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By Beth Reily

If they act now to lobby key legislators, United Methodists could play a crucial role in seeing the death penalty repealed this year in Maryland.

Although the Supreme Court declared a moratorium on the death penalty in 1972, after finding that the statutes were written and applied in an arbitrary manner, the Court in 1976 reinstated the death penalty, declaring that the problems had been resolved. Current research disputes this claim. Human error and racial disparity continue to mar the system.

Despite the best intentions and a sincere work ethic, police, prosecutors, judges, and juries sometimes err and convict innocent people. In 1985, here in Maryland, Kirk Bloodsworth was sentenced to die and spent almost nine years in prison for a rape and murder he did not commit. In 1993 DNA testing conclusively proved his innocence and in 2003 the true perpetrator, already serving time in prison, was discovered.

A 2001 University of Maryland study shows ongoing racial and geographical disparity in sentencing. Prosecutors are twice as likely to seek death when the defendant is black and the victim is white.

Furthermore, between 75 and 80 percent of murder victims in Maryland are black, yet every person on death row and every person executed since 1978 was convicted of killing a white person. Add to this the fact that Baltimore County, with 6 percent of the state’s annual homicides, is 13 times more likely to prosecute a death-eligible crime capitally than is Baltimore City, where most homicides occur.

Because innocent people are sentenced to death and because there is documented racial and geographical bias, everyone should question the ethics of a death penalty.

As United Methodists, we also must consider a faith-based response. Is the implementation of a death penalty consistent with the teachings of Christ?

Jesus challenged us to love our neighbors, and to love even our enemies. He forgave and admonished his followers to forgive others. For Jesus, no person was beyond redemption.

As the United Methodist Book of Discipline states, "the death penalty denies the power of Christ to redeem, restore and transform all human beings…[therefore] we oppose the death penalty (capital punishment) and urge its elimination from all criminal codes." (BOD 164-G)

For United Methodists, a death penalty is antithetical to the New Testament message. Therefore, as our state seeks to punish perpetrators of heinous crimes and as it works to protect society from those who may do harm, we as Christians must consider a higher calling . We must challenge the people of our state to reach these appropriate goals of punishment and protection without responding to violence with violence.

Last year, Maryland came close to repealing its death penalty and replacing it with life without parole. However, repeal legislation stalled in the Senate Judicial Proceedings committee after a 5-5 vote failed to pass the bill onto the Senate Floor.

This year, while there is growing support in the General Assembly, repeal votes in the Senate Committee are lacking. For this reason people opposed to the death penalty, including United Methodists, must send a clear message in support of a repeal to their state legislators.

It is especially important for laypersons, ministers and congregations in Towson, Lutherville, Timonium and Ruxton to contact their Senator Brochin. People who live in Frederick need to send a clear message to Senator Mooney. It is important to act now.

Take Action

E-MAIL YOUR STATE REPRESENTATIVES TODAY and urge them to vote for HB 1328 and SB 645.

First, find out who your representative and senator are. Visit www.mdelect.net to find out who represents you, and then send them an e-mail with the following message.

"As a United Methodist who believes that the death penalty is inconsistent with our values and with effective law enforcement, I urge you to vote in favor of HB 1328, SB 645."

I encourage you to take this action because:

• There is documented racial and geographic bias in Maryland death sentencing - skin color and county lines should NOT determine who lives and who dies.
• We make mistakes and innocent people get sentenced to death - nationally 127 people have been released from death rows after being found innocent; in Maryland, Kirk Bloodsworth was sentenced to death and spent almost nine years in prison for a murder he did not commit.
• The death penalty is not a deterrent - in fact, states that have and consistently use the death penalty tend to have the highest murder rates.
• The death penalty is expensive - every cost study ever done has found that capital punishment is a far bigger drain on financial and human resources than is a system with life without parole."
  
  

Call the Annapolis switchboard at 1-800-492-7122 and ask to be connected to your legislators.

For additional information, including a list of lawmakers who co-sponsored the repeal legislation, go to www.mdcase.org. If you would like more information on where your lawmakers stand on the death penalty, call 301-779-5230.

Please consider letting MDCASE know when a legislator responds so they can keep an accurate vote count.

This article was written by Beth Reilly a United Methodist lay woman from Frederick, with assistance from Sara Klemm from MDCASE (MD Citizens Against State Executions).

If you want to do more...

Those interested in putting their faith in action to work for for justice in the political arenea, should consider attending the Advocacy Ministry Information and Impact event.

This training event will be held March 6, April 8, and May 8 at from 6 to 8 p.m. at the Baltimore-Washington Conference Center in Columbia. Advocacy training will be offered.

Do you want to help establish a strong United Methodist presence in the halls of the legislature, respond to legislative alerts, and speak for the marginalized in Maryland, Washington, D.C. and West Virginina? This event is for you.

You can bring information about the issues you want to educate others on and to display. For questions and registration for attendance and materials call
410-268-4122, Ext. 4, or send an e-mail to .