NJ commission urges abandoning the death penalty

NJ commission urges abandoning the death penalty

It didn't take long for the new year to produce some capital punishment headlines. As detailed in this AP report, a special commission in New Jersey has sent a report to Gov. Jon Corzine and legislators saying the state "should abolish its death penalty and replace it with life imprisonment without the possibility of parole." Here are more details from the AP story:

The report ... found no compelling evidence that New Jersey's death penalty, which has not been used in more than four decades, serves any purpose. It also found the death penalty costs taxpayers more than paying for prisoners to serve life terms without parole. "There is increasing evidence that the death penalty is inconsistent with evolving standards of decency," the report states.

The findings, authored by a 13-member commission created in late 2005 by the Legislature, found abolishing the death penalty would eliminate the danger of executing an innocent person and the risk of the punishment being unfairly implemented. "The alternative of life imprisonment in a maximum security institution without the possibility of parole would sufficiently ensure public safety and address other legitimate social and penological interests, including the interests of the families of murder victims," the report found.

I will post a link to the report when available. It should be linked here at some point.

UPDATE: Here is the link to the 133-page New Jersey Death Penalty Study Commission Report. Here is its central recommendations:

The Commission recommends that the death penalty in New Jersey be abolished and replaced with life imprisonment without the possibility of parole, to be served in a maximum security facility. The Commission also recommends that any cost savings resulting from the abolition of the death penalty be used for benefits and services for survivors of victims of homicide.

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