A bill that would eliminate the death penalty in Virginia passed an important Senate committee
today.
Our Brennan King has more on what people on both sides of the bill say about it.
Considered the ultimate punishment, the death penalty may soon no longer be an option
for Virginia's juries and prosecutors.
We make mistakes in deciding who should get the death penalty.
Jim Hingley serves as Alba Marrow County Commonwealth's attorney.
You can't call him back from the grave to correct that error.
He testified at the Senate's Judiciary Committee on Monday in support of a bipartisan bill
if signed into law would abolish the death penalty.
The alternative is your sadness could go up, but you're going to die in prison.
A lot of people don't realize that the death penalty is a part of Virginia's horrific
legacy of lynching slavery in Jim Crow.
Reverend Dr. LaKisha Cook with the Virginia Interface Center calls this a moral issue.
As people of faith, we believe in human dignity.
We believe in redemption.
We believe in forgiveness.
The only way to secure this state is that we punish criminals that we don't let them
get by with murder.
Former State Senator Bill Carico opposes the bill.
It doesn't matter to me what color your skin is.
If you're going to commit these crimes, you should pay the penalty.
In 2019, Governor Alfnourtham signed Carico's widely supported legislation mandating anyone
convicted of killing law enforcement to receive either life in prison or the death
penalty.
Carico was inspired after Travis Ball received 36 years in prison for killing Virginia
State Police Special Agent Michael Walter in 2017.
I just think as a society that we have got to penalize criminals.
The bill to abolish the death penalty passed the Senate's Judiciary Committee on Monday
on a 10-to-4 vote.
Now this is just the start for this piece of legislation.
Senate Bill 1165 now moves on to the Finance and Appropriations Committee.
Their schedule to meet Tuesday morning at 8 a.m.
Working for you, Richmond.
I'm Brennan King, CBS 6 News.
