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30 Years After
Gregg v. Georgia
Grassroots Organizing Kit
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Anita Caycous,Decnninly
“From this day forward, | no longer shall tinker with the machinery of death. For
more than 20 years | have endeavored ... along with the majority of this Court, to
develop procedural and substantive rules that would lend more than the mere
appearance of fairness to the death penalty endeavor. Rather than continue to
coddle the Court's delusion that the desired level of fairness has been achieved ... |
feel morally and intellectually obligated to concede that the death penalty
experiment has failed.”
--U.S. Supreme Court Justice Harry Blackmun, 1994
May 2006
Dear Friends,
In 1972, the U.S. Supreme Court struck down existing death penalty statutes. In Furman v.
Georgia, the Court ruled that the death penalty, as applied then, was arbitrary, capricious
and discriminatory - as random as being struck by lightning. It commuted the sentences of
all 629 people on death row, sending states scrambling to revise their capital punishment
statutes.
Four years later, on July 2, 1976, the U.S. Supreme Court’s decision in Gregg v. Georgia
upheld some of the newly crafted death penalty statutes and took the position that the
death penalty did not offend “the evolving standards of decency which mark the progress of
a maturing society.” Gregg essentially held that a properly written statute could guide the
discretion used to make death penalty decisions. By the time the court ruled, death rows
had already begun to fill up. Executions resumed in 1977; by the end of 2005, more than
1,000 people had been executed.
The 30" anniversary of the Gregg decision provides an excellent opportunity for grassroots
activists to call for a thorough and frank assessment of whether the expectations of a fairer
and less arbitrary death penalty have, in fact, been fulfilled. Today, given the growing body
of research and scientific developments related to the death penalty, society should be
asking these important questions:
e Is today’s death penalty any fairer or less arbitrary than it was in 1972?
¢ Is the death penalty truly reserved for “the worst of the worst”?
¢ Do race, geography, and the quality of representation make the real difference in
capital cases?
* Why are so many death penalty cases found to be fraught with error requiring
costly re-trials and uncertainty?
*¢ Why have innocent people been wrongly accused and sentenced to die?
«Is the money we are investing in the death penalty taking away valuable
resources from programs that could prevent crime?
« Why have numerous faith leaders and public officials called for an end to the
death penalty?
30 Years After Gregg: Grassroots Organizing Kit
As the 30" anniversary of Gregg v. Georgia approaches, groups that work on the death
penalty should provide guidance on these and other important questions so that the public
has the opportunity to reflect honestly on the death penalty’s track record over the past
three decades. Groups should also encourage state and national lawmakers to examine the
death penalty and halt all executions while they conduct such studies.
We encourage you to use these materials as you prepare to mark the 30" anniversary of
Gregg. This kit contains the following resources:
Key messages and talking points about the Gregg decision
A sample letter to the editor
A sample press release
Fact sheet on 30 years of the “modern” death penalty
Major milestones in the U.S. death penalty since the Gregg decision
Ideas for local action
Information relating to the Annual Starvin’ for Justice Fast & Vigil at the U.S.
Supreme Court
A letter from Sister Helen Prejean regarding the “Dead Man Walking” Album and
Concert DVD
Step-by-step instructions on how to pass an abolition or moratorium resolution,
plus a model resolution
A sample bulletin insert for faith communities
Supplementary resources for action
A study guide on the Gregg decision and its aftermath, produced for Amnesty International
USA by Professor Michael L. Radelet, accompanies this organizing kit. It is also available
online at http://www.amnestyusa.org/abolish/gregg.
We hope that you find this organizing kit useful and that our combined acts of solidarity
marking this anniversary attract significant attention and action from both the public and
elected officials. Thirty years since Gregg, the death penalty is still arbitrary, still capricious,
and still discriminatory. This is the moment to evaluate whether we have truly evolved as a
society. We thank you for raising this important question in your respective communities.
In Solidarity,
The Gregg30 Working Group
Members
Abolitionist Action Committee
Amnesty International USA (AIUSA)
Campaign to End the Death Penalty
Citizens United for Alternatives to the Death Penalty (CUADP)
Constitution Project
Equal Justice USA
National Coalition to Abolish the Death Penalty (NCADP)
30 Years After Gregg: Grassroots Organizing Kit
The
The
“Revisiting the Death Penalty: 30 Years after Gregg”
Messages and Talking Points
death penalty today remains arbitrary:
It is still arbitrarily applied to non-guilty defendants. In the 30 years since Gregg, 123
people have been freed from death row after evidence of their wrongful conviction
emerged.
It is arbitrarily applied within death penalty states, with a significant geographic
disparity. For example, in 1999:
> Hamilton County, Ohio, which contains Cincinnati, had 50 people on death
row, while Franklin County, which contains Columbus, had only 11 people on
death row, despite having a larger population and twice the murder rate.
> Baldwin County, Georgia had a population of 42,000, and 5 people on death
row. This was more death row inmates than Fulton County, which had a
population of 722,400.
> Harris County, Texas (Houston) had 140 death row inmates. Dallas County,
with a higher murder rate, had only 37 death row inmates.
Nearly half of the executions that have taken place in the U.S. have occurred in two
states, Texas and Virginia. The South carries out 80% of all executions; most states
with the death penalty have not executed anyone in recent years.
Despite the claim that the death penalty is reserved for the “worst of the worst,”
history clearly demonstrates that this is simply not true. In recent years, both the BTK
serial killer in Kansas and Gary Ridgeway, the Washington state man who confessed
to committing 48 murders over a 20-year period, received life sentences for their
crimes.
Approximately two percent of those convicted of crimes that make them eligible for
the death penalty actually receive a death sentence, and far less than one percent
are then executed.
death penalty today remains discriminatory:
More than 80 percent of those executed were cases that involved white victims,
despite the fact that nationally, only 50 percent of murder victims are white. Almost
all those executed were poor, many had shoddy representation, and frequently they
suffered from mental illness. Many, too, like those with mental retardation and
juvenile offenders, were executed under laws that have since been declared
unconstitutional.
A 2002 University of Maryland study found that even after controlling for the
jurisdictions and characteristics of cases, the probability that a prosecutor would seek
the death penalty against someone convicted of killing a white victim was 1.6 times
greater than someone convicted of killing a black victim.
30 Years After Gregg: Grassroots Organizing Kit
The 30* anniversary of Gregg v. Georgia comes at a time when Americans
are becoming increasingly skeptical about the death penalty. Recent data
indicates that a growing segment of the public does not think the death
penalty is working and believes it is time to step back and reexamine
capital punishment:
Support for the death penalty is at a post-Gregg low. Death sentences have declined
by more than 60 percent since the late 1990s. Executions have decreased 40 percent
since 1999. The size of death row has declined every year since 2001.
Legislators across the nation have recognized that serious problems exist with the
death penalty. Earlier this year, lawmakers in New Jersey voted to halt executions
while a review of capital punishment takes place. Elected leaders in other states,
such as New York and Illinois, also have halted executions.
123 innocent people have been released from death rows across the country, and in
Texas and Missouri, investigations are underway into whether two innocent people
were executed.
A growing number of new voices are challenging the death penalty in this
country because it is costly, inaccurate, and unfair. Gregg v. Georgia did
not address the emerging problems of costs, the frequency of human
error, the divergent views of victims, or the impact that carrying out
executions has on everyone who plays a role:
The American Bar Association has called for a national moratorium on all executions
because the system is so seriously flawed.
Many organizations of victims’ family members, such as Murder Victims’ Families for
Human Rights, have rejected the death penalty as part of the healing process.
Individuals such as Bud Welch, whose daughter was killed in the Oklahoma City
Bombing, have stated that it does nothing to ease their pain and there is no such
thing as “closure” after an execution. The billions of dollars spent on the death
penalty over the last 30 years could have been better invested in programs that
assist victims’ family members and help to prevent crimes in the first place.
Leaders from nearly every religious denomination in the country have called for a
halt to executions because the death penalty remains seriously flawed. The Catholic
Church has embarked on a national campaign to end the death penalty, and other
denominations are increasing their efforts as well.
The United States today is increasingly isolated in its use of the death
penalty:
While the U.S. has carried out more than 1,000 executions since Gregg, in this same
time period, 70 countries have abolished the death penalty.
The United States continues to be one of the top executing nations in the world and
is out of step with the majority of its global allies on this issue (Canada, Mexico,
30 Years After Gregg: Grassroots Organizing Kit
France, Germany, United Kingdom, Australia, and Italy have all abolished the death
penalty; Russia has had a de facto moratorium since 1999).
In all, a total of 123 countries have now abolished the death penalty in law or
practice. Europe and Central and South America are nearly death penalty-free zones,
and in Africa, there has been significant progress toward abolition.
30 Years After Gregg: Grassroots Organizing Kit
Sample Letter to the Editor
Letters to the Editor should be submitted based on the newspaper’s guidelines. Generally,
these guidelines can be found on the newspaper’s website. Regular submissions should be
limited to between 200-250 words. They will only use your contact information to verify the
author of the letter. It will not be published in the newspaper.
The following template will provide you with language that might be useful in preparing your
own letters. Consider sending a letter in the week leading up to the July 2 anniversary. We
encourage you to personalize your letters and to adapt the key messages, talking points,
and facts to the specific situation in your state.
sek
Gregg at 30: Still Arbitrary, Still Capricious
On July 2, 1976, the U.S. Supreme Court, in a 5-to-4 ruling in Gregg v. Georgia, decided that
executions could resume after a more than 10-year break. Yet today the death penalty still
remains arbitrary, capricious and discriminatory. At least 123 people have been freed from
death rows across the country after evidence of their innocence emerged. The exorbitant
cost of the death penalty hungrily consumes our tax dollars and has even bankrupted some
counties. More and more Americans are turning away from capital punishment, including
religious leaders, murder victims’ family members, law enforcement officers, and leading
conservatives.
And the U.S. finds itself increasingly isolated when it comes to this peculiar phenomenon:
Since the Gregg decision was handed down 30 years ago, 70 countries have abolished
capital punishment. The question for us to ponder today is not whether but when we will join
them.
Sincerely,
<Name>
<Affiliation>
<Address>
<City, State, Zip>
<Contact Number>
30 Years After Gregg: Grassroots Organizing Kit
Sample Press Release
(Local Letterhead)|
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE CONTACT: INSERT NAME
DAY, MONTH, DATE, YEAR TELEPHONE, EMAIL
SKEPTICISM ABOUT THE DEATH PENALTY GROWS AS
30 ANNIVERSARY OF GREGG V. GEORGIA DECISION APPROACHES
Growing Concerns About Arbitrariness and Accuracy Lead to
Declining Public Support for Capital Punishment
TOWN, STATE - As the 30th anniversary of the U.S. Supreme Court’s decision in
Gregg v. Georgia approaches, members of INSERT ORGANIZATION NAME note that concerns
about the fairness and accuracy of the death penalty continue to linger decades after the
Justices ruled to uphold newly crafted state death penalty statutes. The group notes that a
close examination of the death penalty around the country reveals that it remains as
ineffective and arbitrary as it was when the U.S. Supreme Court declared it unconstitutional
in 1972, a fact that underscores the need to repeal the death penalty or halt executions in
INSERT STATE.
“Public support for the death penalty is at its lowest point in 27 years, death
sentences have declined by more than 50% since the late 1990's, and executions in the U.S.
are down by 40% since 1999, ” said INSERT NAME, INSERT TITLE of the INSERT
ORGANIZATION NAME. “The trend is clear. People are turning away from the death penalty
because it has proven to be costly, ineffective, and unfair. The 30" anniversary of Gregg v.
Georgia is the perfect opportunity for our state lawmakers to listen to the public’s concerns
and reevaluate capital punishment in INSERT STATE.”
INSERT ORGANIZATION NAME notes that the practice of the death penalty has also
become more isolated in the U.S., a fact that calls attention to the arbitrary nature of the
capital punishment. Nearly half of the executions that have taken place in the U.S. have
occurred in two states, Texas and Virginia. The South carries out 80% of all executions, and
most states with the death penalty have had no executions in recent years. In addition,
more than 80% of those executed in the U.S. were sentenced to death for crimes that
involved white victims, despite the fact that nationally 50% of murder victims are white.
“The arbitrary nature of capital punishment is not only evident in the number of
states carrying out executions and in a closer examination of the race of the victims in these
cases, but studies across the country have revealed that within death penalty states who
lives and who dies depends more on where a capital crime is committed than on the
specifics of the case,” stated INSERT NAME, INSERT TITLE of the INSERT ORGANIZATION.
In addition to the unfairness of capital punishment, ORGANIZATION NAME members
have also voiced concerns about the issue of innocence. Since 1973, 123 innocent people
have been freed from death row, including INSERT NUMBER in HOME STATE. In recent years,
ORGANZATION NAME has urged state lawmakers to take steps to avoid future mistakes by
INSERT LOCAL STATE ACTION SUPPORTED. (This paragraph should be used when applicable,
and local groups should decide what efforts to highlight, etc.)
30 Years After Gregg: Grassroots Organizing Kit
Nationally, similar concerns about innocence and other issues have prompted state
legislators to halt executions or abandon the death penalty altogether. For example, a
moratorium on executions is in place in Illinois and New Jersey, and lawmakers in New York
have decided to drop the death penalty after a series of public hearings revealed that capital
punishment does not serve any legitimate purpose and may never be able to work
accurately and fairly.
“There is a lot that can be learned by examining the death penalty over the past
three decades and by reviewing the experiences of other states that are working to address
capital punishment concerns. The problems uncovered by legislators in New York, New
Jersey, Illinois, and other states are not unique to those jurisdictions. As more and more
questions are raised about the death penalty throughout the country, our state should also
conduct a careful review of its death penalty laws,” concluded NAME, INSERT TITLE of
ORGANIZATION NAME.
HEE
30 Years After Gregg: Grassroots Organizing Kit
Fact Sheet: 30 Years of the “Modern” Death Penalty
These statistics are based on the 1,022 executions that have taken place as of May 16,
2006. Please note that some of these figures will change (for example, the number of
lethal injections or the number of executions based on race) as executions continue to
occur.
Figures that will NOT change have been marked with a * and can be used as cited here (for
example, the number of women who have been executed or the number of executions by
firing squad). Please check www.deathpenaltyinfo.org for the most up-to-date information.
Source for all: Death Penalty Information Center and Amnesty International USA
Since the Gregg decision, there have been...
* 34 people with evidence of mental retardation*
* 119 “volunteers” (including the first execution after Gregg, that of Gary Gilmore in
Utah)
* 22 juvenile offenders*
* 20 foreign nationals*
* 11 women*
* 854 by lethal injection
* 152 electrocutions (the last one took place in 2004)*
* 11 by gassing (the last took place in 1999)*
* 3 by hanging (in Washington State and Delaware; the last occurred in 1996)*
.
2 by firing squad (both in Utah; the last took place in 1996)*
* 3 executions under federal law, which resumed under George W. Bush. Two of the
three federal executions were of offenders who were Gulf War veterans. 43 prisoners
remain on federal death row in Terra Haute, Indiana.
* O executions under military law. 9 prisoners remain on the military death row at Ft.
Leavenworth, Kansas.
* The oldest person at the time of execution was John Nixon, who was killed by the
State of Mississippi at the age of 77, in 2005.*
* The youngest person at the time of execution was Scott Dawn Carpenter, who was
killed by the State of Oklahoma at the age of 22, in 1997.*
* 152 occurred under George W. Bush when he was governor of Texas (1995-2000)*
* 124 have occurred during the administration of Governor Rick Perry of Texas (since
2001)
* The crimes for which these men and women were executed involved more than
1,500 victims.
Racial Discrimination and the Death Penalty
* 38 white defendants have been executed for crimes involving victims of an ethnic
or racial minority.
* 264 defendants of an ethnic or racial minority have been executed for crimes
involving white victims.
30 Years After Gregg: Grassroots Organizing Kit
10
« 558 white defendants have been executed for crimes involving white victims.
* 180 defendants of an ethnic or racial minority have been executed for crimes
involving victims of an ethnic or racial minority.
*¢ In 12 cases, a white defendant was executed for a crime involving a black victim.
* In 210 cases, a black defendant was executed for a crime involving a white
victim.
Note: In some cases, there were multiple victims of different races and the above execution
statistics reflect this. This was the case in 18 instances.
Inconsistencies of Executions across the USA
Since the U.S. Supreme Court reinstated the death penalty in 1976, 80% of all executions
have taken place in the South. The Northeast accounts for less than 1% of executions.
Specific numbers for each state are available on the DPIC and AIUSA websites.
Texas and Virginia
alone (458)
Northeast (1)
1 Federal (3)
= Mid-Atlantic (22) Executions Since 1977
=== West (65)
=== Midwest (121)
South (810)
C) 100 200 300 400 500 600 700 800
This information is based on 1,022 executions.
Executions since the Reinstatement of the Death Penalty, by Year
120
98
100 35
74
By 80 68 ae 65
a 56 59 60
8 60 xs 45
wW 40 3131 |e |
* 21ig is” Gg”
20 — gil» 4 La
12 a BD (| [|
0 a OUD
N &§ & & F PH P PS PP YS Y
v v v
Year
Most executions in a single year: 98 in 1999
30 Years After Gregg: Grassroots Organizing Kit
11
Major Milestones in the Death Penalty Since the Gregg
Decision
197 ——> | June 29: Furman v. Georgia invalidates existing death penalty statutes
——-» | July 2: Gregg v. Georgia upholds the constitutionality of new death penalty
statutes that provide for guided discretion
197
6
199 ——> | January 17: Execution of Gary Gilmore in Utah, the first execution in 10 years
4 Coker v. Georgia holds the death penalty is an unconstitutional punishment
for rape of an adult woman when the victim is not killed
199 Oklahoma becomes the first state to adopt lethal injection
5
—-» | December 7: First lethal injection takes place - Charles Brooks in Texas
199 ——-» | Ford v. Wainwright prohibits the execution of people who are legally
incompetent, i.e., someone who does not understand the reason for, or the
6 reality of, his or her punishment
Batson v. Kentucky holds that an attorney who strikes a disproportionate
number of citizens of the same race from a jury is required to provide “race
neutral” reasons for his/her strikes
——» | McCleskey v. Kemp: Racial disparities are not recognized as a constitutional
199 violation of “equal protection of the law” unless intentional racial
7 discrimination against the defendant can be shown
Thompson v. Oklahoma holds the execution of those younger than 16 at the
—— [time of the crime unconstitutional
200 Drug-related murder becomes punishable by death in federal courts
0
—— || Stanford v. Kentucky allows death sentences for 16 and 17 year olds
200 Penry v. Lynaugh allows the death penalty for those with mental retardation
1
Murray v. Giarratano holds that indigent death row inmates are not entitled to
the appointment of counsel for post-conviction proceedings
200
2 ; 7 os ;
Whitmore v. Arkansas makes it impossible in most circumstances for a "next
friend" to litigate even winning constitutional issues for an inmate who wishes
to waive all appeals, leading to a huge increase in the number of state-
assisted suicides of "volunteers", many of whom were seriously mentally ill
Herrera v. Collins holds that in the absence of other constitutional grounds,
———» | new evidence of innocence is no reason for federal courts to order a new trial
200 First death row conviction overturned using DNA evidence
3 ——-» | Violent Crime Control and Law Enforcement Act expands the federal death
penalty to over 50 offenses
30 Years After Gregg: Grassroots Organizing Kit
200 12
——» | New York becomes the 38" state to adopt the death penalty
President Clinton signs the Anti-Terrorism and Effective Death Penalty Act,
which greatly curtails the ability of death row inmates whose constitutional
rights were violated to secure relief in federal courts
1996 ——>
Congress de-funds capital punishment post-conviction defender offices, which
had helped to provide representation for many death row inmates in post-
conviction proceedings
— | ABA calls for a moratorium on executions until the death penalty can be
administered fairly and impartially in accordance with due process
Illinois Governor George Ryan declares a moratorium on executions
——-> | First federal execution takes place in more than 30 years
——_ 100" innocent person released from death row due to evidence of wrongful
conviction
Moratorium instituted in Maryland (revoked in 2003)
Atkins v. Virginia holds unconstitutional the execution of those with mental
retardation
Ring v. Arizona holds that a jury, rather than a judge, must make a finding of
the “aggravating factors” that are prerequisites under state law for
consideration of the death penalty
—— | Illinois Governor Ryan commutes the sentences of the state’s entire death
row population
——» | Death penalty laws of New York and Kansas declared unconstitutional
——-> | Roper v. Simmons ends the execution of juvenile offenders, sparing the lives
of 72 inmates
December 2: 1,000" execution since the resumption of executions in 1977
takes place in North Carolina
———» | Moratorium on executions instituted by legislative mandate in New Jersey
30 Years After Gregg: Grassroots Organizing Kit
13
Ideas for Local Action
Be sure to alert your media contacts as to any activities you are planning to mark
this anniversary!
In the days and weeks leading up to the anniversary...
* Read the accompanying study guide on the Gregg decision and its aftermath. (Also
available online at http://www.amnestyusa.org/abolish/gregg.)
* Send letters to the editor.
* Take action to make sure that your elected officials, the public, and the media are
aware that the death penalty is still arbitrary, capricious, and discriminatory.
Organize teach-ins, forums, and discussions about why the death penalty is so flawed
and what can be done to continue the momentum of restricting its use.
* Host a viewing party and show “The Exonerated,” the new “Dead Man Walking”
Concert DVD (see page 17 for more information), or any other appropriate film to
generate discussion and action.
*¢ Pass a resolution endorsing abolition or a moratorium on executions in your local
church, school, business, or organization, and encourage other groups to sign on, as
well. Each group that passes a resolution represents people who elect officials at the
local, state and national level. When ratified resolutions reach those elected leaders,
we exert grassroots pressure to put a halt to executions. To see the over 4,300
groups around the country that already endorse a moratorium, visit the National
Tally at www.ejusa.org. See pages 18-19 for more details.
* Visit one of the following anti-death penalty blogs - or start your own! There are
many personal, local group, and state coalition blogs run by activists throughout the
United States. There are also several national blogs. Read and comment on these
often to build involvement from the growing online community:
> Amnesty International USA's Death Penalty Blog:
http://blogs.amnestyusa.org/death-penalty
Abolish the Death Penalty, NCADP: http://www.deathpenaltyusa.blogspot.com/
Against Death Rows: www.againstdeathrows.blogspot.com
Capital Defense Weekly: http://capitaldefenseweekly.com/
The Lonely Abolitionist: http://www.lonelyabolitionist.blogspot.com/
TCASK :: On the Road (to Abolition): http://tcask.blogspot.com/
VVVVV
With your own death penalty blog, you can share your thoughts, personal
experiences, interesting news stories, or favorite websites; you can also link to other
blogs. There are several websites that offer free blogs, including:
> www.blogger.com
> www.typepad.com
> www.blogstream.com
*¢ Be visible in your community with AbolitionWear! Call 800-973-6548, visit
www.AbolitionWear.org, or email abe@abolition.org for more ideas and specifics on
30 Years After Gregg: Grassroots Organizing Kit
14
visibility actions.
* Take action to stop upcoming executions! Visit
http://www.amnestyusa.org/abolish/actions.do or
http://www.ncadp.org/execution_alerts.html.
On or around July 2...
* Stage Solidarity Actions (rallies, demonstrations, vigils) at your state Supreme
Court building, your State Capitol Building, or some other federal or state building.
Invite members of the legal and/or prison community, exonerated death row inmates,
murder victims’ family members, and family members of those on death row to
speak. See pages 21-22 for contact information for groups that can help you find a
speaker.
«If you are a member of a faith community, place a notice in your bulletin, ask your
faith leader to mention the anniversary of the Gregg decision, and/or toll your bells to
mark the occasion. Ask other local churches to toll their bells for two minutes and to
let their members know why with a notice in the bulletin and a comment from the
pulpit. This is a great way to introduce communities of faith to the "For Whom the
Bells Toll" campaign! (see http://www.curenational.org/~bells/). You can also set up
an information table and disseminate materials on the death penalty that weekend.
See page 20 for a sample bulletin insert.
* Come to Washington DC! This will be the 13" year in a row that abolitionists will
stage protests in front of the U.S. Supreme Court on July 2. See next page for more
details.
If you can’t come to DC, consider participating in a solidarity fast with the annual Fast
& Vigil to Abolish the Death Penalty at the U.S. Supreme Court. Ask friends and
families to join you by donating the amount of money they would spend on food for
one day to the abolitionist group of your choice.
« [For international groups] Stage rallies or demonstrations at U.S. embassies and
consulates and alert the media in the weeks ahead regarding the anniversary. Make
a presentation of petitions or other items to the relevant consular office/embassy.
Please let us know about your activities!! Go to
http://www.amnestyusa.org/abolish/gregg/ to post information about your local
events and/or send information to aac@abolition.org.
30 Years After Gregg: Grassroots Organizing Kit
15
Starvin’ for Justice ‘06
Join the Abolitionist Action Committee for the
13th Annual Fast & Vigil to Abolish the Death Penalty
at the U.S. Supreme Court in Washington, D.C.
June 29 to July 2, 2006
Po Con
June 29th — The 34th anniversary of the Furman v. Georgia decision in which the
U.S. Supreme Court found the death penalty to be arbitrary and capricious. More
than 600 condemned inmates had their death sentences reduced to life. All states
were required to re-write their death penalty laws. July 2"¢ will be the 30"
anniversary of the Gregg v. Georgia decision, which allowed the resumption of
executions in the U. S.
The Abolitionist
Action
Committee
is an ad-hoc group of individuals committed to highly visible and effective public
education for alternatives to the death penalty through non-violent direct action.
The Annual Fast & Vigil at the U.S. Supreme Court is always June 29 to July 2.
Everyone is encouraged to participate for part or all of this event. Fasting is
optional. This is a good opportunity to meet other abolitionists and to re-charge
30 Years After Gregg: Grassroots Organizing Kit
16
your batteries. If you can come for the entire fast, please plan to arrive in
Washington, DC prior to 7 pm on June 28th and leave after 2am on July 3rd. For
REGISTRATION FORMS, INCLUDING details on lodging, travel and other logistics, to
help with funding or to volunteer, please contact the Abolitionist Action
Committee c/o CUADP.
The Abolitionist Action Committee
c/o CUADP: 800-973-6548
PMB 335, 2603 NW 13" St (AKA Dr. MLK Jr. Hwy), Gainesville, FL 32609
<aac@abolition.org> <www.abolition.org>
30 Years After Gregg: Grassroots Organizing Kit
17
“Dead Man Walking” Album and “Dead Man Walking”
Concert DVD
A Letter from Sr. Helen Prejean, CSJ
NOTE: Along with the fundraising opportunity mentioned below, materials are being prepared
to assist activists in using this new DVD as a platform for hosting educational and/or fundraising
house parties around the occasion of the 30" Anniversary of the Gregg decision. Please visit
www.CUADP.org or call 800-973-6548 for details AFTER May 22, 2006.
eK
Dear Friends,
We have an exciting opportunity to take advantage of and | want to invite your participation.
The audio soundtrack to the film “Dead Man Walking,” featuring artists like Steve Earle, Tom
Waits, Bruce Springsteen, Eddie Vedder, Mary Chapin Carpenter, Suzanne Vega and others, is
about to be re-issued by Sony BMG. This CD will be packaged together with a feature-length
documentary film on DVD of the “Not In Our Name - Dead Man Walking - The Concert” held at
the Shrine Auditorium in Los Angeles in March 1998. This DVD has never before been made
available to the public and features extraordinary live performances by Lyle Lovett, Steve Earle,
Ani DiFranco, Eddie Vedder, Jeff Ament, Rahat Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan, Dildar Hussain and David
Robbins, along with speeches by myself and Tim Robbins.
This CD/DVD is currently scheduled to hit stores on June 13. | am pleased to announce that
MVEFR and MVFHR will each realize royalties from the sale of this package, which is expected to
retail at about $30.00. The royalties of the first release of the CD generated well over $100,000
for MVFR, so there is a great deal of excitement and potential.
There is now an opportunity for the rest of the movement to join in promoting this new release,
which will both help generate new royalties for MVFR and MVFHR, and also raise a few dollars
for your own organization. SONY has agreed to a three-week advance sale period during which
this product will exclusively be sold through the web pages of groups like your own. Any group
can sign up as an affiliate partner and generate sales that help raise funding and awareness.
You may be familiar with a similar opportunity that many movement groups took advantage of
recently with the sale of the DVD of “The Exonerated.”
CUADP is working with ActiveMusic to set up a similarly structured opportunity so that any
movement group can add advertisements to their web page to help generate sales of the DMW
CD/DVD. Each sale generated by a participating group will generate at least $5.00 for that
group. No matter who generates the sale, MVFR and MVFHR will benefit in all cases.
| am very pleased to see the music industry assist our movement in this way, and | urge your
participation.
Yours in the Struggle for Abolition,
Sr. Helen Prejean, CSJ
30 Years After Gregg: Grassroots Organizing Kit
18
Step by Step: How to Get a Resolution Passed
Getting Started: Bringing a resolution before your group/community
1)
2)
3)
4)
5)
6)
Find out the procedures, if any, by which the group considers a resolution.
Prepare your resolution. Use the enclosed model resolution or contact us for help on
crafting a resolution that addresses how the death penalty is being applied in your state.
Imagine yourself as someone who knows little about the death penalty. Does your
resolution give enough information to lead that person toward supporting a moratorium?
Line up your support. Share your plans to introduce the resolution with others in your
group who you think will support it. Ask for their help in convincing the group to pass it.
Introduce your resolution. Be sure that everyone involved in the decision has a copy
of your resolution. Make yourself available to answer questions or to provide
background information.
Urge an open discussion about your call for a moratorium. Encourage people to
schedule time for internal education on how the death penalty is in fact being used.
Consider showing a video or inviting an outside speaker.
If your resolution is passed: Be sure to alert the media and your national, state, and
local elected officials. Send a copy to Equal Justice USA/Quixote Center for inclusion in
the National Tally.
If your resolution does not pass: Don’t get discouraged! Introducing it has surely
educated some people in the group and you have probably made some new allies.
Consult with them about your next steps.
What’s Next? Taking the Campaign to the Next Level
After you’ve gotten your group on board, set out to recruit others! Here’s how:
1)
2)
3)
4)
Alert your entire membership that your resolution has passed. Ask them to get other
groups to do the same.
Put a blank resolution in your next newsletter or email alert. We can supply you
with an electronic version of the resolution or you can point people to www.ejusa.org.
Give a talk at another group, faith community, or school in your area. Include a
pitch for the resolution campaign in your message. Or when people ask you what they
can do, you can give them a blank resolution and ask them to recruit a group.
Take a resolution to your city council. Contact Equal Justice USA for ideas or hints
on how to go about gaining your town’s endorsement. It’s easier than you think!
Over 4,300 groups nationwide now endorse a moratorium! Has yours?
For sample resolutions and more information, see www.ejusa.org or contact us at:
EQUAL JUSTICE USA @ PO Box 5206 @ HYATTSVILLE, MD 20782-0206 @ (301) 699-0042
EJUSA@QUIXOTE.ORG
30 Years After Gregg: Grassroots Organizing Kit
19
Model Group Resolution
[Please be sure to adapt this information to the situation in your own community.]
WHEREAS death sentences are reserved for the
poor:
= About 90% of all people facing capital
charges cannot afford their own attorney.
= No state has met standards developed by
the American Bar Association (ABA) for
appointment, performance, and
compensation of counsel for indigent
prisoners.
WHEREAS there is ample evidence that the
death penalty is applied in a racist manner:
=> In 1987, in McCleskey v. Kemp, the U.S.
Supreme Court refused to act on data
demonstrating the continuing reality of racial
bias.
=> In 1990, the U.S. General Accounting Office
reported “a pattern of evidence indicating
racial disparities in charging, sentencing and
imposition of the death penalty.”
=> Nationwide, 82% of those put to death had
been convicted of murdering a white person,
even though people of color are the victims
in more than half of all homicides.
=> The U.S. Congress has failed repeatedly to
pass the Racial Justice Act, which would allow
prisoners to challenge their death sentences
using standards normal in civil racial
discrimination cases.
=> A Justice Department study of federal
capital cases from 1995 to 2000 found that
74% of the defendants were people of color.
WHEREAS prisoner appeals have been severely
curtailed, increasing the risk of imprisonment
and execution of innocent people:
=> In a series of rulings since 1991, the
Supreme Court has drastically restricted the
rights of death row prisoners to appeal their
convictions and death sentences in federal
courts, even in cases where prisoners
present compelling evidence of innocence.
=> In 1996, new legislation drastically limited
federal court review of death penalty appeals
and gutted public funding of legal aid services
for death row prisoners.
WHEREAS the American Bar Association has
concluded that administration of the death
penalty is “a haphazard maze of unfair
practices with no internal consistency” and has
called for a moratorium on executions.
WHEREAS repeated polls have found that a
majority of Americans support suspending
executions entirely until issues of fairness in
capital punishment can be resolved.
Now, therefore, BE IT RESOLVED THAT:
cal
Ison the Governor and our state
representatives, President Bush and _ our
representatives in Congress, to enact and
adopt legislation imposing a moratorium on
executions at least until this state and nation
implement policies and procedures which:
=> Ensure that death penalty cases are
administered fairly and impartially — in
accordance with basic due process.
=> Eliminate the risk of executing innocent
people.
=> Prevent the execution of mentally disabled
persons.
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that copies of this
resolution shall be forwarded to the
Governor, our state representatives,
President Bush, and our representatives in
Congress.
Ratified by
(group name)
(address)
(contact name)
(contact phone/email)
Please return ratified copy to:
EQUAL JUSTICE USA
P.O. Box 5206, HYATTSVILLE, MD 20782
301-699-0042 ¢ [fax] 301-864-2182
EJUSA@QUIXOTE.ORG @ WWW.EJUSA.ORG
30 Years After Gregg: Grassroots Organizing Kit
Sample Bulletin Insert for Faith Communities
This weekend, July 2, marks the 30" anniversary of the landmark U.S. Supreme Court
decision, Gregg v. Georgia, which effectively brought the death penalty back to the United
States and allowed for the resumption of executions after a more than 10-year break. When
the Supreme Court initially threw out the death penalty in 1972, it ruled that this practice,
as applied then, was arbitrary, capricious, and discriminatory - as random as being struck
by lightning. Four years later, however, the Court gave a stamp of approval to newly
revised death penalty statutes and took the position that the death penalty did not offend
“the evolving standards of decency which mark the progress of a maturing society.”
The anniversary of Gregg v. Georgia provides us with an opportunity to reexamine the death
penalty through the lens of three decades of experience and to decide for ourselves
whether this practice offends our own standards of decency. Please take a few minutes to
pray for all people who are impacted by this issue - crime victims and their families, those
on death row and their families, lawyers, judges, juries, prison workers, executioners,
chaplains, and all those who work on behalf of death row inmates. More information on the
death penalty will be available in Morris Hall after the service. We encourage all members
of this congregation to learn more about the how the death penalty has been applied and
carried out in the 30 years since the Gregg decision. For more information, please contact
Social Justice Coordinator Ruth Jackson at 504-879-1276 or rjackson@gmail.com.
30 Years After Gregg: Grassroots Organizing Kit
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Supplemental Resources for Action
For possible rally speakers, contact the following organizations:
Journey of Hope...From Violence to Healing
www.journeyofhope.org, bpelke@gci.net or 1-877-9-24GIVE (4483)
(Murder victims’ families opposed to the death penalty)
Murder Victims’ Families for Human Rights
http://www.murdervictimsfamilies.org, rrcushing@earthlink.net, or 617-491-9600
(Murder victims’ families opposed to the death penalty)
Murder Victims’ Families for Reconciliation
www.mvfr.org, Robert@mvfr.org, or 512-782-9895
(Murder victims’ families opposed to the death penalty)
Witness to Innocence
witnesstoinnocence@qmail.com or 215-243-0505
(Exonerated death row inmates)
For more information, visit the following websites:
The Abolitionist Action Committee
www.abolition.org
American Civil Liberties Union
www.aclu.org/deathpenalty/
Amnesty International USA
www.amnestyusa.org/abolish
Campaign to End the Death Penalty
www.nodeathpenalty.org
Citizens United for Alternatives to the Death Penalty
www.cuadp.org.
The Constitution Project
www.constitutionproject.org
Death Penalty Information Center
www.deathpenaltyinfo.org
The Death Penalty: Information for Teachers
teacher.deathpenaltyinfo.msu.edu
Equal Justice USA
www.ejusa.org
NAACP Legal Defense Fund
http://www.naacpldf.org
30 Years After Gregg: Grassroots Organizing Kit
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(For information on death row in your state)
National Coalition to Abolish the Death Penalty
www.ncadp.org
30 Years After Gregg: Grassroots Organizing Kit
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