A UNO political scientist says the Unicameral’s vote Wednesday abolishing the death penalty in Nebraska is “hugely significant.”
Lawmakers voted 30-19 to override Governor Pete Ricketts’ veto of a bill doing away with the death penalty. Nebraska is now the 19th state in the nation without capital punishment.
UNO political science professor Paul Landow says the vote happened, in part, because many lawmakers no longer believe the death penalty is effective.
“Basically, it’s a tool whose time has come and gone. And they’re looking toward the future, looking for ways that will make the administration of justice more efficient and actually more palatable to both victims and the general public.”
Landow says the Unicameral’s unique make-up---it’s officially nonpartisan---was also a factor in Wednesday’s vote.
In a statement, Governor Ricketts called the death penalty a critical tool to protect law enforcement and families.
Nebraskans for Alternatives to the Death Penalty says the vote “recognizes an error-prone system that risks executing innocent people and harms murder victim family members.”
After Wednesday’s vote, a group called Nebraskans for Justice announced they’re exploring a petition drive to put the death penalty issue on the 2016 ballot. On their Facebook page, the group says the Legislature’s vote came “despite strong support from a vast number of Nebraskans throughout the state.”
Nebraska last executed a death row inmate in 1997. In 2009, the Nebraska Legislature changed the means of executing prisoners from the electric chair to lethal injection.