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Quinn won't say if he'll sign death penalty bill

Supporters of abolishing the death penalty, Randy Steidl, former death row inmate, left, and Gail Rice, whose younger brother was shot to death, react after the Senate passed legislation abolishing the death penalty in Illinois while on the Senate floor during session at the Illinois State Capitol in Springfield, Ill.. AP Photo/Seth Perlman

Quinn won't say if he'll sign death penalty bill

JOHN O'CONNOR ,AP Political Writer

SPRINGFIELD, Ill. — Illinois Gov. Pat Quinn declined to say Wednesday whether he will sign legislation abolishing the death penalty, insisting he would listen to all sides of the issue and ultimately follow his conscience before making a decision.

In a historic vote, the state Senate on Tuesday sent the bill to the Democratic governor, who supports capital punishment but has upheld an 11-year moratorium on executions imposed by a predecessor after a spate of wrongful convictions. The House passed the measure last week.

Quinn said he would look at the bill "very carefully."

"I think it's important given the importance of this measure that people from all over Illinois express their opinions. The Legislature . did that in the past week. They're the elected representatives of the people," Quinn said. "I'm happy to listen and reflect, and I'll follow my conscience."

Death penalty foes were hopeful about the chances for repeal elsewhere if a large, industrial state such as Illinois does it — following New York, New Jersey and New Mexico since 2007.

"It's a clear trend," said Debra Erenberg, Midwest regional director for Amnesty International USA.

Colorado, Connecticut, Kansas, Maryland and Montana are among other states that have considered repeal in the past year or still are pursuing it, according to Erenberg and Diann Rust-Tierney, executive director of the National Coalition to Abolish the Death Penalty.

Abolition opponents warned against widespread celebration just yet.

State Rep. Jim Durkin, a Republican from Western Springs who spearheaded reforms after former Gov. George Ryan imposed the moratorium in 2000, said it will only take one heart-rending crime to stir calls for reinstatement — particularly in a nation that has just swung to the right.

"The national momentum is conservative," Durkin said. "If the governor signs this bill, it is not going to cause a domino effect in this country. People will look at Illinois as an aberration because of the problems that happened 15 years ago, but they'll forget what we did since then."

Three years after imposing the moratorium, Ryan cleared death row of 171 people, commuting most sentences to life in prison and freeing four more whose guilt was in doubt. Significant changes — including more money and training for defense attorneys, videotaped interrogations and easier access to DNA evidence — soon followed.

"This is a state in which this was used and then stopped. It was debated for years, fixed — or reformed — and finally there was a resolution by just getting rid of it, so that's about as thorough a process as any state could do," said Richard Dieter, executive director of the Death Penalty Information Center.

Fifteen states and the District of Columbia have already ended capital punishment.

When Ryan called for the state's death penalty moratorium, 12 death row inmates had been executed in Illinois since 1977. The sentences of 13 others had been overturned.

In some of those 13 cases, evidence showed the suspects were innocent; in others, they received unfair trials or their confessions were found to be coerced by abusive police. Since then, the state's number of overturned death penalty cases has risen to 20.

State Sen. Kwame Raoul, a Chicago Democrat, urged colleagues to support his repeal legislation and help the state "join the civilized world by ending this practice of putting to death innocent people."

There's no proof Illinois ever executed an innocent person.

Former law enforcement officials in the Senate had argued prosecutors need the threat of death to get guilty pleas from suspects who opt for life in prison.

Others argued citizens still want the death penalty available for the worst of crimes.

"It's not a question of vengeance," said Sen. Bill Haine, a Democrat from Alton. "It's a question of the people being outraged at such terrible crimes, such bloodletting."

Durkin said those who continue to say Illinois' system is broken are ignoring the reforms and the careful way prosecutors use it today. Just 15 men have been condemned since the moratorium was imposed.

"This is a tool to save additional lives," said Sen. Dave Syverson, a Rockford Republican. "Use it sparingly, yes, but to take it away will cost us additional lives."

___

Associated Press writers Zachary Colman in Springfield and Karen Hawkins in Chicago contributed to this report.

SPRINGFIELD, Ill. — Illinois Gov. Pat Quinn declined to say Wednesday whether he will sign legislation abolishing the death penalty, insisting he would listen to all sides of the issue and ultimately follow his conscience before making a decision.

In a historic vote, the state Senate on Tuesday sent the bill to the Democratic governor, who supports capital punishment but has upheld an 11-year moratorium on executions imposed by a predecessor after a spate of wrongful convictions. The House passed the measure last week.

Governor promises careful look at bill

Quinn said he would look at the bill "very carefully."

"I think it's important given the importance of this measure that people from all over Illinois express their opinions. The Legislature . did that in the past week. They're the elected representatives of the people," Quinn said. "I'm happy to listen and reflect, and I'll follow my conscience."

Death penalty foes were hopeful about the chances for repeal elsewhere if a large, industrial state such as Illinois does it — following New York, New Jersey and New Mexico since 2007.

Trend is against death penalty

"It's a clear trend," said Debra Erenberg, Midwest regional director for Amnesty International USA.

Colorado, Connecticut, Kansas, Maryland and Montana are among other states that have considered repeal in the past year or still are pursuing it, according to Erenberg and Diann Rust-Tierney, executive director of the National Coalition to Abolish the Death Penalty.

Abolition opponents warned against widespread celebration just yet.

State Rep. Jim Durkin, a Republican from Western Springs who spearheaded reforms after former Gov. George Ryan imposed the moratorium in 2000, said it will only take one heart-rending crime to stir calls for reinstatement — particularly in a nation that has just swung to the right.

Momentum is conservative

"The national momentum is conservative," Durkin said. "If the governor signs this bill, it is not going to cause a domino effect in this country. People will look at Illinois as an aberration because of the problems that happened 15 years ago, but they'll forget what we did since then."

Three years after imposing the moratorium, Ryan cleared death row of 171 people, commuting most sentences to life in prison and freeing four more whose guilt was in doubt. Significant changes — including more money and training for defense attorneys, videotaped interrogations and easier access to DNA evidence — soon followed.

"This is a state in which this was used and then stopped. It was debated for years, fixed — or reformed — and finally there was a resolution by just getting rid of it, so that's about as thorough a process as any state could do," said Richard Dieter, executive director of the Death Penalty Information Center.

15 states, D.C., have abolished death penalty

Fifteen states and the District of Columbia have already ended capital punishment.

When Ryan called for the state's death penalty moratorium, 12 death row inmates had been executed in Illinois since 1977. The sentences of 13 others had been overturned.

In some of those 13 cases, evidence showed the suspects were innocent; in others, they received unfair trials or their confessions were found to be coerced by abusive police. Since then, the state's number of overturned death penalty cases has risen to 20.

State Sen. Kwame Raoul, a Chicago Democrat, urged colleagues to support his repeal legislation and help the state "join the civilized world by ending this practice of putting to death innocent people."

There's no proof Illinois ever executed an innocent person.

Former law enforcement officials in the Senate had argued prosecutors need the threat of death to get guilty pleas from suspects who opt for life in prison.

Others argued citizens still want the death penalty available for the worst of crimes.

 

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