Opinion: My sister was killed by a drunk driver. Forgiving the driver was essential to my healing.

Most civilized nations have outlawed the death penalty because it is considered cruel and inhumane, and studies show it does not deter crime. In the United States, 23 states have abolished the death penalty. The three states with the highest murder rates impose the death penalty, while many states without the death penalty have low murder rates — including Massachusetts, Hawaii, Maine and Iowa.

The Death Penalty Information Center reports that in the United States, 200 hundred innocent people have been executed since 1973. For every eight people executed in our nation, one person on death row has been exonerated. Bryan Stevenson, a Harvard-educated attorney, founded an organization that investigates wrongful death convictions. He discovered that the death sentence is often imposed on poor people who cannot afford to hire an effective attorney and is often imposed on Black men who are accused of killing white women.

If we believe that we need to kill a perpetrator for the victim’s family to find closure, we need to reevaluate our fundamental concepts of justice and mercy. My 12-year-old sister was killed after a drunk driver plowed into her when she was walking on a sidewalk as she returned home from a church activity. My father held her in his arms when she died. The loss was profound and devastating, and yet part of our families’ healing was in forgiving the driver. I am grateful I grew up in a home where forgiveness was modeled because that is a path to peace.

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Opinion: My sister was killed by a drunk driver. Forgiving the driver was essential to my healing.

Opinion: My sister was killed by a drunk driver. Forgiving the driver was essential to my healing.

Opinion: My sister was killed by a drunk driver. Forgiving the driver was essential to my healing.

Opinion: My sister was killed by a drunk driver. Forgiving the driver was essential to my healing.

Opinion: My sister was killed by a drunk driver. Forgiving the driver was essential to my healing.