Bill Babbitt was present at San Quentin prison when at one minute after midnight on May 4th, 1999
the state of California executed his brother, Manny Babbitt. Manny, the recipient of a Purple heart for his service in
Vietnam, was a paranoid schizophrenic who suffered from post-traumatic stress disorder.
He was tried and convicted for the murder of an elderly woman who died of a heart attack after a break-in and beating.
Bill turned his brother in to the police expecting psychological help and no death penalty for his crime.
The Babbitt family was unable to afford good counsel. Their court appointed attorney was later disbarred and sued for racism.
Today Bill speaks out regularly against the death penalty, and is often alongside David Kaczynski.
His story is in Capital Consequences: Families tell their Stories by Rachel King, Hidden Victims by Susan Sharp, and
The Thirteenth Step by Carolina Koivisto.
Links to Bill’s Journey:
