New Hampshire

New Hampshire House Overrides Veto of Death Penalty Repeal

The chamber overrode Gov. Chris Sununu's veto of a repeal with the bare minimum votes necessary to send the issue back to the Senate

The New Hampshire House has taken a big step toward eliminating the state's death penalty by overriding the governor's veto.

The chamber on Thursday overrode Gov. Chris Sununu's veto of a repeal with the bare minimum votes necessary to send the issue back to the Senate.

The Senate voted 17-6 in favor of repeal last month. If that tally holds, the bill will become law.

New Hampshire's death penalty applies in only seven scenarios, and the state hasn't executed anyone since 1939. There is only one inmate currently on death row. The repeal bill is not supposed to apply retroactively to Michael Addison, who killed a police officer in 2006. But capital punishment supporters argue courts might interpret it differently.

The Republican governor vetoed the bill last month.

Copyright AP - Associated Press
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