MICHIGAN CITY – Despite the brightly colored Christmas decorations on the front lawn of the Indiana State Prison, the atmosphere was void of any Christmas joy during the evening of Dec. 17 as faithful gathered for a prayer vigil to end the death penalty. The group prayed for all those impacted by violence including those tasked with carrying out Indiana’s first execution since 2009. The execution of Joseph Corcoran was scheduled to take place after midnight at the Michigan City prison.
A group of nearly 30 people, many from across the Gary Diocese, gathered for a prayer vigil in the prison’s car park across from the prison itself. The vigil was led by Bishop Robert J. McClory and Father Rick Holy of the Diocese of Gary’s Office of Pro-Life Activities. The group prayed the Sorrowful Mysteries of the rosary.
Forgiveness, suffering, and abandonment were the focus of the two Gospel readings (Luke 23:33-35 and Matthew 27:45-46) read by Bishop McClory as he led the vigil.
“So often the rosary is prayed around those who are near their death. For one who’s named Joseph, we also seek the intercession of St. Joseph who is a patron of a happy death,” said Bishop McClory as he prayed with the group.
At a time of year when Christmas carols should be filling the air, the group sang a heartfelt, “Jesus, Remember Me.”
“Tonight was a simple and beautiful witness to the value of all human life and the death penalty doesn’t solve any problem. It just perpetuates violence Tonight was a time to stand for the dignity of all human life including those who have been the victims of violence and those themselves who await time on death row,” said Bishop McClory.
The bishop continued, “It’s important for us to give public witness as we look to the future for an end to the death penalty here in Indiana and worldwide.”
Father Holy stressed that executions are “just not right.
“We're better than this. We do not need to put to death any incarcerated person to protect society. Incarceration is sufficient to accomplish that. And to take a human life under these circumstances is not our purview, it's God's. Putting a convicted murderer to death will not bring back the victims, and it can even deny the passage of time that is sometimes necessary for repentance and reconciliation,” he said.
Dr. Colleen Brewer, superintendent of schools in the Diocese of Gary, said it’s hard knowing Corcoran was going to lose his life that night.
“We know death is part of life, but rarely do we know the time and the date. That’s the hard reality here and it makes it a time for prayer,” she said.
Katie Collignon, principal of Marquette Catholic High School, and Anthony Holt, director of student life and campus minister at MQ, joined the vigil, as the school is approximately one mile from the prison.
“This is in the Michigan City community, and we feel very strongly about the prison and the people in the prison. We wanted to support this community and all those affected,” said Collignon. “Even in the darkness, there is light. I think that’s something we tried to do here tonight. We’re surrounded by each other and surrounded by faith.”
Vicky Hathaway, diocesan ministry consultant for Youth and Young Adult Ministry, mentioned that she spent time reflecting on the execution and the Christmas season.
“We find hope that God is with us, Emmanuel. There's a profound beauty that God sent His son to be with us at this moment, not just for the happy moments, but especially in times like this- of great darkness and when all things seem hopeless,” said Hathaway.
“Standing out here, we might not be able to stop this execution, and we probably won’t, but we know that God is here in this moment. He’s with Joseph and everyone in this situation. That’s where we can find our hope.”
Hathaway explained participating in the vigil can be seen as a work of mercy.
“We’re called to stand outside in a parking lot in 25-degree weather because our faith calls us to. We’re people of mercy. If not us, then who?”
Joseph Corcoran, 49, was pronounced dead at 12:44 a.m. CST according to a statement released by the Indiana Department of Correction. The release revealed his last meal was Ben & Jerry’s ice cream.
Corcoran, 49, was executed by lethal injection shortly after midnight. At nearly the same time, outside the walls of the prison in the silence of the night, death penalty opponents began to sing Amazing Grace.
Corcoran was convicted in the July 1997 shootings of his brother, 30-year-old James Corcoran, his sister’s fiancé, 32-year-old Robert Scott Turner, and two other men, Timothy G. Bricker, 30, and Douglas A. Stillwell, 30. While jailed for those killings, Corcoran reportedly bragged about fatally shooting his parents in 1992 in northern Indiana’s Steuben County. He was charged in their killings but acquitted.
Attempts to stop the execution were unsuccessful as attorneys argued Corcoran was severely mentally ill were unsuccessful.
A total of 94 inmates have been executed by the state of Indiana dating back to 1897.
Caption: Bishop Robert J. McClory (right) and Father Rick Holy, director of Pro-Life Activities for the Diocese of Gary, lead a group in the rosary followed by a prayer vigil outside Indiana State Prison, Michigan City prior to the execution of Joseph Corcoran, 49, on Dec. 17. (Deacon Bob Wellinski photo)