On August 11, 2009, North Carolina Governor Bev Perdue signed Senate Bill 461, the North Carolina Racial Justice Act, which permits defendants and inmates to challenge death sentences by presenting statistical evidence of racial bias.
The bill was sponsored in the Senate by Sen. Floyd McKissick (D-Durham) and in the House by Rep. Larry Womble (D-Forsyth), Rep. Earline Parmon (D-Forsyth), Rep. Paul Luebke (D-Durham) and Rep Pricey Harrison (D-Guilford).
“I have always been a supporter of death penalty, but I have always believed it must be carried out fairly,” said Perdue. “The Racial Justice Act ensures that when North Carolina hands down our state’s harshest punishment to our most heinous criminals — the decision is based on the facts and the law, not racial prejudice.”
The Racial Justice Act will allow inmates on death row and persons charged with a capital crime to present a judge with evidence that shows race was a significant factor that led to the imposition of the death sentence. If the judge agrees with the evidence, the death sentence can be overturned to life in prison without possibility of parole.