Will Stewart-Starks is just one of many Kansans who are opposed to the death penalty. Will is the Kansas State Chair of Young Americans for Liberty, and he is concerned with issues of innocence, cost and morality. Watch the video below to hear Will talk about why he thinks Kansas should replace the death penalty with life without parole.
Want to share why you oppose the death penalty? You can submit your story using this online form, or contact a KCADP organizer at info
ksabolition
org.
George Weeks, a KCADP volunteer from Pittsburg, was featured in the Pittsburg Morning Sun this week.
George says that he always “leaned against” the death penalty, but in the last three years he has become much more supportive of abolition.
Issues like the cost of the death penalty, the harmful effects for the families of murder victims, and the risk of executing an innocent person are the biggest reasons he opposes the death penalty.
George told the Pittsburg Morning Sun:
“It’s very likely that some innocent people have been executed. Once somebody is executed, you cannot give them their life back.”
George added that his goal is to repeal the Kansas death penalty:
“The hope is to change only one law, a law that doesn’t work, and eliminate the death penalty from Kansas statutes.”
You can read the full article about George and why he opposes the death penalty by here.
Photo by Sean Steffen, Pittsburg Morning Sun.
On Friday the Maryland House of Delegates passed a bill repealing Maryland’s death penalty! The bill already passed the Maryland State Senate, so all that’s left is for Governor O’Malley to add his signature. This will make Maryland the 18th state without the death penalty.
This is a huge moment for abolition work, because it signals yet again that the death penalty is on its way out. Maryland is the sixth state in six years to end its death penalty, and the first south of the Mason Dixon Line. We can make this happen in Kansas, too!
Make a special contribution to KCADP today to help us celebrate this momentous victory in Maryland!
Only with supporters like you can KCADP grow its capacity to make the difference here in Kansas. Even if you have donated recently, please give generously again today. And if you have never made a contribution to KCADP, today is a great day to start! All first time contributions qualify for our 2 to 1 matching grant!
Maryland shows us that repeal is within reach, even in Kansas. Right now, we’re laying the groundwork to push for repeal in Kansas. Two repeal bills, Senate Bill 126 and House Bill 2397, were introduced in the Kansas Legislature this year. And we are working with our legislative champions to plan for the next steps, including hearings and votes.
Your contribution will help cover the cost of exciting events that will build momentum for repeal in Kansas! Kirk Bloodsworth, the Advocacy Director at Witness to Innocence and a key supporter of the Maryland repeal effort, will be speaking in Kansas on April 14th!
Kirk knows why the death penalty has to go better than most. He was wrongfully convicted and sentenced to death in Maryland for a crime he never committed. The risk of executing an innocent man, like Kirk, is just as real in Kansas as it was in Maryland as long as we have the death penalty on the books.
Thank you for your help and support!
On March 9th, KCADP hosted an advocacy training webinar focused on training members to be more effective advocates against the death penalty.
The presentation is now available to watch online in the videos below. The webinar includes information on the best messages against the death penalty, and strategies for how you can be an effective activist in support of repealing the Kansas death penalty once and for all!
There is a small glitch in the first few minutes of the recording where we only have sound and no picture. The full training is full of good information, so we hope you’ll bear with us and tune in to the whole presentation. You can also view a PDF of the webinar slides by clicking here.
The presenters include:
On Thursday, a bill to repeal the death penalty and replace it with life without parole was introduced into the Kansas House of Representatives.
The bill, HB 2397, also establishes a fund to help the families of murder victims and provide for mental health services by redirecting savings that will come from abolishing the death penalty.
A similar bill, SB 126, was introduced in the Senate in February.
Contact your legislators today and ask them to support HB 2397 and SB 126!
It’s important for legislators to hear from constituents like you! Call, write or email your legislators today and tell them you support ending the Kansas death penalty!
To confirm your legislators’ contact information, just visit www.openkansas.org. Type in your address to see updated contact information for your Senator and Representative.
We know that in Kansas, death penalty cases can cost up to 70 percent more than non-death penalty cases. That high costs diverts important financial resources away from prevention and victims’ services.
These bills will end the death penalty, replace it with life in prison without parole and direct savings to programs that will assist victims of crime and enhance public safety.
If you have questions, need assistance, or want to share your legislator’s response, please contact KCADP at 785-235-2237 or infoksabolitionorg.
Megan Jennifer Cramer was a poet, writer, attorney, social activist, and staff person at JJ’s Restaurant in Kansas City. She was killed earlier this week by the explosion and fire that was caused by a gas leak. Megan received her undergraduate and Law degrees from the University of Missouri at Kansas City. She spent many hours as a law student at the Center for the Study of Capital Punishment working weekly in a pro bono capacity while in law school, to assist prisoners on death row at the Potosi Federal Prison. She lived in Kansas City for 26 years, practiced law there and worked at JJ’s Italian Restaurant on the Plaza. Megan was the daughter of Carter and Genny Cramer of Springfield, Missouri. We extend our deepest sympathies to the family and everyone at JJ’s for their loss.
Neely Goen never met her father. His name was Conroy O’Brien, and he was a Kansas state trooper who was murdered in the line of duty.
Neely told her story, and how she came to oppose the death penalty, in an op-ed to the Wichita Eagle published today.
Neely wrote:
“My father’s murder, along with other cases, led people to call for a return of the death penalty, which Kansas eventually reinstated in 1994.
But over time, after I saw how the death penalty system actually works, my feelings on the issue changed.
What I’ve discovered is a legal process that no murder victim’s family should have to endure.”
You can read the full story by clicking here.
On January 30, 1907, Kansas became one of the first states to legislatively repeal the death penalty when Governor Hoch, an ardent opponent of capital punishment, signed abolition legislation.
This January 30th, to commemorate Kansas Abolition Day, we need you to call on Kansas lawmakers to take a strong and vocal stance against the death penalty! Please mark your calendar to call Governor Brownback, your state senator, and your state representative on January 30. It will only take a few minutes to add your voice to the call for repeal! And don’t forget to join the event on the KCADP facebook page.
Governor Brownback’s office number is (877) 579-6757. If you need help finding your state legislators’ contact info, call KCADP at (785) 235-0214.
When calling the Governor’s office and your legislators, be sure to thank them for their service and tell the staffer on the phone exactly why you oppose the death penalty.
Need ideas for talking points? Got questions about calling your legislators or the Governor? Get in touch with Kristin in the KCADP Topeka office – (785) 235-0214 or kristinksabolitionorg.
On November 10th, KCADP held the 2012 Abolition Conference in Olathe, KS. The conference brought abolitionists and advocates from across the state to learn about the flaws of the death penalty. As part of the conference, Dr. Allen Ault, a former death row warden, gave a keynote address discusses his career in corrections and his responsibility for carrying out executions.
Dr. Ault’s address is available to watch online in four parts. The full address is approximately 40 minutes. Just click on the videos below to play.
Special thanks to Nathanael Dinwiddie for filming the conference!
Last night, Topeka police officers Cpl. David Gogian and Jeff Atherly were killed in the line of duty. The horrific tragedy in Newtown, Connecticut on Friday shook us to our core. As we shared our grief with the families in Connecticut, our anguish only deepened with the loss of two law enforcement officers who gave their lives protecting Kansans.
Our hearts go out to the families in Newtown, and to the families, friends and colleagues of Cpl. Gogian and Officer Atherly. No words can truly express our sense of loss and heartbreak in the wake of these two tragedies. Our thoughts and prayers are with both communities at this time.
