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The Indiana Information Center on the Abolition of Capital Punishment (IICACP) exists to expose the injustice associated with the application of the death penalty in Indiana. IICACP is open to anyone who is opposed to the death penalty.
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INDIANA ABOLITIONIST
Quarterly Newsletter of the Indiana Information Center for the Abolition of Capital Punishment
PAULA SITES: ABOLITIONIST OF THE YEAR by Debby Peddie, IICACP board member Indiana abolitionists gathered in the Statehouse rotunda March 1, 2006, for the 7th annual Celebrate Life--Alternatives to the Death Penalty, in observance of Abolition Day, the day in 1847 that Michigan became the first English-speaking territory to abolish the death penalty. Karen Burkhart, Indiana death penalty coordinator for Amnesty International, began with a brief history of the events in Michigan that lead to abolition. Glenda Breeden, from the Bloomington Coalition to Abolish the Death Penalty, then read Miriam Allen’s poem “Prelude to an Execution.” Capital defense attorney Jessie Cook addressed mental illness and the death penalty, the focus of much abolition work in 2005. Cook represented Arthur Baird, who was granted clemency last August by Governor Mitch Daniels. Although Daniels did not cite Baird’s mental illness in his clemency statement, mental illness was the focus of the clemency and fueled an on-going debate. Cook noted that 100 years ago, the U.S. Supreme Court began using an evolving standard of decency when considering death penalty issues. She charted the progress of that evolving standard, in particular the significance of recent events in Indiana. The highlight of the event was the presentation of the Abolitionist of the Year Award to Paula Sites, Assistant Executive Director of the Indiana Public Defender Council. Larry Landis, Executive Director of the Indiana Public Defender Council, (and Paula’s boss), introduced Paula and outlined her education and work before joining the Public Defender Council in 1987. He spoke of Paula’s impact on the death penalty in Indiana, including a reduction of the number of Indiana death row prisoners from a high of 52 in 1990 to the current 17, which he attributed to Paula’s ongoing work training capital attorneys. Larry praised Paula’s endurance and resilience, noting that while defense attorneys can decompress and rest at the conclusion of a case, Paula moves on to helping the next team in the next case. Paula’s remarks in accepting were moving and forceful, and are printed here in their entirety: I am so fortunate to be able to do this work that I believe in, and to share in it with so many wonderful people, some who are here, and many who are not. I draw strength from every one of you. This has been a difficult year, with six men killed by our state, in our names, and I am grateful for the strength you give me. We are gathered here to celebrate life. And yet, we live in a society that does not even seem to value life. That exalts power and wealth above everything else. We have a federal budget that takes away health care and child support and education support from the poorest of our citizens in order to provide tax cuts to the wealthiest among us. That funds a war in which we trade the lives of American men and women for oil, and we simply don’t count the Iraqi people who are being killed week after week after week. And then we wonder why so many children grow up with no real sense of hope or purpose. Why they are drawn to deal drugs when drug dealers are among the only adults they see who are “making it” in terms our society values. Or why they take handguns to school to resolve their conflicts. It is good to be here with people who cherish life, and who know that killing is wrong. Together, we can raise our society’s standards of decency. We have already helped to stop the execution of juveniles and the mentally retarded. As Jessie told you, our next battle front is to stop the execution of people who suffer from mental illness. I hope you will join us in that fight. With your help, I believe we can end that barbaric practice as well. Maybe not next year, maybe not in five years, but I believe we will win that battle. And I hope we won’t stop there. We can make this a more humane nation. A nation that provides for all of its people. That provides health care for every man, woman, and child. That provides mental health care for those who need it. That educates our children, and gives them hope and opportunity. That ensures every working adult a living wage. A nation that does not torture its enemies. And a nation that would not dream of killing its own people. We are gathered here in the state house, with our leaders working all around us. I ask you to hold them accountable. Let’s demand real answers to our real problems, not hollow promises like the death penalty. Don’t let them distract us with their politics of division, scapegoating gay men and gay women like me and my partner of nearly 25 years. We have to put aside our prejudices. And we have to be willing to pay our fair share, so that all Hoosiers, and all Americans, can share fully in this life we hold so dear. We can make that happen. We can change the world we live in. Maybe not next year. Maybe not in five years. And most definitely not any one of us acting alone. We need one another, to pick each other up when we get tired and discouraged. And to remind each other that what we are fighting for is good and decent and right, and so very necessary. I’ll tell you something. I am tired, and I am discouraged. But I know that I am not alone in this struggle. I thank you for being here. I thank you for the work you are doing to end the death penalty in this state and in this nation. And for all the work you are doing to celebrate life. Thank you. INDIANA DEATH ROW ART EXHIBIT 2006 By Bonnie Johnson, IICACP board member The Indiana Death Row Art Exhibit at Franklin College opened Thursday, March 2, at 7:00 in the Henderson Conference Room in the Johnson Center for Fine Arts. The exhibit, which was previously presented at the Wheeler Arts Center, DePauw University, Notre Dame University, St. Mary’s College, and most recently Christian Theological Seminary was coordinated and sponsored by IICACP and co-sponsored by Amnesty International, and Franklin College. Svetlana Rakic, chair of the fine arts department, greeted the capacity crowd and introduced the speakers for the evening. Jason Jimerson, Director of Criminal Justice in the sociology department, presented an interesting and informative discussion of five different perspectives on the issue of capital punishment. Steve Schutte, Deputy State Public Defender of Indiana and IICACP board member, spoke movingly on the grim reality of life on Death Row. Drawing on personal experience in representing more than twenty people sentenced to death, Steve forced the audience to see through the eyes of inmates who are told by the judge at sentencing and by all others throughout the years of their incarceration that they are “not fit to live.” Questions and comments from the audience, which included the president and three board members of IICACP, AIUSA’s 2006 recipient of Indiana Abolitionist of the Year Award, Franklin College students and professors, and local community members were addressed and discussed. The Art Exhibit is presented in order to focus on the humanity of Death Row inmates. It features paintings, pencil and ink drawings, poetry, prose, and crafts of men on the Indiana Death Row and the Federal Death Row, which is also located in Indiana. In a review of the book, Cellblock Visions, Sister Helen Prejean writes: Stripped of freedom, beautiful surroundings, and a supportive community, these convicts draw pictures of what their souls see. They sketch their way past despair. They give us insight into what it means to be a Thrown-Away-One. Their pictures cry out: ‘I, too, can see. I, too, can create. I, too, am a human being.’ The words and images of the participants in the exhibit are expressions of thoughts and feelings of human beings, a reflection of their venting rage and of their finding peace. In coordinating the exhibit, I corresponded with many of the men whose works are displayed. Their letters, poems, and essays are beautiful, moving, and sensitive. I have come to know them as friends, men who are far different from the men they were many years ago. At least one of them is quite possibly innocent. All life is sacred—even the lives of those who have committed horrible crimes. No man—or state—has the right to take a life. I have always been opposed to the death penalty; my opposition has only deepened, become more intense. After having seen the artwork and read all the poems and essays in the exhibit, a friend who is a professor at Franklin College said that more than once he had been moved to tears. Another friend, a campus leader, shared a similar reaction that he had experienced. A student sent an e-mail to a professor in which she said in part, “It (the exhibit) really opened my eyes to the truths of Death Row. Another student wrote an essay analyzing what she had seen in the exhibit. A professor whose article was printed in the local paper discussed how a particular painting in the exhibit had affected him. The Indiana Death Row Art Exhibit ends March 31. The discussion continues.
KEYNOTE ADDRESS ON OPENING OF DEATH ROW ART EXHIBIT (The following are Steve Schutte’s remarks on the opening of the Art Exhibit at Franklin College.) It starts when a sober, somber, serious person declares, to your face, that you are unfit to live. That your society has determined that you should be exterminated. Shortly after that, they place the ankle restraints and handcuffs on you. The ankle restraints and handcuffs are themselves connected by a chain which is attached to a bulky black box attached to yet another chain, which is strapped around your waist. You will get used to wearing this contraption. So used to it you will soon develop a slight shuffle when you walk, even when you’re not wearing it. After the announcement, you are delivered to a special place where others who have been told the same thing are kept. But nothing about that makes you feel connected to them. Nothing about your new condition makes you feel special. Despite what you might have seen in a prison movie somewhere, and despite what you might have heard on the street, being here doesn’t bring any kind of respect. It brings only fear. And not the kind of fear someone might have for a powerful person. It’s exactly the opposite. It’s the fear people have of someone with nothing left to lose. It’s the fear people have of a rabid dog. These things happen to you, whether you deserve them or not. Whether you are innocent or guilty. Whether you committed a violent crime because of a severe mental illness or in a moment of panic or because you thought you were going to become a revolutionary hero or because you were a violent person. All in this place are treated the same. That treatment is comprehensive. Most prisoners can work in the prison industries or in the kitchen or laundry. You cannot, because you aren’t allowed that kind of contact with anyone else. Other prisoners are eligible for drug treatment and counseling. You are not, because there’s no benefit to society to treat you. Other prisoners can attend community religious services. You cannot, because you are not allowed that much human contact. More than likely, the institution you are kept in is far from your home. If you’re lucky, your mom and dad might get up to see you a couple of times a year at first. But as time passes, your mom and dad, your brothers and sisters, grow older and the drive becomes more and more of a burden. If you’re lucky, after several years, your mom and dad can still afford to take your phone calls. When your mom asks you how things are, you tell her things are fine, because why worry her? There’s nothing she can do, nothing anyone can do. To use the familiar saying, those who care don’t matter, and those who matter don’t care. Why tell her that you live in a bathroom? Why tell her that if she replaced her tub with a steel platform, placed a thin mattress on that, and replaced her bathroom door with iron bars, she could kind of recreate what it’s like where you are kept? Why would you want your mom to know that? Why would you want your mom to know that every day, 23 hours a day, you are in the bathroom. Why would you want her to know that it’s always loud, and often the sounds are the sounds of violence? Why would you want her to know that during the one hour a day you are out of that cage, you are delivered to another, very slightly larger cage, where you, by yourself, can exercise, if you call running or walking around a room the size of a small bedroom exercise? Why bother your mom with that? So you tell her things are fine. And you look for ways to pass the time. If your family can afford it (your friends are long gone by now, it’s hard to remain a friend of someone condemned to die, so family is all you have left) you can buy, from the institution, a television or a radio. You can look at or listen to that all day, every day. You have to listen through earphones, of course, because there can’t be 1600 men all competing to make their television the one that gets heard over the din. You learn to talk to the man in the next bathroom using a mirror so that he can catch a glimpse of your face. And, if your family can afford it, you can purchase some art supplies. Not a lot, colored pencils, decent paper. Some institutions allow oil paints, others do not. Maybe you start trying to create some art to send out to your family. You are told by the institution that you can’t sell your work, because they’ll eliminate art supplies from the commissary list. That doesn’t really matter. You don’t do it to sell, and you really don’t think it’s all that great anyway. But it’s something to do. It occupies your mind and your emotion as another day passes in your bathroom. It’s also something to talk to the other guys about. After a while, talking about your case, something you might not really understand anyway, gets frustrating. Talking about how much you miss your family is painful. Talking about day to day life is aggravating. But you can talk about whether your rendering of the images you have in your head says something to the other guys. You can talk about whether your poetry or your essay really communicates what it’s like to be here. As you look at the work here, I think you’ll see some very nice work. I am no art critic, so I won’t get into that too much. I can speak, indirectly and only because of what my clients tell me, about the pain and pressure of life on death row. As you look at the work, maybe you can keep in mind these words, written by Natalie Merchant who, as far as I know, has never been on death row. But in her song “I’m not the Man,” which is about a man on death row, she wrote, “It crawls on his back won’t ever let him be. Stares at the walls until the cinder blocks can breathe. His eyes have gone away, escaping over time. He rules a crowded nation in his mind.” Life on death row is not what we are led to believe it is. We often hear complaints about these men and women having it made. Three hot meals a day, cable television, no job, no stress, no worries, high life at our expense until finally the poison is administered. Those who say that have no idea what it’s like to do time, and certainly no idea what it’s like to be told, every day and in every way, that you are not fit to live. They have no idea what it’s like to live ruling only the crowded nation in your mind. Several years ago, I was honored to attend a conference at which nearly a hundred innocent men and women who had been sentenced to die were present. The final event at that conference was for each of those men and women to walk onto a large stage, announce his or her name, and say something along these lines: “My name is Charles Smith. In 1983 I was sentenced to die for a crime I did not commit. If the state of Indiana had had its way, I would be dead today.” It was powerful and exciting and disturbing. And one man stood out. That man said, “My name is Rolando Cruz. In 1985 I was sentenced to die for a crime I did not commit. The state of Illinois did get its way. I died there and am a dead man today.” Life on death row is sometimes an oxymoron. The unusual cruelty of this barbaric punishment isn’t something that exists only for the 30 minutes or so it takes to administer the sedative, and then the paralytic agent, and then the poison. Its unusual cruelty begins with that sober, somber, serious pronouncement. It’s good that you all came to see the art generated by these men. I appreciate your support, or your curiosity, or both. And I know that the men who created these works appreciate it as well. "Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed citizens can change the world. Indeed, it's the only thing that ever has." -Margaret Mead "YOU SHALL NOT KILL" OR "YOU SHALL NOT MURDER"? By Wilma Ann Bailey Book Review by Edgar A. Towne, IICACP board member "I do not live in an ivory tower. I walk the same streets as everyone else. I fear the same fears as everyone else. But killing is not the solution to the problem of killing,” (p. 79). As she writes this, Wilma Ann Bailey remembers the killing of a young officer on the police force of Butler University in Indianapolis, whose mentally ill murderer was later that day shot and killed by Indianapolis Police Department officers a few blocks from the governor's mansion. Two tragic deaths; two shocked and grieving families. Faculty, staff, and students at Christian Theological Seminary where Bailey is Associate Professor of Hebrew and Aramaic Scripture, gathered curbside as the slain officer's funeral cortege drove slowly by after passing though the Butler campus. Wilma Bailey is wholly qualified to write this book, whose full title is: “You Shall not Kill" or "You Shall not Murder"? The Assault on a Biblical Text (Collegeville, MN: Liturgical Press, 2005). This small book of 97 pages traces how the sixth commandment (Exodus 20:13 and Deuteronomy 5:17) has come to be translated "You shall not murder" instead of "You shall not kill." With careful biblical exegesis she shows how the Hebrew verb cannot be deprived of its sense of "to kill." She shows how in this last century of war and genocide, when people have been killed in the millions, there has been the tendency in biblical translation to mitigate the force of the commandment so that its scope is limited to capital crimes committed by individuals. "Most people manage to get through their entire lives without murdering anyone . . . Killing, however, is more widespread than murdering . . . most adults are complicit in killing as part of a community that executes or participates in war," (p. 24). It is not murder but killing that the commandment prohibits, she says, because "it is unlikely that the commandment was given to stop people from doing what they normally do not do anyway," (p. 81). But this book is much more than an analysis of biblical texts. With clear, well-crafted sentences, Bailey presents the diverse viewpoints of scholars and well-known public voices speaking out of Evangelical Protestantism, the Mainline Protestant Churches, Judaism, and the Roman Catholic Church. The various translations of The Holy Bible are surveyed. A wide range of commentaries is examined. Every reader will be well-informed about all these things whatever one's religious or secular commitments, and will appreciate the clarity of expression and brilliance of the reasoning that Bailey exhibits in her book. Those who respect the Bible as the word of God will do well to ponder Bailey's statement, "Yes, a killing theology emerges in some texts, but those texts need not theologically trump the non-killing texts" (p. 22).
DUES REMINDER: IICACP depends on your membership dues to continue abolition work, including educating the public and the legislature, publishing this newsletter and sponsoring public events, such as David Kaczynski’s recent visit and the Death Row Art show. We’re also close to obtaining office space which will provide us a place for meetings and central storage of literature. All of this requires money. Please take a few moments, fill out the form on the back of this newsletter and renew--or start--your membership today. Thank you for your continuing generosity. 5TH ANNIVERSARY OF STATEHOUSE WITNESS by Debby Peddie, IICACP board member April, 2006 marks the fifth anniversary of the IICACP monthly statehouse witness, making it one of our most long-standing activities. Catherine Swanson initiated this event by suggesting that IICACP members attending the Criminal Law Study Commission meetings gather at the east steps of the Statehouse after those meetings to witness our opposition to capital punishment. She worked to establish this as a monthly activity, and so it has continued. It is difficult to measure the effectiveness of this witness. But consider an event that draws 100-150 people, all non-members, and each one can ask a question, engage in dialogue, and leave with our brochure. Surely, this would be called a success, and it is the cumulative effect of one year of monthly witnesses. The on-going nature of the witness allows us to discuss actions as recent as yesterday, an opportunity to inform people of the implications of court decisions, current legislation, and executive orders related to capital punishment. The person most likely to stop and talk is ambivalent about the death penalty, and so receptive to our message. Our location at Capitol and Market in Indianapolis is ideal because of the large volume of vehicular and foot traffic, including the coming and going of officials from all branches of state government. There are indications, around the country and around the state, of a growing momentum to abolish the death penalty. We need to reflect that by growing the monthly witness. Some of our regulars come from out of town. For the many who are already downtown during the day, it is an opportunity to do some important trench work for the cause, by spending part of your lunch hour once a month at the Statehouse witness. Please consider joining us on the third Thursday of the month, anytime from 12:30 to 1:30 p.m. We have signs and brochures.
Coming Soon! Equal Justice USA’s Midwest Field Office by Glenda Breedon, Bloomington Coalition to Abolish the Death Penalty Abolitionist leaders from Missouri, Illinois, Ohio, and Indiana were invited by Equal Justice USA (EJUSA) to attend an informational and brainstorming meeting on March 2nd to enumerate successes and struggles of the anti-death penalty organizations in the Midwest, and to delineate our needs as a serious grassroots movement in order to move forward in accomplishing our goals. It was a privilege to hear from top organizers of our neighboring states as to what they are doing to educate and influence their citizenry and policymakers, and to share the victories that we Hoosiers have realized this past decade in our attempt to abolish capital punishment. Sarah Craft and Shari Silberstein, directors of the EJUSA office in Hyattsville, Maryland, led us through several hours of discussion to determine the duties and qualifications we would expect from a paid support person. They took our ideas, thoughts, and dreams, (pages and pages of them!), and came up with a job description for a Midwest Field Organizer. This person will provide intensive support, capacity building, strategy, and campaign development to anti-death penalty coalitions in the four target states. Fundraising, development of organizational infrastructures, outreach, public education, cultivating local leadership, and working toward moratoria are some of the duties listed. EJUSA is a recognized leader in the national movement to halt executions and address the systemic inequities corrupting the imposition of the death penalty in the United States. To be working with EJUSA more closely and, therefore, more effectively by virtue of a Midwest coordinator is an extremely exciting turn of events. The target date for this person to begin his/her duties is June 2006! For a detailed list of the duties and qualifications expected, and information on how to apply for this position, see www.ejusa.org. Moratorium—An Important Stop-Gap Measure by Glenda Breedon, BCADP As abolitionists, we want to be rid of the death penalty, period. We don’t particularly like the notion of bringing down this capital punishment beast slowly. We want to see it belly-up, dead in the water, relegated to the history of barbaric practices where it belongs. However, reality informs us that our legislators and most of our fellow Hoosiers are not yet capable of looking at abolition as a bona fide possibility. Therefore, we must continue to chip away at this state-sanctioned murder machine any way that we can. In recent years, persons who are mentally retarded and juveniles under the age of 18 have been exempted from execution, and now there is work underway to exempt men and women who are mentally ill. Fewer prosecutors are calling for the death penalty, and many movies, documentaries, and plays are addressing this issue and bringing it into the public eye. Moratorium is one of those stop-gap measures that is extremely important in relieving our state of the power to murder its people, to stop our tax dollars from aiding in this murder, to put in place a legal barricade that will, in effect, halt executions in our names. Illinois and Maryland have both imposed gubernatorial moratoria, and New Jersey’s legislators recently passed a moratorium of the death penalty in their state. Shari Silberstein, co-director of the Quixote Center, says: 𠇊mericans simply don’t trust our nation’s system of death. Death penalties have reached their lowest point in 30 years. New Jersey’s problems are not unique. Many states are stepping back, asking questions, and making changes.” Nationwide, over 4,000 national and local groups, businesses, and faith communities have called for a halt to executions, including 144 local governments. It has been over a year since BCADP announced that we are willing to spearhead the effort to bring about a moratorium of the death penalty in Indiana. Since then, we have received thirty signed resolutions from businesses and other organizations stating clearly that they want executions to stop until it can be proven that there are no inequities, injustices, or errors in the system. To be taken seriously by our legislators and our governor, we must present them with hundreds of signed resolutions. This is a daunting task but not an impossible one. We—you and I—from all over the state of Indiana, must start talking about moratoria to our friends, our neighbors, our co-workers, our churches, our city councils, and the myriad of businesses and organizations with which we are affiliated. We must begin to speak out boldly in order to raise that groundswell of support that we need. Are we up to the task? Are we serious about stopping the inhumane, unconstitutional practice of capital punishment in our state? Please contact BCADP (breeden@ccrtc.com) or go to the IICACP website link to BCADP for information. Let’s resolve to do what we can to stop the systematic killing of our fellow human beings. Executions diminish us all! DEATH PENALY NEWS (Most of the information for Death Penalty News is from Paula Sites’ articles published in the Indiana Defender, monthly publication of the Indiana Public Defender Council, of which Paula is Assistant Director. Paula generously allows us to use her articles for the Indiana Abolitionist.) Indiana Kills Marvin Bieghler On January 27, 2006, the State of Indiana killed Marvin Bieghler. 2 days earlier the US Supreme Court had issued a stay of execution in a case challenging Florida’s lethal injection protocols, which are similar to Indiana’s. Based on that case, Beighler’s attorneys sought a stay, which the 7th Circuit granted. However, the US Supreme dissolved the stay, 6-3, just one hour before Bieghler was executed. Two Suicides When Lake County jail guards told David Maust to pack his things in preparation for his transfer to DOC to begin his LWOP sentence, he went back to his cell and hung himself. (See the Winter 2006 edition of the Abolitionist for details of Maust’s plea and his background.) Maust’s suicide came several weeks after the suicide of death row prisoner, Charles Roche. These two case are a stark and tragic rejoinder to those who believe that prison is too easy a punishment. 3 New Death Penalty Reports Released Three important new reports on the death penalty were released during the first week of February. (You can see all 3 on the individual organizations websiste.) The ABA’s Death Penalty Moratorium Implementation Project released it first state report, on Georgia. The report found that Georgia’s death penalty system failed to meet 43 ABA death penalty standards. The assessment team was so troubled by its findings that it called not just for a moratorium on executions, but on capital prosecutions altogether. A similar team, headed by law professor Joel Schumm, is studying Indiana’s death penalty system, and will likely release its report this summer. Amnesty International released a report on the execution of mentally ill offenders in the US, finding that at least 10% of the first 1000 individuals executed since the reinstitution of the death penalty were severely mentally ill. The report calls for legislation to prohibit the execution of individuals with serious mental illness. The Constitution Project’s Death Penalty Initiative, updated its 2001 report, Mandatory Justice: The Death Penalty Revisited. New recommendations include a prohibiting execution of the severely mental ill. May executions stayed Based on the Florida lethal injection case now pending before the US Supreme Court, a federal district court has stayed all three of the federal executions scheduled for May. Unlike Marv Bieghler’s case, in which the state opposed a similar stay, the federal government reportedly “reluctantly” agreed to the stays. |
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