Amnesty International students at Grand Valley State University are striving to educate students about the death penalty in their efforts to seek justice for Reggie Clemons, who was sentenced to death after being convicted as an accomplice in the murder of two young women in St. Louis in 1991.

The 15 group members on campus offered facts about Clemons’s case last week at tables in Kirkhof and allowed students the chance to sign a petition for Clemons’s retrial.

“The case is so pressing,” said Jessica Wehby, a member of Amnesty International at GVSU. “It’s happening now and it’s a great opportunity to educate Grand Valley about both sides of the death penalty.”

There was no physical evidence to support the case against Clemons, according to amenestyusa.org, and questions have arisen regarding the “reliability of his conviction,” with allegations of police coercion, prosecutional misconduct, and a “stacked jury” having arisen.

The group was able to gather about 50 signatures to add the petition for Clemons’s retrial.

“We didn’t have a set goal of signatures in mind. We would have been happy to get even a few, we’re just happy to educate people,” Wehby said.

Amnesty International members on campus attended the Amnesty national conference over the summer in Denver, Colorado. The conference is broken up into different sessions based on the different areas of human rights. At this conference, Clemons was the main focus in the death penalty session. The Amnesty group members learned more about the case and the Amnesty International efforts as a whole before bringing the awareness back to campus.

Wehby took on a personal passion for the case, purchasing a shirt in support of Clemons and being present at several group tabling events. “Amnesty International kind of gave me a way to get my voice back by giving a voice to those who don’t have a voice,” Wehby said.

GVSU Amnesty president, Christina Uplinger, mentioned the importance of this case for their group. “We don’t want a repeat of last year,” she said. As the group focuses on supporting Clemons, a past case lingers in their minds.

In September of last year, the group petitioned for Troy Davis. Davis’s case was very similar to Clemons’s because the case had several pieces that did not seem to add up. Amnesty group members on campus rallied together to collect over 300 signatures for Davis’s petition and hosted a vigal at Cook Carillon Tower on the day he was sentenced to be executed.

Despite Amnesty’s efforts Davis was executed. Davis stands as a reminder for Amnesty members. “As hard as we work, there are always things we can do better,” Uplinger said.

Amnesty International continues in their efforts as the decision on whether Clemons will be granted a retrial has yet to be decided. Until the final decision is made, the Amnesty International group at GVSU will continue to raise awareness and seek justice for Clemons’s retrial.

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