March 16th, 2011
By George Raine
Illinois Gov. Patrick Quinn signed legislation March 9 abolishing the death penalty after concluding that the system of imposing it is inherently flawed and because, quoting the late Cardinal Joseph Bernadin of Chicago, “Other means than the death penalty are available and can be used to protect society.”
Illinois had a remarkably high number of inmates – 20 – exonerated from death row. “That is a record that should trouble us all,” said Quinn in a statement as he made Illinois the 16th state to abolish the death penalty.
“Since our experience has shown that there is no way to design a perfect death penalty system, free from the numerous flaws that can lead to wrongful convictions or discriminatory treatment, I have concluded that the proper course of action is to abolish it,” he said.
The legislation Quinn signed was passed by Illinois legislators on Jan. 11, and in the interim Quinn said he conferred with many people on both sides of the issue. Among those groups making their case to Quinn was the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops. Bishop Stephen Blaire of the Diocese of Stockton, chair of the bishops’ Committee on Domestic Justice and Human Development, told Quinn in a letter that the legislation helps “to begin building a culture of life in our country.”
The U.S. bishops said in a statement, “We applaud Gov. Quinn for his courageous decision to abolish the use of the death penalty in Illinois. We stand in solidarity with all those who work for a just and safe society that protects its citizens and upholds the sanctity and dignity of all human life.”
Quinn, a Democrat who became governor in 2009 and was elected to a full term in 2010, said the decision was his most difficult in office. But he was persuaded in part, he said, because of what Cardinal Bernadin had said about alternatives, in particular natural life imprisonment.
“These means should be sufficient to satisfy our need for retribution, justice and protection,” Quinn said.
California’s death penalty law was created by initiative and would have to be repealed by initiative as well, and many believe the timing is not right now in California. But a group of Catholic California lawyers opposed to the death penalty is studying the development in Illinois.
“The Illinois law gets the issue in the press out here and basically forces Californians to ask the question, ‘Is it worth it for us?’” said Christopher Boscia, a Contra Costa County deputy district attorney, a Catholic and a death penalty opponent.
Boscia, who stressed he does not speak for his office or District Attorney Mark Peterson, said he believes that the U.S. bishops were influential in making a case to Quinn. “I think the church has a role when it comes to bringing these issues to the consciousness of leaders and then helping to shape the dialogue with its experience,” he said.
Boscia noted that district attorneys have the discretion to seek the death penalty or not seek it. “I think we should examine our desire to flaunt a system like the death penalty that just doesn’t work,” he said.
http://www.catholic-sf.org/news_select.php?newsid=1&id=58320
Courtesy of www. standdown.org
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