Unit 1012 Cover Photo

Unit 1012 Cover Photo

Wednesday, October 30, 2013

THE THREE MUSKETEERS OF CALIFORNIA: A TRIO OF FORMER CALIFORNIA GOVERNORS SPEAK OUT TO DEFEND THE DEATH PENALTY (OCTOBER 30, 2012)


Pete Wilson, George Deukmejian and Gray Davis (PHOTO SOURCE: http://www.kmvt.com/news/regional/176609881.html)

 



                On this date, October 30, 2012, a trio of former California Governors, where we nickname them The Three Musketeers, spoke out against Proposition 34 and encouraged the voters to preserve the death penalty.

            Unit 1012 respects them for upholding the death penalty law and not giving into the Abolitionist. We, the comrades of Unit 1012, do not want leaders in the state to support the death penalty for political gain but for justice and protection in the state.

            As one of the Seven Good Judges, Wee Chong Jin who was the First Chief Justice of Singapore for 27 years (1963 to 1990) once said:


“I hope the day will never come when the guilt or innocence of anyone in Singapore is decided by politics. Your guilt or innocence on this charge is decided by the law of the land, by the courts and by the judges. No one, least of all a politician, is above the law. The law is enacted by Parliament.”

        In this case, it is the State of California, not Singapore, Unit 1012 wants leaders that enforce capital punishment and victims’ rights for justice and protection, not for political gain. Please see the following articles of the event.

 


George Deukmejian A.K.A Courken George Deukmejian, Jr. (born June 6, 1928) is an American politician who as a Republican served as the 35th governor of California (1983–1991) and as California Attorney General (1979–1983).

Trio of former California governors seeks to preserve death penalty
October 30, 2012|Alex Dobuzinskis | Reuters

LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - A trio of former California governors urged voters on Tuesday to preserve the death penalty in the state by defeating a ballot initiative seeking to abolish capital punishment on cost grounds, and a recent poll showed the measure gaining support but falling short of passing.

The initiative, if passed by voters next week, would automatically commute the sentences of 725 death row inmates in California, which has nearly a quarter of the nation's condemned prisoners but has executed none in the last six years.

"Prop. 34 is a horrible injustice," said former Democratic Governor Gray Davis, referring to the ballot proposition. "Like a giant eraser, it would wipe out the death penalty convictions of 700 killers on death row."

Those convicts are responsible for killing 200 children and 43 police officers, said Davis, who was governor from 1999 to 2003 and who was joined in opposing death penalty repeal by former Republican governors Pete Wilson and George Deukmejian.

"Don't let the bad guys on death row win," Davis said. The governors were joined at a Los Angeles hotel by relatives of murder victims, prosecutors and police officers.

California Governor Jerry Brown, a Democrat, and his Republican predecessor, Arnold Schwarzenegger, have been silent on the initiative.

The push by the former governors follows a poll of 1,504 registered voters released on Friday by USC Dornsife and the Los Angeles Times that showed support for repeal at 42 percent, with 45 percent opposed. The poll had a margin of error of 2.9 percent.

Those numbers represented a much narrower gap than in a September survey by the same group that showed the pro-repeal side at 38 percent compared to 51 percent who wanted to keep the death penalty.

The polling boost was welcomed by the campaign to end the death penalty, even if ballot initiatives are generally seen by political observers as unlikely to succeed without crossing the crucial 50 percent threshold in polls leading up to an election.

Seventeen U.S. states and the District of Columbia do not allow the death penalty. The referendum comes as the American Civil Liberties Union and other backers of the ballot initiative are taking a new approach by emphasizing the cost of the death penalty.

Death penalty costs are driven by mandated appeals and a shortage of public lawyers qualified to handle capital cases.

An independent budget watchdog, the Legislative Analyst's Office, has said repealing the death penalty in California could initially save $100 million a year, later growing to $130 million a year.

The group behind the initiative held a news conference on Tuesday featuring relatives of victims in death row cases.

"I know how it feels like to have an innocent person you love murdered," Bethany Webb, whose sister was killed last year in a southern California shooting spree, said in a statement.

"I want no part of the execution of an innocent person. I passionately believe that if a yes on 34 vote could save even one innocent life, it would be worth it," she said.

(Reporting By Alex Dobuzinskis; Editing by Cynthia Johnston and Christopher Wilson)


Pete Wilson A.K.A Peter Barton "Pete" Wilson (born August 23, 1933) was an American politician from California. Wilson is a Republican who has served as the 36th governor of California (1991–1999), a United States Senator (1983–1991), the Mayor of San Diego (1971–1983) and a California State Assemblyman (1967–1971).

3 ex-governors oppose Calif. death-penalty repeal

AP Political Writer
Published: Tuesday, Oct. 30, 2012 - 12:59 pm
Last Modified: Tuesday, Oct. 30, 2012 - 3:50 pm

Three former California governors joined prosecutors and families of murder victims Tuesday to urge voters to reject a ballot proposal next week that would abolish the state's death penalty.

Appearing at downtown Los Angeles hotel, Democrat Gray Davis and Republicans Pete Wilson and George Deukmejian warned that Proposition 34 would erase history, punish victims' relatives and potentially free imprisoned killers.

There are more than 700 inmates on California's death row, though no executions have occurred since 2006 because of pending lawsuits. 

The proposal "is a horrible injustice. ... These people had their day in court," Davis said. "Do not let the bad guys on death row win."

Wilson called the proposition "a travesty ... re-opening heartbreak."

The American Civil Liberties Union and other supporters say $4 billion has been spent since 1978 to house death row inmates and on court appeals that grind on for years. They argue that the money could be used to investigate unsolved murder and rape cases.

If voters approve Proposition 34, inmates awaiting execution would have their sentences converted to life in prison without the chance of parole. In addition, $100 million in grants would be doled out to law enforcement agencies over the next four years to investigate cold cases.

But the governors disputed the savings estimates and argued that far more would be lost in suffering by victims' families if the courtroom sentences are set aside.

Also, opponents say those sentences could be commuted in the future, possibly freeing murderers once on death row.

"We've had enough crime victims in this state," Wilson said.

Gov. Jerry Brown, a Democrat with a history of opposing the death penalty, has not announced a position on the proposal.

Former NFL star Kermit Alexander, whose mother, sister and two nephews were murdered in a botched 1984 contract killing, struggled to keep his composure when recalling his family members. Prosecutors said the killers had been looking for another woman but went to the wrong house.

Alexander said he has forgiven triggerman Tiequon Cox, who was sentenced to death, but "it doesn't erase the consequences."

Thirteen executions have been carried out since the death penalty was reinstated in California 35 years ago. During that same period, 89 death row inmates have died of natural causes, suicide or murder. 


Gray Davis A.K.A Joseph Graham "Gray" Davis, Jr. (born December 26, 1942) is an American Democratic politician who served as California's 37th Governor from 1999 until being recalled in 2003.

Three governors sing: Save the death penalty

Gray Davis is righteous — in favor of the death penalty and against Proposition 34. This week the Democrat joined two other former California governors, Republicans Pete Wilson and George Deukmejian, at a press conference urging voters to reject Prop. 34. It was like Three Tenors, but for public safety.

Wilson noted that those who make it to death row are guilty of “unimaginable cruelty,” as they committed not only murders, but also other crimes. Death-row inmates are responsible for 90 victims of torture. Deukmejian said that he believes “life is sacred,” and society must do all it can to protect the innocent.

While former and now present governor Jerry Brown did not attend the press conference, he did tell the Chronicle editorial board that there are no innocent inmates on death row. As California’s former attorney general, he should know.

This video is a must-see because it also stars Phyllis Loya, whose police officer son Larry Lasater was slain in the line of duty,  whom the Piedmont League of Women Voters would not invite to speak at its forum supporting Proposition 34. It seems there is a lot that Prop. 34 backers don’t want you to know.

If you are looking for more information on the criminal justice system, try the Crime and Consequences blog.

Posted By: Debra J. Saunders ( Email , Twitter ) | Nov 03 at 6:37 am

PLEASE WATCH THESE TWO VIDEOS TO HEAR THE GOVERNORS SPEAK: