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By Kent Scheidegger et al.

Venting Against DP: Brooklyn federal district judge Frederick Block said yesterday that the people of New York are against the death penalty, except for cop killers, and that the U.S. Attorney ought to stop seeking it. The judge's remarks before an American Bar event are reported in this story by Ross Goldberg in the New York Sun. The story suggests that Judge Block, who has editorialized against capital punishment in the New York Times, may not actually speak for all New Yorkers. A key problem with the federal death penalty law is that when a jury hangs by a single vote, the murderer automatically gets a life sentence, while some states allow another sentencing hearing with a new jury. The result: it's fairly easy to block a death sentence in Judge Block's court...continue to full post

Full post as published by Crime and Consequences on August 12, 2008 (boomark / email).