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Illinois house in close vote approves death penalty ban

By Douglas A. Berman

As detailed in this Reuters report, the "Illinois House on Thursday voted to ban the death penalty, moving the measure on to the Senate a decade after a moratorium on executions was put into place by former Governor George Ryan." As the article details, the vote was close and the prospects for the ban becoming law still seem uncertain: Thursday night's vote came after a first vote failed, according to Illinois State Representative Elaine Nekritz, a Democrat who voted in favor of the ban. The final vote was 60-54 in favor of the ban. "I believe the history of the death penalty in Illinois demonstrates that we are not in a position to get it right 100 percent of the time," said Nekritz, explaining her vote.... If the bill is approved in the state senate it still must go to Governor Pat Quinn, who has said he continues to favor the death penalty for the worst crimes, according to local media reports...continue to full post

Full post as published by Sentencing Law and Policy on January 07, 2011 (boomark / email).