Bill To Repeal Death Penalty Fails

(Salt Lake City, UT) — A bill that would repeal Utah’s death penalty has met its end. State officials say HB-147 failed to move forward from the House Law Enforcement and Criminal Justice Committee last night in a 6-5 vote. According to reports, the proposed legislation would have banned the state from seeking the death penalty for aggravated murder and added a new possible sentence for aggravated murder of 45 years to life. The news comes after the Utah Attorney General’s Office voiced its opposition to the bill, noting that Utah has only used the death penalty on “the worst of the worst.”