Death penalty ban passes the Montana Senate

February 23, 2007 in 2007 Montana Legislature, Death penalty

by Jay Stevens 

Today the Montana Senate voted to abolish the state’s death penalty on a 27-22 vote, which actually surprised me. I didn’t think this bill would get past committee – which it did – or a general Senate vote – which it did.

While the vote was largely carried by Senate Democrats, there was plenty of crossover on both sides. That’s the surprising thing about this bill, and that’s what has to be giving anti-death-penalty activists some hope that the House might go for it, too.

I admit I’m generally against the death penalty for a number of reasons. First, there have been too many mistakes made in death penalty convictions to make me confident we’re actually killing the right people. Also, as Ty Alper mentioned in his conversation on this topic, the poor and racial minorities are too often targeted by the death penalty, thanks to abysmal lawyering. That is, it’s not administered fairly. Finally, like Ty, I balk a little at the notion that our government can kill people. It’s a little creepy.

Like Ed Kemmick, though, I’m still a little conflicted. In a perfect world, without unequal or unfair or mistaken death penalty prosecution, maybe it would be better to simply dispatch those that we can’t rehabilitate or who are chronically violent.

But it’s not a perfect world. And maybe a lifetime in jail is actually a worse punishment, as Ed says. It’s certainly cheaper.

So, all things considered, I support the ban.

I’m curious to see how the House goes in this issue. Personally, I don’t think it has a chance. The Republicans in the Senate who voted for the abolishing of the death penalty no doubt did so because they knew the Republican-led House would have the last say on the matter. No doubt conservative leaders are lining up the votes to kill the bill and keep the illusion going that Republicans are tough on crime.

Still…all this bill needs is a couple of defections and the death penalty is gone from Montana.