The Motivation

To mark 50 years of fighting the death penalty, our Five Conversations film series traces the moments, clients and partnerships that have shaped our history and continue to inform our work as we look to the future. This episode, The Motivation, features the story of a former client, Bertil Fox.

In this film, Bertil Fox, our former client, recounts the day he was sentenced to death, describes the realities of life on death row and reflects on the execution of a fellow inmate. Shaun Fox, Bertil's son, speaks about the profound impact the death penalty has on the mental health and wellbeing of impacted families, highlighting how the punishment affects far more than one individual. The conversation reveals the profound human costs of capital punishment systems.
In this film, Bertil Fox, our former client, recounts the day he was sentenced to death, describes the realities of life on death row and reflects on the execution of a fellow inmate. Shaun Fox, Bertil's son, speaks about the profound impact the death penalty has on the mental health and wellbeing of impacted families, highlighting how the punishment affects far more than one individual. The conversation reveals the profound human costs of capital punishment systems.

Our Anniversary Campaign: 50 years of fighting capital punishment

50 years ago, Simons Muirhead Burton represented Michael de Freitas in a high-profile death penalty case in Trinidad and Tobago. Michael was executed, sparking a commitment within the firm to take on more death penalty cases. This marked the beginning of what would become The Death Penalty Project.

When this work began in the 1970s, only 20 countries had abolished the death penalty. Today, that number stands at 125. But the fight is far from over. More than 28,000 people are estimated to be on death row worldwide, and executions are on the rise.

We are death penalty experts, taking action alongside our partners for criminal justice reform where the death penalty and its legacy still exists. After five decades of impactful action, we need your support to continue to fuel our work until the death penalty has ended, everywhere.

Make a donation to our Anniversary Fund today