Group asks North Carolina governor to commute all of state’s death sentences before leaving office

RALEIGH, N.C. (WNCN) — The North Carolina Coalition for Alternatives to the Death Penalty met Sunday afternoon at The Church on Morgan in downtown Raleigh and called for Gov. Roy Cooper to commute all death sentences in the state before he leaves office.

The Rev. Sharon Risher lost her mother and two cousins in 2015 during the Charleston, South Carolina, shooting when 21-year-old Dylann Roof killed nine people at The Emanuel African Methodist Episcopal Church.

“Family members who have been through horrific things, in the name of justice and revenge. I just want to be able to tell a different story,” Risher told CBS17.

Risher said that every time Roof appeals his sentence, she and her family have to relive their trauma all over again. She told CBS 17 that it would be easier for her if Roof would get a life sentence.

Former death row inmates also attended Sunday’s event. Henry Lee McCollum was on death row for 31 years before his murder conviction was overturned. McCollum was 19 when he, and his 15-year-old brother were accused of raping and murdering an 11-year-old.

McCollum and his brother were released decades later, after new DNA evidence linked another man to the crime. McCollum told CBS 17 that he believes he met more innocent men while on death row.

He also said that even those who are guilty, deserve a chance to change.

“People that commit crimes, they do change. I don’t believe they deserve capital punishment. I believe they deserve to be in prison for life,” McCollum said.

North Carolina has not executed anyone since 2006, since lawsuits put the practice on hold. Advocates say they will not rest until the death penalty is abolished completely in the state.

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