The Massachusetts Congressional delegation
and positions on the death penalty

• no stated position on S 122
• cosponsor National Death Penalty Moratorium Act of 2003
• cosponsor National Death Penalty Moratorium Act of 2001
• voted for Antiterrorism and Effective Death Penalty Act of 1996
• voted for Violent Crime Control and Law Enforcement Act of 1994

I'm opposed to the death penalty in the criminal justice system because I think it's applied unfairly, as even Republican governors have determined, and because I'm for a worse punishment. I think it is worse to take somebody and put them in a small cell for the rest of their life, deprive them of their freedom, never to be paroled. . . I am for the death penalty for terrorists because terrorists have declared war on our country. And just as I, in a war, was prepared to kill in defense of my nation, I also believe that you eliminate the enemy.   - Appearing on Meet the Press, 12/1/02

I oppose the death penalty other than in cases of real international and domestic terrorism. We know we have put innocent people to death; 111 innocent people have already been released from death row. As president, I'll enforce the law but I'll also have a national moratorium on federal executions until we use DNA evidence to make sure those on death row are guilty.   - Reported by the Associated Press, 1/13/04

I have opposed the death penalty for many years. Since entering public service in 1977, I have served in several capacities that have enabled me to examine the use of capital punishment as an appropriate sentence for those convicted of committing a violent crime. Though Massachusetts does not have a capital punishment statute, I have had a chance to see the system at work in the 38 states that currently impose capital punishment as a sentence. I am not convinced that the death penalty appreciably deters crime. A September 2000 New York Times study found that the twelve states without the death penalty have homicide rates below the national average, whereas half of the states with the death penalty have homicide rates above the national average. I also have serious concerns with the death penalty's implementation across the United States. Statistical studies have shown that poor people and minorities are much more likely to be sentenced to death than those who are white or from more affluent backgrounds. One of my principal concerns with the death penalty is the possibility that innocent people will be executed due to errors in the criminal justice system. The Death Penalty Information Center reports that since 1973 when the death penalty was reinstated, 95 people in 22 states have been cleared of the crime that sent them to death-row. Many of these cases were not discovered through the normal appeals process, but rather as a result of new scientific techniques like DNA testing, investigations by journalists, and the work of expert attorneys, not available to the typical death-row inmate.   - Letter to constituents, July, 2005

• unknown position on HR 4923
• cosponsor HR 970
• voted for Antiterrorism and Effective Death Penalty Act of 1996
• voted for Violent Crime Control and Law Enforcement Act of 1994

• cosponsor HR 4923
• cosponsor Federal Death Penalty Abolition Act of 2003
• cosponsor National Death Penalty Moratorium Act of 2001
• voted against Antiterrorism and Effective Death Penalty Act of 1996
• voted for Violent Crime Control and Law Enforcement Act of 1994

• unknown position on HR 4923

I do not believe that capital punishment is the answer to deterring crime. It is always devastating to hear of a senseless killing, and most people want to see the perpetrator brought to justice. However, in too many cases we have been quick to condemn an individual to death without fully realizing the implications and consequences of capital punishment. The increased use of the death penalty has not proven to discourage future crime and may in fact, continue to increase discrimination against certain individuals. . . The verdict of death challenges reason and is ineffectual. We must question the justification of taking the life of one who is being punished for doing just that. A dangerous criminal should be put away for life, away from accustomed comforts. In the long run, this choice will save taxpayers money and will send a strong message that justice will be duly administered.   - Letter to constituents, October, 2003

• cosponsor HR 4923
• cosponsor Federal Death Penalty Abolition Act of 2003

I'm against the death penalty but if we're going to have one, then there are few people more deserving of it than those who committed those particularly heinous crimes.   - Statement in support of a bill which authorizes capital punishment against terrorist bombers who target government facilities. Quoted in The Boston Herald, 12/20/01

• cosponsor HR 4923
• cosponsor Federal Death Penalty Abolition Act of 2003
• cosponsor National Death Penalty Moratorium Act of 2001

America's continued resort to the death penalty has brought condemnation from civilized nations across the globe. I do not see how it serves America's interests to enact additional provisions that will further complicate our ability to prosecute terrorists and further marginalize the U.S. within the family of nations.   - Statement in opposition to a bill which authorizes capital punishment against terrorist bombers who target government facilities. Quoted in The Boston Herald, 12/20/01