By Ashley Badgley
Illinois Statehouse News Service
SPRINGFIELD — The state’s budget woes and concerns over the GOP gubernatorial candidate’s stance is pushing deal penalty opponents to step up their efforts to abolish the ultimate punishment.
The Illinois Coalition to Abolish the Death Penalty held a rally at the state capital on Thursday, urging lawmakers to stand behind their cause. Former Death Row inmates later found to be innocent as well as family members of murder victims spoke against the death penalty.
Republican candidate for governor Bill Brady has said he supports the death penalty for and would consider lifting the current moratorium on the penalty that was put into effect in 2000 by former Gov. George Ryan. The state has 16 inmates on Death Row.
When sworn into office, Gov. Pat Quinn said he was not interested in overturning the moratorium. The campaign offices of both Brady and Democratic Gov. Pat Quinn did not immediately return phone calls seeking comment.
Jeremy Schroeder, executive director of the coalition, said his organization is concerned that Brady would lift the moratorium if elected. Schroeder said there are too many flaws in the death penalty.
“It’s a big concern and we’ve talked to [Brady] about it,” Schroeder said. “We want him to look at Illinois’ system. It’s a broken government system.”
However, Schroeder said ethical concerns are not the only issue with the death penalty, noting it costs millions to maintain Death Row. That’s a cost Illinois can do without as the state faces a $13 billion deficit.
Colleen Cunningham of Equal Justice U.S.A. also attended the rally and said the cost of executions and housing Death Row inmates across the country runs in the millions.
Cunningham said it makes more sense to invest that money into social services and education – programs that are targeted for severe budget cuts.
“All the money we invest in the death penalty could go to other places,” Cunningham said. “Do you want to spend millions on killing one individual or invest in education?”
Brady has suggested overturning the moratorium only after reform, but Cunningham said there are no good reforms that can be made to death penalty legislation.
“There’s no way to fix the death penalty. No reforms can fix the death penalty,” she said. “To do any of this tinkering would cost too much.”
Nathson Fields, a Chicago resident who was wrongfully convicted of a crime, sat on Death Row for more than 11 years. He spent a total of 18 years in prison and is now suing the city of Chicago for $360 million in a federal lawsuit.
He said the Illinois death penalty system has too many flaws..
“It’s imperfection,” Fields said. “To have a system where somebody could die, why have it? There’s no instant replay.”
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