San Diego Politics Online
Let's Enact "Matthew's Law"
By Steve Baldwin
27 November 1998
We have come to live in a society
where justice has become all too often a rare commodity. For this we can
thank activist judges, misguided intellectuals and the ACLU for the debacle
which has transformed the criminal justice system that all too often
appeases the criminals and does little to atone the victims. However, the
recent senseless murder of 9 year old Matthew Cecchi is one of those
singular incidents that has galvanized the public's demand for justice.
How deplorable it is that it takes the death of an innocent child to
spark the necessary conditions for toughening our laws having to do with
murdering children. As the father of four boys, it was chilling to watch
Brandon Wilson on television so casually mention in court "I did it. I
killed him, I killed the little boy." Matthew's murderer callously
confessed as if admitting to stealing a candy bar. Astonishingly, under
current law, it is reasonably possible that he could live out the rest of
his life in prison watching television and being served three meals a day -
assuming he doesn't get off with an insanity plea.
Unlike killing a police officer, killing a child does not automatically
result in capital punishment. It is in Matthew's memory that I have decided
to introduce a bill calling for a mandatory death penalty for killing a
child. It is my hope that such a law will send a message to future child
killers that will make them think twice.
Let me say that my heart goes out to the Cecchis, and our family like
many families across the state and nation are praying for them. As a father
of four young boys, I cannot fathom the grief the Cecchis are going through.
I know it must be almost unbearable.
Matthew's father, Lou Cecchi, appeared on KOGO radio in San Diego and
announced that he wanted "Something positive to result from his young son's
death." The talk show host, Rick Roberts, suggested legislation named
"Matthew's Law" and I agreed to introduce the bill come this January when
the legislative session convenes. I am grateful that Mr. Cecchi has agreed
to travel to Sacramento to testify before the necessary Committees in an
effort to pass "Matthew's Law" and to assist in creating the grassroots
pressure statewide that will be necessary to get this bill through the
legislative process. .
This will not be the first time legislation like "Matthew's Law" has been proposed. Liberals, who always worry more about criminals than the victims, have routinely scuttled this type of legislation. "Matthew's Law" would simply state that the murder of a child 14 years or younger qualifies as a "Special Circumstance" which requires the death penalty. We need to make it clear, that when you kill an innocent child in California, you will share the same fate as your victim.
Last session, some Republicans and Democrats working together tried to pass such a bill. State Senator Charles Calderon (D-Whittier) and Assemblyman Roy Ashburn (R-Bakersfield) wrote legislation that was torpedoed by liberal colleagues. Prior to going on the air with Lou Cecchi, I called our new Assembly Republican Leader Rod Pacheco (R-Riverside) to seek his support. Assemblyman Pacheco has the experience of actually prosecuting death penalty cases when he was the Riverside County District Attorney. He encouraged me to proceed with such a bill and offered me his support.
A death penalty bill is one of the most contentious pieces of legislation to carry and get enacted. Passage can only be ensured with a bi-partisan coalition of legislators and a governor who has the courage to sign it into law. Since the bill's proposal, numerous legislators statewide have contacted my office who are willing to fight this battle once again on behalf of the children. These include Assemblyman Roy Ashburn, State Senator Steve Peace (D-El Cajon), Assemblyman Howard Kaloogian (R-Carlsbad) and Assemblyman (Soon-to-be State Senator) Bill Morrow (R-Oceanside). Yet, I fear that this will not be enough to ensure passage. An intensive grassroots effort will need to be implemented.
Across the state, people who want to see "Matthew's Law" enacted will have to help out. First, you can make a donation to the Matt Cecchi Memorial Fund, c/o Bank of America, 1820 Oro Dam Blvd., Oroville, CA 95966. These funds will, among other things, be used by the Cecchis to push for "Matthew's Law". You can keep up to date on this issue by logging onto radio talk show host's Rick Roberts' website at: www.rickroberts.com. At the local level you can petition your city council or county board of supervisors to pass a resolution calling on the state legislature to pass "Matthew's Law". You can write letters to your local newspaper's editorial board. Most importantly, we need thousands of citizens to write and call those state legislators who have a history of being hostile to pro-Capital punishment bills. We need to ask them not only to vote for the bill but also to sign on as a co-author.
Nationally and Statewide you can call into radio and TV talk shows expressing the need for the bill and urging people to get involved. The TV show "Hard Copy" has already featured an episode about the Cecchis and "Matthew's Law".
If the passage of "Matthew's Law" saves the life of even just one child, then it will have served its purpose. Those who would take the lives of our innocent young children deserve nothing less than the fate they have perpetrated on their victims.
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