Home : Death Penalty

ACLU Hails North Carolina Senate for Passing Death Penalty Moratorium Bill (04/30/2003)
WASHINGTON--The American Civil Liberties Union today applauded the North Carolina Senate for passing a bill to halt executions in the state for two years while state officials conduct a thorough examination of its death penalty system. The North Carolina Senate becomes the first legislative chamber to pass moratorium legislation this year.

ACLU Condemns Execution of Gary Leon Brown (04/24/2003)
WASHINGTON--With issues of emotional stability and basic fairness still unresolved, the American Civil Liberties Union along with the Alabama Prison Project today condemns the scheduled execution of Gary Leon Brown.

ACLU of Pennsylvania Asks For Moratorium on Executions (04/22/2003)
PHILADELPHIA - In light of recently introduced legislation and the findings of a state Supreme Court Committee report, the American Civil Liberties Union of Pennsylvania today calls on Pennsylvania to enact a death penalty moratorium until serious systemic problems have been addressed.

ACLU Says Oklahoma Officials Should Abandon Efforts to Execute Juvenile Offender (04/03/2003)
WASHINGTON--With the fate of Oklahoma death row inmate Scott Hain hanging in the balance, the American Civil Liberties Union today calls on Oklahoma Governor Brad Henry to consider emerging public consensus in his state and around the nation that opposes the execution of juvenile offenders and grant a 30-day stay in order to give the Pardons and Parole Board additional time to consider Hain's clemency petition.

High School, College and Graduate Students Convene to Discuss Death Penalty and Push for Reforms (02/21/2003)
WASHINGTON - At a conference this Saturday, the Johns Hopkins University chapter of the American Civil Liberties Union and other anti-death penalty advocates are bringing together high school, college and graduate students to take a close-up look at the death penalty in America and learn what they can do to ensure basic fairness and justice in the capital punishment system.

ACLU Calls for Execution Moratorium After Release of 23rd Innocent From Florida's Death Row (01/24/2003)
MIAMI--Saying that the release of death row inmate Rudolph Holton is a wake-up call to elected officials in Florida, the American Civil Liberties Union today urged Governor Jeb Bush and state lawmakers to support a statewide moratorium on all executions while the problems plaguing Florida's death penalty system are examined.

ACLU of Illinois Lauds Governor's Principled Decision Commuting Sentences of All Death Row Inmates (01/11/2003)
CHICAGO --Governor George Ryan's historic decision today to commute to life in prison the sentences of all death row inmates convicted under Illinois' discredited and failed death penalty system offers further compelling evidence that the capital punishment system in the state should be abolished.

ACLU Applauds Commutation of Death Sentences by Illinois Governor -- Says Question Is 'Now What?' (01/11/2003)
WASHINGTON--The American Civil Liberties Union today applauds the historic decision by Illinois Governor George Ryan to commute the sentences of all death row prisoners in the state to life in prison. Illinois has exonerated more people than it has executed, a testament to how broken the system is. Faced with these stark facts and a legislature that has been slow to enact reforms, Governor Ryan's actions are appropriate.

ACLU Responds to the Release of the University of Maryland's Death Penalty Study on the Impact of Race and Geography (01/07/2003)
WASHINGTON -- A new University of Maryland study about the disturbing impact of race and geography in Maryland's administration of the death penalty conclusively demonstrates why the state's moratorium should continue and other states should suspend executions as well.

ACLU Renews Call for Death Penalty Moratorium on Eve of International Human Rights Day and Two Scheduled Executions (12/09/2002)
WASHINGTON-The Capital Punishment Project of the American Civil Liberties Union will mark December 10-- International Human Rights Day -- by renewing our call for a nationwide moratorium on the death penalty and highlighting recent developments in North Carolina and Oklahoma, both of which have scheduled executions for tomorrow.