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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. 

Georgia has scheduled the execution of Curtis Osborne

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On June 4, Georgia has scheduled the execution of Curtis Osborne. Osborne's own defense lawyer at trial was racially biased against him and failed to do the most basic investigation that might have saved his client's life. The attorney repeatedly referred to Osborne with a racial epithet, saying, "that little n____r deserves the chair."

At the time of the murder that sent Osborne to death row, he was suffering from mental problems and his family had a history of mental illness going back for 3 generations. However, Osborne's attorney failed to raise this issue.

Law enforcement officials and religious leaders who have come to know Curtis Osborne have noted his complete remorse for the crime and the dramatic changes in his life while on death row. His story is recounted in a video prepared by his current defense attorneys. (Posted May 28, 2008).

View the video with Windows Media Player. View the video in QuickTime.

Former President Jimmy Carter has expressed his support for a commutation of Osborne's death sentence. See also a letter for commutation from the former Chief Justice of the Georgia Supreme Court, Norman S. Fletcher, who reviewed Osborne's case while on the court.

Source: Death Penalty Information Center
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