Quixote Center Press Release: MARYLAND GOVERNOR DECLARES MORATORIUM ON EXECUTIONS

Quixote Center
PO Box 5206 Hyattsville, MD 20782
301/699-0042 301/864-2182 (fax) For Immediate Release
Thursday, May 9, 2002 Contact: Jane Henderson (Quixote Center)
301-699-0042 office
240-604-7329 cell

Maryland Governor Declares Moratorium on Executions

Concern of racial bias and other fairness issues fuel halt

Maryland Governor Parris Glendening declared a halt to all executions in his state today pending release and General Assembly review of a study of racial bias currently in progress at the University of Maryland College Park. The executive order comes as Maryland was preparing to execute Wesley Baker next week.

Lt. Governor Kathleen Kennedy Townsend called for a moratorium last week, just before she announced her bid for Governor.

"Governor Glendening and Lieutenant Governor Townsend have done the right thing in standing up for fairness and equal protection under the law," said Jane Henderson of the Quixote Center's Moratorium Now! campaign. "Charges of racial bias have plagued Maryland's death penalty from the start. While the study was a good first step, the moratorium demonstrates that the Governor's office has finally gotten serious about ensuring civil rights."

A grassroots coalition spearheaded by the Quixote Center, the Maryland Catholic Conference, Amnesty International, and others has been actively pressuring the Executive and legislature to halt executions over the last several years. The coalition won a significant victory last March when the Maryland House of Delegates passed a moratorium bill 82-54. A filibuster in the Senate precluded the anticipated majority vote in that house.

Also last March, 400 Marylanders including members of Congress Al Wynn (4th District), Connie A. Morella (8th District), and Elijah E. Cummings (7th District), Baltimore Mayor Martin O'Malley, the Honorable Andrew L. Sonner (Associate Judge, Court of Special Appeals), former Congressman Michael D. Barnes, filmmaker John Waters, council members from Prince George's and Montgomery counties and Baltimore City also signed a Baltimore Sun ad organized by Moratorium Now!, urging state legislators and the Governor to impose a moratorium.

Moratorium Now! is a four-year-old, national campaign of the Quixote Center working with state and local groups nationwide to build a broad base of grassroots support for a moratorium. Moratorium bills were introduced in 14 other states across the country this year. Over 2,000 national and local groups, municipalities and faith communities have called for a moratorium on executions. Among those are 72 local governments, including Philadelphia, Cincinnati, San Francisco, Atlanta, Tallahassee, Nashville and Detroit. (For a complete listing, call 301-699-0042 or see the National Tally at http://www.quixote.org/ej).

To learn more about the Moratorium Now! campaign, visit www.quixote.org/ej. For more death penalty information, visit www.deathpenaltyinfo.org. # # #