MONTGOMERY, Alabama — The Southern Poverty Law Center (SPLC) denounces the Trump administration’s abhorrent directive to reinstate the death penalty in Washington, D.C., to combat “violent crime” in the district, where the crime rate is at its lowest in decades.
The administration went even further by suggesting states take similar action and threatening to revoke federal funding from jurisdictions that do not comply. This announcement isn’t about making communities safer; it is another distraction from actions by the administration that are making all of us less safe and plunging us further toward authoritarian rule.
“Americans deserve a president who will take our safety seriously,” said Bryan Fair, interim president and CEO of the SPLC. “But President Trump’s latest stunt to mandate the death penalty in D.C. makes a mockery of public safety. If Trump truly cared about reducing crime, he would follow the lead of the District of Columbia’s most successful, community-centered strategies that are proven to make communities safer. He would fully fund essential services like health care, food assistance, and drug and mental health treatment. And he would respect people’s constitutional rights to due process and equal protection. Instead, Trump has done the opposite — making us all less safe. His call to resurrect a violent, merciless measure that has been disproportionately wielded against Black, Brown and poor communities and failed to lower crime is just another sickening ploy for power. It cannot be justified under any circumstance.
Data shows that capital punishment does not reduce violent crime. Currently, 23 states and Washington, D.C., have abolished the death penalty, with four states pausing it due to gubernatorial actions.
“Those who willingly invoke the death penalty to deter crime are not interested in preventing crime or solving the issues that lead to crime. They are simply interested in creating a culture of fear and intimidation that will unfairly target Black and Brown communities,” said Tieffa Harper, deputy legal director at the SPLC. “Historically, the death penalty has been used to target Black citizens at higher rates, leading to unfair convictions and innocent people being sentenced to death row with little to no evidence. A society committed to ending crime cannot be dedicated to capital punishment. We must be committed to solving the root causes of crime, such as poverty, systematic oppression and a disinvestment in communities nationwide.”
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About the Southern Poverty Law Center
The Southern Poverty Law Center is a catalyst for racial justice in the South and beyond, working in partnership with communities to dismantle white supremacy, strengthen intersectional movements and advance the human rights of all people. For more information, visit www.splcenter.org.