Department of Corrections

 

FROM:        William F. Bolan, Jr.

                Executive Director

 

RE:             Public Hearing regarding Services Preceding Execution; Execution Unit

 

As set forth in their statement included in this written testimony, the Catholic Bishops of New Jersey are opposed to all executions.  Their opposition to the death penalty is guided by their belief that every person has an inalienable right to life, because each human being is made in the image and likeness of God.  New Jersey Catholics are joined in their opposition to capital punishment by many people of all backgrounds and religious faiths.  The overwhelming support for a moratorium on executions in New Jersey is evidence of society’s growing disapproval of capital punishment---disapproval that might increase if the public knew more about the execution process.  It is critically important then that the execution process not be secretive.  A human life is extinguished during an execution.  The public has a right, and indeed a duty, to understand fully how that life is taken because executions are done in the name of the people.

 

Because the State of New Jersey has other means to redress the injustice caused by crime and to effectively prevent crime by rendering the one who has committed the offense incapable of doing harm, and because we recognize the dignity of all human life, the New Jersey Catholic Conference continues to consistently and vigorously oppose the use of capital punishment.  Until the death penalty in New Jersey is abolished, we support a full and open examination of the entire system, including the execution process.

 

 

STATEMENT OF THE CATHOLIC BISHOPS OF NEW JERSEY

ON THE DEATH PENALTY

 

    As death row inmates exhaust their appeals and the possibility of execution draws near, we, the Catholic Bishops of New Jersey, wish to reiterate our opposition to the death penalty.  We are guided by our belief that every person has an inalienable right to life, because each human being is made in the image and likeness of God, who alone is the absolute Lord of life from its beginning until its end (cf. The Book of Genesis 1:26-28).

 

We acknowledge that the subject of capital punishment is controversial and emotional.  All murders are violent and shocking; some are savage.  They all stir emotions of revulsion and anger.  We grieve for the victims of murder, for the brutalization and loss of life.  We commiserate with the families and friends of victims who must suffer with their loss through the years.  We affirm that the state has the duty to punish criminals and to prevent the repetition or occurrence of crime.  We believe that greater efforts must be made to bring the criminal to repentance and rehabilitation.  We believe that our society is sufficiently developed to protect itself and to redress the injustice caused by the criminal without resorting to the use of the death penalty.  One alternative is life without possibility of parole.

 

The Catechism of the Catholic Church acknowledges the right of public authorities to impose criminal punishment proportionate to the gravity of the offense, “if this is the only possible way of effectively defending human lives against the unjust aggressor.    If, however, non-lethal means are sufficient to defend and protect people’s safety from the aggressor, authority will limit itself to such means, as these are more in keeping with the concrete conditions of the common good and more in conformity with the dignity of the human person.”  Pope John Paul II has stated that in today’s world cases in which the execution of the offender is an absolute necessity “are very rare, if not practically non-existent.”  (The Gospel of Life,56)

 

Because the State of New Jersey has other means to redress the injustice caused by crime and to effectively prevent crime by rendering the one who has committed the offense incapable of doing harm and because we recognize the dignity of all human life, we continue to consistently and vigorously oppose the use of capital punishment.  We recognize the continued need for improvement of our criminal justice system and for a greater societal commitment to crime prevention and victim assistance.  As pastors and teachers we urge the State of New Jersey not to impose the death penalty in our state.

 

Most Rev. John J. Myers                       Most Reverend Andrew Pataki

Archbishop of Newark                           Bishop of the Byzantine Catholic Eparchy

                                                                       of Passaic

 

Most Reverend Joseph A. Galante          Most Reverend Joseph Younan

Bishop of Camden                               Bishop of Our Lady of Deliverance Diocese

 

Most Reverend Paul G. Bootkoski           Most Reverend Edgar M. da Cunha

Bishop of Metuchen                             Auxiliary Bishop of Newark

 

Most Reverend Arthur J. Serratelli          Most Reverend Thomas A. Donato

Bishop of Paterson                              Auxiliary Bishop of Newark

 

Most Reverend John M. Smith                        Most Reverend John W. Flesey

Bishop of Trenton                                Auxiliary Bishop of Newark

 

 

 

Representing the Archdiocese of Newark, Diocese of Camden, Diocese of Metuchen,

Diocese of Paterson, Diocese of Trenton, Byzantine Catholic Eparchy of Passaic and

Our Lady of Deliverance Syriac Catholic Diocese