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Illinois Governor Signs Repeal; Commutes Existing Death Sentences - Updated

By Steve Hall

The Chicago Tribune reports, "Quinn signs death penalty ban, commutes 15 death row sentences to life," by Ray Long. Gov. Pat Quinn today signed into law a historic ban on the death penalty in Illinois and commuted the sentences of 15 death row inmates to life without parole.Quinn signed the legislation in his Capitol office surrounded by longtime opponents of capital punishment in a state where flaws in the process led to the exoneration of numerous people sentenced to death. "For me, this was a difficult decision, quite literally the choice between life and death," Quinn wrote in his signing statement. "This was not a decision to be made lightly, or a decision that I came to without deep personal reflection...continue to full post

Full post as published by StandDown Texas Project on March 09, 2011 (boomark / email).