Legal Commentary

Executed Mississippi Inmate's Last Words: Vote For Obama

By Jeralyn

James Leo Bishop was executed in Mississippi last night. His last words included an apology to his victims and a request for people to vote for Sen. Barack Obama:

Before he died Wednesday evening, death row inmate Dale Leo Bishop apologized to his victim's family, thanked America and urged people to vote for Democratic presidential candidate Barack Obama.

"For those who oppose the death penalty and want to see it end, our best bet is to vote for Barack Obama because his supporters have been working behind the scenes to end this practice," Bishop said.

There's no question Sen. Barack Obama is more attuned to the racial disparity in the application of the death penalty and plight of the wrongly convicted than John McCain. However, he's not a death penalty opponent.

Nonetheless, Mr. Bishop makes the right call between McCain and Obama. May he rest in peace. [More...]

Bishop is "only the eighth person put to death who did not directly kill his victim among the more than 1,100 executed since the U.S. Supreme Court reinstated the death penalty in 1976 - not including contract killings."

Full post as published by TalkLeft on July 24, 2008 (boomark / email).