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February 1999 Dear Friend of Equal Justice USA, This month, Anthony Porter was released from death row after another man confessed to the 1982 Chicago murders for which Porter had been convicted. Porter - who came within two days of being executed last September - is the eighth person to be released from Illinois' death row in the past five years. Days later in Maryland, Anthony Gray, Jr., was freed from prison for the 1991 rape and murder of a Calvert County woman. Gray, who was serving a life sentence, had confessed to a crime he did not commit after prosecutors threatened him with a death sentence. The similarities between these two cases - a thousand miles apart - underscore some of the most compelling reasons for a moratorium on executions in the U.S. Both men were mentally retarded, making them vulnerable to zealous prosecutors who were more concerned with securing convictions than uncovering truth. Both are African Americans who stood charged in a legal system mired in racial bias. Both were poor and could not afford an assertive legal defense at trial. Each owes his freedom to the generous assistance of people passionate about justice - people just like you. Yet despite the nearly quarter-century of wrongful imprisonment between them, these two men are the lucky ones. Already in 1999, 16 men have been executed in eight states. In Oklahoma on February 4, Sean Sellers became the youngest offender executed in the U.S. in 40 years. At age 16, Sellers was sentenced to death for murdering his parents by a jury that never learned that he suffered from multiple personality disorder. The U.S. is one of only five nations in the world that executes people who were under age 18 at the time of their crime. We are convinced that as our neighbors learn such facts about the death penalty's use, public support for a halt on all executions will grow. Thanks to your ongoing support, Moratorium Now! is spreading information and motivating action. The campaign is working from the ground up, urging faith communities, organizations, local governments and others to debate and pass resolutions calling for a moratorium. Already, nearly 375 groups have joined in the call to stop executions. We are aiming to double this number by Easter, via a special initiative targeting churches and religious communities. The enclosed Campaign Summary - Plans for 1999 details our overall goal to recruit and tally 2,000 groups by the end of 2000. You are a vital part of this movement! Moratorium Now! needs your continued energy and support. We ask your help in any or all of the following ways.
Whatever way you can help - or have already helped - please know you are making a difference! As the Christmas message of Pope John Paul II underscored, an international consensus for a halt to executions is growing. Last month, he brought the same message here to the U.S. and convinced Missouri Governor Mel Carnahan to spare the life of Darrell Mease. The Pope's successful appeal reminds us that our nation's conscience can be tapped, and hearts and minds can be changed, even among those whose support we would least expect. Change is coming!
Staff of Equal Justice USA
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