Former Ohio legislators who passed death penalty law now support abolition bill

COLUMBUS, Ohio (WCMH) – Efforts to abolish capital punishment in Ohio are heating up with a bipartisan bill that has drawn the support of former lawmakers who helped enact the state's death penalty law decades ago.

Ohio Sens. Nickie Antonio (D-Lakewood) and Stephen Huffman (R-Tipp City) are championing Senate Bill 133, which would ban the death penalty in the state.

Under state law, aggravated murder is the only charge that can warrant the death penalty. Judges can also impose a sentence of life in prison without parole or grant parole eligibility after at least 20 years. The bill maintains the latter sentencing options. 

Last week, 27 former lawmakers from the 114th General Assembly – the legislature that passed the state’s current death penalty statute – sent a letter to the Senate Judiciary Committee in support of SB 133, which awaits its first hearing. The signers encompass both lawmakers who voted for and against the death penalty's enactment in 1981, the letter states. 

The letter was spearheaded by Marge Koosed, professor emerita at the University of Akron Law School, who interviewed 44 of the 57 surviving former legislators starting in 2021. Fifteen surviving members could not be reached, and a handful declined to sign, according to the document. 

"When those responsible for our current capital punishment system say it must go, our state lawmakers must listen,” said Sean McCann, policy strategist for the ACLU of Ohio. “Ohio’s death penalty is administered arbitrarily and unfairly, fails to deter crime and puts innocent lives at risk."

The former lawmakers pointed to concerns about the death penalty contributing to racial and geographic inequalities, its cost, and the possibility of false convictions. 

The 114th General Assembly passed the state's current statute after the U.S. Supreme Court ruled a 1974-era Ohio law that mandated capital punishment for most aggravated murder convictions was unconstitutional.

In a news release, Antonio and Huffman said the death penalty has failed as a deterrent for violent crime and prolonged the suffering of murder victims’ families by dragging them through lengthy appeals processes. The lawmakers additionally cited a 2014 study asserting that at least 4.1% of death row inmates are likely innocent, as well as a poll finding that a majority of Ohioans support ending the death penalty.

Antonio has introduced bills to abolish the death penalty every legislative session since 2011. Huffman also cosponsored a proposed death penalty ban alongside Antonio in the last General Assembly. See NBC4's previous coverage in the video player above.

Ohio has not seen an execution since 2018. Ohio Gov. Mike DeWine first issued an execution postponement in January 2019 and has continued to do so in the following years, citing problems obtaining drugs for the procedure. 

While some lawmakers are trying to outlaw the death penalty, others are looking to revive the practice. Reps. Brian Stewart (R-Ashville) and Phil Plummer (R-Dayton) are backing House Bill 36, which would permit executions by nitrogen hypoxia, a method that kills inmates through nitrogen inhalation, leading to suffocation.

Ohio Attorney General Dave Yost is a staunch supporter of the effort, saying the state has failed to keep its promises to the families of murder victims and jurors who were tasked with the “difficult” decision. The “dishonorable” delay could and should be resolved through legislative approval of nitrogen hypoxia, Yost said. 

"Of the 114 people currently on Death Row, 42 of them have no further appeal – that’s more than a third," Yost testified. "All that prevents their sentences from being imposed is the failure of will of this state's government."

Five states have authorized the use of nitrogen hypoxia, which was first used in capital punishment in January 2024. If SB 133 were to pass, Ohio would join the 23 states that have abolished the death penalty.