
American community, particularly with religious
leaders and their congregations.
In the latter half of 2020, Dale and I met with over
50 members of the Virginia General Assembly by
phone or Zoom to discuss death penalty abolition.
Between these dialogues and advocacy by our
supporters in key legislative districts, we steadily
built support among legislators.
This work culminated in a series of General
Assembly committee hearings and floor debates
in January and February of 2021. VADP and its
allies helped to organize prosecutors, victim
family members, faith leaders, and civil rights
advocates to testify for ending capital punishment.
Our legislative patrons — Del. Mike Mullin and
Sen. Scott Surovell — led the bills through the long
legislative process. Powerful floor testimony by
legislators who lost loved ones to homicide helped
secure the final victory. All seven of the murder
victim family members who serve in the General
Assembly voted to end capital punishment.
Without your financial support and advocacy, we
would not have achieved our goal of becoming the
first Southern state to end the death penalty. All
of us at VADP are deeply grateful.
— Michael Stone, VADP Executive Director
speaks at a January 2021 prayer vigil
organized by the Virginia Interfaith Center.
VADP 2020-21 Annual Report
How VADP Funds Its Wo
2019 2020 Income: $172,538
Income
Individuals $ 97,529.55 | $ 123,295.69
Faith communities 12,095.69 10,680.00
Grants 50,000.00 38,562.50
TOTAL $ 159,625.24 | $ 172,538.19 pee
Expenses
Staff $ 111,457.76 | $ 108,868.07
Travel 10,875.70 3,258.47
Telephone 896.40 847.05 Expenses: $157,001
Postage and printing 1,732.08 648.51
Fundraising 8,968.87 6,743.74
Technology 8,775.42 7,239.02
Contract services 8,836.19 26,075.41 SESS
Miscellaneous 7,578.94 3,321.17 Sdministragn
TOTAL $ 159,121.36 | $ 157,001.44
Net Income
$503.88 $15,536.75
VADP Board of Directors
waite At Large Directors
Annandale Chris Braunlich Alexandria
. 5 Nicholas Cote Alexandria
‘occ Seeerd Jimmy Culpepper Chesapeake
Williamsburg Paul O’Shea Fairfax
Secretary Todd Peppers Salem
Carissa Phillips Rob Poggenklass_ Charlottesville
Charlottesville Nancy Ritter Richmond
Treasurer Jean Segner Richmond VADP board members and staff at
John Tucker Richmond " .
Adam Northup . . our March 2019 awards luncheon.
Richmond Gerald Zerkin Richmond
4 VADP 2020-21 Annual Report
