NASSAU COUNTY CIVIC ASSOCIATION, INC.
"The government is us, we are the government, you and I." Teddy Roosevelt
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NASSAU COUNTY CIVIC ASSOCIATION, INC. "The government is us, we are the government, you and I." Teddy Roosevelt |
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March 11, 2005
Criminal rights over victims rights
How the legislature put criminals first
In 2004, a divided New York Court of Appeals ruled four to three that New York’s death penalty statute was unconstitutional. The ruling effectively commuted the death sentences of the few inmates on death row and left our state without the option of seeking the death penalty. While this was a signature issue of George Pataki’s (R) 1994 campaign for governor, he has failed to aggressively champion passage of a new death penalty law. Assembly Speaker, Sheldon Silver (D) Manhattan who controls the Assembly, recently questioned the need for the law.
A bill reinstating the death penalty is currently stalled in the Assembly’s Judiciary Committee chaired by Assemblywomen Helene Weinstein (D) Brooklyn. If the bill is voted down in committee, the bill will be blocked from consideration by the entire Assembly. While the Assembly can vote to discharge the bill out of committee, it is unlikely as the Speaker controls the committees. If the bill is discharged from the committee, there appears to be enough votes to pass the bill.
The death penalty law that was declared unconstitutional was known to be poorly written. Instead of incorporating safe guards to protect those subject to a death penalty prosecution, the law incorporated provisions which gave prosecutors excessively broad discretion that resulted in minimal death penalty prosecutions. One recalls the outright refusal of Bronx District Attorney, Robert Johnson to seek the death penalty for a cop killer based on his personal opposition to the death penalty. Even though a special prosecutor was appointed in that case, the Bronx DA continued to use his “discretion” to decline any death penalty prosecution in those cases that qualified. The same can be said for the Manhattan District Attorney. Even though there were thousands of murders while the law was in effect, less then ten killers were ultimately sentenced to death.
While the focus has been on the court’s recent ruling, this was not the first time the court ruled that the death penalty statute was unconstitutional. In the previous ruling, the court overturned the last remaining provision of the statute; those who commit murder while incarcerated. Lemuel Smith, who was serving a life sentence for murder, was sentenced to death for the subsequent murder of Correction Officer Donna Payne. The ruling effectively commuted his sentence to life.
On September 10, 2004, two New York City Police Detectives were murdered, Detective Patrick Rafferty and Detective Bobby Parker. Due to applicable federal law; the U.S. Justice Department agreed to take over the prosecution of the alleged shooter and will seek the death penalty. This is not the case for other recent victims like Thomas Renison of Glen Cove and James Gottlieb of Franklin Square who were each murdered in the course of another felony, armed robbery. Each of these murders would certainly qualify for a first degree murder charge if the death penalty statute was still in effect.
While many have complained that the Rockefeller drug laws were too draconian, these laws along with the requirement that violent felon’s serve the majority of their sentence have contributed to the dramatic reduction in crime. While the case for reforming the Rockefeller drug laws was compelling, why was it a priority of the legislature?
Those who were sentenced under the Rockefeller Drug Laws were lawfully convicted of drug charges. The decision to repeal the sentencing provisions had nothing to do with prison overcrowding or fiscal issues as the number of inmates have decreased along with the related costs. This action clearly benefited criminals. Those who are victimized by the brutal murder of a loved one did nothing wrong and are victims.
In the world of politics, every issue is complicated and is often viewed in shades of gray. While this concept has been effective in the past, circumstances have dictated a clear message; the rights of criminals take precedence over the rights of victims. If this is inaccurate, the legislature should take action to dispel this message and reinstate a viable death penalty statute.