Activists ask Governor Perry to grant 30-day reprieve for Johnny Martinez
May 22, 2002
Contact: Scott Cobb xxx-xxx-xxxx
Messages from around the country are pouring into Texas Governor Rick
Perry’s office asking that he grant a 30-day reprieve for Johnny Martinez
after an appeal for mercy form the mother of Mr. Martinez’s victim. A vigil
will be held for Johnny Martinez this afternoon May 22 beginning at 5:30 PM
at the Governor’s Mansion (11th & Lavaca).
At 6.00 PM tonight, Johnny Martinez is scheduled to be executed by the state
of Texas for the murder of Clay Peterson. Lana Norris, the mother of the
victim has asked that Johnny Martinez be granted clemency. The Texas Board
of Pardons and Paroles denied this request by a vote of 9 to 8 this week.
Mrs. Norris (the victims mother) appeared on the Today Show today to share
her message that “to execute him would be a ‘double crime against society’
because it would create another family who has lost a son.”
Texas Moratorium Network would like Governor Perry to ask the Texas Board of
Pardons and Paroles to reconvene and reconsider a commutation in this case.
We ask Gov. Perry to stop tonight’s execution by granting a 30-day reprieve
so that the board can meet again and take into consideration the wishes of
the victim’s mother to stop the execution.
Marisa Fehrenbach of Texas Moratorium Network wrote in a letter to Governor
Perry, “The victim’s family must be heard. It is not fair nor moral for the
state to support victims’ families who wish to execute while ignoring the
wishes of a family that does not want their son’s killer executed.”
Fehrenbach continued, “Texas Moratorium Network asks that you grant Mr.
Martinez a 30-day reprieve so that the Texas Board of Pardons and Paroles
can reconvene and reconsider a commutation in this case. We ask you to stop
tonight’s execution so that the board can meet again and take into
consideration the wishes of the victim’s mother to commute the sentence to
life in prison. Please ask the BPP to hold a public hearing so that the
victim’s family may speak to the entire board about its wishes.”
- Texas Moratorium Network (TMN) is a non-profit organization with the primary goal of mobilizing statewide support for a moratorium on executions in Texas. Significant death penalty reform in Texas, including a moratorium on executions, is a viable goal if the public is educated on the death penalty system and is encouraged to contact their elected representatives to urge passage of moratorium legislation.
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