Document text
Ashland, Oregon HOME Valley & State Sports Nation & World Opinion/Editorial Classifieds Business Columnists Local Issues Obituaries Weather Archive Revels Etcetera Backpage Hot Topics Most Viewed Forum Photo Galleries Video Readers Polls O-Zone Online Games Movie Preview Special Sections Real Estate Guide Menu Guide Shakespeare Subscribe Contact Us Rate Card Place an Ad December 13, 2005 The choice shouldn’t be Arnold’s alone “If Stanley Williams does not merit clemency,” defense attorney Peter Fleming Jr. asked, “what meaning does clemency retain in this state?” We would ask the same. Flemming was defending death-row inmate Stanley “Tookie” Williams, founder of the Crips who was executed early this morning. Williams’ appeal to Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger failed Monday, when the governor refused to grant clemency. Williams’ cause was taken up by Hollywood stars, civil rights leaders and anti-death penalty activists for weeks leading up to this final, mortal decision by Schwarzenegger. The governor had little to say about his decision Monday, only that after exhaustive consideration he could “find no justification for clemency ...” Likewise, the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals refused to give Williams another day in court. Apparently, Williams’ life behind bars, as an author who wrote anti-gang childrens’ books, a speaker for peace and a model of rehabilitation, was not enough for Schwarzenegger. Williams’ steadfast proclamations of innocence concerning the murder of four people more than two decades ago may have hurt his cause. Schwarzenegger said his lack of remorse factored in the final decision. But was there uncertainty behind this decision? The courts said no. The jury that sentenced him to death believed not. Neither did the governor. Perhaps they, and not the impassioned supporters of Tookie Williams, were correct and he was indeed both guilty of these murders and deserving of the death penalty. But where the uncertainty must lie is with any who ardently tout capital punishment simply to win votes. Myriad facts of racial and socio-economic bias coupled with the difficulty for certain segments of our population to get a fair trial should make any death sentence a thing of uncertainty. The get-tough politics that have ruled the day in recent years are driving the push toward executing prisoners. But, in taking the life of another, even someone who commits murder, politics really reaches beyond its basic limitations. Polls shouldn’t decide who lives and dies. Read about Pontius Pilate to learn how that turns out. Gov. Schwarzenegger faced tremendous political pressure from both sides. But the debate needs to go beyond each individual case. We simply can’t be a country that executes unfairly and little proof of fairness in this system exists. The facts are clear: if you are poor, dark skinned or guilty of previous crimes you are far more likely to be executed than a white, affluent defendant guilty of the exact same crime. Because poor minorities stand a greater chance of being executed than affluent whites, the system is broken to such an extent that capital punishment must be abolished in this country. Perhaps the politicians won’t let it happen, but perhaps the moral outrage of a nation that defends all people can. Perhaps. Because every execution is one too many. --> Copyright © 2006 Ashland Daily Tidings and Ottaway Newspapers. All Rights Reserved.