Our
view
Death
penalty in need of reform
The
Supreme Court agreed to consider whether
death row inmates with unequal representation
deserve a second chance when they broadened
their review of the death penalty Monday.
The
review came after a death row inmate complained
of unfair sentencing following his conviction.
The man was convicted of drowning a woman
in her bathtub.
This
will be the fifth death penalty case to
be reviewed by the Supreme Court this term,
continuing the subject of bad lawyering
that has been disturbing court members in
recent years.
The
death penalty is in dire need of not only
a thorough review but a complete transformation.
According
to Amnesty International’s Web site against
the death penalty, 102 prisoners have been
released from death row in the United States
since 1973 after evidence of their innocence
was found.
The
Death Penalty Information Center reports
that more than 80 percent of capital punishment
cases involved white victims, even though
only 50 percent of the nation’s murder victims
are white. There seem to be discrepancies
here.
Has
anyone ever wondered why there are essentially
no wealthy or well-off people on death row?
Could it possible have something to do with
the quality of lawyers that the death row
inmate can afford?
Nationwide,
approximately 90 percent of inmates on death
row were not able to afford to hire a lawyer
when they were tried. Instead, overworked
and inexperienced lawyers were appointed
for them by the state. An example of this
problem was seen in June when a Texas death
row inmate’s lawyer actually slept through
most of his client’s murder trial.
This
is death row we are talking about; the life
of the person being tried is literally on
the line. The U.S. Supreme Court must insure
that any individual facing such a serious
sentence is guaranteed adequate, fair and
equal representation. The consequence of
not guaranteeing those things is simply
too high: the execution of an innocent person.
The
most immediate solution to the problem of
bad lawyering is to adopt higher standards
for death penalty lawyers.
In
June of this year, the Washington Supreme
Court set new rules requiring that Washington
judges presiding over capital cases appoint
experienced death penalty attorneys who
have been screened by a high court committee.
Such a mandate should be required in every
capital case in all states.
While
capital punishment remains a controversial
and highly debated issue, if it is allowed
within the United States, it must be closely
monitored to at least decrease the number
of innocent lives lost.
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