Legislative Hall will again be the battleground for those who want to reinstate the death penalty and advocates who want to keep it off the books.
The controversial plan to bring back the death penalty gets its first committee hearing Wednesday.
Hearings and debates would rage for hours when advocates unsuccessfully tried to repeal Delaware’s capital punishment program in 2013 and 2015. It took a court decision last year to dismantle the death penalty here.
But state Sen. Brian Pettyjohn (R-Georgetown), one of the bill’s main sponsors, says he thinks momentum to revive it is on his side.
“I believe there is renewed interest in reestablishing this here in Delaware in a constitutional manner and having something that will hold these individuals accountable for the crimes that they commit,” Pettyjohn.
Pettyjohn and others may have an ally in Gov. John Carney (D), too.
In a debate prior to the election, Carney said he would “probably” veto a bill like this. But when it was introduced in March, he said he wouldn’t rule out supporting a death penalty for those who kill police or prison guards.
The proposal doesn’t include a new method of execution - despite pharmaceutical companies refusing to resupply states with drugs used for lethal injections.
Pettyjohn says that’s something they’ll consider at a later date.
“I believe that we should leave all options on the table. Let’s see where we stand right now with the existing stock of pharmaceuticals that we have,” he said.
A 2014 Associated Press report showed two of the three drugs used during a lethal injection execution had expired.
The House Judiciary Committee will meet at 2:30 p.m. Wednesday.
