OLYMPIA, Wash. (AP) — Lawmakers are considering a measure to abolish the death penalty, an effort that has failed to gain traction in Washington state in prior years.
The bill, sponsored by Democratic Sen. Debbie Regala of Tacoma, is set to receive a public hearing Wednesday before the Senate Judiciary Committee.
The last execution in Washington state was in September 2010, when Cal Coburn Brown died by lethal injection Sept. 10 for the 1991 murder of a Seattle-area woman. He was the first Washington inmate executed since 2001, after spending nearly 17 years on death row.
Since 1904, 78 men have been put to death in Washington. Eight men are on death row at the state penitentiary.
