Kyrillos: Keep Death Penalty for Most Heinous Crimes

Senator Joe Kyrillos (R-Monmouth/Middlesex) issued the following statement after the Senate voted to end the death penalty in New Jersey.

            “It is counterintuitive for anyone to think the death penalty wouldn’t deter some potential murderers. I had offered amendments to the legislation that would retain the death penalty in cases of terrorism, murders of law enforcement officers, and murders committed during sex crimes that were not considered by the  Trenton Democrats.

            Ending the death penalty in New Jersey sends a dangerous message of weakness to those who commit the most heinous murders and those who would commit indiscriminate mass murder.  The perilous times we live in call for strength, not fecklessness.

            The threat of terrorism is all too real and our response must be robust and unwavering.  The foiling of a terrorist cell this year in New Jersey where six men were arrested on charges they plotted to attack the Fort Dix Army base and  ‘kill as many soldiers as possible’ is a chilling reminder.

            Capital punishment in New Jersey is narrowly applied to the worst of all murderers.  Defendants are given professional counsel and their cases are appealed directly to the Supreme Court where they are subject to vigorous review for trial faults and evidence of racial bias.

              Depriving the state of a constitutional and appropriate punishment for the most depraved killers is a disastrous policy choice that should have been rejected by a majority of senators.”