COUNCIL OF RELIGIOUS LEADERS OF METROPOLITAN CHICAGO
COUNCIL STATEMENT ON THE DEATH PENALTY
July 26, 2000

Recent events have once again brought issues surrounding the Death Penalty to the center of public discussion and debate. The Council of Religious Leaders of Metropolitan Chicago is encouraged by this development and is persuaded that the time has come to fundamentally challenge the use of capital punishment in our society's administration of justice. To this end, the Council issues the following statement and commends it to the members of our several faithful groups, and to the community at-large.

We applaud Governor George Ryan for invoking a temporary suspension of the death penalty in Illinois and for appointing a Commission to Study the Administration of the death penalty in our state. We urge broad public support for these politically sensitive actions. They are, however, only first steps m addressing the underlying issues which administration of the death penalty raise!

We acknowledge that our diverse religious traditions and teachings are not of one mind as to whether capital punishment is, by its very nature, wrong and never justified. We are nevertheless united m the conviction that there is now overwhelming and persuasive evidence that in practice the administration of the death penalty m our society is often flawed and unjust. Its use should be indefinitely suspended.

To this end, we ask the Governor's Commission to examine thoroughly all of the problems of the administration of the death penalty in Illinois, and to include a careful evaluation of the avail just alternatives to capital punishment.

Knowing that our scriptures call us "to do justice, and to love kindness, and to walk humbly your God, we challenge the members of our faith communities to study carefully the witness regarding this matter, many of which call for the elimination of capital punishment, and al of which challenge their adherents to join in seeking a society where justice is administered fairly and mercy prevails.