Oregon Governor Kate Brown, a Democrat, on Wednesday commuted the death sentences of 17 people to life in prison without the possibility of parole, stressing that capital punishment «cannot be and has never been administered fairly and justly.»
«I have long believed that justice is not promoted by taking a life, and the state should not be involved in the business of executing people, even if a terrible crime sent them to prison,» Brown has defended.
«Unlike previous commutations I have granted to people who have demonstrated extraordinary growth and rehabilitation, this commutation is not based on any rehabilitative effort on the part of people on death row. Instead, it reflects a recognition that the death penalty is immoral,» he delved into a statement released to the media Tuesday.
Brown also recalled «the pain and uncertainty» of victims who wait for decades while those on death row find themselves without a final resolution, especially in those states with a moratorium on executions. «My hope is that this commutation will bring us one step closer to effectively ending these cases,» Brown said.
This is presumably the last time Brown — who has served as governor since 2015 — will use her legal power to grant clemency before leaving office on January 9, 2023, when she will be replaced by Governor-elect Tina Kotek, also a Democrat.
Oregon is one of the 27 states in U.S. territory where this type of punishment, in force here since the 19th century, is still applied, although throughout history it has been abolished and restored several times, the last one in 1984, but it has only been applied twice, in September 1996 and May 1997.
