Friday, May 01, 2009

NORTH CAROLINA: A blow but does NOT restart executions in NC

I'm sure you've heard the news concerning the NC Supreme Court's decision today prohibiting the NC Medical Board from punishing doctors who participate in executions. You may read the full decision here

While this is a devastating blow to our work , the exemplary advocacy and leadership of the NC Medical Board and the tireless efforts of so many of you around this state and beyond, this decision does not restart executions in North Carolina. There remain legal challenges to the Council of State's method of deciding an execution protocol which could likely keep executions on hold for some time.

Aside from the legal issues, there are also a number of bills being considered by the NC legislature that address some of the problems with North Carolina's capital punishment system.

In short, please stay encouraged; our efforts have created a climate where something like this was a possibility. No doubt the fruit of our collective efforts were weighted and considered when this decision and others like it were made. For that we should all be proud.

Thank you for everything you've done and are doing to keep this judicial moratorium in place for over two years as we advance the cause of meaningful capital punishment reform in North Carolina. We could not have come this far without all of us. Let this decision serve as a rallying cry; we have much more work to do.

We did not lose today; the other team scored a point.

Onwards,
Jeremy

Jeremy J Collins
North Carolina Coalition for a Moratorium
PO Box 1008
Durham, NC 27702
919.491.2917
jcollins@ncmoratorium.org
here

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