WASHINGTON (Sputnik) — US death penalty repeal activists see the US state of Nebraska’s decision to repeal the death penalty for the third time as a significant step forward, Conservatives Concerned About the Death Penalty National Advocacy Coordinator Marc Hyden told Sputnik.
“We are cautiously optimistic,” Hyden said on Wednesday.
Earlier on Wednesday, the Nebraska legislature overwhelmingly passed LB-268, a bill to repeal the death penalty in the state.
Hyden credited activists in the state for generating broad support for the bill.
“They called conservatives, leaders and really had a grassroots movement going on,” he said. “This was hard work years going towards this moment.”
The bill now goes to Ricketts for him to sign or veto after passing two times before when the repeal of the Nebraska death penalty was brought before the Nebraska legislature.
“If we get this across the goal line, Nebraska will be the first red [Republican] state to repeal the death penalty in over 40 years,” Hyden said. “I hope this catches fire and snowballs, but we need to finalize the repeal before looking forward.”
Conservatives Concerned About the Death Penalty is a political and social network seeking to abolish capital punishment in the United States, according to their website.
