Publications & Testimony

On Monday, June 7, the Pennsylvania State Government Management and Cost Study Commission will hear from experts on proposals to cut the costs of various government programs. The Commission, established in 2009, is comprised of private and public sector cost-minded leaders in Pennsylvania and has been charged with studying the management of government operations and making recommendations for cost-cutting measures. Among the experts who will testify at the hearing is Richard Dieter, Executive…

David Powell (pictured left), who was sentenced to death in 1978 for the shooting of Austin police officer Ralph Ablanedo (pictured below), faces execution in Texas on June 15. During his 30 years on death row, Powell has shown sincere remorse and regret for his actions. In 2009, Powell wrote to Officer Ablanedo’s family: “I am infinitely sorry that I killed Ralph Ablanedo. I shot Officer Ablanedo and I take responsibility for his death. In a few frightful seconds, I stole from you and the…

The Last Gasp: The Rise and Fall of the American Gas Chamber details the history and development of the gas chamber as a method of execution in the United States. Author Scott Christianson explores connections between the gas chamber and the eugenics movement, as well as new evidence about Hitler’s adoption of gas chamber technology developed in the United States. Charles Lanier, Director of the Capital Punishment Research Initiative, said, “Scott Christianson has used his extensive experience…

A recent study published by the Equal Justice Initiative, a nonprofit human rights and legal services organization in Alabama, shows that the practice of excluding blacks and other racial minorities from juries remains widespread and largely unchecked, especially in the South. The study, “Illegal Racial Discrimination in Jury Selection: A Continuing Legacy,” found that in Alabama, courts have found racially discriminatory jury selection in 25 death penalty cases since 1987, and in some…

In recent years, states that have abolished the death penalty have also had populations with a high percentage of Catholics (Illinois 30%; New Jersey 41%; New Mexico 25 %; and New York 37%). In some instances, Catholic political leaders, such as Gov. Pat Quinn in Illinois and Gov. Bill Richardson in New Mexico, played a prominent role in decision making on the death penalty. Although many factors play a role in legislative actions, a recent poll by Lake Research Partners on behalf of the Death…

Last Words of the Executed by Robert K. Elder is a compilation of the final statements of death row inmates shortly before their execution. The book, with a foreword by Studs Terkel, also describes the crime and some of the social setting of each case presented. According to a review in The Economist, “The last words are remarkable for their remorse, humour, hatred, resignation, fear and bravado…. America’s diverse heritage is stamped even onto its killers’ final moments.” Sister Helen Prejean…

On May 24, the U.S. Supreme Court reversed a decision by the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit, thereby giving the defendant another chance to show that his trial counsel was constitutionally ineffective. Lawrence Jefferson was sentenced to death in Georgia, despite the fact that he had suffered serious head injuries as a child. In an appeal in state court, he claimed that his attorney failed to investigate this early trauma. The state court rejected this claim, and asked the…