EU Policy On The Death Penalty

Council of Europe Joins Legal Battle to Stop US
Death Penalty for Minors

Strasbourg, 19.07.2004 - In an unprecedented legal move, the Council of Europe has joined forces with the European Union in an attempt to stop the execution of convicted murderer Christopher Simmons in Missouri.

Simmons was sentenced to death despite the fact that he was a minor at the time of the offence.

The Council today submitted a memorandum in support of the EU's amicus curiae - or "friend of the court" - submission to the US Supreme Court, which is examining the Simmons case in order to decide whether the United States can continue executing offenders under the age of 18. The move was also backed by Canada, Iceland, Liechtenstein, Mexico, New Zealand, Norway and Switzerland.

The Council of Europe - which has 45 member countries and is separate from the EU - is unequivocally opposed to the death penalty in all circumstances, and wants to see a ban extended to its observer members, including the United States.

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Council of Europe's Memorandum

"The Council of Europe, an international organisation composed of 45 European states, fully concurs with the opinions and arguments submitted by the European Union. The Council of Europe has taken the firm position that everyone's right to life is a basic value and that the abolition of the death penalty is essential to the protection of this right and for the full recognition of the inherent dignity of all human beings. It is of the opinion that there exists an international consensus against the execution of persons who were below 18 years of age at the time of the offence."