SW News: In response to the execution of death row convict Jemaine Cannon in Oklahoma, Archbishop Paul Coakley of Oklahoma City called for the repeal of the death penalty in the American state, calling it an "archaic punishment."

The prelate also requested prayers for the relatives of the victim as well as for Cannon. The 51-year-old was put to death by lethal injection at the Oklahoma State Penitentiary in McAlester, roughly 130 miles outside Oklahoma City on Thursday morning. According to the Associated Press, he was found guilty of killing a Tulsa woman in 1995 while hiding from authorities after escaping from a prison labor center.

The archbishop said this archaic punishment deprives the condemned of their inherent human dignity and is fundamentally at odds with the culture of life the State of Oklahoma proclaims to be building. The sanctity of life does not disappear after the commission of a crime, even a heinous one.

He implored all people of goodwill to join him in advocating for an end to the death penalty in Oklahoma and instead working toward actual justice that respects human dignity and prioritizes healing the wounds of grief and loss.
Cannon was asked whether he had any final comments before being put to death. He said, "Yes, I confess with my mouth and believe in my heart that God raised Jesus from the dead," according to the Associated Press. “I am therefore rescued. I'm grateful.”

There is a growing understanding that even after committing really terrible crimes, a person's dignity is preserved. Additionally, a fresh perspective on the relevance of the state's enforced penalties has arisen. More efficient detention procedures have been created that guarantee the proper protection of individuals without completely denying the guilty the chance for repentance.
The Church thus preaches that "the death penalty is inadmissible because it is an attack on the inviolability and dignity of the person" in light of the Gospel and strives tenaciously for its abolition globally.