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Kansas House Rejects Death Penalty Bill

Stephen Koranda

  The Kansas House has rejected a bill that would have sped up death penalty appeals.

Some House members say they oppose the bill because they believe the courts should control the speed of the cases.

Buhler Representative Steven Becker opposes the bill because the death penalty measure has not gone through the normal process of committee review and a hearing before the full House.

"I think a bill of that magnitude needs to go through all the proper channels to make sure we all have a voice in it," Becker says. 

The death penalty legislation was also coupled with another bill that would make probable cause affidavits and search warrant documents public.

That bill has passed the House already and has significant support. Some House members will try to negotiate a compromise that eliminates the death penalty portion of the bill, but preserves the rest.

Stephen Koranda is the managing editor of the Kansas News Service, based at KCUR. He has nearly 20 years of experience in public media as a reporter and editor.