House Bill 999
REPEALING THE DEATH PENALTY IN PA
House Bill 999 Bill Information
Description: HB 999 would remove the death penalty as a sentence option for first-degree murder, murder of an unborn child, and murder of a law enforcement officer.
PA Justice Alliance Member Positions & Feedback
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HB 999 would repeal the death penalty in PA. The death penalty denies equal protection of the laws, is cruel and unusual punishment, and violates guarantees of due process. It is so inconsistent with the underlying values of our democratic system—the pursuit of life, liberty, and happiness—that the imposition of death for any crime is a denial of civil liberties. The only way to guarantee that no factually innocent person will be executed is to eliminate capital punishment entirely.
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Blog: Governor Shapiro Calls for the Abolition of the Death Penalty (2/17/2023)
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HB 999 would remove the death penalty as a sentencing option in Pennsylvania.
There’s a long way to go and many more conversations to address the implications on capital litigation in PA, but we’re hopeful that our legislators will continue to consider this issue and champion this cause as it moves to the Senate.
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Nationwide since 1973, 162 individuals sentenced to death have been exonerated. Six of those individuals were on death row in Pennsylvania. Despite such safeguards as the requirement of a unanimous jury verdict for a death sentence, the exoneration rates demonstrate that states, including Pennsylvania, “have been unsuccessful in their efforts to create capital punishment systems capable of guaranteeing with 100% certainty that an innocent person will not be sentenced to death.” The only way to guarantee that no factually innocent person will be executed is to eliminate capital punishment.
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