29 June 2024 :
June 27, 2024 - Delaware. Senate passes abolition of death penalty
Thursday, Senate lawmakers voted to remove capital punishment from state code.
House Bill 70 would eliminate the sections of Delaware Code that set the court procedures for imposing the death penalty as a punishment for 1st degree murder, changing the maximum sentence to life in prison without eligibility for probation, parole, or a sentence reduction.
The legislation follows a 2016 Delaware Supreme Court decision ruling the death penalty unconstitutional because it empowers judges, rather than jurors, to find the necessary facts to impose a death sentence.
Since that decision, Delaware has been unable to impose the death penalty, but it remains in state code. This legislation would change that.
Senator Kyle Evans Gay, the Senate prime sponsor of the bill and chair of the Senate Judiciary Committee, said “Our courts, previous General Assemblies and former governors have all come to the same conclusion that the death penalty is unjust, unconstitutional, and ineffective. It’s long past time that we move past this flawed and barbaric practice, and instead focus our resources and attention on addressing the root causes of crime with policies that have actually been shown to make Delawareans safer.”
The bill passed14-7, with no Republican support and one Democratic senator defecting.
It heads to Gov. John Carney, who has not yet indicated if he will sign the bill.
