ACLU Applauds Maryland Governor for Testifying in Support of Repealing the State’s Death Penalty (2/21/2007)
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:
CONTACT: media@aclu.org
BALTIMORE, MD -
The American Civil Liberties Union of Maryland today hailed the remarkable
appearance of Governor Martin O’Malley, who personally testified in support of
repealing the state’s death penalty. The ACLU of Maryland is seconding the call
for capital punishment to finally be abandoned as a fundamentally flawed and
failed policy.
“The ACLU applauds Governor O’Malley for speaking from the heart today when
he asked legislative leaders to end the death penalty in Maryland,” said
Meredith Curtis, spokeswoman for the ACLU of Maryland. “The Governor recognizes
that capital punishment is not the most effective tool for preventing homicides,
and he understands that the policy is in conflict with basic standards of human
dignity.”
The ACLU today also testified in support of legislation to repeal the death
penalty, before both the Senate Judicial Proceedings Committee and the House
Judiciary Committee In his testimony, O’Malley clearly indicated his willingness
to sign a repeal bill if it passes. The ACLU of Maryland is encouraging
members of the General Assembly to move forward and finally put the legislation
on O’Malley’s desk.
Currently, there is an effective moratorium on the death penalty in the
state, following a Maryland Court of Appeals ruling in December 2006 that the
Department of Corrections protocol for administering executions is not in
compliance with the state’s Administrative Procedure Act (APA). The court also
ruled that the protocol cannot be enforced until it is brought in compliance
with the APA, or until the general assembly exempts the protocol from the
requirement of the APA.
The ACLU of Maryland believes that the corrections department has avoided the
public process mandated under state law in deciding how to put inmates to death.
The ACLU today expressed hope that the court’s ruling, coupled with O’Malley’s
call for repeal, will help Maryland residents understand that the best way of
addressing the problems with the death penalty is to abolish it altogether.
In January 2006, the ACLU of Maryland joined with the NAACP, Maryland
Citizens Against State Executions, and Vernon Evans in challenging the validity
of the regulations set forth in the DOCs Execution Operations Manual. The
coalition contends, among other things, that the regulations were promulgated in
violation of administrative procedures law because the Department of Corrections
did not comply with the notice and comment requirement.
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