FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
- FLORIDA MAY 2000
WHAT HAPPENED TO ANTHONY PORTER IN ILLINOIS
OCCURS MORE OFTEN THAN YOU MAY THINK.
JUST NOW THIS NIGHTMARE HAPPENS TO BENNIE DEMPS IN
FLORIDA
Last Friday, Chief Circuit Judge
Robert Cates denied 49 year old Bennie
Demps a stay of execution despite
recently uncovered evidence which
would prove his innocence in the 1976
murder of Alfred Sturgis. The
court chose to turn a blind eye to due
process and decreed this evidence
inadmissible.
At the time of his
warrant, Mr Demps had an appeal pending which would
have given him the chance
to present new evidence of his innocence.
With total disregard to the
possibility of Bennie Demps being innocent,
and despite this new evidence,
Governor Jeb Bush proceeded to sign his
death warrant.
Concern is
growing nationally, as well as globally, that hundreds of
innocent men are
awaiting execution, and have in fact been executed in
error due to issues of
wrongful conviction. Florida, too, is on record
as having executed men
with an extremely high probability of being
innocent, and history seems ready
to repeat itself if Governor Bush and
the courts have their way with Bennie
Demps. We now risk that Florida
will again execute an innocent
man.
The Death Penalty Information Center states that for every six
persons
executed since the death penalty was reinstated twenty three years
ago,
one was found to be innocent. Given such high statistics,
all
concerned, ethical citizens of Florida should urge the courts
and
Governor Bush to give a stay of execution to investigate fully Mr.
Demps
claims and evidence of innocence, and to make 100% sure that
another
innocent is not needlessly executed.
Presently, there is no
security net to protect those claiming innocence,
and this is extremely
dangerous. Despite certain fundamental guarantees
that are in place to
protect us legally, when faced with a death
sentence, there should be every
effort made to guarantee that this is
more than mere lip-service. If
there is no statute of limitations
involved with charging someone with
murder, then there should also be no
time limits put upon the proving of
someone's innocence.
Concerned citizens, professionals, and resource
persons all over the
United States and Europe are aware of what is happening
to Bennie Demps,
and concern is growing. When it comes to the death
penalty, there is no
room for mistakes. We urge a stay to insure that
an innocent man is not
put to death in error.
THE INNOCENCE WATCH
GROUP
For information :