ACLU Praise New Jersey’s Ban on Death Penalty
Posted on December 17, 2007
They claim it is a shift in public opinion.
Today Governor Jon Corzine signed into law a bill that ends capital punishment in the state of New Jersey. The measure, which passed the state legislature last week with bipartisan majorities, replaces the death penalty with life imprisonment for the most serious offenders. New Jersey becomes the first state since 1965 to legislatively repeal the death penalty, generating forward momentum in the campaign to end capital punishment nationwide, said the American Civil Liberties Union.
The following can be attributed to John Holdridge, Director of the ACLU’s Capital Punishment Project:
“This is a historic moment reflecting the growing shift in public opinion against the death penalty in America. It has been over four decades since the last state abolished capital punishment through the legislative process and New Jersey’s governor and legislature are to be commended for setting a high standard for other states to follow.
Reflecting the growing shift in public opinion? Not so fast there! According to this poll, the majority in New Jersey oppose ending the death penalty.
A Quinnipiac poll shows 53 percent of New Jerseyans surveyed, oppose ending the death penalty and 39 percent support eliminating it.
Maybe the ACLU meant the opinion of the elected officials when they said “public opinion”. After all, who cares what the people think when there are elected representatives who don’t represent what the public want?
“Today’s signing sends a powerful message to the rest of the nation and the world that the death penalty is not only a grossly improper use of government power, but also the ultimate denial of civil liberties. New Jersey’s public leaders are right – capital punishment is ineffective, discriminatory, arbitrary and costly. With the stroke of a pen, America’s stature worldwide and its ability to end human rights violations in other countries have greatly improved.”
Ultimate denial of civil liberties? They were given their day in court, found guilty, and served justice. I find it disturbing how the ACLU can view putting a child rapist to death is a denial of civil liberties, but the killing of an innocent unborn baby a civil right of its own.
That is right, look who gets spared justice:
The man who raped and killed 7-year-old Megan Kanka — the 1994 crime that inspired “Megan’s Law†— is one of eight men whose sentences were commuted to life in prison this week as part of New Jersey’s new ban on execution.
The Garden State on Monday became the first state in more than three decades to abolish the death penalty after a commission ruled the punishment is “inconsistent with evolving standards of decency.â€
Gov. Jon Corzine the day before commuted the sentences of eight men sitting on the state’s death row. They will now serve life in prison without parole, according to the governor’s office.
Among the eight is Jesse Timmendequas, 46, who was sentenced to death in June 1997 for Megan’s murder.
Prosecutors said Timmendequas lured Megan to his home by saying he wanted to show her a puppy. He then raped her, beat her and strangled her with a belt. A day later, he led police to her body.
“Megan’s Law,†introduced after her death, requires that authorities notify neighbors when a sex offender moves into an area. Timmendequas had twice been convicted of sex crimes — on 5- and 7-year-olds — before he murdered Megan.
» Filed Under ACLU, Child Exploitation, News, Politics As Usual
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6 Responses to “ACLU Praise New Jersey’s Ban on Death Penalty”
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My prediction:
Because that perceived deterrent is now removed, we will see a surge in homicides in New Jersey over the next few years.
For the left, consequences of your decisions are never important, as long as you feel good about having made them.
So, more residents of New Jersey will be killed, but the state legislature can feel good because they aren’t going to execute murderers.
Absurd!
Wouldn’t it be something if instananeously the homicide rate went through the roof? I do not wish that at all for those unprotected people In NJ, but wouldn’t be something if it jumped before the year is out?
“costly” ??!?
As compared to feeding, housing, and clothing an inmate for life in prison?
Come on, we’re not stupid!!!
i don’t get it: being soft on the death penalty cost mario cuomo the guvnaship of ny.
and people are more pro-death penalty now than they were then.
and studies show it’s an effective deterrent.
why some people going soft on convicted murderers is noble beats me.
but the left wants to be easy on murderers and easy on jihadists.
at [least] they’re consistent.
anything that can make it tougher to maintain our Judeo-Christian civilization they are for.
The people of jersey are getting the government the majority elected. Unfortunately, there is a large percentage of the people in jersey who will pay for the social engineering the goobernator is enacting with the complicity of the legislators and the state employees unions. Last one out is a rotten egg!
ACLU is full of garbage as for all practical purposes NJ has had a ban in place since the 1960’s. That is no executions.