Massachusetts Lawmakers Nix Death Penalty

By a 110-46 margin, the Massachusetts State House voted down a bill to conservatively reinstate the death penalty in the Bay State. The bill would have called for the death penalty only "in the most heinous cases where there is no doubt of guilt." Previous efforts by Massachusetts' conservative Governor and presidential candidate Mitt Romney to reinstate capital punishment in the state have met similar fates in the State House. This firm rejection of the death penalty represents both the general liberality of Massachusetts and the current prevailing sentiment in the state.