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U.S. | 'I comfort death row inmates in their final moments - the execution room is like a house of horrors'

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Reverend Jeff Hood, 40, wants to help condemned inmates 'feel human again' and vows to continue his efforts to befriend murderers in spite of death threats against his family A reverend who has made it his mission to comfort death row inmates in their final days has revealed the '"moral torture" his endeavor entails. Reverend Dr. Jeff Hood, 40, lives with his wife and five children in Little Rock, Arkansas. But away from his normal home life, he can suddenly find himself holding the shoulder of a murderer inside an execution chamber, moments away from the end of their life. 

UN. TUTU: MORATORIUM VOTE CAN HELP STOP CYCLE OF REVENGE

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September 21, 2007: Desmond Tutu, the archbishop of Cape Town and 1984 Nobel Peace laureate has called on the UN to vote in favour of abolishing the death penalty worldwide. “Such is the world sentiment against the death penalty (with notable exceptions like the United States, China, and Singapore) that a resolution calling for a moratorium on executions and the abolition of capital punishment is to go before the UN General Assembly in October.”

In his analysis, Tutu writes that the case for abolition becomes more compelling with each passing year. Everywhere, experience shows us that executions brutalise both those directly involved in the process and the society that carries them out.

Nowhere has it been shown that the death penalty reduces crime or political violence. In country after country, it is used disproportionately against the poor or against racial or ethnic minorities. It is often used as a tool of political repression.

It is imposed and inflicted arbitrarily. It is irrevocable and results inevitably in the execution of people innocent of any crime. It is a violation of fundamental human rights. (Sources: IPS, 21/09/2007)

Source : Hand Off Cain
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U.S. | 'I comfort death row inmates in their final moments - the execution room is like a house of horrors'

Published
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Reverend Jeff Hood, 40, wants to help condemned inmates 'feel human again' and vows to continue his efforts to befriend murderers in spite of death threats against his family A reverend who has made it his mission to comfort death row inmates in their final days has revealed the '"moral torture" his endeavor entails. Reverend Dr. Jeff Hood, 40, lives with his wife and five children in Little Rock, Arkansas. But away from his normal home life, he can suddenly find himself holding the shoulder of a murderer inside an execution chamber, moments away from the end of their life. 
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Oklahoma prepares to kill another man who says he's innocent

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Florida | Jury recommends death penalty for man who killed five women in Florida bank

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Judge to decide fate of ex-prison guard trainee Zephen Xaver, who pleaded guilty to 2019 execution-style murders A jury on Wednesday recommended a former prison guard trainee be sentenced to death for his execution-style murders of five women inside a Florida bank five years ago. Jurors voted 9-3 to recommend Zephen Xaver, 27, receive the death penalty for the 23 January 2019 murders at the SunTrust Bank in Sebring, about 85 miles (135km) south-east of Tampa.
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