Connecticut will be the 17th state to abolish the death penalty and the fifth to do so in the past five years. Nor is it likely to be the last: other states are reconsidering capital punishment. Repeal bills have been proposed in a number of states, including (unsuccessfully) Florida, which has 402 people on death row. In November Californian voters will vote on whether to repeal their death penalty. Kentucky’s House of Representatives recently passed a measure setting up a body to review and reform the death penalty. Pennsylvania and Oregon are also reviewing their death-penalty laws, and Georgia and Delaware this week each granted a stays of execution in a murder case. For six months Ohio had an unofficial moratorium because the state failed to follow its execution protocols. But a judge has now allowed the resumption of capital punishment. The first execution after the pause took place on April 18th.
康涅狄格州將會成為第17個廢除死刑的州，也是過去五年中的第5個廢除死刑的州。康州似乎不會是最后一個，其他的州在重新考慮死刑。廢除法案曾在一些州提出過，包括（不成功的）福羅里達州，該州有402人在死囚區。11月加利福利亞州的選民將會就是否廢除死刑投票。肯塔基州的眾議院最近通過一項措施，設立機構評估并改革死刑。賓夕法尼亞州和俄勒岡州同樣在評估死刑法。本周佐治亞州和特拉華州各自延緩了一起謀殺案的死刑執行。俄亥俄州的非正式延緩已實行六個月，因為該州不能遵守死刑慣例。但是一位法官現在已經允許繼續執行死刑。中止后首次死刑于4月18日執行。
The fear of executing innocent people is helping drive the trend for repeal. Between 2000 and 2011 an average of five people on death rows were exonerated each year. This is no small thing in a country where 3,199 people sit on death row and where only a few months ago Rick Perry, the governor of Texas, was cheered during an election debate when he bragged about executing criminals. But Texas is unlikely to change its policy in the near future. And in Connecticut, despite the change in the law, those on death row will remain there.
擔心處死無辜的民眾有利于推動廢除死刑的潮流。在2000年到2011年期間每年在死囚區中平均有五人被赦免。美國共有3199個死囚犯，僅僅數月前德克薩斯州州長里克-派瑞還在大選辯論中吹噓著處死死囚犯，并引來臺下一陣歡呼聲。在這樣的一個國家內，這么高的赦免率可不是小事。但是德克薩斯州近期不太可能改變政策。在康涅狄格州，即使法律上做了更改，死囚區的囚犯仍舊會呆在那里。
來源:可可英語 http://www.ccdyzl.cn/Article/201204/179911.shtml
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