~cheenna~
07-19-2002, 08:49 PM
Innocence Protection Act Approved by Senate Judiciary Committee
Congress Urged to Pass Death Penalty Reform Legislation this Session
"Legislation which would increase access to DNA testing and improve counsel standards for capital defense attorneys was reported favorably by the Senate Judiciary Committee today in a 12-7 vote. All 10 Democrats and 2 Republicans (Sens. Specter and Brownback) approved the bill. We applaud Committee Chairman Senator Patrick Leahy and Senators Arlen Specter, Dianne Feinstein, Joseph Biden, Richard Durbin and the other committee members who worked on and approved the substitute amendment to the Innocence Protection Act (S 486) for their display of leadership and unity on this critical issue.
For a summary of the substitute amendment please visit http://www.CJReform.org/ipa
Mounting evidence that our nation's death penalty system is broken signals that now is the time to pass this meaningful federal legislation. Studies show our capital punishment system manages to get it wrong in nearly 7 out of 10 cases. Since 1976, more than 100 people have been wrongfully convicted and sentenced to death.
Voices from across the political spectrum - both death penalty supporters and opponents - are now calling for reform. In the past weeks, the Innocence Protection Act has gained a majority of cosponsors in the House (240, including 62 Republicans), prosecutors and victims have called for its passage, and conservative groups such as the Rutherford Institute have given backing to the bill.
Recent United States Supreme Court rulings, along with other court decisions, reflect a growing national concern that the administration of the death penalty is unfair. It is no longer a question that the system is unfair and that innocent people are being sentenced to death. The only question is what are we going to do about it?
The Justice Project urges the House Judiciary Committee to listen to the groundswell of voices calling for change and take action. Recent polls show that Americans want a fair and just capital punishment system, and all indications are that these reforms are bound to occur. We simply can't go on sentencing innocent people to death, letting the real criminals roam free to kill again, when simple steps can be taken to prevent such atrocities."
Wayne F. Smith, Executive Director
The Justice Project
Congress Urged to Pass Death Penalty Reform Legislation this Session
"Legislation which would increase access to DNA testing and improve counsel standards for capital defense attorneys was reported favorably by the Senate Judiciary Committee today in a 12-7 vote. All 10 Democrats and 2 Republicans (Sens. Specter and Brownback) approved the bill. We applaud Committee Chairman Senator Patrick Leahy and Senators Arlen Specter, Dianne Feinstein, Joseph Biden, Richard Durbin and the other committee members who worked on and approved the substitute amendment to the Innocence Protection Act (S 486) for their display of leadership and unity on this critical issue.
For a summary of the substitute amendment please visit http://www.CJReform.org/ipa
Mounting evidence that our nation's death penalty system is broken signals that now is the time to pass this meaningful federal legislation. Studies show our capital punishment system manages to get it wrong in nearly 7 out of 10 cases. Since 1976, more than 100 people have been wrongfully convicted and sentenced to death.
Voices from across the political spectrum - both death penalty supporters and opponents - are now calling for reform. In the past weeks, the Innocence Protection Act has gained a majority of cosponsors in the House (240, including 62 Republicans), prosecutors and victims have called for its passage, and conservative groups such as the Rutherford Institute have given backing to the bill.
Recent United States Supreme Court rulings, along with other court decisions, reflect a growing national concern that the administration of the death penalty is unfair. It is no longer a question that the system is unfair and that innocent people are being sentenced to death. The only question is what are we going to do about it?
The Justice Project urges the House Judiciary Committee to listen to the groundswell of voices calling for change and take action. Recent polls show that Americans want a fair and just capital punishment system, and all indications are that these reforms are bound to occur. We simply can't go on sentencing innocent people to death, letting the real criminals roam free to kill again, when simple steps can be taken to prevent such atrocities."
Wayne F. Smith, Executive Director
The Justice Project