Good job, Nebraska! I think I'll have some celebratory corn tonight.

[Alex K]

Atta boys and girls! Welcome to the 21st century.

http://www.nytimes.com/2015/05/28/us/neb....html?_r=0

A lovely picture, too. That's the look of people who done did the right thing.

[pocaracas]

"Oh, no! Now, crime is going to go rampant... that was the only deterrent there was!"

[Alex K]

They'll have to rely purely on God's wrath from now on. It's the pious thing to do, anyway, don't you think?

[pocaracas]

That can become problematic when the pious take it to them to actually do god's job and apply their wrath as if it were god's wrath...

[vorlon13]

{repost from republicunt thread}

Reasons for the change in the Nebraska death penalty are somewhat diffuse, my take is there are quite a few factors;

expense of the appeals process

decades long appeals process

'messy' protests against penalty on the few occasions they have managed to schedule one

unfairness in regards to some really nasty perps not getting even close to an execution date

PO the governor (maybe) he vetoed the bill and it was over ridden, so he may not be that popular in the unicameral

State Senator Ernie Chambers has been working on this for decades, rest of legislators were fatigued from efforts to defend it

ACLU and churchy folks united to apply pressure, some shaming might have worked

what's the difference between having death penalty without an execution since '97, and not having a death penalty ?

death penalty debate was distracting legislature from their true calling; raising taxes and pissing money down rat holes

old age and suicide seemed to be the biggest threats to life and limb on death row

[Longhorn]

Nice. 50 points to Nebraska!

[abaris]

what's the difference between having death penalty without an execution since '97, and not having a death penalty ?

I guess it makes a lot of a difference for the convicts. Not having to live with the prospect of someone deciding to act on your sentence for starters. And for the advancement of civilization the difference is even larger.

[vorlon13]

If you have the death penalty, and the likes of Michael Ryan are on death row for almost 30 years and there still isn't an execution date, you don't have a death penalty. The repeal was an acknowledgement of the reality of the situation. Made Governor Ricketts look like a twit (again), and that might have been the clincher. The voters might be having a little election remorse over their governor too.

BTW, don't google Michael Ryan, even though the worst of what he did isn't on the internet, what is there will give you nightmares.

Back in the 90s Stephen Harper cheated Nebraska by committing suicide on death row. There might have been one or 2 more in the last 40 years, can't recall for sure.

[Pyrrho]

You are late to the party. There is already another thread on this:

http://atheistforums.org/thread-33650.html