We endorse the social action resolutions of the Congress of Secular Jewish Organizations, which you can find at CSJO
We’ve just signed a resolution asking the Alameda County prosecutor to stop asking for the death penalty. Here’s the text of the resolution:
Resolution for an End to Death Sentences in Alameda County
Whereas the death penalty has been rejected by a large majority of nations and most major religions; the death penalty is not used by 14 of our own states; more than 125 innocent people have been freed from death rows across the U.S. after spending years in prison for crimes they did not commit Ð some coming within days or hours of execution; and there are racial and geographic disparities in the application of the death penalty;
Whereas death penalty cases cost Alameda County taxpayers millions more than permanent incarceration but do not make us safer, while those resources could be better used to solve more crimes or for other effective public safety programs;
Whereas Alameda County has historically sent more people to death row than any other Bay Area county, even after adjusting for murder rates and population size;
Whereas the District Attorney in neighboring San Francisco has chosen to pursue alternatives instead of the death penalty, allowing her to invest resources in proven violence prevention programs;
Believing that it is time for public safety priorities to change in Alameda County, we, Tri-Valley Cultural Jews, therefore resolve that, we call on:
1) The District Attorney of Alameda County to stop pursuing the death penalty; and
2) The District Attorney and the Board of Supervisors of Alameda County to invest in solving homicides, violence prevention, and effective public safety programs.