House Approves Vereb Resolution Condemning Governor’s Refusal to Carry Out Death Sentences
HARRISBURG — One week after the governor issued a death sentence reprieve to a convicted rapist and murderer, the state House today approved a resolution introduced by Rep. Mike Vereb (R-Montgomery) condemning the governor’s failure to uphold the law.
“The death penalty is the law of the land in Pennsylvania,” Vereb said. “The governor is failing to uphold the law. He may disagree with the law and he may want to change the law, but he should not ignore it.”
Hubert Michael, who was convicted of raping and killing 16-year-old Trista Eng in 1993, was scheduled to be executed on Friday, June 5. Michael has never contested his guilt or the judgement, and all appeals have been exhausted. The governor on Wednesday, June 3, issued a reprieve for Michael.
Eng’s family issued a public letter to the governor on Friday, telling him, “You stand in the way of thousands of victims who seek justice.” They asked him, “As a parent, would you fight for your daughter(s) if you were in our situation?”
“Those on death row are not good people, but they probably love this governor,” Vereb said. “We encourage him to value the justice deserved by victims and the decisions made by our legal system above his own desire to protect death-row criminals.”
The reprieve issued for Michael follows another one issued for convicted murderer Terrence Williams in March.
“The governor has a responsibility to identify exactly why he is standing with Terrance Williams, Hubert Michaels and other death row criminals,” Vereb said. “We hope this resolution will encourage the governor to meet his responsibilities to carry out criminal sentences.”
Vereb’s
House Resolution 143 calls on the governor to reverse his course and begin carrying out the death sentence as provided by Pennsylvania law.
Representative Mike Vereb
150th District
Pennsylvania House of Representatives
Media Contact: Dan Massing
717.772.9845
DMassing@PaHouseGop.com
RepVereb.com / Facebook.com/RepMikeVereb