America has made a ginormous step towards what could be the stepping stone to dramatic criminal justice reform for a system that favours punishment over human life. On Thursday, Attorney General Merrick Garland announced that a federal stay on executions is now in effect. Critics of America ‘s troubled justice system have long called for a full review of the use of capital punishment especially after several botched ones used against innocent people.
“The Department of Justice must ensure that everyone in the federal criminal justice system is not only afforded the rights guaranteed by the Constitution and laws of the United States, but is also treated fairly and humanely,” Garland said. “That obligation has special force in capital cases.”