DENVER– Coloradans support the death penalty by wide margins, according to a poll released today by Quinnipiac University (pdf). Pollsters tied the strong views held on capital punishment to the slim margins Governor John Hickenlooper notched against three potential Republican rivals in the same poll.
When Gov. John Hickenlooper this week blocked the execution of Nathan Dunlap, he called for a statewide conversation about the death penalty. His decision to reprieve the Chuck E. Cheese’s murderer came weeks after Colorado lawmakers killed a bill to abolish capital punishment on grounds that the topic needs more public debate.
While political observers speculate on the factors shaping Colorado Gov. John Hickenlooper’s thinking on whether or not to prevent the execution later this summer of convicted murderer Nathan Dunlap, civil libertarians are demanding to know how the procedure would be carried out.
Colorado’s death penalty is not only massively expensive, critics say it is also unconstitutional because it is so randomly sought.
With a bill to repeal the death penalty likely to be introduced in the 2013 Colorado Legislature, there are bound to be philosophical arguments about the merits of capital punishment. One thing that seems beyond debate, though, is that ending the death penalty could save Colorado taxpayers a lot of money.
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