[WCADP-list] Mental Illness and the Death Penalty

[wcadp-list at lists.drizzle.com]

Fellow Abolitionists,

Recently, I volunteered to author an email about Mental Illness and the
Death Penalty to be sent to our coalition's membership.  As I sat down to
write, however, I realized I knew surprisingly little about the subject.
Having been an abolitionist for 18 years, I assumed I had something to say
on just about every topic concerning the death penalty.  And, while I can
certainly speak to the injustice of such a practice on an emotional level,
the real substance of this particular issue eludes me.  I suspect many of
you might find the same to be true.  With that realization, my message has
become a call to education, an invitation to join me and others in working
to truly understand the reality of this important issue.

You may be asking yourself why it is that I bring this topic to your
attention now.  First is the simple fact that our own death row population
includes persons who have been diagnosed with mental illness.  Moreover,
across the country, many of the nation's death row inmates are similarly
situated.  The injustice of their imprisonment, given this reality, as you
will come to see, is truly horrific.  

As I began to look further into this topic I had occasion to read the true
stories of some of the mentally ill that have been sentenced to death in our
country.  For example, in a discussion of veterans suffering from mental
illness, I read the story of George Franklin Page, a Vietnam Veteran with a
long history of PTSD.  Page killed a police officer during a violent
flashback in which he thought he was surrounded by soldiers shooting at him.
The jury was told little of his disorder and defense counsel was denied a
chance to hire mental health professionals to conduct a full evaluation.  I
also read of Larry Robinson, a man diagnosed with paranoid schizophrenia,
who was executed for the murders of five people.  Robinson's mother
repeatedly sought help for her son prior to his crime, but was told the
state had no resource unless he turned violent.

These tragic stories, and countless others, serve to illustrate the need for
greater understanding of how some mentally ill people can resort to
violence.  To lean more, I have provided some links to some very informative
sites.  Additionally, I want to remind you of our Washington Coalition to
Abolish the Death Penalty Blog. Visiting our blog is a great way to stay
informed of recent happenings surrounding the death penalty, especially in
Washington State.  And, as you will see, our recent posts have addressed the
very topic of this email, mental illness.

Thanks to all of you for your continued support and your tireless efforts to
end the injustice of the death penalty in our state and in our nation.

Peace, 

Bree Kelly

Secretary, Washington Coalition to Abolish the Death Penalty

Washington Coalition to Abolish the Death Penalty Blog:

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

Amnesty International:

 
<http://www.amnestyusa.org/death-penalty/execution-of-mentally-ill/page.do?i
d=1101135>
http://www.amnestyusa.org/death-penalty/execution-of-mentally-ill/page.do?id
=1101135 

National Alliance on Mental Illness:

 
<http://www.nami.org/Template.cfm?Section=Issue_Spotlights&template=/Content
Management/ContentDisplay.cfm&ContentID=81845>
http://www.nami.org/Template.cfm?Section=Issue_Spotlights&template=/ContentM
anagement/ContentDisplay.cfm&ContentID=81845 

Death Penalty Information Center:

 <http://www.deathpenaltyinfo.org/mental-illness-and-death-penalty>
http://www.deathpenaltyinfo.org/mental-illness-and-death-penalty

 
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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/> 

 

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