Death penalty opponents, exonerated inmates gather in Chicago

By BENNIE M. CURRIE, 

CHICAGO - Former death row inmates gathered with activists to draw attention to flaws in the administration of capital punishment and encourage outgoing Gov. George Ryan to grant clemency to all inmates on death row.

Ryan, who in 2000 imposed a moratorium on executions in Illinois, is considering the clemency petitions of more than 140 death row inmates.

Forty former death row inmates from around the country spoke briefly about their cases at the Center on Wrongful Convictions at Northwestern University's law school.

They opened the afternoon of speechmaking by talking briefly about the details of their cases, then lighting a candle before taking a seat.

"It's like a death row reunion," said Ronald Jones, a former Illinois death-row inmate cleared by a DNA test in 1999.

Two of the inmates � including Kirk Bloodsworth, who became the first U.S. death row inmate to be exonerated through DNA evidence in 1993 � read a letter asking Ryan to grant clemency to all prisoners on Illinois' death row.

"Others just like us remain on death row today, still waiting for the miracle to come," Bloodsworth said.

 Center director Lawrence Marshall also asked for a blanket clemency.

 "How do we tell the mother of a death row inmate that we have to kill your son even though we know the system is wrong ... to bring closure to other people?" Marshall asked.

 The gathering, which continues Monday, comes amid increased efforts between capital punishment's supporters and opponents to influence the Republican governor just a month before he leaves office.

 Last month, a group of retired judges urged Ryan in a letter to commute the death sentences of any inmate whose conviction was tainted by flaws in Illinois' capital punishment system.

 Family members of the victims of those inmates recently met with Ryan and urged him not to commute the death sentences to life in prison. 

National Gathering of Exonerees Features Plea for Clemency

    As Illinois Governor George Ryan considers the clemency requests of more than 150 death row inmates, death row exonerees from across the nation urged him to grant the commutations in order to prevent the possible execution of an innocent person on death row. The former death row inmates were gathered at Northwestern University in the country's largest assembly ever of exonerated death row prisoners and prominent advocates for capital punishment reform. The event featured 40 of the nation's 102 death row exonerees, many of whom shared their personal stories and asked Ryan to prevent a similar tragedy from happening again in Illinois. "Others just like us remain on death row today, still waiting for the miracle to come," said Kirk Bloodsworth, the nation's first DNA exoneree from death row. On Monday, the exonerees will present Governor Ryan with a letter supporting the commutations.

December 15, 2002