Executed August 24, 2001

Honorable Michael F. Easley
Office of the Governor
20301 Mail Service Center
Raleigh, NC 27699-0301 

Re: Clifton Allen White 

Dear Governor Easley: 

On behalf of the American Civil Liberties Union, we urge you to stay the execution of Clifton Allen White, and to commute his death sentence to life imprisonment without parole. Such relief is merited by the circumstances of Mr. White¹s case, as well as by growing concerns regarding the death penalty generally in North Carolina. 

The ACLU has serious concerns regarding the fairness of Mr. White¹s trial. For example, the jury that sentenced Mr. White to death heard inaccurate and incomplete evidence about his background. Clifton White was raised in a family with a long history of substance, emotional, and physical abuse. Also, while in prison in North Carolina for a previous offense, Mr. White was raped. Prior to that incident, he had not committed any violent offenses. Had Mr. White¹s attorneys presented this evidence at trial, the jury would have had a more complete understanding of the events leading up to his crime. 

Also, the jury at sentencing was misled about Mr. White¹s parole eligibility. After hearing about his successful behavior in prison, the jury asked the judge whether Mr. White would be eligible for parole if he received a life sentence. Only after failing to get real reassurances that Mr. White would spend the rest of his life in prison did the jury recommend the death sentence. Had the jury been aware that a life sentence would allow no possibility of release, they might have been more likely to recommend imprisonment. 

Tragically, Mr. White¹s crime might have been prevented had state officials intervened in time. In the months prior to the murder, Mr. White¹s sister noticed a significant change in her brother¹s behavior. He was using cocaine more frequently and acting violently for the first time in his life. She asked both Mr. White¹s probation officer and the police to intervene. Despite sufficient grounds for intervention, the sister¹s pleas were ignored. 

Clifton White has consistently shown remorse for his crime. He promptly confessed to the killing and has continued to accept responsibility and demonstrate remorse for his actions. These considerations weigh further in favor of imprisonment rather than execution. 

Serious questions have been raised regarding the death penalty system in North Carolina. Consider the following cases from the past few years: Alfred Rivera spent 22 months on death row before being found innocent at a second trial; Russell Tucker received a stay of his execution after his lawyer admitted to sabotaging his appeal; Marcus Carter¹s death sentence was commuted after a judge allowed him to represent himself in a murder case. These examples show that North Carolina¹s death penalty system is far from perfect. 

As a result of such cases, there is strong and growing support for a moratorium on executions in North Carolina so that the fairness of the system can be studied further. A North Carolina legislative commission studying the issue has recommended such a moratorium, leading the House and Senate to consider moratorium legislation. Several local governments, as well as the North Carolina branch of the American Bar Association and other civic and religious organizations, have passed resolutions in favor of a moratorium. Illinois Governor George Ryan already has declared a moratorium on executions in his state based on similar concerns. 

The ACLU opposes capital punishment in all cases as a barbarous anachronism and in violation of the Constitution. Clifton Allen¹s case particularly merits clemency: The unfair and arbitrary nature of his sentence cannot be tolerated regarding a form of punishment from which there can be no relief. This is especially true in North Carolina, where the faults of the death penalty system have been recognized, and efforts to address them are underway. 

The ACLU commends your compassion in recently signing into law a bill banning the execution of those with mental retardation. We respectfully urge you to extend this compassion to Clifton Allen White, and to achieve justice in this case by granting him clemency. 

Sincerely, 

Diann Rust-Tierney
ACLU Capital Punishment Project 

Deborah Ross
ACLU of North Carolina 

Iain R. McPhie
Pro Bono Counsel
Squire, Sanders & Dempsey, LLP