NC Coalition for Alternatives to the Death Penalty

Committed to ending the death penalty and creating a new vision of justice

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Commute death row: A letter from people of faith to Gov. Cooper

Jun 19, 2023
Are you part of a religious or spiritual community and/ or do you consider yourself a person of faith who lives in North Carolina? In a state where nearly 80 percent of people identify with a faith tradition, including Governor Cooper, people of faith can be powerful voices for justice. We encourage you to add your name to this letter asking the governor to commute all death sentences to prison terms.

Commute death row: A letter from people of faith to Gov. Cooper

· Kristin Collins

Are you part of a religious or spiritual community and/ or do you consider yourself a person of faith who lives in North Carolina? In a state where nearly 80 percent of people identify with a faith tradition, including Governor Cooper, people of faith can be powerful voices for justice. We encourage you to add your name to this letter asking the governor to commute all death sentences to prison terms.

Rev. Sharon Risher: My family was murdered in a racist massacre, and I want Gov. Cooper to commute NC’s death row

Jun 17, 2023
Originally published in the Charlotte Observer By Rev. Sharon Risher I know what it means to have my faith tested. Eight years ago this week, I was a hospital chaplain in Dallas, Texas, when I got the shattering news: My mother and two cousins were among nine people shot to death at Emanuel AME Church […]

Rev. Sharon Risher: My family was murdered in a racist massacre, and I want Gov. Cooper to commute NC’s death row

· Kristin Collins

Originally published in the Charlotte Observer By Rev. Sharon Risher I know what it means to have my faith tested. Eight years ago this week, I was a hospital chaplain in Dallas, Texas, when I got the shattering news: My mother and two cousins were among nine people shot to death at Emanuel AME Church […]

Nearly three decades after a death sentence, evidence of a racist trial finally comes to light

May 31, 2023
A man who has spent nearly 30 years on death row finally had a chance to present evidence that Black jurors were illegally excluded from his trial. Frank Chambers, a Black man, was sent to death row in 1994 by a Rowan County jury that included only a single non-white member. The evidence of discrimination was so extensive that the hearing took an entire week. 

Nearly three decades after a death sentence, evidence of a racist trial finally comes to light

· Kristin Collins

A man who has spent nearly 30 years on death row finally had a chance to present evidence that Black jurors were illegally excluded from his trial. Frank Chambers, a Black man, was sent to death row in 1994 by a Rowan County jury that included only a single non-white member. The evidence of discrimination was so extensive that the hearing took an entire week. 

NC faith leaders unite in a common plea to Gov. Cooper: Commute death sentences

Apr 14, 2023
Faith leaders gathered in Raleigh on April 14 to present a letter to Gov. Cooper asking him to commute North Carolina's 137 death sentences.

NC faith leaders unite in a common plea to Gov. Cooper: Commute death sentences

· Kristin Collins

Faith leaders gathered in Raleigh on April 14 to present a letter to Gov. Cooper asking him to commute North Carolina’s 137 death sentences.

A letter to Gov. Cooper from North Carolina faith leaders

Apr 14, 2023
More than 300 leaders from across North Carolina, representing all the state's major faith traditions, signed a letter that was sent to Gov. Cooper on April 14. All agreed that the death penalty is immoral, cruel and inherently racist and asked Cooper to use his power to commute sentences.

A letter to Gov. Cooper from North Carolina faith leaders

· Kristin Collins

More than 300 leaders from across North Carolina, representing all the state’s major faith traditions, signed a letter that was sent to Gov. Cooper on April 14. All agreed that the death penalty is immoral, cruel and inherently racist and asked Cooper to use his power to commute sentences.

The message of Confederate monuments: White supremacy is tolerated here

Mar 27, 2023
In the context of a death penalty trial, the harm of Confederate imagery is even more pronounced. The death penalty is already disproportionately applied to Black defendants, and the presence of such imagery reinforces the perception that the system is rigged against us. It makes it even more difficult for Black lawyers to represent their clients effectively and for Black defendants to receive a fair trial. The message these monuments send is clear: The courthouse is a place where white supremacy is tolerated and honored.

The message of Confederate monuments: White supremacy is tolerated here

· Kristin Collins

In the context of a death penalty trial, the harm of Confederate imagery is even more pronounced. The death penalty is already disproportionately applied to Black defendants, and the presence of such imagery reinforces the perception that the system is rigged against us. It makes it even more difficult for Black lawyers to represent their clients effectively and for Black defendants to receive a fair trial. The message these monuments send is clear: The courthouse is a place where white supremacy is tolerated and honored.

Racist jury strikes go on trial in the NC Supreme Court

Feb 1, 2023
Russell Tucker was a Black man facing the death penalty in the South in the “tough-on-crime” 1990s. He deserved the chance to be tried by a jury of his peers. However, a Forsyth County prosecutor came up with reason after reason why Black people could not remain on the jury. On Feb. 8, Mr. Tucker's attorneys will present evidence to the NC Supreme Court that jurors were illegally excluded because of their race.

Racist jury strikes go on trial in the NC Supreme Court

· Kristin Collins

Russell Tucker was a Black man facing the death penalty in the South in the “tough-on-crime” 1990s. He deserved the chance to be tried by a jury of his peers. However, a Forsyth County prosecutor came up with reason after reason why Black people could not remain on the jury. On Feb. 8, Mr. Tucker’s attorneys will present evidence to the NC Supreme Court that jurors were illegally excluded because of their race.

There’s no justice in a death sentence for my parents’ murder

Dec 27, 2022
We are often told that society must continue to seek the death penalty to get justice for the families of victims. In the years since my parents’ murders, I’ve spent a lot of time thinking about what justice means. Certainly, it’s not the same thing as revenge. And it could never be achieved through a death penalty that is inhumane, racist, and prone to errors. 

There’s no justice in a death sentence for my parents’ murder

· Kristin Collins

We are often told that society must continue to seek the death penalty to get justice for the families of victims. In the years since my parents’ murders, I’ve spent a lot of time thinking about what justice means. Certainly, it’s not the same thing as revenge. And it could never be achieved through a death penalty that is inhumane, racist, and prone to errors. 

No More Death Row! On Dec. 10, we flowed like a river for justice

Dec 15, 2022
We held North Carolina’s largest death penalty abolition event in more than a decade. Well over a hundred people gathered outside Central Prison and marched more than two miles to the Governor’s Mansion. Downtown Raleigh was awash in signs that proclaimed: No More Death Row! At the mansion, we were 200 strong as we made our demand of Governor Cooper: He must use his power to commute the death sentences of all 135 people on death row.

No More Death Row! On Dec. 10, we flowed like a river for justice

· Kristin Collins

We held North Carolina’s largest death penalty abolition event in more than a decade. Well over a hundred people gathered outside Central Prison and marched more than two miles to the Governor’s Mansion. Downtown Raleigh was awash in signs that proclaimed: No More Death Row! At the mansion, we were 200 strong as we made our demand of Governor Cooper: He must use his power to commute the death sentences of all 135 people on death row.

A letter to Gov. Cooper from North Carolinians who have lost loved ones to murder

Dec 15, 2022
Members of the Homicide Survivor Engagement Group reading their letter aloud outside the Governor’s Mansion on Dec. 10, 2022 As part of the launch of our campaign to persuade Gov. Cooper to commute North Carolina’s death sentences, NCCADP’s Homicide Survivor Engagement Group sent a letter to Gov. Cooper stating their unequivocal opposition to executions. The […]

A letter to Gov. Cooper from North Carolinians who have lost loved ones to murder

· Kristin Collins

Members of the Homicide Survivor Engagement Group reading their letter aloud outside the Governor’s Mansion on Dec. 10, 2022 As part of the launch of our campaign to persuade Gov. Cooper to commute North Carolina’s death sentences, NCCADP’s Homicide Survivor Engagement Group sent a letter to Gov. Cooper stating their unequivocal opposition to executions. The […]

Our Coalition’s request for Gov. Cooper: Commute all death sentences

Dec 6, 2022
December 6, 2022 The Honorable Roy CooperGovernor of North Carolina200 North Blount StreetRaleigh, NC 27601 Re: Commutation of North Carolina’s Death Row Dear Governor Cooper, We are attorneys, advocates, organizers, and people directly affected by North Carolina’s death penalty. Please accept this letter as the first of many discussions about the death penalty, which we […]

Our Coalition’s request for Gov. Cooper: Commute all death sentences

· Kristin Collins

December 6, 2022 The Honorable Roy CooperGovernor of North Carolina200 North Blount StreetRaleigh, NC 27601 Re: Commutation of North Carolina’s Death Row Dear Governor Cooper, We are attorneys, advocates, organizers, and people directly affected by North Carolina’s death penalty. Please accept this letter as the first of many discussions about the death penalty, which we […]

Watch Racist Roots & help us make the death penalty history!

Nov 17, 2022
You may think that watching a video doesn't make a difference in the world. But we’re here to tell you that it does. At more than two dozen screenings, we’ve seen this film’s power to educate and move people to action. It’s a key part of our work to organize a public movement to end the North Carolina death penalty. If it spreads far and wide, it will lead to change.

Watch Racist Roots & help us make the death penalty history!

· Kristin Collins

You may think that watching a video doesn’t make a difference in the world. But we’re here to tell you that it does. At more than two dozen screenings, we’ve seen this film’s power to educate and move people to action. It’s a key part of our work to organize a public movement to end the North Carolina death penalty. If it spreads far and wide, it will lead to change.

An unjust choice: How NC used the death penalty to force my client to sign his life away

Sep 20, 2022
This week, my client Ty Hargrove was sentenced to die in prison. In 2017, Ty killed his estranged girlfriend, Shaekeya Gay, in front of a Henderson Food Lion. He was 23 years old. The crime was caught on video, and Ty never denied his guilt.   The district attorney announced he was seeking the death penalty. […]

An unjust choice: How NC used the death penalty to force my client to sign his life away

· Kristin Collins

This week, my client Ty Hargrove was sentenced to die in prison. In 2017, Ty killed his estranged girlfriend, Shaekeya Gay, in front of a Henderson Food Lion. He was 23 years old. The crime was caught on video, and Ty never denied his guilt.   The district attorney announced he was seeking the death penalty. […]

What we need instead of the death penalty: Envisioning the future together

Aug 30, 2022
“Halfe to food and halfe to the homeless.” The phrase was clearly written by a child. The words in green marker stood out in the middle of the large poster board surrounded by other phrases like: trauma informed treatment, substance abuse services, affordable housing and health care for everyone. All were responses to a single […]

What we need instead of the death penalty: Envisioning the future together

· Noel Nickle

“Halfe to food and halfe to the homeless.” The phrase was clearly written by a child. The words in green marker stood out in the middle of the large poster board surrounded by other phrases like: trauma informed treatment, substance abuse services, affordable housing and health care for everyone. All were responses to a single […]

In life-and-death cases, the jury box must be open to all — not just those most prone to convict

Aug 24, 2022
We already know from our experience with the Racial Justice Act how prosecutors work to keep juries in capital cases overwhelmingly white, using the tool of peremptory strikes. Now, new evidence shows that another insidious tool further skews juries toward white and male — and makes it all but impossible for Black women to have […]

In life-and-death cases, the jury box must be open to all — not just those most prone to convict

· Kristin Collins

We already know from our experience with the Racial Justice Act how prosecutors work to keep juries in capital cases overwhelmingly white, using the tool of peremptory strikes. Now, new evidence shows that another insidious tool further skews juries toward white and male — and makes it all but impossible for Black women to have […]

Our community in action: Moving forward with hope on the 16th anniversary of NC’s last execution

Aug 18, 2022
Sixteen years ago today, North Carolina used its execution chamber for the last time. On August 18, 2006, Samuel Flippen was the last of 43 people executed under our modern laws. Shortly after his death, litigation put executions on hold indefinitely. All these years later, the death penalty remains on the books in North Carolina; […]

Our community in action: Moving forward with hope on the 16th anniversary of NC’s last execution

· Kristin Collins

Sixteen years ago today, North Carolina used its execution chamber for the last time. On August 18, 2006, Samuel Flippen was the last of 43 people executed under our modern laws. Shortly after his death, litigation put executions on hold indefinitely. All these years later, the death penalty remains on the books in North Carolina; […]

Never Again: Creating a new vision of justice on the 16th anniversary of NC’s last execution

Aug 4, 2022
On August 18, it will be sixteen years since North Carolina strapped Samuel Flippen to a gurney and executed him in the middle of the night. From August 15 to 19, we are gathering for a week of in-person events to remember the 43 people executed under our current death penalty laws and to recommit to building a future without the death penalty. Please join us.

Never Again: Creating a new vision of justice on the 16th anniversary of NC’s last execution

· Kristin Collins

On August 18, it will be sixteen years since North Carolina strapped Samuel Flippen to a gurney and executed him in the middle of the night. From August 15 to 19, we are gathering for a week of in-person events to remember the 43 people executed under our current death penalty laws and to recommit to building a future without the death penalty. Please join us.

NC courts are ending extreme punishments rooted in hysteria & racism. The death penalty should be next.

Jul 19, 2022
Three-quarters of the 136 people living on North Carolina’s death row were sentenced to death in the 1990s. But our large death row is just one of the remnants of that decade’s racist, tough-on-crime rhetoric. We also have dozens of people in prison who were sentenced as teenagers to life without parole or other draconian […]

NC courts are ending extreme punishments rooted in hysteria & racism. The death penalty should be next.

· Kristin Collins

Three-quarters of the 136 people living on North Carolina’s death row were sentenced to death in the 1990s. But our large death row is just one of the remnants of that decade’s racist, tough-on-crime rhetoric. We also have dozens of people in prison who were sentenced as teenagers to life without parole or other draconian […]

Remembering Marcus Robinson, who helped expose death penalty racism

Jul 1, 2022
Reposted from the Center for Death Penalty Litigation Earlier this month, Marcus Robinson was found dead in his cell at Scotland Correctional Institution. The prison ruled it a suicide. He was 49 and had spent his entire adult life, as well as a good chunk of his childhood, in prison. His death didn’t make the […]

Remembering Marcus Robinson, who helped expose death penalty racism

· Kristin Collins

Reposted from the Center for Death Penalty Litigation Earlier this month, Marcus Robinson was found dead in his cell at Scotland Correctional Institution. The prison ruled it a suicide. He was 49 and had spent his entire adult life, as well as a good chunk of his childhood, in prison. His death didn’t make the […]

My client’s death penalty trial was tainted by racism. Twenty-five years later, we found healing

May 11, 2022
By Elizabeth Hambourger Yesterday, my client Henry White went home to his family after 25 years in prison. It was one of the most heartwarming moments I’ve experienced as a lawyer, with all sides — including the family of Carl Marshburn, the murder victim in the case — agreeing that Mr. White should be released.  […]

My client’s death penalty trial was tainted by racism. Twenty-five years later, we found healing

· Kristin Collins

By Elizabeth Hambourger Yesterday, my client Henry White went home to his family after 25 years in prison. It was one of the most heartwarming moments I’ve experienced as a lawyer, with all sides — including the family of Carl Marshburn, the murder victim in the case — agreeing that Mr. White should be released.  […]

First NC death sentence since 2019 is a reminder: Even without executions, the machinery of death cranks on

Apr 21, 2022
If you follow the news about the death penalty, you’ve probably heard that five executions are scheduled in United States in the next few weeks — and that one of them is Melissa Lucio, who is set to be killed in Texas in a few days despite overwhelming evidence that she was coerced into confessing […]

First NC death sentence since 2019 is a reminder: Even without executions, the machinery of death cranks on

· Kristin Collins

If you follow the news about the death penalty, you’ve probably heard that five executions are scheduled in United States in the next few weeks — and that one of them is Melissa Lucio, who is set to be killed in Texas in a few days despite overwhelming evidence that she was coerced into confessing […]

A hung jury in a death penalty trial reveals a skewed and unfair system

Apr 9, 2022
This week in Warren County, Lester Kearney’s capital murder trial was declared a mistrial after the jury couldn’t agree on his innocence or guilt. The prosecution’s case was based entirely on a highly questionable cross-racial eyewitness identification, the type of evidence that frequently leads to wrongful convictions. [Read our previous post detailing the strong evidence […]

A hung jury in a death penalty trial reveals a skewed and unfair system

· Kristin Collins

This week in Warren County, Lester Kearney’s capital murder trial was declared a mistrial after the jury couldn’t agree on his innocence or guilt. The prosecution’s case was based entirely on a highly questionable cross-racial eyewitness identification, the type of evidence that frequently leads to wrongful convictions. [Read our previous post detailing the strong evidence […]

As a prosecutor tries an innocent man in NC, history is repeating itself

Mar 23, 2022
Yesterday, the death penalty trial of Lester Kearney began in Warrenton, North Carolina. Kearney, a Black man, is accused of a terrible crime. An elderly white couple was beaten, robbed, and left tied up in their burning home. Dr. Nancy Alford, a 76-year-old psychologist, died in the fire, while Rev. John Alford, 80, was seriously […]

As a prosecutor tries an innocent man in NC, history is repeating itself

· Noel Nickle

Yesterday, the death penalty trial of Lester Kearney began in Warrenton, North Carolina. Kearney, a Black man, is accused of a terrible crime. An elderly white couple was beaten, robbed, and left tied up in their burning home. Dr. Nancy Alford, a 76-year-old psychologist, died in the fire, while Rev. John Alford, 80, was seriously […]

Teens are no longer sentenced to death in NC, but many are still victims of the death penalty

Mar 15, 2022
Few of us would choose to be judged solely on the choices we made as teens. But that is exactly what our criminal justice system does when it imposes extremely harsh punishments on mere children. Until 2004, juveniles could even be sentenced to death. There are still nineteen people on North Carolina’s death row condemned […]

Teens are no longer sentenced to death in NC, but many are still victims of the death penalty

· Kristin Collins

Few of us would choose to be judged solely on the choices we made as teens. But that is exactly what our criminal justice system does when it imposes extremely harsh punishments on mere children. Until 2004, juveniles could even be sentenced to death. There are still nineteen people on North Carolina’s death row condemned […]

Wake DA Lorrin Freeman must remember: She holds people’s lives in her hands

Mar 8, 2022
A new story by Jeffrey Billman in The Assembly has done a huge public service: It’s given us a much fuller picture of one of North Carolina’s most powerful district attorneys — and one of our state’s most prominent advocates of the death penalty, Lorrin Freeman in Wake County. What we saw was deeply disturbing. […]

Wake DA Lorrin Freeman must remember: She holds people’s lives in her hands

· Kristin Collins

A new story by Jeffrey Billman in The Assembly has done a huge public service: It’s given us a much fuller picture of one of North Carolina’s most powerful district attorneys — and one of our state’s most prominent advocates of the death penalty, Lorrin Freeman in Wake County. What we saw was deeply disturbing. […]

My client got two years of freedom after 36 years of wrongful incarceration; this does not mean the system works

Feb 9, 2022
Reposted with permission from NC Policy Watch I recently got some sad news. My former client, James Blackmon, died earlier this month from complications from COVID. He was 68. Mr. Blackmon was arrested for murder and, in 1988, pled guilty and received a life sentence. The problem was he had absolutely nothing to do with the crime. […]

My client got two years of freedom after 36 years of wrongful incarceration; this does not mean the system works

· Kristin Collins

Reposted with permission from NC Policy Watch I recently got some sad news. My former client, James Blackmon, died earlier this month from complications from COVID. He was 68. Mr. Blackmon was arrested for murder and, in 1988, pled guilty and received a life sentence. The problem was he had absolutely nothing to do with the crime. […]

A tribute to Gerda Stein: With empathy and commitment, she worked for justice

Jan 21, 2022
On January 21, one of North Carolina’s most dedicated advocates, Gerda Stein, will leave her long-time post as director of public information at the Center for Death Penalty Litigation. Here, CDPL’s Executive Director Gretchen M. Engel pays tribute to a colleague and friend who has left an indelible mark on our movement — and whose […]

A tribute to Gerda Stein: With empathy and commitment, she worked for justice

· Kristin Collins

On January 21, one of North Carolina’s most dedicated advocates, Gerda Stein, will leave her long-time post as director of public information at the Center for Death Penalty Litigation. Here, CDPL’s Executive Director Gretchen M. Engel pays tribute to a colleague and friend who has left an indelible mark on our movement — and whose […]

Mockery of Justice: Jury deciding fate of Ahmaud Arbery’s killers highlights a nation’s failure to prevent racist jury strikes

Nov 17, 2021
The law promises a “race-neutral” process for choosing juries. Yet, last week, the nation watched as a jury of eleven whites and just one Black person was seated to hear the case of the three white men accused of hunting down and killing Ahmaud Arbery, a Black man who was jogging through a residential neighborhood. […]

Mockery of Justice: Jury deciding fate of Ahmaud Arbery’s killers highlights a nation’s failure to prevent racist jury strikes

· Kristin Collins

The law promises a “race-neutral” process for choosing juries. Yet, last week, the nation watched as a jury of eleven whites and just one Black person was seated to hear the case of the three white men accused of hunting down and killing Ahmaud Arbery, a Black man who was jogging through a residential neighborhood. […]

Anniversary provides powerful reminder of racism that afflicts NC’s death penalty

Nov 17, 2021
Reposted from N.C. Policy Watch A few months ago, my former client Robert Bacon died in the hospital at Central Prison. Because of COVID-19, he died alone. His loving sister had only a video call with him a few weeks after medical staff stopped Robert’s cancer treatments. I’ve been thinking about Robert a lot lately, because […]

Anniversary provides powerful reminder of racism that afflicts NC’s death penalty

· Kristin Collins

Reposted from N.C. Policy Watch A few months ago, my former client Robert Bacon died in the hospital at Central Prison. Because of COVID-19, he died alone. His loving sister had only a video call with him a few weeks after medical staff stopped Robert’s cancer treatments. I’ve been thinking about Robert a lot lately, because […]

NC execution chamber

This week marks the 15th anniversary of NC’s last execution. Let’s make sure we never have another

Aug 16, 2021
August 16, 2021 Today, it’s easy for most North Carolinians to forget that our state has a death penalty. It’s been fifteen years since the early morning of August 18, 2006, when the state strapped Samuel Flippen to a gurney and injected poison into his veins. He was the last person to die in Central […]

This week marks the 15th anniversary of NC’s last execution. Let’s make sure we never have another

· Kristin Collins

NC execution chamber

August 16, 2021 Today, it’s easy for most North Carolinians to forget that our state has a death penalty. It’s been fifteen years since the early morning of August 18, 2006, when the state strapped Samuel Flippen to a gurney and injected poison into his veins. He was the last person to die in Central […]

I’m still learning what freedom really means for the wrongfully convicted

May 26, 2021
When I saw Ronnie Long openly express his heartbreak and fury, I realized how I’d expected exonerees to smile and be thankful for what they were given, rather than demanding acknowledgment of the life that was stolen from them. When I saw Ronnie Long smoke a cigarette in front of a reporter’s video camera, blow out the smoke and say, “That’s freedom,” I realized how we pressure exonerees to appear perfect. In our society, the wrongfully convicted have to prove themselves worthy of freedom, just as Black people have to prove that they are well behaved enough not to be killed by police. Long made me realize that I, too, had absorbed the idea that exonerees must be model citizens to earn our sympathy.

I’m still learning what freedom really means for the wrongfully convicted

· Kristin Collins

When I saw Ronnie Long openly express his heartbreak and fury, I realized how I’d expected exonerees to smile and be thankful for what they were given, rather than demanding acknowledgment of the life that was stolen from them. When I saw Ronnie Long smoke a cigarette in front of a reporter’s video camera, blow out the smoke and say, “That’s freedom,” I realized how we pressure exonerees to appear perfect. In our society, the wrongfully convicted have to prove themselves worthy of freedom, just as Black people have to prove that they are well behaved enough not to be killed by police. Long made me realize that I, too, had absorbed the idea that exonerees must be model citizens to earn our sympathy.

Henry McCollum & Vernetta Alston

I represented an innocent man on death row. Here’s why NC must end the death penalty

May 18, 2021
In September 2014, I was sitting with Henry McCollum at the moment a judge ordered his release from death row for a crime he did not commit. Many folks in the courtroom clapped in celebration. Others embraced out of relief. It had been 30 years since Henry and his brother Leon Brown – two innocent and intellectually disabled children – had been convicted and sentenced to death in Robeson County, North Carolina. A case that had captured the country’s attention had come to an end for the two men, who had unflinchingly claimed their innocence for all those years. But Henry, the innocent man at the center of it all, remained solemn.

I represented an innocent man on death row. Here’s why NC must end the death penalty

· Kristin Collins

Henry McCollum & Vernetta Alston

In September 2014, I was sitting with Henry McCollum at the moment a judge ordered his release from death row for a crime he did not commit. Many folks in the courtroom clapped in celebration. Others embraced out of relief. It had been 30 years since Henry and his brother Leon Brown – two innocent and intellectually disabled children – had been convicted and sentenced to death in Robeson County, North Carolina. A case that had captured the country’s attention had come to an end for the two men, who had unflinchingly claimed their innocence for all those years. But Henry, the innocent man at the center of it all, remained solemn.

Wake County wanted the death penalty for a man with severe mental illness; only a pandemic stopped it

May 11, 2021
A bipartisan group of North Carolina legislators introduced a bill this week to prohibit the death penalty for people with severe mental illness. Here's a recent case that illustrates why this law is so needed: Wake County prosecutors knew that Kendrick Gregory had severe mental illness when they decided to try him capitally. In the eight months before the crime, he’d been hospitalized at least 20 times for mental illness. He checked himself into emergency rooms over and over, reporting symptoms of psychosis. On some occasions, he said he heard voices telling him to hurt himself. In the five years that they sought to try him for the death penalty, his mental illness became only more apparent. It is both immoral and unconstitutional to execute people who cannot understand or regulate their actions. Yet, in North Carolina, it remains accepted practice to try people with severe mental illness for their lives.

Wake County wanted the death penalty for a man with severe mental illness; only a pandemic stopped it

· Kristin Collins

A bipartisan group of North Carolina legislators introduced a bill this week to prohibit the death penalty for people with severe mental illness. Here’s a recent case that illustrates why this law is so needed: Wake County prosecutors knew that Kendrick Gregory had severe mental illness when they decided to try him capitally. In the eight months before the crime, he’d been hospitalized at least 20 times for mental illness. He checked himself into emergency rooms over and over, reporting symptoms of psychosis. On some occasions, he said he heard voices telling him to hurt himself. In the five years that they sought to try him for the death penalty, his mental illness became only more apparent. It is both immoral and unconstitutional to execute people who cannot understand or regulate their actions. Yet, in North Carolina, it remains accepted practice to try people with severe mental illness for their lives.

George Floyd Memorial

Chauvin trial shows that justice requires diverse, inclusive juries

Apr 22, 2021
No one should have been on the edge of their seat about the verdict in Derek Chauvin’s trial. He was caught on video kneeling on George Floyd’s neck for more than nine minutes as Floyd begged for his life. But this is America, where police are almost never held accountable, so we held our breath and prepared for Chauvin to be acquitted. But in this rare case, a jury of six white, four Black and two multiracial people provided a measure of justice, finding Chauvin guilty of murder. Surely, the jury’s diverse makeup helped it reach this much-needed verdict. Yet, it’s exactly this kind of diversity that prosecutors often work to avoid. They strike Black citizens from juries at far higher rates than whites. Then, when they’re accused of violating the law prohibiting racist jury strikes, they offer the flimsiest possible defenses. And no matter how implausible their excuses are, they almost always get away with it.

Chauvin trial shows that justice requires diverse, inclusive juries

· Kristin Collins

George Floyd Memorial

No one should have been on the edge of their seat about the verdict in Derek Chauvin’s trial. He was caught on video kneeling on George Floyd’s neck for more than nine minutes as Floyd begged for his life. But this is America, where police are almost never held accountable, so we held our breath and prepared for Chauvin to be acquitted. But in this rare case, a jury of six white, four Black and two multiracial people provided a measure of justice, finding Chauvin guilty of murder. Surely, the jury’s diverse makeup helped it reach this much-needed verdict. Yet, it’s exactly this kind of diversity that prosecutors often work to avoid. They strike Black citizens from juries at far higher rates than whites. Then, when they’re accused of violating the law prohibiting racist jury strikes, they offer the flimsiest possible defenses. And no matter how implausible their excuses are, they almost always get away with it.

CDPL Attorney Elizabeth Hambourger

Virginia just abolished its deeply racist death penalty; North Carolina must follow suit

Apr 7, 2021
This piece is reposted from N.C. Policy Watch. By Elizabeth Hambourger “This is, as we know, a historic day for Virginia. We are the first Southern state to abolish capital punishment, but we will not be the last.” — Jayne Barnard, Virginians for Alternatives to the Death Penalty, March 24, 2021 This week, Virginia became […]

Virginia just abolished its deeply racist death penalty; North Carolina must follow suit

· Kristin Collins

CDPL Attorney Elizabeth Hambourger

This piece is reposted from N.C. Policy Watch. By Elizabeth Hambourger “This is, as we know, a historic day for Virginia. We are the first Southern state to abolish capital punishment, but we will not be the last.” — Jayne Barnard, Virginians for Alternatives to the Death Penalty, March 24, 2021 This week, Virginia became […]

Newly discovered innocence cases show how old problems still haunt the N.C. death penalty

Mar 10, 2021
Last month, two new men were added to the list of innocent people who've been sentenced to death in North Carolina. Anthony Carey was sentenced to execution for a murder he took no part in, based entirely on the testimony of a 16-year-old who had made a deal with the police. The teen said that while he robbed and murdered a gas station attendant, Carey was a passenger in a getaway car parked blocks away. In exchange for that testimony, the prosecutor allowed the teen to plead guilty to second-degree murder while Carey went to death row.

Newly discovered innocence cases show how old problems still haunt the N.C. death penalty

· Kristin Collins

Last month, two new men were added to the list of innocent people who’ve been sentenced to death in North Carolina. Anthony Carey was sentenced to execution for a murder he took no part in, based entirely on the testimony of a 16-year-old who had made a deal with the police. The teen said that while he robbed and murdered a gas station attendant, Carey was a passenger in a getaway car parked blocks away. In exchange for that testimony, the prosecutor allowed the teen to plead guilty to second-degree murder while Carey went to death row.

We must remove racist symbols from North Carolina’s courthouses

Feb 18, 2021
This week, a diverse group of criminal justice leaders announced a campaign to rid North Carolina’s courthouses of Confederate symbols. At least 39 counties have these racist monuments on grounds that should be dedicated to impartial justice. The N.C. Commission on Racial and Ethnic Disparities in the Criminal Justice System says it will create a complete database of all Confederate symbols on courthouse grounds; sponsor events to educate the public on the history of these monuments, most of which were erected in the Jim Crow era as symbols of white supremacy; develop a legislative and legal strategy for monument removal; and serve as a resource for communities seeking to remove them. At NCCADP, we wholeheartedly support this work and see it as closely related to our efforts to abolish the death penalty.

We must remove racist symbols from North Carolina’s courthouses

· Kristin Collins

This week, a diverse group of criminal justice leaders announced a campaign to rid North Carolina’s courthouses of Confederate symbols. At least 39 counties have these racist monuments on grounds that should be dedicated to impartial justice. The N.C. Commission on Racial and Ethnic Disparities in the Criminal Justice System says it will create a complete database of all Confederate symbols on courthouse grounds; sponsor events to educate the public on the history of these monuments, most of which were erected in the Jim Crow era as symbols of white supremacy; develop a legislative and legal strategy for monument removal; and serve as a resource for communities seeking to remove them. At NCCADP, we wholeheartedly support this work and see it as closely related to our efforts to abolish the death penalty.

Three more federal executions planned this week will bring no justice, only cruelty and heartbreak

Jan 11, 2021
This week, the federal government plans to execute three people: Lisa Montgomery, Cory Johnson and Dustin Higgs. If all three executions are carried out, that will make 13 people executed by the Trump administration since July — all against the backdrop of a raging pandemic that has infected even the people facing execution and their […]

Three more federal executions planned this week will bring no justice, only cruelty and heartbreak

· Kristin Collins

This week, the federal government plans to execute three people: Lisa Montgomery, Cory Johnson and Dustin Higgs. If all three executions are carried out, that will make 13 people executed by the Trump administration since July — all against the backdrop of a raging pandemic that has infected even the people facing execution and their […]

Raleigh Confederate Monument

Don’t miss this new project on the Racist Roots of the NC death penalty

Oct 15, 2020
This month, the Center for Death Penalty Litigation launched an ambitious new online project, Racist Roots: Origins of North Carolina’s Death Penalty.  The project includes essays, poetry, artwork, commentary, and historical documents that place the state’s death penalty in the context of 400 years of history and expose its deep entanglement with slavery, lynching, Jim Crow, and modern systemic racism. The death penalty, the project contends, is another Confederate monument that North Carolina must tear down. Read the introduction here and then explore the rest of the project at RacistRoots.org

Don’t miss this new project on the Racist Roots of the NC death penalty

· Kristin Collins

Raleigh Confederate Monument

This month, the Center for Death Penalty Litigation launched an ambitious new online project, Racist Roots: Origins of North Carolina’s Death Penalty. 

The project includes essays, poetry, artwork, commentary, and historical documents that place the state’s death penalty in the context of 400 years of history and expose its deep entanglement with slavery, lynching, Jim Crow, and modern systemic racism. The death penalty, the project contends, is another Confederate monument that North Carolina must tear down. Read the introduction here and then explore the rest of the project at RacistRoots.org

Three More RJA Cases Decided: NC Supreme Court Removes Ms Walters, Mr Augustine, and Mr Golphin from Death Row

Sep 25, 2020
  On Friday, September 25th, 2020, Christina Walters, Quintel Augustine, and Tilmon Golphin were resentenced from death to life without parole. The North Carolina Supreme Court ruled that they had been unconstitutionally returned to death row after receiving life sentences under the state’s Racial Justice Act. The decisions in their cases are based on the […]

Three More RJA Cases Decided: NC Supreme Court Removes Ms Walters, Mr Augustine, and Mr Golphin from Death Row

· Emily Baxter

  On Friday, September 25th, 2020, Christina Walters, Quintel Augustine, and Tilmon Golphin were resentenced from death to life without parole. The North Carolina Supreme Court ruled that they had been unconstitutionally returned to death row after receiving life sentences under the state’s Racial Justice Act. The decisions in their cases are based on the […]

Supreme Court ruling shows why NC must end its racist death penalty

Aug 21, 2020
Last week, the North Carolina Supreme Court broke new ground for a state court in the South. Not only did the justices nullify a death sentence poisoned by racism, they also spoke directly to the death penalty’s “egregious legacy” of racially discriminatory application: “[t]he same racially oppressive beliefs that fueled segregation manifested themselves through public […]

Supreme Court ruling shows why NC must end its racist death penalty

· Emily Baxter

Last week, the North Carolina Supreme Court broke new ground for a state court in the South. Not only did the justices nullify a death sentence poisoned by racism, they also spoke directly to the death penalty’s “egregious legacy” of racially discriminatory application: “[t]he same racially oppressive beliefs that fueled segregation manifested themselves through public […]

N.C. Supreme Court: Racial Justice Act is key to ending death penalty racism

Aug 14, 2020
The North Carolina Supreme Court has issued a historic call for the state to address and rise above its history of excluding Black citizens from jury service and allowing racial bias to seep into the prosecution of capital cases. In the majority opinion, Chief Justice Cheri Beasley wrote, “equal protection to all must be given—not […]

N.C. Supreme Court: Racial Justice Act is key to ending death penalty racism

· Emily Baxter

The North Carolina Supreme Court has issued a historic call for the state to address and rise above its history of excluding Black citizens from jury service and allowing racial bias to seep into the prosecution of capital cases. In the majority opinion, Chief Justice Cheri Beasley wrote, “equal protection to all must be given—not […]

Wilmington Police Department

Firing racist Wilmington police officers caught on tape should be only the beginning

Jun 30, 2020
Last week, three Wilmington police officers were fired after being caught on tape making some of the most vile and racist statements imaginable. Unbelievably, their desire to gun down Black people in a race war was just one entry in a litany of shocking and despicable comments. Firing them was a good first step, but we must admit that the problem is far broader. It's time to unearth the real-life consequences of such racist attitudes.

Firing racist Wilmington police officers caught on tape should be only the beginning

· Kristin Collins

Wilmington Police Department

Last week, three Wilmington police officers were fired after being caught on tape making some of the most vile and racist statements imaginable. Unbelievably, their desire to gun down Black people in a race war was just one entry in a litany of shocking and despicable comments. Firing them was a good first step, but we must admit that the problem is far broader. It’s time to unearth the real-life consequences of such racist attitudes.

James Ferguson II on the meaning, impact and promise of the Racial Justice Act

Jun 17, 2020
  This article was originally published on June 17, 2020 in the NC Policy Watch. When I was a young Black lawyer in the late 1960’s and 1970’s, there was an unwritten rule in North Carolina’s courtrooms: Though race shaped every aspect of the criminal punishment system, we were not to mention it, let alone […]

James Ferguson II on the meaning, impact and promise of the Racial Justice Act

· Emily Baxter

  This article was originally published on June 17, 2020 in the NC Policy Watch. When I was a young Black lawyer in the late 1960’s and 1970’s, there was an unwritten rule in North Carolina’s courtrooms: Though race shaped every aspect of the criminal punishment system, we were not to mention it, let alone […]

Landmark N.C. Supreme Court ruling brings death penalty racism into spotlight

Jun 5, 2020
The Center for Death Penalty Litigation’s June 5 2020 Press Release: The North Carolina Supreme Court today issued two landmark civil rights rulings on the Racial Justice Act, clearing the way for a much-needed review of racial discrimination in death penalty cases across the state. The court decided 6-1 Friday that Rayford Burke and Andrew […]

Landmark N.C. Supreme Court ruling brings death penalty racism into spotlight

· Emily Baxter

The Center for Death Penalty Litigation’s June 5 2020 Press Release: The North Carolina Supreme Court today issued two landmark civil rights rulings on the Racial Justice Act, clearing the way for a much-needed review of racial discrimination in death penalty cases across the state. The court decided 6-1 Friday that Rayford Burke and Andrew […]

A poem from death row in honor of Covid-19 first responders

May 20, 2020
There have not yet been any reported cases of Coronavirus on North Carolina’s death row, but prisons have emerged as some of the worst hot spots for Covid-19. More than 25,000 cases have so far been diagnosed among U.S. prisoners and the numbers are increasing exponentially. Rayford Burke is 62 years old and has lived on North Carolina’s death row since 1993. In prison, Rayford has taken up writing and become a keen observer of the world. Here we share his most recent work, a poem in honor of Covid-19 first responders.

A poem from death row in honor of Covid-19 first responders

· Kristin Collins

There have not yet been any reported cases of Coronavirus on North Carolina’s death row, but prisons have emerged as some of the worst hot spots for Covid-19. More than 25,000 cases have so far been diagnosed among U.S. prisoners and the numbers are increasing exponentially. Rayford Burke is 62 years old and has lived on North Carolina’s death row since 1993. In prison, Rayford has taken up writing and become a keen observer of the world. Here we share his most recent work, a poem in honor of Covid-19 first responders.

Faye Brown

A Covid-19 death sentence showcases an inhumane and illogical punishment system

May 13, 2020
Last week, the state announced that an unnamed prisoner had become the first person to die from a Covid-19 outbreak at North Carolina Women’s Prison. The person was Faye Brown, and her death is the end of a 45-year story that demonstrates the cruelty and excess of our punishment system. In a humane system, this 67-year-old woman who reformed herself in every way possible would have gotten a second chance at life in the free world. In that world, she would have had at least the possibility of protecting herself from a deadly virus. But in our system, which prides itself on unending punishment at any cost, a life sentence turned into a death sentence.

A Covid-19 death sentence showcases an inhumane and illogical punishment system

· Kristin Collins

Faye Brown

Last week, the state announced that an unnamed prisoner had become the first person to die from a Covid-19 outbreak at North Carolina Women’s Prison. The person was Faye Brown, and her death is the end of a 45-year story that demonstrates the cruelty and excess of our punishment system. In a humane system, this 67-year-old woman who reformed herself in every way possible would have gotten a second chance at life in the free world. In that world, she would have had at least the possibility of protecting herself from a deadly virus. But in our system, which prides itself on unending punishment at any cost, a life sentence turned into a death sentence.

Justices' benches at the Supreme Court of the State of North Carolina

NC Supreme Court sends a message to judges: Start taking jury discrimination seriously

May 6, 2020
In these days of COVID, it’s easy to be overwhelmed by bad news. But we shouldn’t forget to celebrate good news, and we’ve had a little of that in the past week. On Friday, the North Carolina Supreme Court issued a decision that sends a clear message: North Carolina’s courts must finally begin to take the exclusion of black jurors seriously. The decision says that, when a person on trial suggests that a prosecutor struck a  juror because of the juror’s race, the courts must fully investigate. They must consider the history of disproportionate jury strikes in the county, and compare the treatment of white people and people of color in the jury pool to see if it’s been equal. If these sound like no brainers, that’s because they are. This is the least the courts can do to begin to end the decades-long practice of denying people of color a voice in the criminal punishment system.

NC Supreme Court sends a message to judges: Start taking jury discrimination seriously

· Kristin Collins

Justices' benches at the Supreme Court of the State of North Carolina

In these days of COVID, it’s easy to be overwhelmed by bad news. But we shouldn’t forget to celebrate good news, and we’ve had a little of that in the past week. On Friday, the North Carolina Supreme Court issued a decision that sends a clear message: North Carolina’s courts must finally begin to take the exclusion of black jurors seriously. The decision says that, when a person on trial suggests that a prosecutor struck a  juror because of the juror’s race, the courts must fully investigate. They must consider the history of disproportionate jury strikes in the county, and compare the treatment of white people and people of color in the jury pool to see if it’s been equal. If these sound like no brainers, that’s because they are. This is the least the courts can do to begin to end the decades-long practice of denying people of color a voice in the criminal punishment system.