Teacher Paola Womac’s 8th grade class at St. Anne School, a catholic school on Queen Anne, recently sent me a large batch of personalized letters from students about their newly evolving views on the death penalty.

The class recently had the honor of hearing Sister Helen Prejean speak on the subject and the well-known author of “Dead Man Walking” clearly had a profound and powerful impact on the students.

Most of the kids acknowledged that they began with an impression that the death penalty was sound and responsible. Following Sister Prejean’s remarks they reflected upon the issue in a much more personal and focused way. They were not detached but engaged, connected to the issue in a way that few of us take the time to explore.

Over the past many months I have continued to find myself captivated by the terrifying number of cases of men (mostly) released from prison following 10, 20 or 30 years as the DNA evidence is reviewed or other reasons suggest wrong convictions. (While I have no more data, of course, than anyone else I admit from the beginning to a pit in the stomach sensation that Amanda Knox was not guilty.)

I’ve written on the death penalty many times here, here and here. And here.

“The application of the death penalty is like a lottery because such a small percentage of murderers get the death penalty- 1 or 2 percent of the thousands who commit homicide every year. And of those receiving death sentences, only a fraction are executed. Most people think this one or two percent who go to death row must have committed the most heinous, pre meditated, cold-blooded murders, but you see in many, many of these cases panic murders by defendants who have a history of child abuse or have had head injuries or who are mentally retarded, or outright insane.” -Helen Prejean

Eight grade student Adrian Andersen summed up the views of many in the class: “I don’t think that the death penalty is making a good name for ourselves. When a human kills another human it’s a tragedy, but killing a killer doesn’t make up for it.”

I realize that a strong majority of Americans are in favor of the death penalty. My personal religious, moral and public policy conviction leads me down a different path.

I hope the 8th graders from Ms. Woman’s class will continue to reflect deeply and personally about important public policy issues such as the death penalty. We need that level of reflection, thought and civic engagement from all of us. We are a gracious and generous society. The active, unrelenting use of the death penalty is beneath our dignity.

We are so much more than what we’ve become.

Your partner in service,

Reuven.