As a proud resident of one of the first states in the nation to have abolished the death penalty, I have watched in dismay as Arkansas attempts a series of executions. I continue to pray for those condemned men, their families, and their victims but the timing of these executions is not lost on me. They are scheduled to begin just days after Christians across the world remember an execution by crucifixion and also celebrate the resurrection of Jesus Christ.
What has been far less prominent in the media coverage about Arkansas is its recent reform to end a different kind of death penalty—death-in-prison sentences for children, more commonly known as life without parole. Life without parole is exactly as it sounds. Children, sent to prison before they were old enough to vote or sign a contract, are compelled to spend the rest of their days behind bars with no possibility for review or release. It doesn’t matter what brought them to the moment of their crime or how much they are rehabilitated. They will leave prison in a casket, just like the people condemned to die by lethal injection this month.
Arkansas recently joined 17 other states and the District of Columbia in banning death-in-prison sentences for people convicted of offenses that took place when they were younger than 18. Arkansas children convicted of serious crimes who have spent a significant amount of time in prison and have demonstrated maturity and rehabilitation now have an opportunity to show that they have changed and deserve a second chance to live in free society. This approach enables the state to hold children accountable in an age-appropriate manner that takes into account the unique circumstances of children—whom the Supreme Court has ruled are “constitutionally different” from adults and should not be subject to our country’s harshest punishments.
We know from experience as parents, educators, and community members that teens can be impulsive, acting without considering the consequences. Adolescent development research has also documented that, because their brains are still developing, youth are more impetuous than adults, more prone to risk-taking, more susceptible to peer pressure, and less likely to think through the long-term consequences of their actions. Recognizing this difference as well as children’s unique capacity for change and rehabilitation, Arkansas law now allows people sentenced as children to prove after many years that they are no longer the same fervid teen.
Now is the time for Rhode Island to build on our own history by enacting similar reforms. The States of West Virginia, Nevada, and our neighbors in Massachusetts, Connecticut, and Vermont, and yes, even Arkansas, have all passed by Rhode Island on this issue. Currently Senator Harold Metts (D-Providence) and Representative Chris Blazejewski (D-Providence) have introduced legislation which would provide nothing more than the modest and common sense mandate that all youthful offenders eventually have an opportunity to see the parole board (S237 & H5183).
As a Catholic priest, I understand what is lost when someone takes a life, as these young offenders have done. It destroys the life of the victim, sends pain ripping through families, and robs the entire community of its innocence. We Rhode Islanders know this better than most. Yet, my faith compels me to insist not only on accountability and justice for those who cause such grave harm, but to also work for mercy and forgiveness. During this Easter season, I am reminded of the words of Pope Francis in his homily at the Easter Vigil: “God suddenly breaks in, upsets all the rules and offers new possibilities. God once more comes to meet us, to create and consolidate a new age, the age of mercy.”
Pope Francis has also joined the call to end life-without-parole sentences for children, calling it the “hidden death penalty.” Those of us who are Catholic, and others who profoundly value human life at all stages, understand that turning our backs on children is unacceptable. In this Easter season of renewal, I hope the members of the RI General Assembly begin to believe that our youth possess the capacity for new life and deserve more than to be irrevocably judged for the worst thing they have ever done.
Father Bernard A. Healey is the Director of the Rhode Island Catholic Conference, the public policy education and advocacy agency of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Providence.
