"NC death penalty study author meets House members," is the AP filing via the Greenville Daily Reflector.
Members of a North Carolina legislative committee considering changes to the capital punishment system are getting to hear from the author of a study that raised concerns about racial bias.
Michigan State University law professor Barbara O'Brien headlines Tuesday's House Select Committee on Racial Discrimination in Capital Cases.
House Republicans are trying to fashion changes to the 2009 Racial Justice Act. Democratic Gov. Beverly Perdue vetoed a bill in December that essentially repealed the law, which allows a judge to reduce a death sentence to life in prison if the judge determines race was a significant factor in sentencing.
The Michigan State study found a North Carolina defendant is more than twice as likely to be sentenced to death if at least one of the victims is white.
Earlier coverage of the North Carolina Racial Justice Act begins at the link.
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