Volume 1, Issue 1
December 2001
BOLITION NOW!
Kentucky Coalition to Abolish the Death Penalty
P.O. Box 3092. Louisville Kentucky 40201-3092
(502) 585-2895
email: kcadp@earthlink.net
website: www.kcadp.org
Inside this issue:
Contact Representative Stumbo 1
KCADP adds new coordinator 1
Death and Dollars 2
Thanks to donors 2
2001 Citizen Lobbyists 2
Volunteers needed in Frankfort 3
Tools for successful advocacy 3
Membership/Volunteer Form 4
Ask your doctor 4
Attention: Did you call your
Commonwealth Attorney yet?
See story in last newsletter.
Contact Rep.
Greg Stumbo
Write:
Rep. Greg Stumbo
587 N. Lake Drive
P.O. BOX 5114
Prestonsburg, KY 41653
Call:
Office: (606)886-1515
Home: (606)886-9953
Frankfort: (502)564-7460
Free Legislative Message
Line: 1-800-372-7181
To view an 8-page fact sheet
on the juvenile death penalty,
visit www.kcadp.org/pdf%
20files/Juvenile.pdf.
Urgent Action Needed on Juvenile Bill
Contact Representative Stumbo now
House Majority Floor Leader, Rep.
Greg Stumbo, D—Prestonsburg, as
soon as possible.
On Saturday, December 8 the Courier-
Journal reported that he doesn't find a great
deal of support for passing a bill ending the
death penalty for juveniles. He said, "My
sense is there is overwhelming support for
keeping the death penalty as it is."
Stumbo implied that legislators do not
want to go out on a limb: "Most of us in
public office try to be viewed as being tough
on crime.” he said. "This will be one of those
bills that neither chamber wants to be the
first to pass. . . . Overall, | don't think it’s
insurmountable, but | think it will be a diffi-
cult task to get enough votes in both cham-
bers.”
The article notes that Stumbo is consid-
ering running for the Office of Attorney Gen-
eral. Therefore, he should be listening not
only to his house district (District 95) con-
stituents, but to all Kentuckians.
When you contact him, there are several
important points to make. First of all, even
without the death penalty, the punishment
It is urgent that all readers contact
for a 16- or 17-year old convicted killer
would be severe. Under the proposed legis-
lation, the jury can impose a sentence of life
-without-parole for 25 years, or life, or a
term of 50 years. The jury can add another
20 years to each of the above to be served
after completing the first sentence. A violent
offender must serve 85% of a sentence be-
fore the parole board will see him.
Let Rep. Stumbo know that a juvenile
given a 70-year sentence will not see a pa-
role board before the age of 75, 59.5 long
years of loss of freedom, and may still not
be paroled. If the parole board denies him,
the youthful offender will be 86 or 87 when
released from prison. This is not soft on
crime.
Secondly, the University of Kentucky re-
ported in The Spring 2000 Kentucky Survey
that almost all Kentuckians (79.5%) believe
that juveniles should not be executed. Only
15.5% believe that death is the most appro-
priate penalty for a juvenile convicted of an
aggravated murder.
Because Stumbo is powerful and influen-
tial with other legislators, your contact with
him is of utmost importance. See contact
KCADP adds additional Campaign Coordinator
With the General Assem- "7
bly ready to convene in Janu-
ary 2002, KCADP welcomes \%
an additional Abolition NOW!
Campaign Coordinator.
Mary McCarthy is a native
of Louisville and an award- Mary McCarthy
winning radio journalist. She
also worked as Deputy Director of Public
Affairs for Jefferson County Government in
the early 1990's.
Abolition of the death penalty is one of
her life’s ambitions and working with the
Abolition NOW! Campaign provides an oppor-
tunity for her to reach this goal.
She joins Kaye Gallagher who has
worked as Campaign Coordinator for nearly
two years. Both work closely with Abolition
NOW! Campaign Director, Carl Wedekind, to
organize KCADP’s efforts to have the Gen-
eral Assembly pass legislation limiting or
ending Kentucky's use of the death penalty.
Page 2
ABOLITION NOW!
2001 Citizen
Lobbyists
Members of several of
KCADP's partner organizations
visited Frankfort between Jan-
uary and March of this year to
talk with their State Senators
and Representatives. In addi-
tion, individual KCADP mem-
bers also volunteered their
time and effort.
We publish this list to say
thank you, hoping you can
come back in 2002. Please
forgive us if we have failed to
list your name.
ORGANIZATION PARTNERS:
¢ American Civil Liberties Un-
ion of Kentucky
¢ Central Kentucky Peacemak-
ing Council
e Kentucky Fairness Alliance
¢ Fairness Campaign
¢ Green Party
e Kentucky Alliance Against
Racist and Political Repres-
sion
e Kentucky Murder Victim
Families for Reconciliation
Society of Friends
Individuals—Members of Or-
ganization Partners and At-
Large Coalition Members
(In no particular order)
Richard Mitchell
Carol Rawls
Carol Turbek
Diane Spurlock
Sister Aidan Hogan
Sister Jean Marie Hettinger
Sister Betty Albers
Sister Sue Scharfenberger
Sister Aidan Hogan
Sister Denise Webster
Sister Macrina Stermec
Anriete Stolte
(Continued on page 3)
Attention: Did you call your
Commonwealth Attorney yet?
See story in last newsletter.
Death and Dollars
By CARL WEDEKIND
Abolition NOW! Director
The abolition movement continues to
gather momentum, which means there are
opportunities we must seize and more tasks
to accomplish.. Though volunteers do much
of our campaigning, we must have a full time
presence in our office and money to pay nec-
essary expenses.
Our new full-time person, Mary McCarthy,
staffs our office at Christ Church Cathedral.
And Kaye Gallagher continues to work part
time from her home.
Their tasks are to recruit and organize
volunteers to come to Frankfort and lobby
every Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday
during the 2002 legislative session (see cal-
endar on page 3). They find and organize
volunteers throughout the state to visit legis-
lators in their home districts and urge them
to support anti-death penalty bills. They also
solicit opportunities for our trained speakers
to make presentations before various
groups. (If you belong to a group that needs
a speaker, please contact Mary or Kaye.)
Looking to 2002 we have a budget of
$75,000 to be met by our contributors from
all parts of the state. We have reached this
goal in past years, and we must do it again.
Please stop now and ask yourself and
your family if you can make a cash contribu-
tion before the end of the year to help the
cause and possibly take advantage of the
tax deduction.
Next ask yourself this question: how
much can | pledge for 2002? It needs to be
as generous as you can afford, and it can be
paid on a monthly, quarterly, semi-annual, or
annual basis. You can send us checks or
money orders. Or contact Kaye if you want to
use a credit card.
If you wish to donate stock, we have a
brokerage account to help accomplish that.
Again, contact Kaye for more information.
Every gift is important. There is no such
thing as a gift too small, nor one too large.
Please join all those who have already con-
tributed. Help us reach our dollar goal and
achieve abolition of the death penalty.
Many thanks. Have a happy holiday.
Lit
James Archambeault * Justin Baird * Sr. Christine Beckett + Al Bennett + Bill Bowman +
Pitsey Buren * Charles Bussey * The Catholic Center, Covington * Thomas Clark * Church
Women United * Church of the Epiphany * Congregation of Divine Providence * Tricia and
Ed Cortas * Non Evans « Martha Ann Grauel « T. Joseph Hardesty * Maria Hines and Ray
Schweri * Sr. Catherine Holtkamp, CDP * Peter and Mary Lou Houck °¢ Brian Juzwik-
McDonald « Avery Kolers * Norman Linton ¢ Sr. Patricia Rae McNamara, OP « Rev. William
Medley * Bob and Liz Menefee ¢ Richard Mitchell « Betsy Neale *« Delores Nelson * Harry
and Janice Netherland * Joseph Netherland * Katie Nienaber * Jan Phillips * George and
Rosa Plage * Rev. Paul Prabell * Mary Alice Pratt « Rev. Bert Rapp * John Seiler * Leo
Smith » Lyle Snider * Eileen Cano Stanford * Jennifer and Doug Stern * George Thornton «
Henry Wallace * Jane Walsh and Chris Harrell * William Warner * Dona Wells
Volume 1, Issue 1
Page 3
a Oa 7
Volunteers needed _ |; Tuesday Thursday |
J 9 10
for 2002 General — i 7
Assembly meeting a i
Can you feel the fever spread- 28 30 31
ing? The whole tempo toward February 5 6 7
opposing the death penalty is
picking up thanks to the efforts of 12 13 14
volunteers across the Common- 20 21
wealth.
KCADP has high hopes of 26 a7 8
passing several bills, including March 5 6 ih
those that would end execution of RD B 14
juveniles and make retroactive
the existing law that forbids exe- 19 20 21
cuting mentally retarded persons. 26 27 28
To make this happen, please plan to visit Frankfort and talk to your State Senator and
Representative. We need you on one or more of the dates listed in the table above.
Participants meet at the office of the Catholic Conference of Kentucky at 9:00 am for a
briefing on the issues. You will receive fact sheets, a sticker to wear and signs to carry. After
the briefing everyone goes to the legislative offices for the visits. Following the visits, there is
a time to report back what you learned during your visits. An inexpensive lunch is available in
the cafeteria.
We are asking organizational members to select a minimum of three dates (for example,
the second Tuesday of each month) and bring a group of their members with them. If your
group works with children, you might focus on the juvenile death penalty. If you are a mem-
ber of a victims’ survivor group, you might talk about the death penalty not providing you the
justice and healing you desire.
So, choose dates, clip out the calendar and send it to our office in the envelope provided
with this mailing. You can really make a difference in the outcome of these bills.
Tools for successful advocacy
Many people feel their voices have no
impact on elected officials. Nothing could be
further from the truth.
During the 2001 meeting of the General
Assembly, many Coalition members wrote
and spoke to their State Representatives
and Senators. These elected officials re-
sponded and listened to their constituents.
The first thing you need to know is just
who does represent you. What are their
names? There are two easy ways to find out:
¢ Contact your County Clerk’s office;
eVisit the KCADP website—
www.kcadp.org- and click on the Relat-
ed Links button. Then choose Project
Vote Smart.
After providing your 9 digit zipcode, you
will be given the names of your Federal and
State elected officials.
Once you know their names, you can
begin to contact them.
KCADP will publish information in news-
letters and on the websites about the vari-
ous bills we are following. You can use this
background information to write letters and
make phone calls to your elected officials.
There are several important telephone
numbers listed below and you can save
them for your use when the 2002 session
begins (if these change we will let you
know):
© Bill Status 1-877-765-0447
e Message Line 1-800-372-7181
* Meetings Line 1-800-633-9650
« TTY Message Line 1-800-896-0305
Use these numbers to find out what is
happening to a bill; to call and leave a mes-
sage for your representative or senator; and
to find the time and date of committee
meetings.
If you have access to the Web, then you
can find up-to-date information on the Ken-
tucky State Legislature website:
www.Irc.state.ky.us/
Finally, contact Mary or Kaye by phone or
email for additional information and help.
2001 Citizen
Lobbyists
(Continued from page 2)
Nancy Lee-Riffe
Al Bennett
Marjorie Acevedo
Amelia Schafer
Maie Klaphaak
Kathleen Lister
Tricia Lister
Chris Harmer
Linda LaVelle
Ola Riley
Nancy Rowles
Jeff Vessels
Dorothy Schuette
Donald Sands
Diek Brantagam
Anne Brantagam
Katherine Hope Goodman
Mary Alice Pratt
Peter Houck
Mary Lou Houck
Don Stern
Jane Starr
Barbara Roche
Bill Walsh
Alice Walsh
Peter Sanders
Roy Holt.
George Plage
Rosa Plage
Sonata Bohen
Sister Karen Lindenberger
Sister Robbie Pentecost
Sister Alice Retzner
Sister Marge Wissman
Sister Maureen Irvin
Sister Bea Herman
Sister Catherine Holtkamp
Sister Janet Schneider
Sister Emmannel Bartels
Sister Susan Baumann
Sister Lynn Stenken
Sister Alice Gerdeman
Sister Margaret Austing
Ken Dupre
Maria Hines
Joyce Frazier
Roberta Harding
Thank you so much.
Attention: Did you call your
Commonwealth Attorney yet?
See story in last newsletter.
4p———--------------- = =4 Kentucky Coalition to Abolish the Death Penalty
4 Yes!1 want to help abolish the! P. 0. Box 3092
I
I
!
I
I
death penalty in Kentucky.
Sign me up for the following:
Membership
I OOrganization....
! GLimited incom
| Volunteer
I Olnvite a speaker to my place of worship
! ovisit legislator with campaign coordinator
ORecruit new members
| Write letters to editor of local newspaper
I Coin the speakers bureau. We train
I (Be part of a phone tree for 2002.
| Name.
| Address.
I City. Zip
! Phone.
Use enclosed envelope and mail to KCADP.
VISIT WWW.KCADP.ORG
Louisville, Kentucky 40201-3092
Non-Profit Org.
U.S. Postage
PAID
Louisville, KY
Permit No. 110
Please check your mailing label. If there is no date, please be-
come a dues paying member of KCADP. If there is a date prior
to 12/31/2001, it is time to renew your membership: $15 for
individual; $25 for families; $5 for seniors/students.
We wish you happy holidays and look
forward to working with you in 2002.
Ask Your doc tor
Last November, as New Mexico prepared to execute
Terry Clark, Dr. Sidney Wolfe, Director of Public Citizen's
Health Research Group wrote Dr. John Romine, President of
the New Mexico State Board of Medical Examiners.
In his letter Dr. Wolfe asked Dr. Romine to suspend the
license of Dr. Fred Pintz, the Chief Medical Officer of the
State of New Mexico.
Dr. Wolfe charged that Dr. Pintz had “flagrantly violated
a principle implicit in the New Mexico Medical Practice Act
by providing authorization for the acquisition and provision
of the drugs to be used by the New Mexico Department of
Corrections in the execution by lethal injection of Terry
Clark...”
Dr. Wolfe points out that in 1992, the American Medical
Association (AMA) condemned the participation of physi-
cians in state executions.
He adds that in 1994, the AMA, the American College of
Physicians, the American Nurses Association and the Ameri-
can Public Health Association issued a joint state-
ment:Health Care Professional Participation in Capital Pun-
ishment:—Statement from Professional Societies Regarding
Disciplinary Action. It recommended that "state professional
licensure and discipline boards treat participation in execu-
tions as grounds for active disciplinary proceedings, includ-
ing license revocation."
Dr. Wolfe indicates that in many of the executions car-
ried out by lethal injection physicians “have been involved
in one or more of the activities proscribed in the 1994 Joint
Statement which include: ....’Prescribing, preparing, admin-
istering or supervising injection drugs ....prescribing or ad-
ministering tranquilizers and other psychotropic agents and
medications that are part of the execution procedure....
monitoring vital signs....determining the point at which the
individual has actually died...."”
This participation, he contends, violates the Hippocratic
Oath and the AMA Code of Ethics. For that reason, physi-
cians who participate in any way ought to have licenses re-
voked.
Act Now
During your next visit to your doctor, ask about his or her
thoughts about the death penalty. Urge participation in the
Abolition NOW! Campaign and ask the doctor to ask State
Senators and Representatives to end the death penalty.
