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Editorial: Ryan's act of commutation is warranted The Oregonian Jan. 14 Oregon doesn't execute two or three people a month, like Texas. It hasn't let the number of people on Death Row swell into the hundreds, like Pennsylvania. It doesn't regularly let incompetent lawyers represent people accused of capital crimes, like Illinois and many other states that embrace the death penalty. That's why last week's stunning decision by outgoing Illinois Gov. George Ryan to commute the sentences of all 167 people on Illinois' death row won't spur Oregon into changing any laws on capital punishment: This state uses execution correctly as a last resort. Other states, however, have been careless and unjust. They, like Illinois, have a moral obligation to overhaul their criminal-justice systems and protect the innocent from condemnation. As a young Republican assemblyman in Illinois in the 1970s, Ryan voted to reinstate the death penalty. Ryan's faith in capital punishment changed after he became governor in 1999. Early in his term, Ryan saw several people exonerated from death row after DNA testing or other evidence proved them innocent. Some had spent years behind bars; one innocent man was less than 48 hours from execution. Ryan also learned that people could be condemned to die with no physical evidence, their convictions based on little more than testimony from one questionable witness. An investigative series in 1999 by the Chicago Tribune exposed a pattern of racial discrimination, incompetent defense and scant evidence in Illinois capital cases. Ryan imposed a moratorium on capital punishment in 2000 and appointed a panel to study the problem. The panel suggested several smart improvements to the state's criminal-justice system, but the state's General Assembly did nothing. Ryan, with two days left in office, announced blanket clemency Saturday for all 167 death-row inmates. These inmates will serve life or decades in prison - unless, of course, they are found innocent and freed. The action is a blow to the families of victims. However, it is a necessary move, based on the proven unreliability of Illinois' justice system and the unwillingness of the state's legislature to enact reforms. Other states - the ones with sleeping lawyers and shrugging governors - should follow Ryan's example. Oregon's criminal-justice system certainly has room for improvement. Its system of appeals in capital cases is notoriously slow and costly, and occasionally seems overly deferential to killers who're guilty beyond a reasonable doubt. As Gov. Ryan said Saturday about Illinois, it might be "cruel and unusual punishment for family members to go through this pain, this legal limbo, for 20 years. Perhaps it would be less cruel if we sentenced killers to life in 6-by-12 cells and used our resources to better serve victims." Perhaps. For now, we think it's reasonable for states to reserve execution as a punishment of last resort for society's most heinous killers. And we think it's imperative for states to wield that power gravely and judiciously. Illinois has been careless. So have Texas, Oklahoma, Virginia and several other states where executions are common. Ryan's bold move is a step toward justice for all. LINKS: DAILY TIDINGS: Main | News | Sports | Business | Obituaries | Opinion | Columnists | AP News | Subscribe | Archives | Weather | Classifieds | Contact Us | Privacy REVELS: Main | Calendar | Dining | Movies | T.V. OTHER: Road Cams Copyright 2003 Ashland Daily Tidings 541.482.3456. 1661 Siskiyou Blvd., Ashland, OR 97520. Ottaway Newspapers, Inc. - Advertisers -