Delaware Senate Approves Death Penalty Repeal

It now goes to the state house.

The measure passed by a vote of 11-10, with five Democrats and five Republicans voting against it. Three Republicans sided with majority Democrats in voting for the bill after a lengthy and sometimes emotional debate.

The measure, opposed by Attorney General Beau Biden and several leaders of the law enforcement community, now goes to the state House for consideration. Democratic Gov. Jack Markell has refused to say whether he favors the legislation.

Supporters of the bill argue that the death penalty is morally wrong, racially discriminatory, ineffective as a deterrent to violent crime and far more costly than sentencing killers to life in prison without parole.

By: Cheston Catalano

Cheston Catalano is a Kentucky-based journalist whose work has been featured in the Chattanooga Times Free Press and the Clarksville Leaf Chronicle. He is a long-time contributor to Liberaland.