District attorneys in Tennessee say they want to kill a death penalty study committee charged with reviewing how the state carries out capital punishment.
Prosecutors argue the 16-member panel has a majority who oppose the death penalty, The (Nashville) Tennessean reported Monday.
James Wally Kirby, executive director of the Tennessee District Attorney Generals Conference, has gone so far as to tell state legislators there is a concerted effort among some committee members to abolish the death penalty.
I'm not comfortable with the makeup of the committee, Kirby said. I don't know of any of our members that are in favor of extending the committee for another year.
The committee has representatives from the state attorney general's office, local district attorneys, public defenders, the Tennessee Bar Association, criminal defense lawyers and victims' rights organizations, the newspaper said.
Since being created last year, the committee has considered such things as the costs of imposing the death penalty, who is sentenced to death, and the quality of the lawyers representing the accused.
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