(Article courtesy of MissouriNet.)
Missouri’s long-running debate over the death penalty returned to the Capitol on Monday, as Rep. Jim Murphy, R-St. Louis County, pushed once again to abolish it.
He said one myth is that executions save the state money.
“Fact of the matter is, anybody that’s put on the track to the death penalty costs the state as much as $4 million more than somebody that’s incarcerated for the rest of their lives,” said Murphy.
Matthew Crowell, who leads the Missouri Public Defender System, backed the bill and said death penalty cases are among the most expensive in the entire justice system.
“So just in salaries for my attorneys in these offices, we’re approaching $3 million,” said Crowell. “Almost every case requires extensive work with experts, which requires us to hire and pay experts in a variety of fields and cases require extensive travel, not just in Missouri, but outside as well. Again, those costs add up to the tune of nearly $1 million a year.”
St. Louis Archbishop Mitchell Rozanski was at the hearing to testify in favor of the bill. Archbishop Rozanski told House lawmakers that Pope St. John Paul II during his visit to St. Louis in 1999, renewed the appeal to do away with the death penalty.
“The New Evangelization calls for followers of Christ who are unconditionally pro-life, who will proclaim, celebrate, and serve the gospel of life in every situation,” said Rozanski.
Former Missouri Republican State Rep. Tony Lovasco-R testified in favor of the bill and said he filed this legislation when he was serving and says he is not exactly the most likely person to be advocating for abolishing the death penalty.
“I was the guy who made national news for saying that looters deserve to be shot during the riots,” said Lovasco. “Sometimes society is better off when people don’t get what they deserve. But society itself is protected. And it’s why it’s important that regardless of what you think ought to happen to offenders, we respect the sanctity of life and the sanctity of the system.”
With no testimony in opposition, a companion bill sponsored by Sen. Mary Elizabeth Coleman, R-Arnold, is also advancing in the Missouri Senate.
https://documents.house.mo.gov/billtracking/bills261/sumpdf/HB2153I.pdf
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