In 2004, New York’s Court of Appeals ruled that the death penalty statute, enacted under Governor Pataki, was unconstitutional. The Court’s ruling led to a period of study and public hearings by the New York State Assembly culminating in a report issued in April of 2005. In June of 2006, the Assembly Codes Committee voted 13-5 against reinstatement of the death penalty. However, there is nothing to stop a death penalty bill from being revived in the future. This is why it is important for you to know your next District Attorney’s position on this defining moral issue.
I have always opposed the death penalty on principle and on practical grounds and I would vigorously oppose any efforts to reinstate the death penalty in New York.
Numerous studies in our state and others – going back as far as 1846 – have concluded that the death penalty does not deter crime. Indeed, FBI statistics show that the murder rate in death penalty states is 44% greater than in non-death penalty states. Quite rightly, the courts are reluctant to use the death penalty. Consequently, death penalty cases result in protracted appeals that take many years to finalize. The majority of appeals lead to the reversal of convictions because of serious errors and deficiencies in the process that might have led to the death of an innocent person. The death penalty cruelly exacerbates racial injustice since it is most likely to be imposed on African-American and Latino men.
While support of the death penalty may seem good politics, it is not smart law enforcement – as shown by our experience in Manhattan. Using smart law enforcement techniques, the Manhattan DA’s Office and the NYPD have succeeded in reducing homicides in Manhattan from 661 in 1974 to 61 last year, the lowest number since 1937 – without needing the death penalty.