VIRGINIA (GNB): On Wednesday, Virginia Governor Ralph Northam signed a bill into law abolishing the death penalty in the state after the Democratic-controlled legislature passed the measure late last month.
Now, Virginia becomes the 23rd state to abolish the death penalty. The signing is the culmination of a yearslong battle by Democrats in a state that has had the second-most executions in U.S. history.
“Over our 400-year history, Virginia has executed more people than any other state,” said Governor Northam. “The death penalty system is fundamentally flawed—it is inequitable, ineffective, and it has no place in this Commonwealth or this country. Virginia has come within days of executing innocent people, and Black defendants have been disproportionately sentenced to death. Abolishing this inhumane practice is the moral thing to do”, Governor said.
“This is a truly historic day for Virginia, and I am deeply grateful to those who have fought tirelessly and for generations to put an end to capital punishment in our Commonwealth”, Governor Northam said.
Northam, a Democrat, held the ceremonial bill signing at the Greensville Correctional Center just outside Jarratt, Va., where the state houses its execution chamber.
Virginia is the first state in what was the Confederacy to stop using the punishment. The commonwealth has executed more people than any other state since the first execution took place at Jamestown in 1608.
A global media for the latest news, entertainment, music fashion, and more.
