Colorado Politics

Report: Death knell for death penalty in Colorado

The Colorado Senate has enough votes to pass a repeal of the death penalty, The Denver Post reports.

Democrats hold a 19-16 majority in the chamber, and last year had one solid opponent in Sen. Rhonda Fields, D-Aurora. Four other Democratic senators were also on the fence.

However, The Post broke the news that two of those senators, Tammy Story and Joann Ginal, plan to vote in favor of repeal.

In addition, Republican Sens. Jack Tate of Centennial and Owen Hill of Colorado Springs have committed to voting yes. Tate, along with Sen. Julie Gonzales, D-Denver, will co-sponsor the repeal bill.

Gov. Jared Polis told reporters after his State of the State address that if the bill makes it to his desk, he would sign it.

Colorado carried out its first capital punishment sentence in 1859, when it was still a territory. There has been one execution since 1976, when the U.S. Supreme Court reaffirmed the constitutionality of the punishment following a one-year moratorium. There have been 102 executions total in the state’s history.

The Death Penalty Information Center lists three inmates currently on Colorado’s death row. The governor has the sole authority to grant clemency.

This year’s attempt at repeal will be the sixth time in recent years. An analysis of the 2019 bill predicted that repealing capital punishment would save the state over $342,000 in defense costs per case and more than $12,000 per year per inmate no longer housed on death row.

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