Illinois Death Penalty Officially Ends

It's been more than a decade since former Illinois Governor George Ryan imposed a moratorium on executions and cleared death row, fearing that an imperfect justice system can lead to wrongful executions. Even though no one was executed, capital punishment was still on the table-- until Friday.

In March, Illinois Governor Pat Quinn signed a death penalty ban and cleared death row. "If the system can't be guaranteed, 100-percent error-free, then we shouldn't have the system," Quinn said at the time. "It cannot stand."

The move drew criticism from law enforcement agencies and prosecutors, who said they needed the death penalty in order to get guilty pleas from some suspects. Quinn was also on the fence, and met with groups on both sides of the issue before ultimately deciding to sign. He consulted retired Anglican Archbishop Desmond Tutu of South Africa and met with Sister Helen Prejean, the inspiration for the movie "Dead Man Walking.

Illinois has executed 12 men since 1977 when the death penalty was reinstated, the last one in 1999 and it is the 16th state in the nation to ban capital punishment.

Former Gov. Ryan decided to put the moratorium in place after hearing from people such as Anthony Porter. Porter had ordered his last meal and even been fitted for burial clothes when, just 48 hours before his execution, lawyers won a stay to study the question of whether he was mentally capable of killing. That provided time for a group of Northwestern University students to gather information proving Porter's innocence.

"Because of the spectacular failure to reform the system, because we have seen justice delayed for countless death row inmates, with potentially meritorious claims, and because the Illinois death penalty system is arbitrary and capricious, and therefore immoral, I no longer shall tinker with the machinery of death," Ryan in 2003, according to WBEZ. "I support the death penalty ... but I also think there has to be no margin for error."

The Chicago Tribune shared some other laws that go into effect Friday:

Among other new laws taking effect Friday is one that will require a bitter taste to be added to antifreeze to discourage children and animals from drinking the toxic liquid. And the state’s executive inspector general’s duties will be expanded to give him powers to investigate wrongdoing among the transit agencies that oversee the Chicago area’s local buses and trains.

Comments

[John P Slevin]

10:34 PM on 07/03/2011

"...law enforcement agencies and prosecutors...said they needed the death penalty in order to get guilty pleas from some suspects."

That about says it all.

Tell us you are guilty or we'll kill you.

[inLA]

11:06 PM on 07/02/2011

What a great thread for getting out your hostilities. I've never read so many ridiculous right wing comments al in one place.

[ArchieBunker II]

06:37 AM on 07/03/2011

And yours isn't?

[YOKEL13]

01:39 AM on 07/04/2011

At least they are bashing liberals rather than putting people to death.

[inLA]

11:03 PM on 07/02/2011

Good.

[jay0958875]

10:04 PM on 07/02/2011

there is an easy solution, if you use a gun in a crime mandatory 30 years, if you kill someone in that crime life with no chance of parole.

[Mazi Nwankama Nwankama]

08:54 PM on 07/02/2011

Bravo Governor Pat Quinn for taking this bold step to ban the death penalty against the politically popular "tough on crime" posture of many politicians. I think it's better to be sensible about crime, as you have done. Unfortunately, many innocent people may have be already executed in the United States due to a justice system that is prone to error and injustice. Well done Mr. Governor.

[ArchieBunker II]

06:38 AM on 07/03/2011

You have proof,or just spouting off?

[cybersleuth58]

05:01 PM on 07/02/2011

The issue here is that there is NO WAY to guarantee that innocent people are not going to be executed for crimes they did not do. There is no way to fool proof the system... Very few, if any shed tears when Bundy or Gacy or any of the other loathsome creatures were executed. But there should be outrage and concern that there are more than 200 people who have sat on death row only to be released, and not simply because of DNA. (There are issues with perjury, mistaken identity, police and prosecutorial misconduct). In some cases, if an issue is not raised within 30 days of a conviction, the condemned person is out of luck, even if there is credible evidence of innocence. The cornerstone of our law, and what makes us different from every other system in the world, is the notion that it is better that 10 guilty men go free than 1 innocent person be convicted... We have life without parole; this is how every other civilized country deals with killers. I cannot understand how Americans, even those who consider themselves "tough on crime" would be willing to tolerate a system as prone to error. Even Justice Stevens, one of the SCOTUS majority who voted to resume the death penalty in 1976, regretted that he ever voted to bring back the death penalty.

[YOKEL13]

01:45 AM on 07/04/2011

The problem with the death penalty is that it, like many issues, has been politicized. This means pandering to the more blood-thirsty among us. As you rightly point out, few people have any sympathy for the likes of a John Gacy or a Ted Bundy. Our compassion and outrage are reserved for those wrongly convicted. These are wrongs that can only be righted (or at least bettered) for LIVING inmates.

[gryphon10]

12:28 PM on 07/02/2011

Chicago politics at it's finest.

[Barbara0817]

12:14 PM on 07/02/2011

Things couldnt be any worse here with the crime rate so high every weekend innocent children being shot or and killed by gunfire. . The gang crimes are out of control. There may have been a few that were were Wrongly connvicted, That is no reason to be soft on crime. There is aneed for the death penalty . It acts a s a deterent, plus if these scums that kill others are in jal whats to stop Them from getting out and doing the same thing again.I have heard of killer getting only a few years and being free. If there is no death penalty and They kill someone They should get life no parole.Jail tilll They die. In illinios and everywhere society as a whole needs to be protected from crime.I have seen tearfull Moms and Dads on the news cause Thierchildren were taken from Them for no reason. This should never be allowed to happen here.We need to some kind of help with this

[takis4756]

12:33 PM on 07/02/2011

If a person gets released after a few years in prison, they were not going to get the death penalty.

[cybersleuth58]

06:58 PM on 07/02/2011

You answered your own question... It is called life without parole. It is so easy to say: "There may have been a few that were were Wrongly connvicted­, That is no reason to be soft on crime." Are you willing to tolerate the "few who were Wrongly convicted" and then executed? What if it were your kid? Your mom or dad? What if your wrongfully convicted loved one was on death row? Would a few people executed by mistake still be OK?

"There is aneed for the death penalty." How is it that so many other civilized societies get along without it? (Canada,Australia,Portugal, Denmark, Spain, Luxembourg, Nicaragua, Norway, Netherlands, Haiti, Liechtenstein, German Democratic Republic ... and others).
If the death penalty is such a great deterrent - why does the US still have such high crime rates and the countries without it are much safer to live? Maybe capital punishment isn't as effective as we have been led to think?

[ArchieBunker II]

06:39 AM on 07/03/2011

You like those countries,move!

[anigma47]

12:09 PM on 07/02/2011

Another idiot decision that goes against the vast majority of citizens wishes. We can't kill murderers ? If we started executing all those who were given the penalty,we could save millions and help alleviate overpopulation in prisons.

[takis4756]

12:23 PM on 07/02/2011

1) The point is to avoid making the mistake of killing completely innocent individuals. It is not about not killing murderers. 2) You cannot Constitutionally just give someone the death penalty and execute them the next day. They are entitled to time to appeal and have those appeals reviewed and the extra costs from the special protections that to some extent alleviates the concerns of #1 (but not completely), so no there is not any money saved from maintaining the death penalty.
And if the citizens really care, they can always vote in people that will reinstate the death penalty during the next election, nothing's permanent.

[Raymond Rees]

03:45 PM on 07/02/2011

Maybe, the government should execute people caught with small amounts of drugs too. In fact, let the police carry out the executions on the spot. The taxpayers will save lots of money.

[outlawjames8]

07:03 PM on 07/02/2011

Your comment is lost on the small minded of us;)

[mikesells4u]

12:03 PM on 07/02/2011

Why would the governor consult with Desmond Tutu on the issue? When did he become a US citizen and resident of Illinois?

[Raymond Rees]

03:53 PM on 07/02/2011

I agree. A black Bishop who supports human rights should not be contacted but if a white pro-death evangelical from England is contacted, that would be just fine. Right?

[Paul Replogle]

09:20 PM on 07/03/2011

Maybe a spiritual leader can give perspective.

[L1A1H1]

12:02 PM on 07/02/2011

Duh, oh, you mean I can kill as many people as I want in any gruesome fashion and not worry about any kind of retribution except a room and three squares a day? Wow, that's very kind of you. Now, if you would excuse me, I'm going to rape and throttle your six children. See you in court and, once again, thanks ever so much. SWAK

[skullman]

12:16 PM on 07/02/2011

Watch the show "Lockup" on MSNBC and you might get a better perspective on how great the room and three squares are in prison. Oh, I'll bet that you don't watch MSNBC, do you?

And I'll bet you don't have any problem with executing innocent people either, do you?

[gryphon10]

12:28 PM on 07/02/2011

No, and no. Need more info?

[wssweeps]

11:54 AM on 07/02/2011

Boy, all you kllers come to Illinois, we don't have conceal and carry, and we don't punish you for killing our people. thanks to the Mighty Quinn

[takis4756]

12:24 PM on 07/02/2011

Yep, no death penalty = no punishment. And Quinn signed the bill with reservation, it was definitely not something he pushed for. You realize that an entire legislator has to pass a bill before the Governor gets a chance to sign it, right?

Conceal & Carry/Death Penalty both take unnecessary risks with innocent lives.

[ncinkman]

02:16 PM on 07/02/2011

Yes, and they also help rid the country of vermin.

[ponderosaclan]

11:30 AM on 07/02/2011

Hey Republicans. It was the corrupt and convicted REPUBLICAN Illinois Governor that stopped executions in Illinois. Illinois state REPUBLICANS could not figure out how to fix the system so that innocent men were no longer being sent to death row. For example, Rolando Cruz was prosecuted by REPUBLICAN states attorneys in a REPUBLICAN county and sent to death row for a crime he did not commit. The 3 REPUBLICAN prosecutors were eventually arrested and tried for perjury and obstruction of justice.

[ncinkman]

02:19 PM on 07/02/2011

So, what's your point? Most all politicians are corrupt. If you can't see that, you're just another numbskull waving your party's banner.

[outlawjames8]

07:08 PM on 07/02/2011

I don't care what the facts are, you are not going to change my mind. Being facetious of course.

[destin023]

11:26 AM on 07/02/2011

so now a murderer can walk into a restaurant with a hundred witnesses, slash someone's throat while they're having lunch & plead insanity or just throw their hands up in the air & assume the position/consequences. With no more frequency than capital punishment is utilized it should always be kept on the shelf for usage in extreme cases. Unless you haven't read the news lately, there are some very "extreme cases" that are noteworthy..

[takis4756]

12:27 PM on 07/02/2011

1) If your found not guilty by reason of insanity, you could not get the death penalty anyway. 2) Eyewitnesses are notoriously inaccurate and could just as easily make a mistake. We've even had a person on death row for the murder committed by an identical twin. So even 100 perfectly accurate witnesses could result in a mistake.

[gentry109]

11:17 AM on 07/02/2011

ok all you thugs and killers and flesh eating zombies please pack up in my state and move to illonois, The bus leaves at noon.

[YOKEL13]

01:53 AM on 07/04/2011

Fifteen states eliminated the death penalty before Illinois did, so wouldn't all those zombies already have left?