John Conyers: “this amendment provides that in cases where a jury has imposed the death sentence or death resulting from witness…”

“this amendment provides that in cases where a jury has imposed the death sentence or death resulting from witness intimidation, if a court has any doubt regarding the defendant's guilt, the court shall sentence the defendant to life imprisonment rather than death. This amendment is offered because of the Supreme Court's decisions regarding what has come to be known as ``actual innocence.'' Incredibly, the Supreme Court has held that actual innocence, without proof of a violation of a defendant's constitutional rights, is not enough to stop a death sentence. In the case, only a few years back, of Herrera v. Collins, the Court ruled that a death row inmate who presents belated evidence of innocence is not ordinarily entitled to a new hearing before being executed. In that case, Judge Rehnquist stated that the Federal habeas courts sit to ensure that individuals are not imprisoned in violation of the Constitution, not to correct errors of fact. According to the Supreme Court, newly discovered evidence has never been regarded as a sufficient basis for the Federal Court relief in the absence of some underlying constitutional violation. And that is notwithstanding the finality of a death penalty. If a mistake has been made, there is no way to undo it. For the last 26 years, a little over 1 percent of the nearly 7,000 Americans sentenced to death have been released from death row after new facts came to light indicating their innocence.”