02-06-06,8:04am
It came as no surprise to family members of Maryland death row prisoner Vernon Evans when they went calling on Governor Robert Ehrlich he wasn't even home. Why should he be? He wasn't home when Davida Oken, the mother of Steven Oken, came in July 2004 desperately looking for mercy for her son. And he wasn't home just last December for Delores Williams, the mother of Wesley Baker. But this time, when the Evans family came, they came prepared - they came with over 60 supporters, banners, placards, an accompaniment of television cameras, and a video recording of their request for clemency.
The video itself, available at www.savevernonevans.org/ClemencyVideo.html, is a remarkable innovation in the fight for clemency. An incredible document, it illustrates in vivid detail the devastating impact an execution has on the family of the executed. In the video, you see the Evans family battling for its own survival as they fight to save their son, brother, father, and grandfather. Speaking directly to the Governor, the Evans family demonstrates a poise and clarity that both affirms their dignity and condemns the brutal system they face.
This compelling document was inspired by Vernon himself, a vocal spokesperson against the death penalty. He is the author of the first ever death row blog (www.meetvernon.blogspot.com), has led a seminar on the death penalty at Maryland's Mount St. Mary's College, and has participated via speaker-phone in abolitionist rallies across the state.
Vernon Evans faces execution on the week of February 6th. He has exhausted every appeal and it appears that his lawyers will not be able to win relief in the courts. To make matters worse the courts have turned a deaf ear to compelling evidence that suggests Vernon Evans was not the shooter in the crime. No jury ever heard the testimony of the only eyewitness to the crime that stated Vernon was not the shooter. Further, a 2003 Governor commissioned study showed Maryland's death penalty is applied in an arbitrary and racially biased manner. Vernon, a Black man accused of killing two white victims, fits this disturbing pattern.
Which led Vernon's family to Robert Ehrlich's front door. There used to be time when Maryland Governors, weighing the awesome power of clemency in a death penalty case, would personally visit the condemned man, look him in the eye, and judge something of his character. This display was undoubtedly more a show of machismo than a deliberate exercise in justice.
But Governor Ehrlich, the law and order Republican doesn't have the stomach for the mothers of death row prisoners. The former Princeton boxer uses his skills to bob and weave away from the reality of executions and instead sends out his friends from the Baltimore County State's Attorneys office to scream indignantly at the audacity of Vernon's family. Baltimore County Deputy State's Attorney Stephen Bailey called the video 'a blatant attempt to manipulate Governor Ehrlich based on emotion rather than facts or sound judgment.' In a state where prosecutors have fine tuned victim impact statements to ensure they traumatize juries so much they will approve of state death, these protestations are a sick hypocrisy. Meanwhile the Governor's counsel has publicly stated he wasn't sure if the Governor would even take the time to view the video.
In fact, Ehrlich when cameras finally caught up with him on the Saturday the Evans family came calling was found at the annual Maryland State Police Polar Bear Plunge. There he seemed nervous and disturbed at the mere mention of Vernon Evans. He stammered about his commitment to the process and that he would 'review all the facts.'
Ehrlich is committed to 'process' because he is confident of its outcome - a quiet, antiseptic, and well-rehearsed death for Vernon Evans. Vernon and his family, however, have decided not to go quietly and are making sure, whether he's home or not, that he gets the message.
Abolitionist from across the region will rally outside Maryland's death row this Saturday, February 4th at 401 E. Madison St. in Baltimore at 2 PM. If you cannot attend this event, contact Governor Ehrlich, immediately and repeatedly and demand clemency for Vernon Evans. The Governor can be reached at: 100 State Circle, Annapolis, Maryland 21401-1925. Reach him by phone at: 410.974.3591 or 1.800.811.8336. You can send an email by visiting: http://www.gov.state.md.us/mail/.
Mike Stark is a national board member of the Campaign to End the Death Penalty (CEDP). He is also a frequent contributor to the CEDP's newsletter The New Abolitionist. He can be reached at:
