New Jersey may become the first state to repeal the death penalty since the Supreme Court decision allowing executions to resume in 1976. The bill seeking to abolish New Jersey’s death penalty has been approved by the Senate Judiciary Committee and will be considered by both houses before the end of the year. The state's governor, Jon Corzine, has said that he will sign the measure into law if the bill reaches him.

While the death penalty is being reevaluated by the Supreme Court and many states in light of allegations that the lethal injection procedure constitutes cruel and unusual punishment, the New Jersey initiative marks a new front for opponents to the death penalty since it would potentially be a state legislature rather than a court or governor declaring abolition. This move may carry more weight as being reflective of popular opinion.

Although it seems likely that the state Assembly will pass the bill, the outcome in the Senate is less predictable. Opponents of the bill are taking an active role by lobbying for a narrower restriction on the death penalty rather than complete abolition. This could be effective in winning the votes of those who generally oppose the death penalty, but would like to come across as tough on crime. 

A 13-member bipartisan commission conducted an extensive review of capital punishment in New Jersey. The state commission ultimately concluded that in New Jersey capital punishment was a waste of resources and served no legitimate punitive purpose. In January the commission recommended that the death penalty be abolished in favor of life in prison without parole.   

Father of Murder Victim Urges New Jersey Legislature to Abandon the Death Penalty, Death Penalty Information Center, Nov. 29, 2007 (summarizing Jim O’Brien, Death Penalty Punishes Victims’ Families, Too, The Daily Record, Nov. 25, 2007); Jeremy W. Peters, New Jersey Senator Urges Delay on Repeal of Death Penalty, NY Times, Nov. 21, 2007; Jeremy W. Peters, New Jersey Moves to End Death Penalty, NY Times, Nov. 19, 2007.