Sister Helen on Social Media
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We’re on the buses! Looking forward to the @metopera premiere of Dead Man Walking in just a couple weeks. Are you a young artist that supports abolition of the death penalty? Submit your art for a chance to win $500 and support the death penalty abolition movement. Learn more and download an application at the link in my bio. Please share with young people and teachers in your networks! Unless a court intervenes, Missouri will execute Michael Tisius tomorrow, June 6th. When Michael was 19 years old, he committed a terrible crime and killed two jailers while attempting to free a former cellmate. But Michael is not the worst of the worst and does not deserve to die. It was great to see former Illinois Gov. Pat Quinn a few weeks ago in Chicago. Back in 2011, Gov. Quinn acted with moral courage when he signed a law abolishing the death penalty and commuted the death sentences of every person left on death row in Illinois. Photo by Pat Nabong | Chicago Sun-Times. NEWS: The U.S. Supreme Court has granted a stay of execution to Richard Glossip. The stay was jointly requested by the defense team and Oklahoma AG Drummond. This was great news to learn this afternoon just minutes after I finished a visit with Rich on Oklahoma’s death row! Please join us tomorrow at the Oklahoma State Capitol! 8 years ago, Richard Glossip asked me if I would be there to witness his impending execution. I said yes, but I wasn’t going to let this innocent man die without a fight. With a top-notch legal team and bipartisan group of advocates, we’re still fighting for Rich’s life today. Rich has his 9th execution date set on May 18th. Oklahoma Attorney General Drummond acknowledges serious legal errors in Rich’s case that, AG Drummond says, justify a new trial. Oklahoma County DA Behenna says that the death penalty wouldn’t even be pursued in Rich’s case today. “I do not think that God approves the death penalty for any crime, rape and murder included. Capital punishment is against the better judgment of modern criminology, and, above all, against the highest expression of love in the nature of God.” #mlkday Elwood Jones was released on bond today after spending nearly 30 years on Ohio’s death row. A Cincinnati judge granted Jones a new trial, finding that prosecutors withheld significant exculpatory evidence from his defense team. Photo from the Cincinnati Enquirer. What a privilege it is to be able to share this special day of joy with my friends and family, in warmth and companionship. Felony disenfranchisement is a serious issue, especially in the Deep South. This presentation on Dec. 20th will provide valuable information for lawyers and non-lawyers alike on recent Louisiana laws that have changed voting rules for people who may have been disenfranchised before. In-person and virtual options available. NEWS: Governor Kate Brown today commuted the death sentences of all 17 people who remained on Oregon’s death row. The Governor also ordered the immediate dismantling of the state’s execution chamber. Thank you, Governor Brown, for your courageous moral leadership! 
Michael was subjected to extreme abuse and neglect as a child. His mother berated him, his older brother beat him, and his father abandoned him. The second picture is a self-portrait Michael drew to visually reflect what he felt every day during his childhood.
Michael, an extremely immature 19-year-old with serious neurodevelopmental delays, was manipulated by a much older cellmate. Michael killed jail guards Leon Egley and Jason Acton while unsuccessfully attempting to free his former cellmate. Since then, that cellmate has admitted that if it wasn’t for him, Michael wouldn’t have done this. “It only happened because of me,” the cellmate said.
Many of the jurors from Michael’s sentencing trial feel differently about their decision now that they have more information. Michael’s lawyers were woefully unprepared, to the point that one juror said, “It felt like they were just warm bodies, two rocks. It was pitiful.” In light of the new information they never heard, many of the jurors say they would not have voted for a death sentence and now support clemency.
Michael has worked hard to redeem himself during his time on death row. He has committed himself to his artwork and faith. He is deeply remorseful. Not a day has gone by that he hasn’t regretted his actions. Michael does not deserve to die.
Over the coming weeks, we’ll need support from every person who believes it’s unconscionable to execute a man when there are such serious doubts about his guilt and the fairness of his trial. It’s not too late to right this miscarriage of justice.
The first thing you can do to help is contact @governorkevinstitt to ask for a 60-day reprieve of Rich’s execution date. This will allow more time for additional work to happen in the courts and for the Oklahoma Legislature to change the law, if necessary. Please call Gov. Stitt’s office at 405-521-2342 and ask, respectfully and in your words, the Governor to grant a 60-day reprieve for Richard Glossip.
I’ll be coming to you over the next few weeks with more action steps that you can take on behalf of Rich Glossip. We will fight to stop this execution until the very end. Glad to be in this struggle with all of you.
I want to acknowledge all those for whom this day is especially hard. I hold you in my heart.
The photo below was taken at Christmastime, 2009, on death row with Manuel Ortiz. Today, 13 years later, Manuel is still on death row.
