Julia Bates has been the lead pros­e­cu­tor in Lucas County, Ohio, since 1997. Although com­mit­ted to fol­low­ing the law, she also believes it is time to repeal cap­i­tal pun­ish­ment in the state. She said death penal­ty cas­es are ​“tor­tur­ous” for those involved, includ­ing judges, jurors, pros­e­cu­tors, defense attor­neys, and vic­tims’ fam­i­lies, who are sub­ject­ed to years of appeals. ​“It just seems there ought to be a bet­ter way,” Mrs. Bates said. Capital cas­es have sharply declined in Lucas County and in the state over the last few years. Only 9 indi­vid­u­als were indict­ed in the state for cap­i­tal mur­der charges through July, com­pared to 159 indict­ments in 1983. There are no pend­ing cap­i­tal charges in all of Lucas County. One of the most sig­nif­i­cant fac­tors con­tribut­ing to this decline is the alter­na­tive sen­tence of life with­out parole, which became more avail­able in 2005. Bates said her office is not avoid­ing death penal­ty pros­e­cu­tions, but requires that ​“there should be no doubt about guilt. The guilt should be absolute. It should be unques­tion­able.” A task force appoint­ed by the Chief Justice of the Ohio Supreme Court is con­sid­er­ing changes to the death penalty law.

(J. Feehan, ​“Death penal­ty cas­es ebb in Lucas County and Ohio,” Toledo Blade, November 24, 2013). See New Voices and Life Without Parole.

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