The Death Penalty


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State Updates

Connecticut

Join the efforts to abolish the death penalty in Connecticut. There are many ways to get involved in the struggle for justice in our state. To find out more information, visit the Connecticut Network to Abolish the Death Penalty.
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Georgia

Activists, legislators call for a moratorium in Georgia
Activists, legislators call for a moratorium in Georgia © Private

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Maryland

Three things Maryland residents can do TODAY to end Maryland's death penalty

Dear friend,
Momentum is building - with strong support from Governor O'Malley - for Maryland to eliminate the death penalty in the current legislative session. Polls show that 61% of Maryland voters support substituting the death penalty with a sentence of life without the possibility of parole.
YOUR involvement is critical to tip the balance!

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THREE THINGS YOU CAN DO TODAY: Choose one, or all three if you can!
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1. Tell your legislators that you oppose the death penalty in Maryland! See below for how to reach them.
2. Write a note to Governor O'Malley to thank him for his leadership on this issue and for taking a strong public position on repealing the death penalty.
3. Get a friend (or five!) to repeat steps 1 and 2!

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Here's how:
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ACTION ONE --
Call AND write your legislator to tell them that Marylanders support repealing the death penalty.
--- To find your legislators, go to www.mdelect.net/electedofficials and enter your address, or call the Legislative information desk at 301-970-5400.
---Call the main switchboard in Annapolis at 1-800-492-7122 and ask to speak with your legislator. Talking points are below.
---Send a letter to your legislator. Senators are at James Office Building, 11 Baden St., Annpolis, MD 21401; Representatives are at Lowe House Office Building, 6 Bladen St., Annpolis, MD 21401
EVERY LEGISLATOR NEEDS TO HEAR FROM CONSTITUENTS. If you have already contacted your legislators in the past about the repeal bills, please do so again now and ask friends and family to do the same. Feel free to forward this alert. Talking points are below.
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ACTION TWO --
Take two minutes to send Governor O'Malley an email thanking him for the strong public position he has staked out on the death penalty. You can use this link to send him and, also important, his staff, your thanks.
Or send a thank-you card to:
Governor Martin O'Malley 100 State Circle Annpolis, MD 21401
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ACTION THREE --
Forward this information to your friends and encourage them to get write to their lawmakers!
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Talking Points
Pick what resonates with you and then share any replies from your legislators with AIUSA (dpac@aiusa.org) or with Maryland CASE by contacting them at (301) 779-5230 or info@mdcase.org.
We've learned a lot in the 30 years that Maryland has had a death penalty – that it doesn't work and it can't be fixed.
Most Maryland death sentences have ended in a life sentence, wasting millions of dollars and clogging the courts. The long delays only compound the pain of murder victims' families. But speeding up the process only compounds the risk of executing an innocent person.
Many innocent people have been sentenced to death for crimes they didn't commit, including one in Maryland. Others in Maryland have been sentenced to life in prison for rapes or murders they didn’t commit. The death penalty will always risk executing an innocent person, which is not acceptable.
The death penalty in Maryland is both racially and geographically biased. Every person executed or currently on death row in Maryland was convicted of killing a white person. I don't think skin color and location should decide who lives and who dies.
Marylanders don't want the death penalty, and my family and neighbors don’t either. Polls show that nearly two thirds of Marylanders support replacing the death penalty with life without parole. Represent us by voting for repeal!
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Massachusetts


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New Jersey


New Jersey Ends the Death Penalty!

On Human Rights Day – Monday, December 10th – the New Jersey Senate passed a bill to abolish the death penalty. The New Jersey Assembly passed it on December 13th, and Governor Jon Corzine signed it on Monday, December 17th, 2007 making New Jersey the first state in over 40 years to legislatively abolish the death penalty!
» Read the press release


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Ohio


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