Stop Child Executions!
RESOURCES
Additional Resources on the Juvenile Death Penalty
Amnesty International Resources
Listed below are individual AI documents on the use of the death penalty against juvenile offenders.
World: International medical experts urge an end to child executions
Sep 3, 2004
USA: Amnesty International, Other Nobel Peace Laureates Jointly File Amicus Curiae Brief Urging End to the Juvenile Death Penalty
Jul 19, 2004
World: Child executions on the way out
Sep 14, 2004
World: International medical experts urge an end to child executions
Sep 2, 2004
World: International medical experts urge an end to child executions
Sep 2, 2004
Iran: Amnesty International outraged at reported execution of a 16 year old girl
Aug 22, 2004
USA: Amnesty International, Other Nobel Peace Laureates Jointly File Amicus Curiae Brief Urging End to the Juvenile Death Penalty
Jul 19, 2004
USA: Oklahoma Governor Henry Commutes Death Sentence of Osvaldo Torres
May 14, 2004
AI: Thousands of Students Stand in Solidarity, Speak Out Against Child Executions
Feb 16, 2004
Execution of Child offenders: updated summary of cases
Feb 15, 2004
Execution of Child offenders: Updated facts and figures
Feb 15, 2004
International Week of Student Action: Adding thousands of voices against the death penalty for child offenders
Feb 15, 2004
Iran: Amnesty International calls on Iran to halt executions of child offenders
Jan 27, 2004
Amnesty International USA Launches Campaign to Stop Child Executions
Jan 21, 2004
Execution of Child offenders: Facts and Figures
Jan 20, 2004
Execution of Child offenders: summary of cases
Jan 20, 2004
Execution of Child offenders: Time to end a shameful practice
Jan 20, 2004
Stop Child Executions! Ending the death penalty for child offenders
September 14, 2004
Open letter from medical experts to governments sentencing to death or executing child offenders (those less than 18 at the time of the crime)
August 31, 2004
USA: Supreme Court to revisit constitutionality of executing child offenders
January 26, 2004
Stop Child Executions! Ending the death penalty for child offenders
January 20, 2004
USA:
Dead Wrong: The case of Nanon Williams, child offender facing execution
on flawed evidence
January 2004
USA: "I don't want another kid to die": Families of Victims Murdered by Juveniles Oppose Juvenile Executions
Murder Victims’ Families for Reconciliation
January 2004
USA: Evolving standards of decency
AI Index: AMR 51/003/2004
6 January 2004
The exclusion of child offenders from the death penalty under general international law
AI Index: ACT 50/004/2003
July 2003
Children and the death penalty: Executions worldwide since 1990
AI Index: ACT 50/007/2002
September 2002
USA: Indecent and internationally illegal: The death penalty against child offenders
AI Index: AMR 51/143/2002
September 2002
USA: The human dignity that Texas refuses to recognize
AI Index: AMR 51/087/2002
31 May 2002
USA: Hypocrisy or human rights? Time to choose
AI Index: AMR 51/075/2002
15 May 2002
USA: In whose best interests?
AI Index: AMR 51/063/2002
24 April 2002
USA: “The day of my scheduled execution is fast approaching…”. A plea for life and respect for international law
AI Index: AMR 51/149/2001
12 October 2001
USA: Too young to vote, old enough to be executed. Texas set to kill another child offender
AI Index: AMR 51/105/2001
July 2001
USA: Crying out for clemency: The case of Alexander Williams, mentally ill child offender facing execution
AI Index: AMR 51/139/00
September 2000
USA: Shame in the 21st Century: Three child offenders scheduled for execution in January 2000
AI Index: AMR 51/189/99
December 1999
USA: Killing hope: the imminent execution of Sean Sellers
AI Index: AMR 51/108/98
December 1998
USA: On the wrong side of history: children and the death penalty
AI Index: AMR 51/58/98
October 1998
Books/Reports
- Gaines, Ernest. A Lesson Before Dying. Vintage Books, 1997. In this powerful fictional narrative, an innocent young black man is about to go to the electric chair for murder in 1940s Louisiana. This story is about the relationship that develops between Jefferson, the convicted, and Grant Wiggins, a high school teacher trapped within social convention. As Grant struggles to impart a sense of pride to Jefferson before he must face his death, he learns an important lesson as well: heroism is not always expressed through action—sometimes the simple act of resisting the inevitable is enough.
- Murder Victims’ Families for Reconciliation. “I Don’t Want Another Kid to Die”: Families of Victims Murdered by Juveniles Oppose Juvenile Executions. Murder Victims’ Families for Reconciliation, 2003. This report details the experiences of families of victims murdered by juveniles who oppose the death penalty. The report also details the story of Ireland and Rena Beazley, whose son, Napoleon Beazley, was a juvenile offender executed by the state of Texas in 2002. It is a statement against state killing of juveniles, made by those who know violent loss most intimately and have been most directly affected by juvenile crime. This report is available in the IWSA Action Packet or by visiting http://www.mvfr.org/.
- Pelke, Bill. Journey of Hope... From Violence to Healing. 2003. The brutal murder of 78-year-old Bible teacher Ruth Pelke by four teen-age girls was the beginning of Bill Pelke's Journey of Hope...From Violence to Healing. Initially, Pelke did not raise any objections when 15-year old Paula Cooper was sentenced to death for the murder of his grandmother. However, through the power of prayer and transformation, he moved from supporting Cooper's death sentence, to working to have it overturned, to dedicating his life to the abolition of the death penalty. This is the story of Pelke’s remarkable journey, the overwhelming obstacles he overcame, and the phenomenal, loving, forgiving, committed people he encountered and befriended on the way. To purchase this book, go to: http://takeaction.amnestyusa.org/ctt.asp?u=0&l=6963.
- Streib, Victor. “The Juvenile Death Penalty Today: Death Sentences and Executions for Juvenile Crimes, January 1, 1973 – September 30, 2003.” This comprehensive report from Professsor Victor Streib, Professor of Law at Ohio Northern University, provides an overview of the juvenile death penalty. It details the characteristics of the juvenile offenders who have been sentenced to death, who have been executed, and who are currently under death sentences.
- Turow, Scott. Ultimate Punishment: A Lawyer’s Reflections on Dealing with the Death Penalty. Farrar, Straus, and Giroux, 2003. For years, attorney and novelist Scott Turow was ambivalent in his position on the death penalty. His position changed, however, after he served on the blue-ribbon commission assembled by former Governor of Illinois, George Ryan, to examine the flaws in the capital punishment system. In this book, Turow presents the arguments that swayed him in favor of abolition.
- Williams, Nanon. Still Surviving. Breakout Publishing Co., 2003. First-person account of life on death row from Nanon Williams, a juvenile offender on death row in Texas. Williams gives readers the chance to confront the death penalty, not as an abstract term but as a reality for many human beings in this country. Order from http://www.breakoutpublishing.com.
General Videos
These films are available from your local video store. While none focus specifically on the juvenile death penalty, they can be used to launch a discussion on this issue.
- “Dead Man Walking.” This acclaimed film traces the relationship between a death row inmate and the local nun to whom he turns for spiritual guidance in the days leading up to his scheduled execution. 1995. 122 min.
- “The Green Mile.” Set on Death Row in a Southern prison in 1935, this is the remarkable story of the cellblock’s head guard, who develops a poignant, unusual relationship with one inmate who possesses a magical gift that is both mysterious and miraculous. 1999.
- “The Life of David Gale.” David Gale, a respected death penalty opponent, finds himself on death row for the rape and murder of fellow activist Constance Hallaway. With only three days before his scheduled execution, Gale, in an effort to reveal the truth, agrees to give reporter Bitsey Bloom the exclusive interview for which she’s been searching. 2003. 131 min.