SUBSCRIBE TO OUR FREE NEWSLETTER
Daily news & progressive opinion—funded by the people, not the corporations—delivered straight to your inbox.
5
#000000
#FFFFFF
5
#000000
#FFFFFF
Holder: "I Am Opposed to the Death Penalty"
Speaking in a personal capacity, nation's top law enforcement officer says a national moratorium on execution would be appropriate while Supreme Court reviews challenge to lethal injection
Feb 18, 2015
Attorney General Eric Holder, the nation's senior law enforcement officer, said on Tuesday that he is "opposed to the death penalty" and said a national moratorium would be appropriate while the U.S. Supreme Court reviews a pending challenge to the practice brought by death row inmates in Oklahoma.
During an event at the National Press Club and speaking from what he called a "personal capacity," Holder said that because it is "inevitable" that innocent people end up being wrongfully executed he does not support the concept of state-sanctioned murder.
"Our system of justice is the best in the world. It is comprised of men and women who do the best they can, get it right more often than not, substantially more right than wrong," Holder said. "There's always the possibility that mistakes will be made ... It's for that reason that I am opposed to the death penalty."
He continued: "It is one thing to put somebody in jail for an extended period of time, have some new test that you can do and determine that person was, in fact, innocent. There is no ability to correct a mistake where somebody has, in fact, been executed. And that is from my perspective the ultimate nightmare."
The current case before the Supreme Court relates to a suit filed by death row inmates in Oklahoma who charge the state's use of experimental lethal injection cocktails--which have resulted in a series of "botched" executions in the state and elsewhere around the country--amounts to cruel and unusual punishment and should be banned.
In regard to the process, Holder said, "I think fundamental questions about the death penalty need to be asked. And among them, the Supreme Court's determination as to whether or not lethal injection is consistent with our Constitution is one that ought to occur. From my perspective, I think a moratorium until the Supreme Court made that determination would be appropriate."
As the Huffington Post reports, this is not the first time the Attorney General has expressed his opposition to the capital punishment:
Holder, who is retiring pending the confirmation of his nominated successor Loretta Lynch, has long been personally opposed to the death penalty.
"I think that the issue is made real when you look at some of the things that have happened in the states over the last year or so, where you had these botched executions, where you had an inability to get the appropriate drug," Holder told The Marshall Project last year. "We've had doctors unwilling to participate in the process. I think this is pushing this country toward some really fundamental questions about -- even though, you know, people still support the death penalty by 55 percent, or whatever the number is -- some fundamental questions about continued use of the death penalty."
According to Richard Dieter, executive director of the Death Penalty Information Center, though Holder's most recent comments may have no legal impact, his voice is important to the ongoing debate. "All of this has symbolic impact," Dieter told USA Today on the controversy of the death penalty where questions have also been raised about defendants' access to counsel and mounting numbers of wrongful convictions involving death row prisoners.
An Urgent Message From Our Co-Founder
Dear Common Dreams reader, It’s been nearly 30 years since I co-founded Common Dreams with my late wife, Lina Newhouser. We had the radical notion that journalism should serve the public good, not corporate profits. It was clear to us from the outset what it would take to build such a project. No paid advertisements. No corporate sponsors. No millionaire publisher telling us what to think or do. Many people said we wouldn't last a year, but we proved those doubters wrong. Together with a tremendous team of journalists and dedicated staff, we built an independent media outlet free from the constraints of profits and corporate control. Our mission has always been simple: To inform. To inspire. To ignite change for the common good. Building Common Dreams was not easy. Our survival was never guaranteed. When you take on the most powerful forces—Wall Street greed, fossil fuel industry destruction, Big Tech lobbyists, and uber-rich oligarchs who have spent billions upon billions rigging the economy and democracy in their favor—the only bulwark you have is supporters who believe in your work. But here’s the urgent message from me today. It's never been this bad out there. And it's never been this hard to keep us going. At the very moment Common Dreams is most needed, the threats we face are intensifying. We need your support now more than ever. We don't accept corporate advertising and never will. We don't have a paywall because we don't think people should be blocked from critical news based on their ability to pay. Everything we do is funded by the donations of readers like you. When everyone does the little they can afford, we are strong. But if that support retreats or dries up, so do we. Will you donate now to make sure Common Dreams not only survives but thrives? —Craig Brown, Co-founder |
Our work is licensed under Creative Commons (CC BY-NC-ND 3.0). Feel free to republish and share widely.
Attorney General Eric Holder, the nation's senior law enforcement officer, said on Tuesday that he is "opposed to the death penalty" and said a national moratorium would be appropriate while the U.S. Supreme Court reviews a pending challenge to the practice brought by death row inmates in Oklahoma.
During an event at the National Press Club and speaking from what he called a "personal capacity," Holder said that because it is "inevitable" that innocent people end up being wrongfully executed he does not support the concept of state-sanctioned murder.
"Our system of justice is the best in the world. It is comprised of men and women who do the best they can, get it right more often than not, substantially more right than wrong," Holder said. "There's always the possibility that mistakes will be made ... It's for that reason that I am opposed to the death penalty."
He continued: "It is one thing to put somebody in jail for an extended period of time, have some new test that you can do and determine that person was, in fact, innocent. There is no ability to correct a mistake where somebody has, in fact, been executed. And that is from my perspective the ultimate nightmare."
The current case before the Supreme Court relates to a suit filed by death row inmates in Oklahoma who charge the state's use of experimental lethal injection cocktails--which have resulted in a series of "botched" executions in the state and elsewhere around the country--amounts to cruel and unusual punishment and should be banned.
In regard to the process, Holder said, "I think fundamental questions about the death penalty need to be asked. And among them, the Supreme Court's determination as to whether or not lethal injection is consistent with our Constitution is one that ought to occur. From my perspective, I think a moratorium until the Supreme Court made that determination would be appropriate."
As the Huffington Post reports, this is not the first time the Attorney General has expressed his opposition to the capital punishment:
Holder, who is retiring pending the confirmation of his nominated successor Loretta Lynch, has long been personally opposed to the death penalty.
"I think that the issue is made real when you look at some of the things that have happened in the states over the last year or so, where you had these botched executions, where you had an inability to get the appropriate drug," Holder told The Marshall Project last year. "We've had doctors unwilling to participate in the process. I think this is pushing this country toward some really fundamental questions about -- even though, you know, people still support the death penalty by 55 percent, or whatever the number is -- some fundamental questions about continued use of the death penalty."
According to Richard Dieter, executive director of the Death Penalty Information Center, though Holder's most recent comments may have no legal impact, his voice is important to the ongoing debate. "All of this has symbolic impact," Dieter told USA Today on the controversy of the death penalty where questions have also been raised about defendants' access to counsel and mounting numbers of wrongful convictions involving death row prisoners.
Attorney General Eric Holder, the nation's senior law enforcement officer, said on Tuesday that he is "opposed to the death penalty" and said a national moratorium would be appropriate while the U.S. Supreme Court reviews a pending challenge to the practice brought by death row inmates in Oklahoma.
During an event at the National Press Club and speaking from what he called a "personal capacity," Holder said that because it is "inevitable" that innocent people end up being wrongfully executed he does not support the concept of state-sanctioned murder.
"Our system of justice is the best in the world. It is comprised of men and women who do the best they can, get it right more often than not, substantially more right than wrong," Holder said. "There's always the possibility that mistakes will be made ... It's for that reason that I am opposed to the death penalty."
He continued: "It is one thing to put somebody in jail for an extended period of time, have some new test that you can do and determine that person was, in fact, innocent. There is no ability to correct a mistake where somebody has, in fact, been executed. And that is from my perspective the ultimate nightmare."
The current case before the Supreme Court relates to a suit filed by death row inmates in Oklahoma who charge the state's use of experimental lethal injection cocktails--which have resulted in a series of "botched" executions in the state and elsewhere around the country--amounts to cruel and unusual punishment and should be banned.
In regard to the process, Holder said, "I think fundamental questions about the death penalty need to be asked. And among them, the Supreme Court's determination as to whether or not lethal injection is consistent with our Constitution is one that ought to occur. From my perspective, I think a moratorium until the Supreme Court made that determination would be appropriate."
As the Huffington Post reports, this is not the first time the Attorney General has expressed his opposition to the capital punishment:
Holder, who is retiring pending the confirmation of his nominated successor Loretta Lynch, has long been personally opposed to the death penalty.
"I think that the issue is made real when you look at some of the things that have happened in the states over the last year or so, where you had these botched executions, where you had an inability to get the appropriate drug," Holder told The Marshall Project last year. "We've had doctors unwilling to participate in the process. I think this is pushing this country toward some really fundamental questions about -- even though, you know, people still support the death penalty by 55 percent, or whatever the number is -- some fundamental questions about continued use of the death penalty."
According to Richard Dieter, executive director of the Death Penalty Information Center, though Holder's most recent comments may have no legal impact, his voice is important to the ongoing debate. "All of this has symbolic impact," Dieter told USA Today on the controversy of the death penalty where questions have also been raised about defendants' access to counsel and mounting numbers of wrongful convictions involving death row prisoners.
We've had enough. The 1% own and operate the corporate media. They are doing everything they can to defend the status quo, squash dissent and protect the wealthy and the powerful. The Common Dreams media model is different. We cover the news that matters to the 99%. Our mission? To inform. To inspire. To ignite change for the common good. How? Nonprofit. Independent. Reader-supported. Free to read. Free to republish. Free to share. With no advertising. No paywalls. No selling of your data. Thousands of small donations fund our newsroom and allow us to continue publishing. Can you chip in? We can't do it without you. Thank you.