Comments from Coloradans Against the
Death Penalty
Here are some comments from Coloradans
Against the Death Penalty, following the
Supreme Court's Ring v. Arizona decision
that invalidated Colorado's death penalty
law.
A Wake Up Call
The supreme court decision
to strike Colorado's death penalty sentencing
statute is a wake up call that our system
is so out of step with the law that it
is unconstitutional.
Before any effort is made
to attempt to change the Colorado law to
try to get it to comport with basic tenents
of constitutional law, we should first
put effort into seeing if state executions
are needed, wanted, or serve any legitimate
state purpose.
I believe the result of
such an investigation is that it will be
shown that state executions no longer serve
any legitimate government purpose, they
can not be carried out without violating
basic constitutional law, and we should
stop spending state tax dollars pursuing
these executions.
-- Marshal Seufert, Attorney
and CADP Board Member
Time is Ripe for a Moratorium
Our lawmakers are
wondering. Now that the U.S. Supreme
Court has killed Colorado's latest death
penalty law, what should they do? ("Execution
decisions belong to juries," front
page, June 25.)
Instead of rushing
blindly to enact yet another new sentencing
scheme, let's urge our lawmakers to first
take a careful look at these options:
- A moratorium
on the death penalty, which some other
states are now implementing;
- A study
of the validity, cost, and morality
of the death penalty;
- A vote
of the people about reinstating the
death penalty.
As the June 26 Daily
Camera editorial argued, the death penalty
does not prevent crime or provide "closure" for
victims' families.
There are other arguments.
For example, the real risk of executing
innocent people, and the fact that capital
punishment is not cost effective. It
is cheaper to spare the state the expense
of capital trials, and instead sentence
killers to life in prison. To get more
facts, visit the Web site for Coloradans
Against the Death Penalty (www.coadp.org).
So why rush Colorado
back into the business of murder? If
we want to punish harshly, yet humanely,
why not just sentence killers to life
in prison, without chance of parole?
That maintains the public safety, saves
the state money, and elevates our human
dignity. We shouldn't become killers,
to show that killing is wrong.
This is an historic
leadership opportunity for Colorado.
The tide of public opinion is beginning
to turn against state-sanctioned murder.
Let's urge our lawmakers to demonstrate
leadership and courage, and consider
the other options. My choice is a moratorium
on the death penalty.
