Cooper, Paula, 1970-
Paula Cooper was born in Gary, Ind. In May, 1985, at the age of 15, Cooper murdered 78-year-old Ruth Pelke. Existing Indiana law allowed the execution of children over the age of 10, and Cooper was sentenced to death. Public defender Monica Foster and others organized a world-wide campaign to save Cooper from the death penalty and millions of signatures were collected, particularly in Europe and especially in Italy, and sent to the Indiana Supreme Court, governor Robert Orr, and the United Nations. The Catholic Church played a very active part in the campaign. In July of 1989 the Indiana Supreme Court overturned the death sentence, substituting the maximum prison sentence.
From the description of Case records, 1986-1989. (Indiana Historical Society Library). WorldCat record id: 29253089
| Role | Title | Holding Repository | |
|---|---|---|---|
| creatorOf | Cooper, Paula, 1970-. Case records, 1986-1989. | Indiana Historical Society Library |
| Role | Title | Holding Repository |
|---|
Filters:
| Relation | Name | |
|---|---|---|
| associatedWith | Catholic Church | corporateBody |
| associatedWith | Foster, Monica. | person |
| associatedWith | Franciscans | corporateBody |
| associatedWith | Indiana. Supreme Court. | corporateBody |
| Place Name | Admin Code | Country | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Indiana | |||
| Indiana--Indianapolis | |||
| Indiana--Gary | |||
| Italy | |||
| United States |
| Subject |
|---|
| African American criminals |
| African American prisoners |
| African American teenage girls |
| Capital punishment |
| Capital punishment |
| Church and social problems |
| Crime in mass media |
| Criminal justice, Administration of |
| Death row inmates |
| Murderers |
| Murder in mass media |
| Public opinion |
| Women murderers |
| Occupation |
|---|
| Activity |
|---|
Person
Birth 1970
English,
Italian
