Death Penalty Repealed in New Mexico
Resource type: News
The Atlantic Philanthropies |
Governor Bill Richardson signed legislation on March 18 to repeal New Mexico’s death penalty, saying it was the “most difficult decision in my political life.”
Atlantic congratulates its grantee, The New Mexico Coalition to Repeal the Death Penalty, and all member organizations who advocated for the successful passage of this legislation over the last ten years. Atlantic is proud to have supported this advocacy effort to get this bill passed and signed. This was a very important victory for human rights and a key step towards ending capital punishment in the US.
About The New Mexico Coalition to Repeal the Death Penalty, an Atlantic grantee
The New Mexico Coalition to Repeal the Death Penalty ( NM Repeal) was organised by member groups in 1997 to spearhead a death penalty abolition movement in the state. It is a statewide, grassroots coalition with over 3,700 individual members and over 140 supporting organisations.Key organisational members include: Murder Victims’ Families for Reconciliation-NM, NM Conference of Catholic Bishops, NM Conference of Churches, National Association of Social Workers-NM, National Association for the Advancement of Colored People-NM, American Civil Liberties Union-NM, NM Criminal Defense Lawyers Association, NM Public Health Association, and various Amnesty International chapters. Active volunteers include murder victims’ family members, current and former criminal justice professionals, trade unionists, schoolteachers, clergy, lay faith leaders, business leaders, legislators, and attorneys.
NM Repeal worked closely with the bill sponsor, Representative Gail Chasey, since she first introduced legislation to abolish the death penalty in New Mexico in 1999.NM Repeal organized and managed all aspects of the abolition campaign, including education and outreach, lobbying legislators and the Governor, working with the media to get the campaign’s message out to constituents, and strategising to ensure the message was heard clearly through speakers, testifiers, and the numerous national and international organisations that support abolition in New Mexico.
NM Repeal proclaimed 2009 to be THE year the death penalty would be abolished in New Mexico, and we are thrilled that we have accomplished this goal.