VOA标准英语2011--Death Row Exonerated Seek End to Death Penalty in US

Death Row Exonerated¹ Seek End to Death Penalty in US

A new Gallup Poll shows that support for the death penalty in the United States remains² high, but down to 61 percent from 80 percent in 1994. Part of the reason is the possibility of innocent inmates³ being put to death and the release of others after new evidence cleared them. Several men saved from execution are now telling their stories to the public.

Ron Keine was convicted of murder in the southwestern state of New Mexico and was just days away from his scheduled execution when the man who had really committed the crime confessed to a preacher.

"Of course, the preacher said, 'I cannot absolve⁴ you, you have to go and do the right thing.' And the guy said, 'Yeah, I know.' At that time I was nine days from execution," recalled Keine.

After the truth came out, Keine gained his freedom and joined the effort to abolish capital punishment.

New Mexico has now abolished the death penalty. But Keine says most of the men he met on death row should remain in prison.

"These people are dangerous killers⁵ and they should not be out on the streets," Keine explained. "I don't want those guys out, but I do not believe in killing⁶ anybody. I believe they should be put in prison for the rest of their lives without any chance of parole."

Studies show one out of every eight condemned⁷ inmates could be innocent. And lawyers representing death penalty convicts often uncover evidence of prosecution⁸ abuses in the original trial.

Clarence Brandley was on death row in Texas until he won such an appeal.

"It has been proven and shown over and over again that Texas has executed innocent people," he said.

Brandley says many poor black men are sent to the death row facility near Livingston, Texas, because they lacked the money to mount an effective defense⁹.

Iranian immigrant Hooma Hedayati, who is with a group called "Witness to Innocence¹⁰," organized a tour of Texas cities by exonerated prisoners.

"Several studies have shown that innocence is one of the most important factors in people deciding whether they are for or against the death penalty and what we are doing is giving a face to innocence, where people get firsthand to experience people who have been wrongfully convicted," Hedayati explained.

Another argument against the death penalty is that it is ineffective, says Dorothy McClellan, who teaches at Texas A & M University at Corpus Christi.

"It does not accomplish what it sets out to do. It seeks to get revenge, but it is inefficient¹¹, it does not, in fact, deter," she said.

But many Americans believe the death penalty dissuades¹² people from committing grisly murders, and, at the very least, guarantees they will not kill again.

Opponents try to counter that notion by showing that, in some cases, the person being executed is not the one who committed the crime.

1 exonerated   

v.使免罪，免除( exonerate的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• The police report exonerated Lewis from all charges of corruption. 警方的报告免除了对刘易斯贪污的所有指控。
• An investigation exonerated the school from any blame. 一项调查证明该学校没有任何过失。 来自辞典例句

2 remains   

n.剩余物，残留物；遗体，遗迹

参考例句：

• He ate the remains of food hungrily.他狼吞虎咽地吃剩余的食物。
• The remains of the meal were fed to the dog.残羹剩饭喂狗了。

3 inmates   

n.囚犯( inmate的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• One of the inmates has escaped. 被收容的人中有一个逃跑了。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• The inmates were moved to an undisclosed location. 监狱里的囚犯被转移到一个秘密处所。 来自《简明英汉词典》

4 absolve   

v.赦免，解除（责任等）

参考例句：

• I absolve you,on the ground of invincible ignorance.鉴于你不可救药的无知，我原谅你。
• They agree to absolve you from your obligation.他们同意免除你的责任。

5 killers   

凶手( killer的名词复数 )； 消灭…者； 致命物； 极难的事

参考例句：

• He remained steadfast in his determination to bring the killers to justice. 他要将杀人凶手绳之以法的决心一直没有动摇。
• They were professional killers who did in John. 杀死约翰的这些人是职业杀手。

6 killing   

n.巨额利润；突然赚大钱，发大财

参考例句：

• Investors are set to make a killing from the sell-off.投资者准备清仓以便大赚一笔。
• Last week my brother made a killing on Wall Street.上个周我兄弟在华尔街赚了一大笔。

7 condemned   

adj. 被责难的, 被宣告有罪的 动词condemn的过去式和过去分词

参考例句：

• He condemned the hypocrisy of those politicians who do one thing and say another. 他谴责了那些说一套做一套的政客的虚伪。
• The policy has been condemned as a regressive step. 这项政策被认为是一种倒退而受到谴责。

8 prosecution   

n.起诉，告发，检举，执行，经营

参考例句：

• The Smiths brought a prosecution against the organizers.史密斯家对组织者们提出起诉。
• He attempts to rebut the assertion made by the prosecution witness.他试图反驳原告方证人所作的断言。

9 defense   

n.防御，保卫；[pl.]防务工事；辩护，答辩

参考例句：

• The accused has the right to defense.被告人有权获得辩护。
• The war has impacted the area with military and defense workers.战争使那个地区挤满了军队和防御工程人员。

10 innocence   

n.无罪；天真；无害

参考例句：

• There was a touching air of innocence about the boy.这个男孩有一种令人感动的天真神情。
• The accused man proved his innocence of the crime.被告人经证实无罪。

11 inefficient   

adj.效率低的，无效的

参考例句：

• The inefficient operation cost the firm a lot of money.低效率的运作使该公司损失了许多钱。
• Their communication systems are inefficient in the extreme.他们的通讯系统效率非常差。

12 dissuades   

劝（某人）勿做某事，劝阻( dissuade的第三人称单数 )

参考例句：