Assisting death row prisoners in the US
Howard Neal spent over 25 years on death row in a Mississippi prison after being convicted of murder and kidnapping in 1982.
There was no physical or forensic evidence against him, nor were there any eyewitnesses. His mental age was roughly that of an eight-year-old. Finally in 2002, the US Supreme Court ruled that the execution of the mentally retarded was unconstitutional. But it still took a further five years before Howard was spared from execution on these grounds and held for re-sentencing.
Lucy Larkins and Rachel Walsh: shared their experiences of death row in the US
With examples like this, alumnae Lucy Larkins (TC 2001) and Rachel Walsh (TC 1989) helped resident students put their looming exams into perspective when they spoke of their work with Reprieve Australia at the last Fireside Chat for 2008.
Established in 2001, this organisation provides legal and humanitarian assistance to impoverished prisoners on death row in the US – Howard Neal was one of them – and campaigns to abolish the death penalty, largely through an active program of volunteer Internships.
Seeking an ‘opportunity to oppose state-licensed killing’, Lucy became a Reprieve intern in 2006 after completing her law degree. She found the experience so rewarding that she returned to spend 2007 working at the Louisiana Capital Assistance Center.
‘My internship exposed me to the daily injustices that occur in Louisiana’s legal system. Capital punishment is treated so casually in the prevailing culture that there is a callous disregard for an accused’s right to a fair trial,’ she said.
Rachel Walsh, who is now president of Reprieve Australia, became involved with the work of Reprieve through another Trinity alumna, Susan Brennan (TC 1988) who was one of the association’s four founding committee members in Australia. Shortly after in 2002, Rachel spent three months as a volunteer intern with Gulf Regional Advocacy Center (GRACE) in Houston, Texas, America’s highest executing jurisdiction. She speaks passionately of this ‘truly life-changing experience’.
‘It opened my eyes to a lot of criminal and social justice issues from which I had been insulated previously, and left me with an even stronger desire to see justice done for those on death row,’ Rachel said. ‘Unexpectedly, it also enhanced my professional life by adding a new set of skills that I continue to use to this day.’
Rachel is a partner in law firm DLA Phillips Fox and Lucy is undertaking her Articles at Arnold Bloch Leibler. Barrister Susan Brennan is current World President of the YWCA.