Support for Commutation of North Carolina Death Sentences

August 9, 2024 

Governor Roy Cooper
200 Blount Street
Raleigh, NC 27601

Re: Support for Commutation of NC Death Sentences

Dear Governor Cooper,

We write to urge you to commute the death sentences of all of those on North Carolina’s death row.

Human Rights Watch is an independent, nongovernmental organization that monitors and reports on human rights abuses by states and non-state actors in over 100 countries around the world. We have been working to promote respect for human rights for more than four decades.

Human Rights Watch opposes capital punishment in every circumstance due to its inherent cruelty and irreversibility. The imposition of the death penalty also contradicts the evolving international consensus against its use. To date, some 100 countries have abolished or introduced a moratorium on the death penalty, either in law or in practice.[1]

The right to life and the right not to be subjected to torture or other ill-treatment are established in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. The International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR), which the US has ratified, establishes that no one shall be arbitrarily deprived of their life and lays out the right of anyone sentenced to death to seek pardon or commutation of their sentence.[2] Although the ICCPR does permit the use of the death penalty in limited circumstances, the Second Optional Protocol of the ICCPR declares that “abolition of the death penalty contributes to enhancement of human dignity and progressive development of human rights” and commits nations to ending capital punishment.[3] The United Nations Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights has also stated that the use of the death penalty is not consistent with the right to life and the right to live free from torture or cruel, inhuman, or degrading treatment or punishment.[4]

Often, death sentences are carried out in a discriminatory manner, and they are primarily inflicted on the most vulnerable—people living in poverty, people with psychosocial disabilities, and communities of color.[5] These disparities underscore serious concerns about fairness and equality under the law, which are core principles of international human rights law.

In 1966, the United States signed the United Nations’ International Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination (ICERD), but did not ratify it until 1994.[6] The convention resolves to adopt all necessary measures to quickly combat and eradicate racism in all its forms, doctrines, and practices.[7] Despite the US’ proclaimed commitment to this mission, it routinely fails to meet its obligations under the convention.[8]

What is more, the history of the death penalty in the United States is deeply rooted in racism and the legacies of slavery. Racial disparities are evident in North Carolina’s death row population; although people of color constitute less than 30 percent of North Carolina’s population, they make up 60 percent of the state’s death row.[9] More shockingly, only 22 percent of the state’s population is Black, but they compose over half of the death row population.

Scholars in North Carolina have long documented these disparities. University of North Carolina Professor Frank Baumgartner wrote that one of the “major justifications for the expansion of the death penalty in the 1930s was precisely that it would lead to a reduction in the number of lynchings.”[10] In short, state-sanctioned executions took the place of lynchings as tools of racial terror and control.

A statistical study conducted in North Carolina by professors from Michigan State University, in response to the state’s repeal of its Racial Justice Act, uncovered that race played a significant role in whether death sentences were sought and imposed.[11] Faced with this stark truth, North Carolina must not carry out these racist sentences.

By commuting these sentences, North Carolina would affirm the stance of the majority of North Carolinians who oppose the death penalty and demonstrate its commitment to upholding human rights and racial justice.[12] It would contribute to a global movement towards abolition of the death penalty and promote a justice system that respects the inherent dignity and rights of every individual.

We urge you to use your executive authority to commute the death sentences in North Carolina and align North Carolina with international human rights standards. Your leadership on this issue can set a precedent for other jurisdictions grappling with similar challenges and reaffirm North Carolina’s commitment to justice and human rights on the international stage.

We hope to see North Carolina take a principled stand against capital punishment under your leadership.

Sincerely,

Cristina M. Becker 
Associate Director of Racial Justice and Equity
Human Rights Watch