Senate Committee To Vote On Death Penalty Measure - WMDT 47 News - Delmarva's Choice

Senate Committee To Vote On Death Penalty Measure

ANNAPOLIS, Md. (AP) - Maryland State Sen. Brian Frosh says a Senate committee will be voting on a bill to repeal the death penalty.

The senator says the Senate Judicial Proceedings Committee will likely vote Thursday evening on the bill. The Montgomery County Democrat says he expects the measure to pass the committee by a 6-5 vote but notes that anything could happen. The death penalty bill is one of Gov. Martin O'Malley's top legislative priorities this session. Maryland has five men on death row. The state's last execution was under then-Gov. Robert Ehrlich, a Republican, in 2005.

Maryland's death penalty has been on hold since a 2006 court ruling found the state's lethal injection protocols weren't properly approved by a legislative committee. Executions can't resume until the protocols are approved.

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