Event Calendar

Events for Wednesday, June 16, 2021

Ohio Makes History: Proponent Testimony to be Heard for First Time Ever on Bipartisan Death Penalty Repeal Bill...
3:00 PM
Dear Editor of The Lakewood Observer:

I am contacting you about this Wednesday’s Ohio Senate Judiciary Committee proponent hearing on SB 103, a bill to repeal the state’s death penalty.

A news release is pasted below.

I thank you.

Jon Crane
Critical PR

Ohio Makes History:
Proponent Testimony Heard for First Time Ever on Bipartisan Death Penalty Repeal Bill

COLUMBUS-- On June 16, 2021, a proponent hearing for Senate Bill 103 (SB 103) to repeal Ohio’s death penalty will be held, marking the first time a bipartisan bill proposing death penalty abolition has ever been this far in either legislative chamber. SB 103 was introduced on March 2, 2021 with unprecedented bipartisan support. Senator Nickie Antonio (D-Cleveland) and Senator Stephen Huffman (R-Dayton) are primary sponsors of the bill with 3 Republicans and 6 Democrats serving as co-sponsors.

The Senate Judiciary Committee will hear testimony from four proponents of the bill:

• Jonathan Mann, Vice Chair of the board of Ohioans to Stop Executions, who tragically lost his father to murder in 2017
• Rev. Dr. Jack Sullivan, executive director of the Ohio Council of Churches who tragically lost his sister to murder
• Rebecca Brown, Director of Policy at the Innocence Project
• Tim Young, the Ohio Public Defender, who previously served on the Ohio Supreme Court Joint Task Force on Ohio’s death penalty from 2011-2014
• Jim Tobin, Associate Director, Department on Social Concerns, Ohio Catholic Conference

Those testifying will speak to the irreparable brokenness of Ohio’s death penalty, including Ohio’s propensity to sentence innocent people to death, the harm it causes the families of murder victims, and its affront to an equal and fair justice system.

“People have been asking why this bill is different and why the time is right for repeal,” said Hannah Kubbins, executive director of Ohioans to Stop Executions. “This hearing is the proof that Ohio’s leaders on both sides of the aisle wisely recognize that the death penalty isn’t working in Ohio anymore. With so many other priorities in our state, Ohio can save millions of dollars by getting rid of this racist, broken, and inefficient system. We can keep our society safe, protect innocent lives, and do better for the families of victims. I want to thank Chairman Manning and the rest of the Senate Judiciary Committee for holding this historic hearing.”

For more information contact Jon Crane at joncrane@criticalpr.com or 203-982-4575.

#NoDeathPenaltyOH is the official campaign to end Ohio’s death penalty. We represent a broad coalition of groups across Ohio calling for an end to an expensive, racist, arbitrary system that convicts innocent people. #NoDeathPenaltyOH speaks for the millions of Ohioans who no longer believe the death penalty is an effective means of achieving “equal justice under law”.

Location:
Columbus