News Release #369

Catholic Bishops of Minnesota/North Dakota sign joint statement opposing death penalty for Alphonzo Rodriguez, Jr.

St. Paul , MN - The Roman Catholic Bishops of Minnesota and North Dakota have signed onto a joint statement opposing the death penalty for Alfonzo Rodriguez, Jr.   Rodriguez is accused of kidnapping and murdering Dru Sjodin in November 2003.

In their statement, the Bishops respectfully request that the prosecuting authorities seek justice that does not include the element of vengeance in this matter. The Bishops express their deep sorrow over this violent crime, but nonetheless state, “We are firmly convinced that, as a society, we must seek justice through means that do not require the taking of another human life because we believe that violence should not be answered with violence and that we can not teach that killing is wrong by taking the lives of offenders.”

Because this case is being prosecuted in federal court, copies of the statement were sent to US Attorney Drew Wrigley of North Dakota, US Attorney Tom Heffelfinger of Minnesota and US Attorney General John Ashcroft, who will ultimately decide whether to seek the death penalty in this case.

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For further information contact Kate Krisik, Social Concerns Director at the Minnesota Catholic Conference, (651) 227-8777; kkrisik@mncc.org