Former Kansas Republican state senator Tim Emert recently urged members of the Kansas Senate Judiciary Committee to enact a moratorium on imposing the death sentence and executing those who have already been sentenced to die. Noting that capital punishment was his most troubling issue when he was a member of the Kansas legislature, Emert stated, “I came to the conclusion the only vote I could live with was a ‘no’ vote on the death penalty in Kansas. I could not, in my mind, be pro-life and pro death penalty.” Emert’s testimony before members of the Judiciary Committee took place during a hearing on proposed legislation that would halt executions in the state for two years so that the death penalty could be reviewed. The review would be conducted by a seven-member commission, and would focus on, among other concerns, the cost of capital punishment in Kansas and how death penalty cases are handled in different parts of the state. (Associated Press, January 22, 2004) See New Voices.

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