Face up the facts and end the death penalty

... so says some smart ass professor who just released his study online titled "The Death Penalty in North Carolina: A Summary of the Data and Scientific Studies."

His op-ed now appears in the Raleigh News and Observer here:

http://www.newsobserver.com/2011/03/16/1056240/face-up-to-the-facts-and-end-the.html

UPDATE: Illinois Senate also votes to abolish death penalty

From the article:

Illinois was poised to become the first state since 2009 to abolish the death penalty after the state Senate on Tuesday approved the ban and sent it to Democratic Governor Pat Quinn for his signature.

The Senate vote came after House approval late last week. The Senate vote was 32-25.

Illinois has not executed anyone for more than a decade after former Republican Gov. George Ryan imposed a moratorium on the death penalty in January 2000 following a series of revelations that people had been sent to Death Row who were later found to be innocent.

"We've had 20 innocent people on Death Row," said Jeremy Schroeder, executive director of the Illinois Coalition Against the Death Penalty. "It's time to be done with the moratorium and do the right thing."

http://www.reuters.com/article/idUSTRE70A6G920110111