Wednesday, August 8, 2012

POLL TIME!


Are you for or against Prop 34?
I am for Prop 34
I am against Prop 34
Create your own poll

Tuesday, August 7, 2012

Our Stance on Prop 34 (Hint: We are for it)



Prop 34 Fact Sheet


What is Prop 34?
If Prop 34 passes it will mark the end of the death penalty here in California. This applies to all future murder convictions and current inmates on death row. These inmates will then in turn be sentenced to life in prison without parole and will be put to work with wages going to victim compensation funds to the victims' families. If voted yes, it will become effective the day after election. We fully support proposition 34 as it not only will save money but it also promotes respect for human dignity and non-maleficence, which are key components to our profession as evidenced by our nursing Code of Ethics. (ANA, 2010)

Evidence:
  • Abolishing the death penalty is projected to save the state $1 billion over the next five years and save California taxpayers $100 million every year (Safe California, 2012).
  • In the last 6 years there have been no executions. Since the death penalty was reinstated in 1978, only 13 people have been executed despite having over 720 prisoners on death row. It has cost us a total of $4.6 billion since 1978, which is just over $350 million per execution (Alarcon & Mitchell, 2011). That does not seem like an efficient use of our tax dollars.
  • Additionally, a onetime $100 million portion will go to the SAFE California fund which is dedicated to solving rape and murder cases in California. The funds will be used to quickly process evidence in rape and murder cases, DNA testing, and the hiring of more investigators (Attorney General, 2011).
  • Death penalty trials are 20 times more expensive than trials seeking life in prison without the possibility of parole; California has spent $4 billion on death penalty since 1978 (Safe California, 2012).
  • Today, less than 1% of inmates on death row work to pay restitution to victims, but under this ballot measure, every person convicted of murder will be required to work and earn money for the victim’s compensation fund (Safe California, 2012).
  • Over 140 people have been exonerated after being wrongly sentenced to death in this country; California will always be at risk for executing an innocent person if the death penalty is not eliminated (Safe California, 2012).

Get Involved!
Text YesOn34 to 74700 to receive Prop. 34 updates
www.yeson34.org
www.prop34.blogspot.com
http://www.facebook.com/yeson34




Fact Sheet References

Alarcon, A. L., & Mitchell, P. M. (2011). California cost-study 2011. Retrieved

ANA. (2010). Code of ethics for nurses with interpretive statements. Retrieved
CodeofEthicsforNurses/Code-of-Ethics.pdf

Attorney General. (2012). Proposed law: the SAFE California act. Retrieved from:  
http://ag.ca.gov/cms_attachments/initiatives/pdfs/i978_1-0035_(repeal_the_death_penalty).pdf?

SAFE California, (2012). Be safe and replace california’s death penalty with life without the  possibility of parole. Retrieved from website: http://www.safecalifornia.org/facts/body/SAFECAFactsabouttheDeathPenalty.pdf

Like "Yes on 34" on facebook!

Note: it is no longer /safecalifornia. use /yeson34 

http://www.facebook.com/yeson34


Unreal: The Story of Obie Anthony



Obie Anthony was initially sentenced to death for conviction of a murder he did not commit, but was later found innocent 17 years later.

Sunday, August 5, 2012

Hey guys!

Here are a few questions and we'd love to hear your answers to them. You don't have to answer all of them or any of them. You can join in the discussion any way you please.

1. What is your stance on abolishing the death penalty? Are you in favor or not?

2. Do you think that voters in general are informed enough on the ballots up for voting at the time of voting? If not, why?

3. What can be done to improve the public's knowledge of the propositions on the ballot?


1. I do support prop 34. With the probability of saving the state $1 billion in 5 years and a portion of those funds, $100 million, dedicated to solve more rape and murder cases, the prop has strong appeal. I would love to see the money saved to go towards education, but if it is purely saved, that would be fine as well. Also, I see death as the easy way out. With prop 34, inmates will have to work and pay restitution to the victim's compensation fund throughout their lifetime sentence. That definitely seems more just.

2. I do not think they are. Here's why based on my personal experience. I voted in 2008 and the only thing I knew was that I was voting for Obama. Everything else on there was new to me. So sad to say, I voted on everything else without truly knowing the issues behind them and ended up realizing later on that my vote on certain things would have been different if I had known more about what was on there. The reason I didn't know much about these things were because I didn't take the time to look at them or research them.

3. One way to improve the public's knowledge is to bring a flyer to people's doors a month before voting. On this flyer there should be all the propositions that they'll be voting on and what they're about. Just the basics. And links under each of them where people can look up if they want to find out more. This way, there will be some understanding beforehand.

-Carl




Monday, July 30, 2012

Register to Vote Today!


To Register to Vote in California, You Must Be:


    1. A United States citizen
    2. A resident of California
    3. 18 years of age or older on Election Day
    4. Not in prison or in county jail (serving a state prison sentence or serving a term of more than one year in jail for a defined "low-level" felony)
    5. Not on parole, post release community supervision, or post-sentencing probation for a felony conviction (for more information on the rights of people who have been incarcerated
    6. Not found by a court to be mentally incompetent.

California Registration Deadline

  • To Qualify for the upcoming general election on November 6, 2012, your registration must be postmarked no later than October 22, 2012.

Fill Out a Registration Card Now!
    1. ONLINE: fill in the information requested on the form, print, sign, and mail it directly to the county elections office address that is pre-printed on the form. If you have any questions, you may contact the Elections Division at (800) 345-8683.  Form: https://www.sos.ca.gov/elections/register-to-vote/ for forms in Chinese, Hindi, Japanese, Khmer, Korean, Spanish, Tagalog, Thai, and Vietnamese, click here. http://www.sos.ca.gov/elections/new-voter/
    2. In Person: You can pick up a voter registration form at your county elections office, library, or U.S. Post Office. It is important that your voter registration form be filled out completely and be postmarked or hand-delivered to your county elections office at least 15 days before the election

For additional assistance with voter registration, please contact the Secretary of State's office at the following toll-free numbers:
  • English:        (800) 345-8683
  • Spanish:        (800) 232-8682
  • Chinese:       (800) 339-2857
  • Hindi:            (888) 345-2692
  • Japanese:     (800) 339-2865
  • Khmer:          (888) 345-4917
  • Korean:         (866) 575-1558
  • Tagalog:        (800) 339-2957
  • Thai:              (855) 345-3933
  • Vietnamese:  (800) 339-8163
  • TTY/TDD:        (800) 833-8683


California Secretary of State. (2102). Voter Registration. Retrieved from: http://www.sos.ca.gov/elections/elections_vr.htm

To locate your voting precinct fill out your address in the link below and it will show you where you are listed to vote

http://vote411.org/pollfinder.php


Full legal content of Prop 34 can be accessed here:

http://ag.ca.gov/cms_attachments/initiatives/pdfs/i978_11-0035_(repeal_the_death_penalty).pdf?

Wednesday, July 25, 2012

Prop 34 Pros Fact Sheet



You can view/download the Prop 34 fact sheet from “Yes on Prop 34” below: http://www.safecalifornia.org/facts/body/SAFECAFactsabouttheDeathPenalty.pdf
Summary of the fact sheet:
  • The SAFE California Act will save the state $1 billion in five years by replacing California’s death penalty with life without the possibility of parole. (The death penalty is in fact more expensive than a sentence of life in prison without parole)
  • It requires inmates to work and pay restitution to the victim’s compensation fund.
  •  It also creates the SAFE California Fund which sets aside $100 million or $30 million per year for three years to solve more rape and murder cases.
  • It prevents innocent people from getting executed
People who support Prop 34:
  • SAFE California is supported by a lead proponent of the 1978 death penalty initiative (Ron Briggs)
  • The lawyer who wrote California’s death penalty law (Don Heller)
  • The former warden who carried out four executions in this state (Jeanne Woodford).
Reference:
SAFE California, (2012). Be safe and replace california’s death penalty with life without the possibility of parole. Retrieved from website:http://www.safecalifornia.org/facts/body/SAFECAFactsabouttheDeathPenalty.pdf