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"OLYMPIA, Wash. (AP) — Gov. Jay Inslee said Tuesday he was suspending the use of the death penalty in Washington state, announcing a move that he hopes will enable officials to "join a growing national conversation about capital punishment."
The Democrat said he came to the decision after months of review, meetings with family members of victims, prosecutors and law enforcement.
According to a draft statement obtained by The Associated Press, Inslee said that the use of the death penalty is inconsistent and unequal.
"Equal justice under the law is the state's primary responsibility," he said in the written statement. "And indeath penalty cases, I'm not convinced equal justice is being served. The use of the death penalty in this state is unequally applied, sometimes dependent on the budget of the county where the crime occurred."
The governor's staff briefed lawmakers about the move on Monday night and Tuesday morning.
Inslee's moratorium means that if a death penalty case comes to his desk, he will issue a reprieve, which isn't a pardon and doesn't commute the sentences of those condemned to death.
Last year, Maryland abolished the death penalty, the 18th state to do so and the sixth in the last six years. "
"OLYMPIA, Wash. (AP) — Gov. Jay Inslee said Tuesday he was suspending the use of the death penalty in Washington state, announcing a move that he hopes will enable officials to "join a growing national conversation about capital punishment."
The Democrat said he came to the decision after months of review, meetings with family members of victims, prosecutors and law enforcement.
According to a draft statement obtained by The Associated Press, Inslee said that the use of the death penalty is inconsistent and unequal.
"Equal justice under the law is the state's primary responsibility," he said in the written statement. "And indeath penalty cases, I'm not convinced equal justice is being served. The use of the death penalty in this state is unequally applied, sometimes dependent on the budget of the county where the crime occurred."
The governor's staff briefed lawmakers about the move on Monday night and Tuesday morning.
Inslee's moratorium means that if a death penalty case comes to his desk, he will issue a reprieve, which isn't a pardon and doesn't commute the sentences of those condemned to death.
Last year, Maryland abolished the death penalty, the 18th state to do so and the sixth in the last six years. "