In his visit to the U.S., United Nations Special Rapporteur Philip Alston bashed the lack of transparency and accountability of death penalty cases in the United States, more specifically pointing fingers at Alabama and Texas.
Alston stressed, "A government open and accountable to its people is the foundational premise of a democratic state, and one certainly expects no less in the United States." He reiterated that "it's not laws and procedures that are lacking, but it is an openness and a preparedness to provide access to key information that is missing."
One statistic Alston found particularly troubling is the 129 individuals on death row who have been exonerated since 1973. Texas officials have even admitted to him that innocent people have been executed, he said, and added that Alabama had probably done so, too, but refused to acknowledge so. "It is entirely possible that Alabama has already executed innocent people, but officials rather deny than confront flaws in the criminal justice system."
Texas and Alabama have the distinction of having the highest number of executions and highest per-capita rate of executions, respectively. Perhaps it's for those reasons that Alston found "limited to little openness" in both Texas and Alabama on the issue of the death penalty.
Justice in Jeopardy
Alston stated that several issues were undermining due process and threatening justice. Among them included political pressure for judges to give out death penalties, imbalance of legal representation, and racial bias.
In Alabama, Alston noted, elected judges are allowed to change a jury's sentence of life in prison to death, and often do so.
"Alabama should relieve judges of this invidious role by repealing the law permitting judicial override. Instead juries should be permitted to play their historical role of protecting individual rights," Alson suggested.
Additionally, not just in Alabama and Texas but all over the country, minorities are being executed at a disproportionate rate. According to the ACLU, 43 percent of all executions since 1976 and 55 percent of those on death row are people of color.
As a result, Alston has sustained that "there was something wrong with the way the death penalty was being administered."
International Implications
Alston also spoke out against the legal actions brought about against enemy combatants at Guantanamo Bay. The Military Commissions Act under which they are charged did not meet due process standards agreed upon by the international human rights community. For example, enemy combatants would not receive adequate legal representation and evidence that would not otherwise be admissible, such as confessions under duress, would be allowed in trial.
Alston urged the United States to fix a "deeply flawed" Military Commissions Act and to comply with the highest international standards. He added that the United States had an "obligation" to do so because it was the "model for justice around the world."
Still, Alston is optimistic and sees many areas where the United States is praiseworthy. He asserted, "I hope that my criticisms will not be met with a defensive reaction, but instead bring about renewed consideration of improvement."
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