LINCOLN, Neb. (AP) — Attorney General Doug Peterson is taking new shots at a study that says Nebraska's death penalty costs $14.6 million per year, but the economist who conducted it is standing by his work.
Peterson sought Wednesday to discredit the study, saying it inflated defense and housing costs of death row inmates and the number of court days spent on capital punishment cases.
The Republican attorney general supports the death penalty and criticized the Legislature's decision to abolish it. Voters will decide whether to overturn that decision in November.
Creighton University economist Ernie Goss says his study is scientifically valid, based on census data from Nebraska's 93 counties.
Goss was hired by death penalty opponents. He says they wanted a straightforward analysis because they believed the data would support their position.
Copyright 2016 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.