Antonio Releases Statement on Companion Death Penalty Legislation in the Ohio House

Today, Senate Minority Leader Nickie J. Antonio (D-Columbus) and Senator Steve Huffman (R-Tipp City) released the following statements in support of the press conference held earlier today by Representatives Adam Miller (D-Columbus) and Jean Schmidt (R-Loveland), in which they announced their legislation to abolish the death penalty in Ohio.

“I commend both Representatives Miller and Schmidt for their leadership in the Ohio House and joining the bipartisan effort to end the death penalty in Ohio,” said Antonio. “By continuing to allow capital punishment in Ohio, we are permitting an unjust, expensive, inhumane, and occasionally erroneous practice. It will take both chambers and continued bipartisan work to accomplish this momentous and much-needed change in the state of Ohio.”

“I plan to continue to work diligently toward abolishing the death penalty in Ohio, as it lacks moral and financial justification in our current society,” said Huffman. “Replacing the death penalty with life without parole is a terminal sentence. It provides a definitive answer with the assurance that a person convicted of the most heinous capital case will spend the rest of their natural life behind bars and die in prison.”

Senate Minority Leader Nickie J. Antonio and Senator Steve Huffman introduced Senate Bill 101 in March of this year. The legislation currently resides in the Senate Judiciary Committee.