VICTORY FOR JUSTICE!
New Jersey Abolishes
Death PenaltyThanks in great part to the relentless work of many, including Caldwell Dominican Sisters and Associates, the New Jersey legislature voted to repeal the death penalty and replace it with life without possibility for parole. Lois Seeligsohn, Caldwell Associate and a member of the New Jerseyans for Alternatives to the Death Penalty (NJADP) leadership team, sparked Caldwell's participation in the struggle. NJADP prevailed when the New Jersey Assembly, after 2 1/2 hours of floor speeches, voted 43 to 36 to abolish the death penalty in NJ. John Goodwin commented, “December 13, 2007 was not an easy afternoon, but it was a successful afternoon.” Governor Corzine signed the bill into law on Monday, December 17, 2007
Sister Helen Prejean, CSJ, author of Dead Man Walking and The Death of Innocents, was present as a guest speaker at the formal bill signing in Trenton.
In her remarks, Sister Helen said,
“New Jersey will be a beacon of light
for the world!”There is a re-sentencing provision in the abolition bill for current death row inmates. Upon request through their lawyers, those inmates will be re-sentenced to life without possibility of parole. No death row inmate will be released from prison as a result of passage of this bill. . The eight death row inmates will serve life without parole sentences now.
Rome plans to flush golden light through the arches of the Colosseum for 24 hours in celebration of New Jersey's abolishment of the death penalty. The Italian capital will conduct a special run of electricity through the world's most famous arena out of an agreement with an international lay Catholic group, The Community of Sant'Egidio, which advocates ending the death penalty worldwide.
This hard-won victory ratifies the Caldwell Dominican Congregation’s 2002 corporate stance against the death penalty. On the occasion of the formal bill signing, Associate Lois Seeligsohn stated, “The New Jersey bill is a testament that we really believe what Jesus taught – no one, no matter how depraved, is beyond redemption. And, as the U.S. Bishops proclaimed recently, God alone is the Lord of Life, from conception to natural death. Thank you all so very much for this long pro-life struggle.”