As reported by the Associated Press, Attorney Tara L. Knight, president-elect of the Connecticut Criminal Defense Lawyers Association, spoke at a news conference in Hartford, Jan. 13, 2005.

Defense attorneys call for abolition of death penalty
January 14, 2005
By Susan Haigh, Associated Press

HARTFORD — Contending that the death penalty is unconstitutional and a waste of
taxpayers' money, a statewide association of defense attorneys urged Gov.
M. Jodi Rell and the state legislature on Thursday to stop this month's
execution of serial killer Michael Ross.

The 300-member Connecticut Criminal Defense Lawyers Association wants the
legislature to abolish the death penalty. The group also is asking state
residents to contact their lawmakers to act before the scheduled Jan. 26
execution.

"The system is broken. It makes mistakes ... This is what's going to
happen when we start killing people," New Haven attorney Hugh Keefe said.

Keefe said defense attorneys know firsthand about the mistakes made in
Connecticut's criminal justice system. Nearly every one of the 50 lawyers
at the state Capitol news conference raised their hand when Keefe asked
whether they've had an innocent client wrongly arrested or convicted.

But Rell is standing by her Dec. 7 decision to not grant Ross a reprieve
and give the legislature time to debate Connecticut's death penalty
statute.

"The governor has made her stand on this issue very clear. She believes in
the death penalty for the most heinous crimes," said a Rell spokesman,
Rich Harris. "The Michael Ross case certainly fits that decision."

Legislative leaders have said there is not enough time or support to pass
a bill abolishing the death penalty before the execution.

Ross, 45, has admitted killing 8 women in Connecticut and New York, and is
on death row for the murders of 4 young women in eastern Connecticut in
the 1980s. He also raped some of the women.

His execution by lethal injection is scheduled for 2 a.m. on Jan. 26 at
Osborn Correctional Institution in Somers. His would be the 1st execution
in New England since 1960.

Ross has said he wants to forgo further appeals to spare the families of
his victims more pain. However, his former lawyers believe the killer is
not mentally competent to make such a decision, suffers from depression
and wants to commit "state-assisted suicide."

The defense attorneys, who have yet to meet with Rell or legislative
leaders, passed a resolution on Jan. 13 that renews the group's call for
the abolition of the death penalty. They include a list of criticisms,
claiming the death penalty "does not comport with evolving standards of
decency," "is excessive and serves no legislative purpose," is arbitrary
and racially discriminatory and risks execution of the innocent.

"The death penalty in Connecticut is more like a game of roulette than a
rational review," said Hubert Santos, a Hartford defense attorney.

He said the 13 state's attorneys in Connecticut can make their own
decision on whether to pursue the death penalty against those who commit
capital crimes. He said statistics show that people living in Hartford and
Waterbury are more likely to face death sentences than people living
elsewhere.

Thomas Ullmann, a New Haven public defender, said a death sentence is
costly on taxpayers. He said it can cost about $2.5 million to $8 million
to try and put someone to death, while it costs $1.5 million to keep
someone in prison for 40 years.

This comes at a time when the state's judicial system is strapped for
cash, Ullmann said.

"For this, we have a blank check," he said of the death penalty.