For Immediate Release – COLUMBUS, OH -May 4, 2026
The letter and list of signers is available here.
Over 500 Ohio faith leaders have signed a letter urging members of the Ohio House and Senate to end the death penalty. The signatories on the letter represent more than 15 faith denominations.
The letter was sent to members of the general assembly, and Governor DeWine was included as a courtesy.
The letter states, “We hold deep care and respect for victims and co-victims of crime, and we most certainly are not opposed to accountability for rightfully convicted persons. However, we believe that the death penalty serves no moral purpose. Instead, it is a hollow instrument of death that offers no redemption, no closure, and no transformation for anyone involved.” The letter asks that financial resources be used to meet the needs of victim families.
Rev. Dr. Jack Sullivan Jr., a minister in the Disciples of Christ, whose sister Jennifer McCoy was murdered in Cleveland, said, “As a Christian minister I believe in the power of redemption, the power of forgiveness and the power of transformation. Executions deny human beings the possibility that their lives can be transformed. Executions rob people of that ability.”
Rich Nathan, founding pastor of The Vineyard Columbus and current Pastoral Residency Director at For Columbus said, “As a pastor, I have presided over the funerals of murder victims, including one involving a young mother with her two elementary school aged children. Compassion demands that we come alongside families impacted by murder in their quest for justice. But capital punishment is not compassionate. It does not bring closure to a victim’s family rather, it prolongs a family’s agony through the twists and turns of decades long appeals processes, which often result in a different sentence in the end. Pro-lifers, including pro-life legislators, here in Ohio should abolish capital punishment and become fully pro-life.”
The letter comes ahead of an announcement about the death penalty Governor DeWine is expected to make after the May primary elections. Governor DeWine has made it clear that his faith is integral to his life.
“We believe now is the time for Ohio to rid itself of its outdated and immoral death penalty,” said Rev. Michael Poole, Jr., senior pastor at Emmanuel Lutheran Church in Marion, Ohio.
“When more than 530 faith leaders say it’s time to end executions, that’s a good indication and reflection of where the majority of Ohioans are on the issue,” said Kevin Werner, executive director of Ohioans to Stop Executions. “No one wants a system that harms victims’ families for decades, wastes resources and doesn’t always convict the right person,” he said.
Video of the press conference on OTSE’s YouTube.
The letter and list of signers is available here.