MURDER VICTIMS' FAMILIES
Many murder victims’ families do not support the death penalty (including 3 national murder victims’ families organizations). Some oppose it in principle, while others feel that the system damages survivors though its cumbersome and lengthy process while failing to provide them with the resources they need to move forward. Murder Victims Families for Reconciliation and The Journey of Hope are victims' advocacy groups that oppose the death penalty. People who have lost loved ones to murder founded these organizations. They provide support to family members of murder victims. Many of their members tour the country, explaining their opposition to the death penalty. The speakers' stories contrast starkly with the myths often used to support the death penalty, such as its perceived cathartic power for victims. After an execution, many victims are left with the same gnawing pain and anger they hoped the execution would ease. "Unfortunately, the prosecutors don't have a desire to see the victims heal," Bill Pelke (a murder victim family member) says. "They want to keep the victim angry and go to the courtroom and let the jury see the tears." The lengthy appeals that inevitably follow a death sentence force a grieving family to revisit the murder -- "to relive it and relive it and relive it," Pelke says. "It's like opening the wound again." A 2000 Columbia Law School study found that over 2/3 of capital cases were overturned. High reversal rates mean higher costs for the state, painful delays for victims’ families, and a warning that there is something seriously wrong with the system (REF). We owe it to families of murder victims to have in place a system of punishment that is swift, sure and just. The death penalty has proven time and again to fail on every one of those counts. Unlike capital cases, Life Without Parole (LWOP) brings a swift sense of justice to victim’s families. It is the sensible alternative to protect society and help victims' families.
For more information, please visit Montana Murder Victims for Healing Montana murder victims for healing