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| Illinois Panel Recommends Death Penalty Reforms |
| By CNN |
| Published: 04/16/2002 |
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A panel appointed by Illinois Gov. George Ryan to examine the state's death penalty has concluded the punishment has been applied too often in the state since it was re-established in 1977, and the process must be reformed. In a report issued Monday the Illinois Commission on Capital Punishment said its 15 members agreed more public funding is needed to help assure a higher degree of confidence, if the death penalty is retained. Because the death penalty appears to have the support of a majority of Illinois citizens, the panel said it concentrated on proposing reforms rather than debating the merits of capital punishment. The commission has been meeting in secret since its formation in January 2000. Since then, it has studied 13 Illinois defendants who were released from death row after their convictions were overturned, and all capital punishment decisions. Members met with surviving family members of murder victims, death penalty opponents and national experts, and performed other research, including surveys. Among other recommendations by the commission: -- The list of 20 factual circumstances under which a defendant is eligible for the death penalty should be eliminated in favor of simpler criteria; -- There should be uniform standards across the state; -- The impact of testimony from jailhouse snitches should be limited; -- Confessions should be videotaped to ensure they were not coerced. Ryan, a death penalty supporter, said he wanted to give Illinois citizens complete confidence that a defendant's guilt was fully established before he was put to death for a crime. Ryan said the number of death sentences and criminal convictions that had been overturned raised 'serious concerns' about the process by which capital punishment is imposed. |
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