The North Carolina Senate is meeting today in an unusual short session. One issue on the table – and the chopping block – is the Racial Justice Act. The Conference of District Attorneys (in a letter the NAACP contends is inaccurate and misleading) has urged legislators to effectively repeal the landmark bill. Defense attorneys have submitted a letter of their own, urging the General Assembly to preserve inmates’ right to present evidence of racial bias in the administration of the death penalty.
More to come as this story develops.
Local papers:
Asheville Citizen-Times: Racial Justice Act ‘Fix’ Would in Essence End It
Fayetteville Observer: Prosecutors See Danger in Sentence Reviews
Wilmington Star-News: Effort to Repeal Racial Justice Act Would Tip the Scales the Wrong Way
Winston-Salem Journal: District Attorneys Call for End to Racial Justice Act
Letters to the Editor/Op-Eds/Blog Posts:
District Attorneys v. The Law by James Coleman (Duke law professor)
Racial Justice Act is Necessary by Hannah Autry
Nothing New in Death Row Debate by Scott Mooneyham
Our Judicial System Should be Color Blind by George Burazer
Racial Justice Act Should be Defended by Cecil Bothwell (Asheville city councilman)
In Defense of NC’s Racial Justice Act by scharrison @ BlueNC
Detecting Bias in Death Penalty Cases by Frank Baumgartner (UNC political science professor)
Posted by deathwatch 
