A bill that would establish a new procedure for defendants to challenge the use of the death penalty advanced yesterday in the General Assembly.
The bill, known as the "North Carolina Racial Justice Act," was approved 7-5 by a committee in the state House. It now moves to a different committee before coming up for a vote in the full House. The Senate passed a previous version of the bill last month.
Supporters of the bill say it would give defendants and death-row inmates clear legal channels through which they could argue that the application of capital punishment was racially motivated, either on the part of a prosecutor who sought the death penalty or on the part of a jury that imposed the death penalty.
"It takes steps toward eradicating the problem of racial bias in the capital-punishment process," said Jeremy Collins, the campaign coordinator of the N.C. Coalition for a Moratorium.
Two of the bill's chief supporters in the legislature are two Winston-Salem Democrats: Rep. Earline Parmon and Rep. Larry Womble.
Opponents say that the bill, while well-intentioned, goes too far because it would allow defendants to use statistical evidence from previous cases to show racial bias.
For instance, if a black death-row inmate proved that, in his county, other black defendants were significantly more likely than white defendants to be sentenced to death, that would be enough for a judge to throw out the inmate's death sentence.
The sentence would be converted to life in prison without parole.
State Rep. Sarah Stevens, R-Surry, argued yesterday that statistics can be misleading. Simply showing racial disparities in overall death sentences is not an accurate picture, she said.
"Who's committed the crimes?" Stevens asked.
"How many of the white race have created this murder? How many of the black race have created this murder?"
Supporters of the bill said that there is vast evidence suggesting that race has historically been a factor in the use of capital punishment, both nationwide and in North Carolina.
The bill had gotten held up last week in the House committee because many supporters and opponents wanted to speak on the bill.
It had appeared that the bill would be stalled for at least two weeks, but the committee's chairman scheduled a new meeting yesterday afternoon for the committee to take up the bill again.
After about 45 minutes of debate, the vote was taken and the bill was narrowly approved.
■ James Romoser can be reached at 919-210-6794 or at jromoser@wsjournal.com.
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