The Intercommunity Justice and Peace Center collaborates with Ohioans to Stop Execution on the project

Ohio’s Moratorium Campaign

What is a Moratorium?

A moratorium temporarily stops executions from taking place. It is a “time-out” which is neither a rejection nor an approval of the death penalty and which would allow Ohio’s death penalty system to be studied. Many death penalty supporters and opponents agree that death sentences are not administered fairly and that the system needs to be examined. Until the justice system is fair and nondiscriminatory, we must have a moratorium to ensure that innocent people are not put to death in Ohio. OTSE is convinced that careful review of the death penalty system will reveal that capital punishment cannot be administered in an unbiased manner, which precludes the possibility of executing innocent persons. Thus moratorium could lead to abolition of the death penalty. For more info see http://www.otse.org/moratoriummore.htm

The Ohio Moratorium Campaign is a part of a National movement lead by Equal Justice USA. Equal Justice USA kicked off the Moratorium Now! campaign in August 1997, shortly after the American Bar Association passed a resolution calling for moratorium on all U.S. executions. The campaign seeks to build momentum for a national moratorium by mobilizing local groups to adopt their own resolutions and to recruit others in their area to join the call.

How to get involved:
Ohio Moratorium Campaign – Meets bi-monthly via conference call on second Thursday. Ohio is using the moratorium campaign and the resolution gathering strategy to address the flaws in the death penalty Resolution by resolution, church-by-church, city-by-city, Ohioans are building the capacity toward the realization of a moratorium in Ohio. Sarah Craft of Equal Justice USA joined the OTSE Annual Summit in October to help us envisage our next steps. The committee is targeting Columbus, Toledo and Dayton in 2006 ….. but we need statewide support!

In Ohio over 120 groups have signed moratorium resolutions calling for a halt on executions.  Nationwide nearly 4,000 groups, churches, business, and professional associations have called for a moratorium on executions, including 142 city, town, and county councils – Cincinnati, Dayton, Oberlin and Yellow Spring are among the tally. 

download the pdf - Who are sponsoring groups in Ohio? / download the pdf - Model Moratorium Resolution