Illinois Gives Capital Punishment the Death Sentence
From the National Law Journal (article may be password-protected):
Opponents of the death penalty applauded Illinois Gov. Pat Quinn for deciding on March 9 to sign
legislation abolishing capital punishment in the state and to commute the sentences of the 15 inmates still on death row to life in prison without parole
…
Abolitionists said the dramatic step taken by Illinois would add new momentum to efforts in other states to end the death penalty. Illinois is the fourth state in four years to end capital punishment – the others being New Mexico, New Jersey and New York. Legislators in Montana, Connecticut, Kansas and Maryland may act on repeal measures this year.
Another NLJ article back in January, which we blogged about, touched upon the potential significance of Illinois’ actions in influencing the national debate on capital punishment. As we noted at the time:
Why is movement in this one state watched by death penalty opponents and proponents alike? Well, Illinois may be a bellwether state because of its position near the middle of the cultural/political spectrum. It is a Midwestern state that is neither as socially conservative as many Southern states nor as progressive as many Northeastern states.
For more coverage of the repeal, see the Chicago Tribune (“What killed Illinois death penalty” was inaccuracy, not just morality), and the Chicago Sun-Times (“Quinn signs bill repealing Illinois death penalty”).
