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Senate adds ‘life without parole’ sentencing option in substitute to capital-case law
Summary
The Senate passed a substitute to Senate Bill 92 that keeps the death penalty but adds life in prison without parole as a third sentencing option for capital cases; supporters said it gives juries a middle ground while critics warned it could reduce death sentences.
Sen. Francis Farley, sponsor of the substitute, told senators the bill ‘‘does not do away with the death penalty’’ but ‘‘adds one other alternative to our current law’’ — life in prison without parole. The measure creates an intermediate sentencing option: if a jury cannot unanimously recommend death, it may next consider life without parole; if that also fails to reach unanimity, the court imposes a life sentence with possibility of parole.
Prosecutors and legal observers urged support. Warren Peterson, Miller County attorney, said…
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