Good News from Senator Mike Carrell

Yesterday Senator Mike Carrell (Republican-28th Legislative District) telephoned me with good news. Senate Bill 5456 is dead!

Senator Debbie Regala (Democrat-Tacoma) introduced Senate Bill 5456 last month. This bill would have abolished the death penalty in Washington. Ms. Regala was in favor of abolishing the death penalty, partly because the appeals are so costly. She said the money used on appeals could be spent on other things.

Senator Carrell serves Pierce County. He is a long-time advocate of victims' rights. He said that he and Senator Pam Roach (Republican-31st Legislative District) successfully argued against Senate 5456. He said they gave the bill the death penalty.

I am opposed to abolishing the death penalty because it is so useful in making plea bargains. For example, Gary Ridgway (also known as the Green River Killer) helped the police locate the remains of more than 40 of the women he killed after King County prosecutors agreed not to seek the death penalty against him. I don't believe that law enforcement would have been able to locate all of those bodies without the plea bargain. I feel that locating victims' bodies is important. Families deserve to know what happened to their loved ones so they can give them proper burials.

Thank you, Senator Carrell and Senator Roach, for doing such a good job!