Historic Hearings on California’s Broken Death Penalty Begin Jan. 10

State can’t afford to fix flawed system, so get rid of it, say civil rights groups and murder victims’ loved ones
For Immediate Release: January 9, 2008

SACRAMENTO - The California Commission on the Fair Administration of Justice will begin hearings on California’s broken death penalty system on Jan. 10 in Sacramento. The state Commission’s task is to recommend reforms for the many problems that plague California’s death penalty. But on the same day, Gov. Schwarzenegger will release his plan to deal with state’s crippling $14 billion budget deficit, raising serious questions about whether the state can afford to pay for the many reforms needed.

At the first hearing, experts will present evidence that exposes racial, ethnic, and geographic disparities in who is sentenced to die in this state.  “Other states have made a commitment to eliminating racial discrimination in death sentencing,” said Natasha Minsker, Death Penalty Policy Director for the American Civil Liberties Union of Northern California. “But these reforms cost money.  With this budget deficit, California can’t afford to do that. The alternative is clear: sentence people to die in prison.” [See ACLU Jan. 10 Statement]

“Death penalty cases cost three times more than sentencing someone to die in prison,” said Stefanie Faucher, program director of Death Penalty Focus. “Making the system just and fair—to ensure that we don’t execute an innocent person or execute someone because he was poor—will cost taxpayers even more money. It’s time for Californians to start asking if all that money could be better spent on solving crimes and preventing violence.”

Survivors of murder victims are also asking questions about the costs of California’s death penalty. California Crime Victims for Alternatives to the Death Penalty, a coalition of loved ones of murder victims, has released a series of testimonials from victims’ families who oppose the death penalty.  “Survivors of murder victims will testify at the hearing about how the death penalty process frequently causes more suffering to victims,” said Judy Kerr, spokesperson for the coalition. “We should spend the money we currently waste on the death penalty on solving more homicides instead. My brother Bob’s killer has still not been identified.”  

The high costs of the death penalty and its negative impact on the survivors of murder victims were among the key reasons cited by New Jersey lawmakers in replacing the death penalty with life without parole last month. It’s time for California to do the same.

The California Commission on the Fair Administration of Justice was created by the California Senate to investigate the causes of wrongful conviction and wrongful executions, and to recommend reforms to make California’s criminal justice system “just, fair, and accurate.”

The Commission’s next two hearings are scheduled for Feb. 20 in Los Angeles and March 28 in Santa Clara.