1. United States
2. Conn.
3. Letter

I am writing as a constituent to urge you to oppose President Trump’s January 20 executive order expanding the use of the federal death penalty and to co‑sponsor the Federal Death Penalty Prohibition Act. The death penalty is ineffective, costly, and applied in a deeply racially biased manner. Race is the single strongest predictor of who is sentenced to death. Black Americans make up roughly 13 percent of the U.S. population, yet they account for about 40 percent of people on death row. Black defendants are four times more likely to receive a death sentence than similarly situated non‑Black defendants. Cases involving a Black defendant and a white victim are especially likely to result in execution, and all‑white juries convict Black defendants at dramatically higher rates than white defendants. Claims that the death penalty deters crime are not supported by evidence. States that have abolished capital punishment have not seen increases in murder rates; many have seen them decline. Law enforcement leaders consistently rank the death penalty as the least effective tool for reducing violent crime, and states that retain it often have higher homicide rates than states that do not. The financial costs are staggering. Maryland spent approximately $186 million to carry out just five executions before abolishing the death penalty. California has spent an estimated $4 billion more than life imprisonment would have cost. These resources could be better used to support survivors, strengthen public safety, and invest in victim services—rather than sustain a system that disproportionately targets Black and low‑income defendants while failing to prevent violence. I strongly oppose this executive order, which seeks to accelerate death sentencing and expand execution methods. The death penalty is inherently inhumane, and expanding its use moves our justice system further away from fairness, accountability, and public safety. I urge you to publicly oppose this executive order and to support the abolition of the federal death penalty by co‑sponsoring the Federal Death Penalty Prohibition Act. Thank you for your time and for your service.