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Dear Friends
Dear Friends,
Last week, the Maryland General Assembly voted to end the use of the
death penalty as a form of punishment against criminals in our state.
As a strong proponent of the repeal of the death penalty, I applaud the
delegates and senators who voted to abolish this inhumane practice.
(Click here to see how your
state delegate or
senator voted.) My reasons for supporting the repeal are clear and
straightforward.
As a physician, I swore an oath to “do no harm” and committed to saving
the life of everyone under my care, regardless of whether the patient
was a convicted felon or accused of a heinous crime. The death penalty
is fundamentally at odds with my duty to provide life-saving care to all
individuals unequivocally.
Lastly, I strongly oppose a practice that allows innocent people to be
sentenced to death. Even one person who is accidentally executed is one
person too many to let this continue. This is not a rare occurrence:
142 inmates sentenced to death have been exonerated since 1973.
Surprisingly,
one death row inmate is exonerated for every nine that are executed.
And while DNA evidence can reduce the likelihood of a mistake, the law
enforcement and justice systems rely upon the actions of people. People
are inherently imperfect and so is the system that relies on human
beings to sentence others to death.
I’m proud to live in a state where our progressive values continue to be
enacted and urge you to support our elected officials who voted in favor
of repealing Maryland’s death penalty.
Clarence Lam, MD, MPH
Candidate for State Delegate Facebook |
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