One of the finest moments for me last fall was when I was invited by our Catholic bishops to participate in the blessed work they called the "Catholic Campaign to End the Use of the Death Penalty."
At their meeting in Washington, Bishop Nicholas DiMarzio of Brooklyn asked, "What does the death penalty do to us? What kind of society do we want to be?" He noted that this is "not a liberal issue, but a life issue." And he underscored, "In the matter of life and death, no mistake is acceptable. Death is irreversible."
Another person invited to participate in this historic session was Kirk Bloodsworth, an innocent man who might have been unjustly executed. He had been wrongly convicted for the rape and murder of a 9-year old girl in 1984. He had spent nearly nine years on death row before DNA proved him innocent. He said, "The Catholic Church provided me with essential support in my time of need, and I converted to Catholicism in 1989 while I was serving time behind bars."
His story was a striking example of the flaws in the criminal justice system.
In a study of 86 criminal cases in which DNA evidence later exonerated the person convicted, it was found there were forensic errors in 63 percent of them, and that in 19 percent of the cases the defense attorney was incompetent.
The most common cause of erroneous conviction, however, was eyewitness misidentification, and this is what happened in Bloodsworth's case.
To meet this soft-spoken and gentle man and his wife was truly a privilege for me. Bloodsworth expressed his sorrow that my son and his wife had been murdered, but also his respect that I still would eliminate the death penalty.
I also learned that attorney-writer Tim Junkin had told Bloodsworth's agonizing story in "Bloodsworth: The True Story of the First Death Row Inmate Exonerated by DNA" (Algonquin Books of Chapel Hill, N.C.). He tells how Bloodsworth used to bring library books to another prisoner, Kimberley Shay Ruffner, arrested for the attempted rape and stabbing of a Baltimore woman. When Bloodsworth was exonerated by DNA, Ruffner was among the fellow inmates who congratulated him.
Ten years later, Bloodsworth was told by Ann Brobst of the state's attorney's office that Ruffner was the one who murdered the child Bloodsworth was accused of killing. Bloodsworth shouted at Brobst that he had hated her for 20 years for calling him a child killer and a monster. But then he said, remarkably, following the teaching of the Lord Jesus, "I forgive you."
Junkin's book tells of Bloodsworth being taken back to the holding cell while the jury deliberated his fate. There he met another prisoner, a muscular black man with scars and tattoos, who said to him: "I've heard about your case from the guards. Don't worry, I know you are going to be all right."
At that moment the guards came to take him back to the courtroom. When the crowd in the courtroom heard the guilty verdict, the place erupted with cheering. As the guards brought Bloodsworth back to the holding cell, he asked where the other prisoner was. The guard said, "You crazy, man. There' s been no one here all day but you."
Later, Bloodsworth was convinced that at his lowest moment, paralyzed with fear and dread, he'd been visited by an angel.
Today, Bloodsworth works with the Justice Project, a nationwide effort for prison reform.
To date, 124 death row prisoners have been found innocent and released.
Antoinette Bosco is a columnist with Catholic News Service and an award-winning author. Her latest books are "One Day He Beckoned" (Ave Maria Press) and "The Jesus Garden: An Easter Legend" (Pauline Books and Media).
|