No "Streamlined" State Sanctioned Murder
We need you to act today to prevent Delaware from making a terrible mistake. Death Penalty supporters in the House announced this week in an email to their constituents their intent to file a new bill to "streamline" the death penalty!
The death penalty has failed Delaware in the past, and it will fail Delaware in the future. We must prevent its reinstatement and absolutely halt this new "streamline" bill. Why?
We cannot tolerate the risk of executing even one innocent person when life in prison allows for correction if a mistake is made. With the renewed efforts to now "streamline" the death penalty process, the risk of wrongful execution will exponentially increase!
National Academy of Sciences reports that already 4% of Death Row Inmates are innocent. Even if that number was 1%, this would showcase the need to do exactly the opposite of what this headline suggests. Delaware has already exonerated an innocent death row inmate in the past, if we streamline this process, that innocent person could have just as easily been murdered by the state.
The death penalty costs the state millions of taxpayer dollars to implement, but "streamlining" the process and the risks that this entails is not the answer! Instead, we should use those funds for families who have lost a loved one to murder, programs that deter crime, and additional resources for law enforcement.
The death penalty is applied unequally and arbitrarily. This new bill will do nothing to resolve the massive racial disparities found within this system.
We urge you to prevent the return of the death penalty in Delaware by sending a letter to the committee hearing this bill and to your state legislators.