ACLU-VA Statement on Teleguz Death Sentence Commutation

The following may be attributed to ACLU of Virginia Executive Director Claire Guthrie Gastañaga:
"Governor McAuliffe is to be commended for thoroughly and seriously considering this matter and commuting Mr. Teleguz's death sentence to life without parole.  We agree that the sentencing phase of this case was severely flawed, and Mr. Teleguz never should have been sentenced to death.  Of course, we also continue to believe that the doubts and procedural questions raised in this case illustrate why, ultimately, the right course is to repeal the death penalty altogether."