A Push to End Executions
Republican lawmakers in at least six states are pushing to eliminate the death penalty, signaling a broader reversal by many conservatives on an issue that has ·tong been a bed-rock for their party.
In Kansas, Kentucky, Missouri, · Montana and. Wyoming, Republicans in legislatures controlled by their party have sponsored bills this year. to end capital punishment, citing fiscal and moral concerns. Some Republicans in New Hampshire, where Democrats dominate the statehouse, are backing a similar proposal. And a GOP lawmaker in Louisiana’s GOP-controlled. Legislature said he plans to introduce a repeal bill in coming months.
Twenty-seven Republican state legislators around the ‘country sponsored anti-death penalty bills last year, compared with just four in 2000, according to the advocacy group Conservatives Concerned About the Death Penalty
The about-face on an issue long key to the GOP’s tough-on-crime credo is the latest sign of a national bipartisan shift on criminal justice.
“Conservatives pride themselves in limiting government, having fiscally responsible policies and believing in the sanctity of life,” said Hannah Cox, national manager of Death Penalty. When you look at the death penalty ‘Does it meet · any of these qualifications?’ The answer is ‘It does not.’ “
Ms. Cox’s group has been trying to sway Republicans to change their views. She said she herself had switched sides, convinced by fiscal and moral arguments, along with “concerns-about potentially killing an innocent person.
Thirty states still have the death penalty, but executions have fallen in recent years due to a host of factors, including shortages of lethal injection drugs and growing controversy around whether they cause undue pain.
Last year, eight states carried out 25 executions, according to the Death Penalty Information Center. In 1999, by comparison, there were 98 executions, the highest number since the death penalty was upheld by the Supreme Court as constitutional in 1976.
Legal cases. involving the death penalty are significantly longer and more expensive, research shows. A study found that in Kansas they typically cost about $400,000, compared with $100,000 for noncapital cases.
In the state that has executed the most people since 1977, Texas, there have been no proposals this year from GOP lawmakers to repeal the death penalty in the Republican-controlled Legislature.
Prominent Democrats, including former President Obama and Hillary Clinton, supported executions in certain cases, but overall only 35% of Democrats are in favor of capital punishment, compared with 77% of Republicans, according to a 2018 Pew Research Center poll. Since 1996 support for the death penalty has fallen by 36 percentage points among Democrats and 10 points among Republicans.
Chad McCoy, a GOP state representative in Kentucky, said he shifted his views three years ago after examining the economics of capital punishment at the urging of his predecessor in the Legislature, and outspoken opponent. A Catholic, Mr. McCoy also said he has been swayed by discussions with a local priest.
Now Mr. McCoy a criminal defense lawyer who is the state House majority whip, said he believes that, “if you’re going to be pro-life, it means all lives.” He introduced a death-penalty repeal bill last legislative session that failed, but has revived it this year and believes it has more support.
Jared Olsen, a Republican state representative in Wyoming and lead sponsor of the anti-death-penalty there, said he was moved to change his position by a mixture of financial logic and lack of evidence the practice is effective.
“When I looked at the cost when it doesn’t even deter homicides, we’re essentially spending all this money for nothing in Wyoming,” Mr. Olsen said.
Wyoming has executed only one person since 1977 and currently doesn’t have anyone on death row. But Wyoming spends $750,000 a year for the state public defender’s office to handle capital cases, according to the bill’s fiscal note.
Bill Pownall, a GOP state representative from Wyoming, opposed the death-penalty repeal there. A retired sheriff, he said he felt strongly that certain crimes warrant capital punishment, and the DNA technology could ensure innocent people weren’t wrongly convicted.
Most proposals this year to end capital punishment in Republican-led states have yet to be voted on. But in Wyoming, after passing the state House 36-21, the death penalty repeal was defeated in the state Senate last week by a vote of 12-18. Ten Republicans backed the measure.
Mr. Olsen said he plans to reintroduce the bill in future sessions.