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Your guide to the Nebraska death penalty referendum process

Wondering how it’s possible that Nebraska is still debating the death penalty, even though legislators passed repeal (over the Governor’s veto) in the Spring? We’ve got you covered. After the popularity of our geeky guide to the Nebraska legislative process, we’ve put together an equally geeky guide to the referendum process that’s unfolding now.

Nebraska’s “Veto Referendum”

In Nebraska, the state Constitution allows citizens to overturn a decision by the legislature via a petition and referendum process. Citizens can mount a campaign and start collecting petition signatures following the last day of the legislature (also known as sine die in geek speak).

Citizens have 90 days to complete the entire process to get the proposal to overturn the law on the next statewide election ballot. They must prepare ballot language, get approval of the language by the Secretary of State, print petitions, and collect enough valid signatures in that time.

This type of “veto referendum” requires 5% of registered voters to sign the petition – that’s just shy of 58,000 verified signatures – and for those signatures to come from a geographically diverse population. (Extra geek credit: The geographic requirement states that petitions include signatures from 5% of the legal voters in at least two-fifths (38) of Nebraska’s 93 counties.) If 10% of registered voters from a geographically diverse population (115,000 signatures) sign the petition, the law passed by the legislature will be put “on hold,” pending the vote on the referendum during the next statewide election.

The Repeal Repeal

Death penalty supporters have mounted a campaign to repeal the law that repealed the death penalty in Nebraska – to repeal repeal. The clock on their campaign started ticking on sine die, which means their petition signatures are due to the Secretary of State on August 27 for verification.

The campaign has already admitted their intent to spend well over $1 million on the petition drive and ballot measure. Imagine the victim services and crime prevention programs that could be funded for that amount of money!

In the meantime, the Governor has announced he will make every attempt to move forward with the executions of the 10 men on death row, even though the legislature has repealed death penalty, and with it the entire lethal injection process. The Governor continues to receive national media attention for the shady attempts he and his administration are making to import the drugs for an execution.

What can I do?

Check out our story about the “Decline to Sign” campaign, run by Nebraskans for Public Safety. If you live in Nebraska, be sure you educate your friends and neighbors about the issue, and sign up to volunteer to be a petition monitor.

We will continue to have action opportunities, so be sure you’re following us on Facebook andTwitter, and sign up to get more stories like this one delivered straight to your inbox.

“Signing a Petition” by Elizabeth Jenkins (Flickr user artfulactivist). CC BY-NC-SA 2.0 via Flickr

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EJUSA rallies for homicide survivors in Washington, DC

Crowd at Rally for Survivors

EJUSA executive director Shari Silberstein was in Washington, DC last weekend for the Mothers in Charge Standing For Peace and Justice National Rally.

Mothers in Charge, a national organization of mothers and other families who have lost loved ones to homicide, held the rally to draw attention to the trauma and needs of families left behind after homicide.

Family and friends gathered with pictures of their loved ones. They tragically have one thing in common: losing their loved ones to murder.

EJUSA stood with those families, Mothers in Charge, and the hundreds of rally participants demanding recognition that:

  • Homicide is a national tragedy that should be treated like the public health epidemic that it is.
  • Families left behind after violence should have the help they need to address the trauma and rebuild their lives.
  • No surviving family member should be denied victims’ services or compensation.
Shari, Dorothy, & Alonzo
EJUSA Executive Director Shari Silberstein with Dorothy Johnson-Speight, Founder and Executive Director of Mothers in Charge, and Alonzo Robertson, Maryland Homicide Survivor Network Coordinator. Photo Credit: Maryland Homicide Survivor Network

Photo Album from the Washington Informer

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It was the most profound thing I will ever do

Sandy Rosenberg and Shari Silberstein

By Maryland State Delegate Sandy Rosenberg, with Tom Waldron

Repealing the death penalty in Maryland was an arduous task that took many years – with many ups and downs. It culminated in 2013, when the General Assembly passed Senate Bill 276, Death Penalty Repeal – Substitution of Life Without the Possibility of Parole, with the crucial support of Gov. Martin O’Malley. But that historic action came after years of work by many individuals, organizations, consultants, and elected officials.

Doing away with capital punishment in Maryland was a milestone in the national abolition movement. Five other states had ended the death penalty in the years leading up to 2013. The decision in Maryland – which sits south of the Mason-Dixon Line and had carried out several executions in the near past –sent a signal across the country that repeal would gain momentum.

Continue reading

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Remembering a devoted supporter in Nebraska

Norma Fleisher’s is also a conversion story. She supported the death penalty until 1999, when she ministered to prisoners on Tennessee’s death row. On her return to Nebraska, she became one of the hardest working supporters of repeal, driving more than 4,000 miles through every Nebraska county to talk about the death penalty to anyone who would listen and standing vigil at the Governor’s mansion every week. She became an inspiration for Nebraskans for Alternatives to the Death Penalty’s Stacy Anderson (with whom she is pictured on the left), as well as for Senator Morfeld, who dedicated his repeal vote to her.

Norma passed away last October, more than six months before she could witness Nebraska as a death penalty-free state. Those who knew her are sure she was cheering from “a gallery far above.”

Read about Norma in the Lincoln Journal Star.

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Nebraska Senators and their death penalty conversions

Lindstrom, Hilkemann, & Coash

We’ve learned a lot about the death penalty in the last 35 years. Many people, however, still don’t know just how broken the policy is.

This January, 17 freshmen lawmakers embarked on their first legislative session in Nebraska. Some of them had only thought about the death penalty from a philosophical or emotional standpoint, never studying the issue as a practical, policy matter.

Their five months in office gave them broad exposure to the issue through hearings, meetings, readings, and extensive floor debate. Many of them carefully weighed the facts, taking the time to study the issue and consider their votes. On the final vote to override the Governor’s veto, 10 of those freshmen Senators joined 20 of their seasoned colleagues to repeal the death penalty. Several of them shared powerful stories of how they reached their decisions.

The Omaha World Herald highlighted one Senator’s journey “from death penalty backer to execution opponent” in this wonderful piece. Senator Brett Lindstrom is a life-long Republican who grew up in Nebraska and is best known for being the former quarterback of the famed University of Nebraska Huskers football team. Lindstrom researched the issue and, “what he found muddied his black-and-white view, turning it every last shade of gray.” After all he learned, he knew he had to support repeal.

Another Senator, Colby Coash of Lincoln, is in his last 2-year legislative session. He was a co-sponsor of repeal and championed the bill with Senator Ernie Chambers. But unlike Chambers, Coash hasn’t always supported repeal.

“Many years ago, just before an execution in Nebraska and before he got involved in politics, he went to the prison to see what was happening outside before the criminal was put to death inside. While there were some anti-death penalty protesters, most of the scene resembled a big tailgate party. Coash, then in favor of the death penalty, partied right along with his fellow Cornhuskers.”

According to a piece in the conservative-leaning publication The American Spectator, Coash returned home from the prison and reflected on his experience, witnessing what seemed like a celebration of the taking of a life. Something just didn’t sit right, and now Coash is an outspoken opponent of the death penalty, maintaining that the policy does not match up with his conservative values of responsible, limited government.

And the Lincoln Journal Star wrote about freshman Senator Robert Hilkemann’s “death penalty journey.” He said that he was lobbied hard to change his vote, but coming to support repeal was a spiritual journey for him.

Photo credits: “Sen. Brett Lindstrom listens to debate before the Legislature’s vote Wednesday to override Gov. Pete Ricketts’ veto of a bill repealing Nebraska’s death penalty. ” – Kent Silvers/The World-Herald; “Sen. Colby Coash said the Omaha and Lincoln police departments had gone too far on compliance checks. (Photo courtesy Nebraska Legislature)” – KVNO News; “Sen. Robert Hilkemann of Omaha” – Shelly Kulhanek/Lincoln Journal Star

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EJUSA’s statements on death penalty repeal in Nebraska

Nebraska’s death penalty repeal sets a trend for the nation

Statement by Shari Silberstein, Executive Director of Equal Justice USA:

“Nebraska’s vote marks the end of the death penalty in the United States. Americans have been moving away from executions for more than ten years, but now we have a red state turning that trend into law for the first time in 40 years. Nebraska has shown the nation what happens when you put aside partisan politics and embrace simple common sense. The death penalty was already on its last legs, but it’s hard to imagine that it has any staying power left after this.”

Statement by Marc Hyden, National Coordinator of Conservatives Concerned About the Death Penalty:

“I’m not surprised that conservatives led the death penalty repeal effort in Nebraska. I think this will become more common. When I speak to conservatives across the nation, they’re eager to share their concerns about the death penalty. Conservatives have sponsored repeal bills in Kansas, Montana, Wyoming, South Dakota, Missouri, and Kentucky in recent years. National conservative leaders are also speaking up because the death penalty violates the core conservative principles of fiscal responsibility, limited government, and valuing life.”

Equal Justice USA is a national, nonpartisan criminal justice reform organization that has been building left-right coalitions on the death penalty for 10 years. They provide tools and resources to strengthen local and grassroots organizations around the country, including in Nebraska for the last seven years. Conservatives Concerned About the Death Penalty is a project of EJUSA.

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Nebraska’s death penalty repeal sets a trend for the nation

Statement by Shari Silberstein, Executive Director of Equal Justice USA:

“Nebraska’s vote marks the end of the death penalty in the United States. Americans have been moving away from executions for more than ten years, but now we have a red state turning that trend into law for the first time in 40 years. Nebraska has shown the nation what happens when you put aside partisan politics and embrace simple common sense. The death penalty was already on its last legs, but it’s hard to imagine that it has any staying power left after this.”

Statement by Marc Hyden, National Coordinator of Conservatives Concerned About the Death Penalty:

“I’m not surprised that conservatives led the death penalty repeal effort in Nebraska. I think this will become more common. When I speak to conservatives across the nation, they’re eager to share their concerns about the death penalty. Conservatives have sponsored repeal bills in Kansas, Montana, Wyoming, South Dakota, Missouri, and Kentucky in recent years. National conservative leaders are also speaking up because the death penalty violates the core conservative principles of fiscal responsibility, limited government, and valuing life.”

Equal Justice USA is a national, nonpartisan criminal justice reform organization that has been building left-right coalitions on the death penalty for 10 years. They provide tools and resources to strengthen local and grassroots organizations around the country, including in Nebraska for the last seven years. Conservatives Concerned About the Death Penalty is a project of EJUSA.

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Repeal passes in Nebraska!

Moments ago, Nebraska lawmakers voted 32-15 to end the death penalty!

Repeal opponents attempted to kill the bill with a filibuster, but proponents mounted enough support to move the bill to the Governor. If he vetoes the bill – as he has promised – supporters need to hold every vote to override it.

Let Nebraskans know the world is watching. Share this graphic on Facebook now.

Nebraska passes repeal - on to the Governor! Share this on Facebook!

 

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More ways to spread the word:

  • Tweet about today’s vote using #NERepeal and tag @EJUSA. You can also retweet some of the coverage from @EJUSA and @N_A_D_P.
  • Look for Nebraska vote coverage in your favorite news outlet, and post a supportive comment. (You can find stories on our Twitter feed without having a Twitter account.)
  • Ask everyone you know in Nebraska to contact their Senator by sending them our action alert
  • Post our action alert on social media: https://ejusa.org/act/NE

Today is a big win, but there is still work to do to see repeal through to the end in Nebraska. Thanks for all the work you are doing.

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Repeal passes Round 2 in Nebraska

Today, lawmakers in Nebraska again voted overwhelmingly – 30-16! – to repeal the death penalty.

This vote came after Round 2 of debate. There is still one more vote to win before the bill goes to the Governor’s desk. And if the Governor vetoes the bill – as he has promised – supporters need to hold on to all votes to override it.

Show everyone that all eyes are on Nebraska by sharing this graphic on Facebook. We stand with Nebraskans as they try to become the next state to repeal the death penalty.

Round 2 victory in Nebraska!

 

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You can also Tweet about today’s vote to help spread the word. Use #NERepeal and retweet some of the coverage from @EJUSA and @N_A_D_P.

The campaign in Nebraska is hitting the homestretch, with victory in sight. Let’s get across the finish line together!

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An opportunity for healing

All eyes have been on Baltimore in the last few weeks following the death of Freddie Gray, a 25-year old black man who died in police custody last month. Much of the media has focused on the protests or the indictments of six police officers in the case. Others have called attention to the broader issue of police violence in the city, economic issues like jobs and housing, or Baltimore’s crime rates.

When the cameras leave, all of those important issues will need addressing. But there’s another item, rarely discussed, that also needs addressing: trauma. As a society, we wring our hands about high levels of violence in certain neighborhoods, but offer virtually nothing to those who have been harmed by it – especially when they are people of color.

Indeed, people of color – especially young black men – are more likely to be victims of violence than white people. And if you talk to people who were formerly incarcerated, you learn how so many of them were victims of violence first, never receiving any treatment for the trauma they experienced. Yet the assumption is that people who commit crime and those harmed by it are worlds apart, not only geographically but racially: the mainstream cultural trope still frequently assumes that black men commit crime and white women are its victims.

What does all this mean for Baltimore, or Freddie Gray’s neighborhood of Sandtown-Winchester, and what do we do about it?

There is a growing body of research drawing attention to the high levels of untreated trauma and PTSD (post-traumatic stress disorder) in cities that experience high rates of violence. Last month, Common Justice held “Paving the Way to Healing and Recovery: Conversations with Young Men of Color Who Survive Violence,” the first conference in the country focused on male crime survivors of color. Cities like Philadelphia are investing in trauma treatment as a citywide response to violence.

This conversation must get louder, backed up by a demand for more resources to treat trauma as a foundational part of our society’s response to crime and violence, including – but not limited to – violence by police. And trauma care must be available to the communities that are most likely to experience violence – including places like Sandtown-Winchester.

Today, we have an unprecedented opportunity to help make that happen. Late last year, Congress approved a significant increase in funds flowing from the Victims of Crime Act. These funds, known as “VOCA funds,” are a primary source of funding for victims’ services and compensation.

The large increase means that more federal victims services funding will be available to states than ever before. Those of us who care about justice and healing must make sure that states use those funds to close the gap, bring racial equity to victims services, and ensure that everyone impacted by violence and crime has access to trauma care.

Photo credit: “#DCFerguson Solidarity With Baltimore 10” by Stephen Melkisethian. CC BY-NC-ND 2.0 via Flickr.

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