(Jan Anderson/The Daily Campus)
Death row exonerees that work with the Witness to Innocence project gathered in Hughes-Triggs on Sunday to discuss the fallibility of the death penalty.
After the recent outcry over the Troy Davis case, national interest has peaked in America’s infatuation with the death penalty.
“The death penalty is the longest running institution in this country,” Dr. Rick Halperin, director of the Embrey Human Rights Program at SMU, said. “It is not easy to get rid of an institution as entrenched as the death penalty.”
Many critiques of the death penalty have theorized that history, politics and race play a large role in sentencing.
“Ninety percent of executions have come in former states of the Confederacy,” Halperin said. “The death penalty is a problem with a particular region.”
Before introducing the speakers for the forum, Halperin spoke about the implications of the death penalty in the modern era.
“One thousand two hundred and seventy one people have been put to death in America. Texas, in particular, leads the free world in executions at 478,” he said. “We strap people into a chair and electrocute them. We hang people. We shoot people. We gas people.”
Inmates that await execution on death row are often found to be innocent.
In the United States, roughly one person is freed from death row for nine people that are executed.
“There is always the chance of innocence,” Halperin said.
The exonerees described ways in which the justice system c
an fail to provide an even playing ground to defendants.
Gary Drinkard, whose conviction was overturned after the Alabama Supreme Court found that he had received porous legal representation, said, “The police built a case around one piece of evidence from my half-sister who wanted to avoid a cocaine charge.”
Overzealous and overworked prosecutors often initiate a trial on circumstantial evidence.
“My car’s tire tracks did not match the ones found,” he said.
“No one even bothered to take fingerprints at the crime scene.”
Prosecutors base their theories in trial off what investigators tell them about the evidence trail.
This exchange of information can be corrupt.
Jeremy Sheets, an exoneree released based on unreliable evidence, said, “A guy that had a personal bout with me implicated me in a crime. He changed his story three times until the police believed him.”
Another exoneree in attendance, Clarence Bradley, was sentenced under tense racial circumstances.
He was the only African American employee at his school.
It has been reported that racial bigotry played a significant role in his case.
“There was no DNA evidence when many death row inmates were convicted,” Halperin said. “The number of true innocent people we can only guess at.”
For inmates that have fought and overcome flaws in the justice system, the experience has been inspirational.
“This has been my battle since I was 18,” Shujaa Graham, a man framed for murder, said. “The death penalty is not strengthening America. I see the spirit that we can make America a better place.”
At first, his time in prison enraged him, he said.
But, as time pass, Graham was able to redirect his energy toward fighting against the death penalty.
“The spirit is in each and every one of you. I never underestimate anyone,” he said. “When I was in death row, an eighth and ninth grader came to visit me and told me they were going to help me.”
At first, Graham thought that they stood no chance against the powerful state of California.
“But, they raised money and brought attention to my cause. And they were just children. “
The power of grassroots movement has altered America many times.
“We can change America for the better,” Graham said. “I want to change America for the better and all of you can help.”
Halperin directly challenged the audience.
He asked, “What does it say about this country that innocent people can be legally executed?”
“The American people have to begin to care about this issue,” Steven Martinez, a member in the audience, said. “Emotions over the Troy Davis case cannot just be a fad.”
