Washington - Governor George Ryan of Illinois has suspended executions in the state until a commission has reported on why more death row inmates have been exonerated than have been executed, writes Joe Carroll.
Since the death penalty was reinstated in the US in 1977, 12 men have been executed in Illinois but 13 other condemned have been released because their convictions were found to be unjustified. One man was within two days of being executed when journalism students uncovered evidence to clear him.
The Governor said he was not against the death penalty but he was concerned about the abuses revealed in the trials of death row inmates. He will not sign any more death warrants until the commission has reported.
Illinois is the first state to declare a moratorium on executions, but there is pressure on other states to do so.