Charles T

Charles T. Terrell, Sr., past chairman of the board, Texas Criminal Justice Department, expressed his second thoughts about the death penalty in a letter to the Dallas Morning News. Terrell, for whom the "Terrell Unit" that houses Texas' death row inmates was named, wrote the following: "For most of my life, I have believed the death penalty to be a deterrent to the brutal crimes that result in such a sentence. However, today I'm not as sure.... [W]e now have an option of life without the possibility of parole.... I think the spectre of life without parole in [prison] is much more frightening than death by injection.... racial disparity is a legitimate issue to investigate. And I believe that anyone facing the death penalty should have the right to a complete investigation as to whether DNA evidence can double check our legal system for error. Not doing so is a criminal act by society."