Letter from a friend of Mike

Wednesday, October 18, 2017

I, too, was lucky enough to have known Mike and was his friend. I fully support the sentiments expressed by the author of Letter from a friend of Mike to Governor Scott, October 9th,2017.

It sickens me that States such as Florida and Texas, among others in the US, can so disregard the fact that the death penalty is an anachronistic, senseless and cruel punishment – and that the US is the only Western country to cling to it. 

The death penalty has nothing to do with justice. It is applied in an arbitrary manner, however it happens to suit corrupt law enforcement and Courts for political purposes. 

I admired Mike’s courage in calling out the rotten system in Florida for what it is, even though he realized his precarious situation. Executions, a pitiful blight on humanity, will only continue for as long as those who know better, remain silent – a point Mike often made.  You may not be concerned, that is, until your friend or relative is murdered by the State. 

Why the people of Florida live with the risk of a wrongful conviction, together with possible imposition of the death penalty, is beyond my understanding. This can and does happen: Florida leads the States with 27 Death Row exonerations since 1973. While there is no way of knowing how many wrongful convictions there have been, the high number of exonerations, at least, points to the strong likelihood that innocent people have been executed.  I believe that Mike is in this sad category. The outrage that I would expect decent people to feel at such a possibility surely is enough to end this horror.

In Mike’s memory, I ask you to please become active in ending executions in Florida. 

Rest in Peace, Mike. 

Heather Land