Weekly Report from the Board Meeting at Holman Prison 3.26.25
Alabama has set 4.24.25 as the execution date for James Osgood. As per Mr. Osgood’s request there will be no appeals to contact Governor Ivey and no protests against his execution.
We received a request for a written interview for a research project and our Advisory Board Member Paul Labatte did an outstanding job in answering the questions regarding sentencing for crimes involving adults or juveniles.
There was some very sad news from Jamila Hodge, Chief Executive Officer of Equal Justice USA: “I’m writing to announce an agonizing decision that we had to make at Equal Justice USA. We are ending our direct, on-the-ground organizing work to end the death penalty. This includes our Death Penalty Program and Conservatives Concerned.” The good news for us is that Sam Heath, manager of the Evangelical Network Equal Justice USA will not be leaving and will continue the great work he is doing in Alabama. We are grateful!
We are pleased to be able to report that the latest edition of Wings of Hope is on its way to the printer. We always breathe a sigh of relief when we have accomplished this one more time!
Esther was fortunate to be able to view a Death Penalty Focus webinar, “How Science Exposes the Death Penalty’s Deadly Flaws,” with Stanford Professor Robert Sapolsky, author of Behave, a NY Times bestseller, and a Washington Post “Ten Best Books of the Year” selection.
The discussion focused on the biology of humans and the fact that one cannot understand why we do what we do without considering the biological origins of that behavior. Dr. Sapolsky maintains that “the criminal justice system is staggeringly outdated in incorporating neuroscience into its thinking.” We agree!
”His work has clear implications for our criminal legal system. He has participated as an expert in homicide trials and has been invited to give lectures and participate in conferences with judges and others in the criminal legal system.” Dr. Philip Hansten was the moderator.
We thank all who are working so hard and diligently to stop all killing in Alabama! And as always in closing, we thank all our generous donors who either gave by going to our website and using the “donate” button or who gave directly. Thank you also to all who took the time to read our notes, commented, liked and shared them on Facebook. Stay safe and be kind to each other!
Esther
