Mass. Governor to File Death Penalty Bill (Only the guilty to be executed) [View All]

(Yeah, tell me another one....)


BOSTON -- Hoping to bring capital punishment to Massachusetts, Gov. Mitt Romney is preparing to file a death penalty bill early next year that he says is so carefully written it will guarantee only the guilty are executed.

Based in part on the findings of a death penalty panel he appointed, the bill would limit capital punishment to the "worst of the worst" crimes including terrorism, the murder of police officers, murder involving torture and the killing of witnesses. It also would use evidence such as DNA testing to protect the innocent.

Romney wants his death penalty bill to be a model for other states.

"The weakness in the death penalty statutes in other states, of course, is the fear that you may execute someone who is innocent. We remove that possibility," Romney said.

http://www.newsday.com/news/nationworld/nation/wire/sns-ap-death-penalty,0,1321605.story?coll=sns-ap-nation-headlines