The Center for Death Penalty Litigation

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WATCH CDPL’S 2020 OSBORN AWARD CELEBRATION
FOR TYE HUNTER

Center for Death Penalty Litigation

CDPL is a non-profit law firm that represents people on death row, coordinates capital litigation across North Carolina, and serves as a clearinghouse for accurate and timely information on the N.C. death penalty. We believe that indigent defendants facing the death penalty deserve the same kind of high-quality representation available to the highest-paying clients. We also believe that ending the unjust and error-prone death penalty is a crucial part of building a more humane criminal justice system in North Carolina.




Announcements


If we value racial equity, we must end the death penalty

This fall, CDPL executive director Gretchen M. Engel spoke to the N.C. Task Force for Racial Equity in Criminal Justice. As the task force weighs reforms to the state’s criminal punishment system in the wake of George Floyd’s death and the ensuing protests, Gretchen told a deeply personal story about why ending the death penalty must be part of our efforts to eradicate racism. Please read her remarks.

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We're hiring: CDPL is looking for a new Campaign Director

CDPL is looking for a campaign director who will mobilize opposition to the death penalty and work to raise the voices of the African-American community, other people of color, and those directly affected by the criminal legal system. The ideal candidate will have a commitment to ending the death penalty and to racial justice, expertise in outreach to communities of color, and an organizer’s instincts. This is a full-time position with benefits. Please read on for the full job description.

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CDPL launches comprehensive new project on racism and the NC death penalty

CDPL is proud to announce RacistRoots.org, an ambitious new project that reveals the North Carolina death penalty’s deep entanglement with racism. Using historical narrative and multiple viewpoints, this project puts the modern death penalty in the context of history. The North Carolina death penalty began as a way to enforce slavery and Jim Crow, and its racist roots run deep. Today, it remains a way to disproportionately punish people of color for crimes against white people. The death penalty is another Confederate monument we must tear down. Please explore this project and tell us what you think. For a quick summary of what it’s all about, listen to this podcast from N.C. Policy Watch.
Go to racistroots.org



Learn

Learn more about the death penalty. For a fuller listing, go to our Links page:

  • N.C. Coalition for Alternatives to the Death Penalty
  • Carolina Justice Policy Center
  • Death Penalty Information Center

 

See Our Impact

CDPL’s staff has halted wrongful executions, helped free innocent people from death row, and exposed systemic injustices. Learn more about the work that has made CDPL a leader in addressing unfairness in capital punishment.

Intern or Volunteer

Do you want to learn about capital defense while working alongside a dedicated staff? If you are a law student looking for a summer internship, learn more here. If you are interested in volunteering, apply here.

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Contact Us

The Center for Death Penalty Litigation
123 West Main Street · Suite 700 · · ·
Durham, NC 27701
919-956-9545
cdpl@cdpl.org

Donate

Please make a tax-deductible contribution to ensure truth and fairness in North Carolina's death penalty system.

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