The following statement is issued today by Tennessee Right to Life, Hamilton County Chapter spokesman Donald O’Connor about Terri Schiavo and the Federal Courts denial of “de novo” review before execution.
“When a convicted criminal in the USA is sentenced by a State court to be executed on a specified date the criminal can automatically receive a delay to the execution date by appealing to higher state courts.
“And, if all state court appeals fail to reverse the execution order then the criminal has the automatic right to again delay execution by many more years by appealing to the Federal Courts for “de novo” review. “De novo” means the Federal Courts must take time to start over from the beginning even if the Courts believe the criminal appeal will probably fail on its merits. The extended Federal delays in execution are automatically required to grant the criminal full due process before death makes the issues moot.
“Congress passed a law giving Terri and her family that same right to “de novo” review. Unfortunately, the Federal Courts’ “de novo” review of Terri Schiavo’s execution has not automatically delayed her execution. Why? Because Terri is innocent! By order of the Courts Terri has less “due process” protection from Court ordered execution than a convicted mass murderer.
“The real issue is judicial corruption. No government, no court, and no public official has dominion over the lives of innocent people. Innocent people have dominion over government.
“Tennessee Right to Life, Hamilton County Chapter calls upon our government, its courts, and public officials to respect the intrinsic right to live of every innocent human being.
“We call upon everyone to use the peaceful processes of our free democracy to restore the full and equal right to live to all innocent people.”