Death Penalty Subcommittee Report

I want to call your attention to one item that will be before the Board at its April 13–14 meeting in Kelso. The Death Penalty Subcommittee of the WSBA Committee on Public Defense has issued a final report after its extensive study and analysis of the use of the death penalty in Washington State. This report reaches a number of conclusions and makes several recommendations for further study and action, and the subcommittee is seeking endorsement by the Board of these conclusions and recommendations. I believe the report is generally uncontroversial; it does not, for example, make any judgments about the merits of the death penalty system itself one way or another. Thus, I intend to vote to endorse the report and the continuing work of the subcommittee. However, I am interested in hearing your views on this important report. You can read all of the materials at www.wsba.org/lawyers/groups/committeeonpublicdefense.htm, and you can reach me at wyld_governor@mac.com. I want to hear what you think.