Coalition: End death penalty

The Coalition for the People's Agenda wants to replace Georgia's death penalty with life in prison without parole. They say it costs too much and endangers the constitutional right to an attorney, usually at the expense of the state's poorest defendants.

The group points to cases like that of accused Fulton County courthouse gunman Brian Nichols. They say it's illogical for the state to seek the death penalty for Nichols, since he has agreed to accept life in prison with no chance of parole. With the tab already at 2-million dollars, the case has bankrupted the state's indigent defense fund.

And Coalition leader Reverend Joseph Lowery says cases like Nichols' are costing taxpayers more than money.

"To be morally correct, ethically proper and fiscally responsible, we call for life without parole. There's no point in extending the cycle of killing by killing to stop killing. It won't work, it hasn't worked anywhere. And it certainly hasn't worked in Georgia. Georgia needs to now become the new Georgia and say we're going to move on up a little higher. Spiritually, morally and fiscally and go to life without parole."

Recently, Nichols' prosecutor asked the Georgia Supreme Court to look into how Judge Hilton Fuller has handled the case. Fuller has repeatedly ordered Nichols' attorneys to proceed with their defense, despite claims they're running out of money.