Religious leaders in the South and around the nation...

Religious leaders in the South and around the nation are speaking out against capital punishment more loudly than ever, emboldened by a shift in public opinion and cases of innocence on death row. "We may be finding the courage we didn't have before, given the climate," said the Rev. Joe Vought, a Lutheran minister based in Harrisonburg who has served as chaplain to 7 executed inmates. A Harris poll in July found 64 % of people supported the death penalty, down from 75 % in 1997. An NBC News/Wall Street Journal poll in July found that only 42 % of the public believed the death penalty is applied fairly; another 42 % said it isn't. The rest were undecided or said it depends.