Encouraging an act of mercy and arguing it would not compromise justice, Nebraska’s three Catholic bishops said on 6th July they oppose the scheduled execution in August of death-row inmate Carey Dean Moore.
“As the Catholic bishops of Nebraska, we recognise that our society has a pervasive culture of violence and death, which can only be transformed by a counterculture of justice and mercy,” said Archbishop George J. Lucas of Omaha and Bishops James D. Conley of Lincoln and Joseph G. Hanefeldt of Grand Island.
“Each time we consider applying capital punishment, Nebraska has an opportunity to respond to an act of violence with an act of mercy that does not endanger public safety or compromise the demands of justice,” they said in a statement released by the Nebraska Catholic Conference.
“There is no doubt the state has the responsibility to administer just punishment. However, given our modern prison system, the execution of Carey Dean Moore is not necessary to fulfill justice and, for that reason, would undermine respect for human life,” the bishops said. “We continue to offer our sincerest prayers for all victims and those affected by the heinous crimes of Mr Moore, and we pray for his conversion of heart.”
Picture: Death-row inmate Carey Dean Moore is pictured in a 2007 photo at the Tecumseh State Correctional Institution in Nebraska. Encouraging an act of mercy and arguing it would not compromise justice, Nebraska’s three Catholic bishops said on 6th July they oppose the scheduled execution in August of Moore. (CNS photo/Phil Johnson, courtesy Omaha World-Herald).
