We have wonderful news!
Last week, Senator Jeff Brandes (R-St. Petersburg) introduced Senate Bill 770, which would protect people with serious mental illness from the death penalty. The introduction of this bill is an important milestone in our campaign to save vulnerable people from execution.
So where do we go from here?
FADP is working with mental health advocates to introduce a companion bill in the House. I will keep you posted on our progress.
Meanwhile, to build momentum, it’s important to signal we’re watching and supportive when a legislator takes a positive step on the death penalty.
As you can imagine, state legislators get lots of requests and complaints. They rarely get thanked. But we know that winning strategies in states that have ended the death penalty have included generating thank you’s – lots of them.
With that winning strategy in mind, here is a quick and easy way to help move S.B. 770 forward:
- Contact Senator Jeff Brandes (brandes.jeff.web@flsenate.gov
) and thank him for introducing S.B. 770. Let him know that you believe persons with serious mental illness should never be executed. If he is your Senator or if you are in the St. Petersburg area, please mention that!
Excluding people with serious mental illness from execution is the smart move for our state. I hope you’ll join us by taking action to help us keep momentum moving on S.B. 770!
P.S. If you haven’t already, make sure you sign and share our petition asking our leaders to protect people with serious mental illness from the death penalty. Note: the sharing part is critical!