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Enough!
 "Our capital system is haunted by the
demon of error…" and thus Governor George Ryan of Illinois commuted
the sentences of all the prisoners on Death Row. Is there a more courageous man
in the state, or in the nation?
The unprecedented and controversial action,
announced in a speech at Northwestern University's Center on Wrongful
Convictions today will undoubtedly unleash a debate that is not likely to
conclude in this decade. Relief, anger, frustration, disbelief, unmitigated joy
and complete despair---all foreseeable and legitimate responses to the
announcement--- will tear at the fibers of the Illinois community for weeks,
months, probably years, to come.
Those of us who have worked to restore sanity
and fairness to the Illinois system of "justice" in the past decade
sighed with relief. Those we know to be innocent were either pardoned by the
governor earlier in the week, or will now at least be spared from execution
while they fight to convince authorities of yet another wrongful conviction in
this state renowned, sadly, for such errors.
It won't be easy for them because now,
ironically, their options for getting their proof of innocence before a judge
may be less even than before as there are more appeal possibilities and more
attorney assistance available to Death Row inmates than to the general prison
population.
It was a pathetic history of wrongfully
convicting the citizens of Illinois, and the lack of progress in finding a
prevention, that drove Governor Ryan to his final decision. He and his staff are
to be commended for recognizing that there could not be a simple solution to
determine which sentences should be commuted. Proof of wrongful conviction takes
months and, more usually, years. The Governor had neither time, nor staff, to
thoroughly review each of the nearly two hundred cases.
I empathize with the families of the victims. I
know the pain of having a loved one murdered. I know the overpowering need for
revenge, the desire to have the killer(s) dead. Since the death of my beloved
cousin, I have never again expressed an opinion, pro or con, about the death
penalty.
When the announcement came, I wept for joy for
those whose lives were spared. I wept in despair for those whose loved ones had
been murdered and who now must suffer through their anger and grief once again.
I wept in frustration that such a decision had to be made to bring the truth of
the situation to people who have not listened!
One cannot work as a professional investigator
member of defense teams for people accused of crimes in this country, as I have,
and not begin to realize that our system is broken. That is especially true in
Illinois where thirteen wrongfully convicted people were released from Death Row
before Governor Ryan finally stepped forward to declare a moratorium.
In November 1998, we heard the voices and cries
of persons from every walk of life, people who had been wrongly convicted and
sentenced to die in states across the nation. The National Conference on
Wrongful Conviction and the Death Penalty brought the problem to the
attention of the world. The near execution of Anthony Porter brought additional
attention. The facts of that case, including a confession from the actual
killer, resulted in Governor Ryan's moratorium. The world took more notice.
Now there are a multitude of Innocence
Projects, the Center at Northwestern and Andrea Lyon's center at DePaul, and
others who daily strive to save the wrongfully convicted. Attorneys, professors,
investigators, journalists, authors, law and journalism students, mothers,
fathers, brothers, sons, daughters, sisters, wives, girlfriends….thousands of
people trying to prove innocence and wrongful convictions. All are worthy and
necessary endeavors, but the fact is the system remains broken!
While we struggle to sort out the truth in the
thousands of claims of wrongful conviction, and while attorneys fight to get the
facts before a judge, where are the people fighting to change the system?
Where are the police who will stand up and say
"Enough! Let's do this correctly and arrest the right people"?
Where are the prosecutors who will take a stand
for justice and truthfulness despite the political consequences; who will admit
that a mistake may have been made?
Where are the mayors and governors and members
of state legislatures and the Congress who will step forward to say that their
promise "to be tough on crime" includes assuring that people are being
fairly tried?
Where are the ordinary citizens who will
dedicate some energy to insist upon cleaning up the polluted system that we call
"justice"?
Following the September 11, 2001 terrorist
attack on the United States, I wrote an editorial on my website warning that our
rights as citizens of this country were in jeopardy. (Click
to read editorial) Subsequent governmental
declarations and acts have, sadly, proven me right. But this problem of wrongful
convictions has been with us a lot longer than that terrorist act. Innocent
people have been rotting away in our prisons, and especially on Death Rows for
decades, waiting for someone, anyone, to take notice.
Thank God one courageous man has listened to
the cries of the wrongfully convicted and said, "Enough!"
Grace Elting Castle, CLI®
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