BACKGROUND: After more than three decades on death row, Michael Lambrix is scheduled to be executed on Thursday, Oct. 5, 2017, at 6:00 p.m. Lambrix received two death sentences for the 1983 murders of Clarence Moore and Aleisha Bryant. 

In a Sept. 28 letter on behalf of the bishops of Florida, Michael Sheedy, executive director, Florida Conference of Catholic Bishops, appealed to Governor Rick Scott to commute Mr. Lambrix’s death sentence to a life sentence without the possibility of parole. 

“Supporters of the death penalty generally presume that this most extreme of sentences is reserved for the ‘worst of the worst,’ when in fact it is applied in a very arbitrary manner,” wrote Sheedy. “Note that Mr. Lambrix indicates he was offered a plea deal, which, had he accepted it, would have allowed him to return to society and his family by now. Instead, he faces execution.”
 
Additionally, defendants who were sentenced by non-unanimous juries after June 2002 have been considered eligible for resentencing hearings. Yet, those, like Mr. Lambrix, sentenced before that date – but under the same system ruled unconstitutional by the Florida Supreme Court – have been denied resentencing under a unanimous jury requirement.

Our faith calls us to be consistently pro-life, protecting life in all of its forms and all of its stages. Even those who have committed terrible deeds and caused great pain possess a God-given dignity that is neither earned nor can it be forfeited.

Prayer Services
Catholic faithful and members of the community will gather in five counties of Northeast Florida to pray for the victims of violent crimes and their families, for those on death row, for an end to the use of the death penalty, and for Governor Scott as he confronts the decision to proceed with the execution. 

The following counties represent five of 17 counties of the Diocese of St. Augustine:

Alachua County
Prayer Service: Catholic Gators and GCADP carpool from Emmanuel Mennonite Church, 1236 NW 18th Ave, Gainesville. The group will leave at 4:30 p.m. to attend the prayer service at Florida State Prison near Starke. Contact: Miriam Elliott, (352) 278-4342.

Bradford County Prayer Service
Thursday, Oct. 5, at 5:00 p.m., across the highway from the Florida State Prison Execution Building in Starke. Contact: Miriam Elliott, (352) 278-4342.

Duval County Prayer Service
Thursday, Oct. 5, from 4:30 to 5:30 p.m., in front of the new Duval County Unified Courthouse, 501 W. Adams Street, Jacksonville. Contact: Jackie Gunning, (904) 449- 3328 or email: jacqueline.gunning@bmcjax.com or Sister Maureen Kelley at (904) 704-0313 and email: mkelleyop@att.net.

Flagler County Prayer Service
Thursday, Oct. 5, from 5:00 to 6:00 p.m., in front of the Flagler County Courthouse, 1769 E. Moody Blvd, Bunnell. Contact: Don Gregg, (386) 445-9637 or email: dgregg2@cfl.rr.com.

St. Johns County Prayer Service Thursday, Oct. 5, from 5:15 to 6:15 p.m., in front of the St. Augustine Beach City Hall, corner of A1A and 16th Street, St. Augustine Beach. Contact: Nancy O’Byrne, (904) 422-3618 or email: obyrnen@bellsouth.net. Additional Contact: Kathleen Bagg, diocesan office of communications, (904) 262-1705 or email: kbagg@dosafl.com.