In Favor of a Moratorium on the Death Penalty: the Cba Position

• Publication year: 2001
• Pages: 47
• Citation: Vol. 30 No. 8 Pg. 47

30 Colo.Law. 47 Colorado Lawyer 2001.

2001, August, Pg. 47. In Favor of a Moratorium on the Death Penalty: The CBA Position

---

47

Vol. 30, No. 8, Pg. 47

The Colorado Lawyer
August 2001
Vol. 30, No. 8 [Page 47]

Features

CBA Board of Governors' Resolution on a Death Penalty Moratorium: Two Viewpoints

In Favor of a Moratorium on the Death Penalty: The CBA Position

by Lorraine E. Parker

CBA Board of Governors Representative for the Denver Bar Association and partner with the firm of Montgomery, Kolodny Amatuzio, Dusbabek & Parker, L.L.P

After extensive and spirited discussion, the Colorado Bar Association Board of Governors voted in favor of joining the American Bar Association in calling for a moratorium on executions in the United States. The Resolution was originally presented two years ago by the Pueblo County Bar Association, but had been tabled to allow the Board of Governors representatives an opportunity to discuss the moratorium with their individual bar associations. In addition, at the time it was originally presented, a number of the studies on the subject were fairly recent, or incomplete, and the representatives needed additional time to study the issues. The additional time resulted in a gathering of broader views

Recent studies and reports of individual cases have raised legitimate concerns that the death penalty is being imposed in an arbitrary and discriminatory manner in some states. Studies have demonstrated that African Americans and members of other minority groups are more likely to be sentenced to death than whites, and that the death penalty is more frequently pursued when the victim is white. A number of innocent people have been sentenced to death, particularly in Illinois, where the governor declared a moratorium on the death penalty until the problems could be corrected. The CBA Board of Governors heard firsthand about serious deficiencies in some states, such as Texas, in the experience and abilities of many of the attorneys appointed by the state to defend capital cases. The statistics and experience in other states justify taking a closer look at how the death penalty is applied.

It is important to emphasize that the CBA Board of Governors' Resolution did not state an opinion for or against the death penalty, state an opinion on Colorado's death penalty system, nor call for an end to the death penalty. The...