[WCADP-list] Fight the Death Penalty in Washington! Your Legislator Needs to Hear From You!

[wcadp-list at lists.drizzle.com]

Should the Washington Legislature Abolish the Death Penalty for the Mentally
Ill?

Should they Study Whether the Death Penalty is Fairly Applied in Washington?

MEMBERS OF THE WASHINGTON STATE LEGISLATURE NEED TO HEAR FROM YOU!

Last Wednesday, members of the Senate and House Judiciary Committees heard
testimony on two important death penalty bills:

HB 1518 and SB 5786 - Creating a Death Penalty Task Force HB 1707 and SB
5787 - Prohibiting Execution of the Severely Mentally Ill

**Committee Members are now deciding whether to vote on these bills!**

PLEASE CONTACT YOUR LEGISLATOR AND ASK THEM TO SUPPORT THESE BILLS!

CONTACT YOUR LEGISLATOR WHETHER THEY ARE ON THE JUDICIARY COMMITTEE OR NOT!

You can EMAIL OR CALL your Legislator's office by visiting their website at:


 <http://apps.leg.wa.gov/DistrictFinder/Default.aspx>
http://apps.leg.wa.gov/DistrictFinder/Default.aspx

-or-

You can CALL the toll-free legislative HOTLINE at 800.562.6000!

PLEASE CONTACT YOUR WASHINGTON STATE LEGISLATOR TODAY!

You can say something like:

I am a constituent who is urging you to support two pieces of legislation,
one which studies how the death penalty is applied in Washington State and
another which prohibits the execution of the severely mentally ill.

I support the task force bill (HB 1518 and SB 5786) because I believe it is
the responsibility of the legislature to pass laws that are fairly applied. 

It is in the state's interest to determine whether the state's capital
punishment system is applied fairly, and whether continued allocation of
substantial time, resources and money on capital trials and appeals is
warranted.

I support the mental illness bill (HB 1707 and SB 5787) because I believe
that it is wrong to exempt people with mental retardation from the death
penalty but not those with serious mental illnesses. Severely mentally ill
offenders are also often unable to understand their actions and often lack
the capacity to assist their attorney. Veterans exposed to Post Traumatic
Stress Disorder (PTSD) are especially at risk. Resources would be better
spent preventing crimes and supporting mental heath treatment programs.

Please put these bills to a vote and vote YES!

---

Background:

The promise that our government makes to its citizens, as long as government
continues to execute individuals in our names, is that the use of the death
penalty will be governed by the "evolving standards of decency that mark the
progress of a maturing society." On Wednesday, opponents of the death
penalty went to Olympia to ask our elected officials to enforce these
"evolving standards" by precluding death sentences for those individuals who
are "severely mentally ill," and by forming and funding a commission to
study whether the death penalty in our state is working or whether, instead,
we should shut down the machinery of death and banish it to the dustbin of
history.

Our members and those who support our cause turned out in force and provided
powerful and moving statements in support of our modest requests. Eileen
Farley, the director of a Seattle public defense agency, spoke movingly of
her mentally ill brother who battled the demons in his head until he could
control them no more and committed suicide. Steering Committee member James
Basden told the committee members the story of his brother who was executed
by North Carolina after a trial that can only be described as a complete and
utter failure. James asked the committee to create the study group so that
we can determine whether the failure of the system that resulted in his
brother's death could happen here. Bill Babbitt, whose brother Manny's
severe mental illness did not save him from the gallows, visibly moved
committee members by demanding that our representatives see the human faces
that we send to our death chambers. Unfortunately for these people, changes
to the system did not come in time to save their loved ones.

Please contact your legislator today and urge him or her to pass these
bills. You can read more about them on our web page or blog: 

 <http://abolishcapitalpunishment.blogspot.com/>
http://abolishcapitalpunishment.blogspot.com/

In a democracy we share a duty to make our voices heard. We also need to 

invest our representatives with the moral courage to do the right thing. No
one could support the execution of someone who is severely mentally ill. 

There is no persuasive argument that our death penalty should be blindly 

(and thereby unfairly) enforced. So what we face instead is indifference 

and fear of change. Please urge your representative to act before it's too
late for someone else's brother, sister, son, or daughter.

  _____  

To change the address where you receive these emails please send us a note
at info at abolishdeathpenalty.org. 

To unsubscribe from all future mailings simply send an email to
wcadp-list-request at lists.drizzle.com with the word "unsubscribe" in the
subject (you can leave the rest of the email blank). You will receive a
confirmation email. Be sure to respond to the confirmation email otherwise
you will not be removed from our list.

We welcome all feedback. Please send any comments or criticism to
<mailto:info at abolishdeathpenalty.org> info at abolishdeathpenalty.org.

The Washington Coalition to Abolish the Death Penalty
It's easy to support the death penalty when you don't have all the facts.
P.O. Box 3045
Seattle, WA 98114-3045
phone (206) 622-8952
fax (206) 622-2016
www.abolishdeathpenalty.org <http://www.abolishdeathpenalty.org/> 
 
-------------- next part --------------
An HTML attachment was scrubbed...
URL: http://lists.drizzle.com/pipermail/wcadp-list/attachments/20070221/682cf24d/attachment.html