The Moratorium Campaign


Death Penalty:	YES
Prohibit Execution of the Mentally Retarded:	NO. However, this state must draft legislation with clear and unambiguous language prohibiting executions of persons with an IQ of less than 70 in order to reflect the recent United States Supreme Court decision Atkins v. Virginia, which held that such executions are unconstitutional.
Life Without Parole:	YES
Minimum Age to Eligible for the Death Penalty:	16 (2 juveniles on death row)
Number on Death Row:	26
Executions Since 1976:	87
Race of Defendants:	15 white (58%), 10 black (38%), 1 Asian (4%)
Race of Victims:	unknown
Racial Make-up of State Population:	70% white, 20% black, 5% Hispanic, 4% Asian
Innocents Exonerated:	YES (1)—Earl Washington was released in 2000 after serving 16 years on death row.
Columbia University Study Rate of Error in Capital Cases:	18%
Murder Rate:	6.2 per 100,000 (ranked 22nd out of 51
Governor:	Mark Warner, (Democrat),
Presidential Vote:	53% Bush, 44% Gore, 2% Nader
Organizations Endorsing a Moratorium:	City of Blacksburg City of Charlottesville City of Lexington Alliance of Baptists, Virginia Chapter Council American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) of Virginia Amnesty International, Group 157 (Crozet) The Arc of Virginia Arlington County Civic Federation Catholic High School (Virginia Beach) Center for Radical Honesty (Stanley) Charlottesville Center for Peace and Justice (Charlottesville) Charlottesville-Albermarle Bar Association (Charlottesville) Church of the Brethren, Virlina District Conference Church of the Good Shepherd (Smithfield) Church of the Incarnation (Charlottesville) Church of the Resurrection (Moneta) Church of the Sacred Heart (Petersburg) Church of the Sacred Heart, Pastoral Council (Petersburg) Common Ground Network for Peace, Justice, and the Environment (Harrisonburgh) Daughters of Wisdom, Southern Region (Virginia Beach) Episcopal Diocese of Southwestern Virginia Episcopal Diocese of Virginia First Unitarian Church of Richmond (Richmond) Fredericksburg Free Lance Star (Fredericksburg) General Strike Collective (Richmond) Harrisonburg/Rockingham County Bar Association Holy Spirit Parish (Virginia Beach) Holy Trinity Parish (Norfolk) Little Flower Catholic Worker (Goochland) Lynchburg News & Advance (Lynchburg) Manassas Church of the Brethren Methodist Federation for Social Action, Virginia Chapter National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) of Virginia Pax Christi Huddleston (Huddleston) Pax Christi Richmond (Richmond) Peninsula Peace Education Center (Newport News) Potomac News Prince of Peace Catholic Church (Chesapeake) Religious Society of Friends, Alexandria Monthly Meeting of Friends at Woodlawn (Alexandria) Religious Society of Friends, Charlottesville Monthly Meeting (Charlottesville) Religious Society of Friends, Goose Creek Friends Meeting (Lincoln) Religious Society of Friends, Herndon Friends Meeting (Herndon) Religious Society of Friends, Langley Hill Friends Meeting (McLean) Religious Society of Friends, Maury River Friends Meeting, Lexington Religious Society of Friends, Quaker Lake Friends Meeting (Keysville) Religious Society of Friends, Richmond Friends Meeting (Richmond) Religious Society of Friends, Roanoke Monthly Meeting (Roanoke) Religious Society of Friends, Valley Friends Meeting (Dayton) Religious Society of Friends, Virginia Beach Friends Meeting (Virginia Beach) Richmond Free Press Richmond Peace Education Center (Richmond) Roanoke Times (Roanoke) Roman Catholic Diocese of Richmond, Haitian Commission (Richmond) Roman Catholic Diocese of Richmond, Office of Justice and Peace (Richmond) Roman Catholic Diocese of Richmond, Presbyteral Council (Richmond) Roundtable on Poverty (Wytheville) Sacred Heart Catholic Church (Norfolk) Sisters of the Holy Cross (Richmond) Social Action Linking Together (SALT) (Vienna) Southwest Virginia Enterprise Spirituality of the Feminine In Action (Falls Church) St. Anthony of Padua Catholic Church (Falls Church) St. Edward's (Richmond) St. Francis of Assisi Parish (Arlington) St. Francis of Assisi Pax Christi (Triangle) St. Jerome Catholic Church, Pastoral Council (Newport News) St. Jude Catholic Church (Radford) St. Mark's Episcopal Church (Richmond) St. Mary the Mother of God Catholic Church (Wytheville) St. Nicholas Catholic Church (Virginia Beach) St. Pius X Catholic Church (Norfolk) Star of the Sea Parish (Virginia Beach) State Legislative Black Caucus Staunton News-Leader Tidewater Sowers of Justice Unitarian Universalists in Arlington (Arlington) United Methodist Church, Virginia Annual Conference Virginia Coalition for Juvenile Justice Virginia College of Criminal Defense Attorneys Virginia Council of Churches (Richmond) Virginia Democratic Central Committee Virginia Democratic Committee The Virginia Organizing Project (Charlottesville) Virginia People of Faith for Alternatives to the Death Penalty (Richmond) Virginia Trial Lawyers Association (Richmond) Virginian-Pilot (Hampton Roads) Virginians Against Domestic Violence (abolition) (Williamsburg) Virginians for Alternatives to the Death Penalty Voices that Challenge, Catholic High School Warren County Bar Association
Organizations Working FOR a Moratorium:	ACLU of Virginia 6 North 6th Street Suite 400 Richmond, VA 23219 Kent Willis-contact 804-644-8022--(day) 804-649-2733--(fax) [email protected] www.members.aol.com/acluva/ Amnesty International State Death Penalty Abolition Coordinator Joan Betz-contact 703-361-8066--(eve) [email protected] Amnesty International State Death Penalty Abolition Coordinator Henry Heller-contact 804-263-1848-(phone) [email protected] Quaker Lake Friends Meeting* Rt. 2, Box 112N Keysville, VA 23947 Tim Lietzke-contact 804-223-4160--(day) Virginia Capital Representation Resource Center 2421 Ivy Rd. Ste. 301 Charlottesville, VA 22903 Rob Lee-contact 804-817-2970-(day) 804-817-2972-(fax) [email protected] Virginians For Alternatives to the Death Penalty* P.O. Box 4804 Charlottesville, VA 22905 Henry Heller-contact 804-263-8148-(phone) 804-263-4431-(fax) [email protected] www.vadp.org
Clemency:	The Governor has full authority to grant clemency. The Governor also has the power to commute a death sentence to life imprisonment without the consent of the convict.
Who Decides Sentence:	Jury
Method of Execution:	Virginia authorizes both lethal injection and electrocution. Lethal injection is used if the inmate fails to choose

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