House reverses, votes to ban death penalty

SPRINGFIELD — In a whirlwind reversal on a historic vote, the Illinois House approved a plan to abolish capital punishment Thursday.

Supporters tallied the exact number of votes needed for the measure, which aims to end what supporters say is a sad history of state-sponsored execution.

Since capital punishment was reinstated more than 30 years ago, Illinois has put 12 people to death. Twenty others have been declared wrongly condemned and released from death row.

The repeal measure came up one vote short during a 59-58 tally earlier Thursday, but a second vote succeeded, 60-54.

The legislation would mean life without parole for those currently on death row. That includes Anthony Mertz, who in 2001 raped and murdered Rolling Meadows native and Eastern Illinois University student Shannon McNamara; and Brian Dugan, who was sentenced to death for the 1983 murder of Jeanine Nicarico of Naperville.

The measure's sponsor, Rep. Karen Yarbrough, a Maywood Democrat, urged her colleagues to “take a momentous step to right a major wrong and end for good the tragic story of the death penalty.”

The legislation now moves to the Senate, where supporters are confident of success.

Three Illinois governors have observed a moratorium on capital punishment for a decade, but critics of abolition said the formerly flawed process of doling out the ultimate punishment has been fixed, remains a deterrent and should remain an option for families seeking justice.

“Natural life without parole is not worse than the death penalty,” said Rep. Dennis Reboletti, an Elmhurst Republican. “When you can have human contact and be able to walk around a prison for however long that may be, that isn't worse, especially for a family who wishes they could have their loved one back.”

Rosemary Mulligan, a Des Plaines Republican who wasn't present in the House Thursday because of an illness, said she would have voted “no” on abolishing the death penalty. Her father was murdered in the 1960s, and she said she would have probably told that story in a speech on the House floor had she been in Springfield.

Former Gov. George Ryan, declaring that the capital punishment system was “haunted by the demon of error,” announced a moratorium on executions in 2000 and commuted the death sentences of 167 people to life in prison.

The Legislature adopted reforms — such as videotaped confessions and better access to DNA evidence — based on findings of a Ryan-appointed commission, and set up a fund to pay for proper defenses of those accused.

“We have instituted substantial reforms to ensure that individuals who have been charged have more than due process,” said Rep. Jim Durkin, a Western Springs Republican who led the transformation effort a decade ago.

Since then, 15 people have been put on death row even though they won't face execution as long as the moratorium lasts. In recent years, New York, New Jersey and New Mexico have abolished the death penalty.

“This is reflective of a national momentum that Illinois has been at the forefront of,” said Jeremy Schroeder, executive director of the Illinois Coalition to Abolish the Death Penalty.

Whether capital punishment deters crime has been debated a long time. But if it doesn't prevent perpetrators from going through with evil design, it helps solve crimes once they're committed, said Rep. Jim Sacia, a Pecatonica Republican and former FBI agent.

Sacia listed three murder cases, some he investigated, from the last three decades in which the threat of capital punishment prompted reluctant suspects to help police find the body of a victim and solve the crime.

But Rep. Lou Lang, a Skokie Democrat, pointed out that the biblical commandment, “Thou shalt not kill,” does not include the disclaimer, “unless it's a heinous crime and you're punishing someone.”

“We've put innocent people to death, it's that simple,” Lang said. “Above all, our responsibility is to protect the innocent.

• Daily Herald State Government Writer Mike Riopell contributed to this report.