Death Penalty Repeal Back On The Agenda In Hartford
HARTFORD, CT (CBSNewYork) - With the sentencing to death of both men in the brutal Cheshire home invasion murders, Connecticut lawmakers appear ready to again take up arguments for repeal of the state's death penalty.
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The strongest argument for repealing the death penalty comes from those who cite the number of men and women who have been wrongly convicted of murder and put to death.
In Connecticut, lawmakers could vote to repeal the law this session. Support is growing in both houses of the General Assembly.
St. Sen. John Kissel, however, is among those fighting to keep the law on the books.
It's net worth, he says, goes beyond putting a criminal to death.
"It has been used many many times to get plea bargains for lesser charges and so I do believe that this has a valuable place in our criminal justice system," he told WCBS 880 Connecticut Bureau Chief Fran Schneidau. "I can't stress any more that there is just a tremendous amount of cases that are resolved by having the death penalty on the books and if anybody has any question as to how important it is, look at how rigorously defense counsel fight cases where there's the possibility of death penalty as punishment."
Gov. Dan Malloy has said he would sign any repeal into law that affects future cases but does not affect the 11 men currently on death row.
A Quinnipiac University poll taken last year found that 67 percent of Connecticut voters want to keep the death penalty on the books.
Where do you stand on the death penalty? Sound off in the comments section below!
