Is the death penalty returning to Iowa? Senators introduce bill. House leader skeptical

An Iowa Senate proposal would introduce the death penalty in Iowa, but opposition from a key House Republican means capital punishment is unlikely to become state law this year.

Senate File 14 would apply the death penalty in one, specific situation: if an adult defendant was found guilty of kidnapping, sexually abusing and murdering a minor.

Republican supporters of the legislation said the change would strengthen current law, where the murder or rape of a minor carries the same penalty of life in prison without parole. Upping the ante, they argue, will deter rapists from also murdering their victims.

"We want to save the lives of some young women, basically, down the road," said Sen. Julian Garrett, R-Indianola.

In a Wednesday morning subcommittee, Sen. Jason Schultz said the change would be "completely justified, religiously, morally, logically."

Opponents, including many faith leaders, urged lawmakers to consider the ethics of killing a citizen, even in response to an extreme crime. They also pointed to cases in other states where innocent defendants were wrongfully sentenced to death.

"Killing for killing is just wrong," said Marti Anderson, a former Democratic representative and a member of Iowans Against the Death Penalty.

Garrett and Schultz, R-Schleswig, approved the bill for consideration by the full Senate Judiciary Committee. Sen. Tony Bisignano, D-Des Moines, debated fiercely against the bill and declined to sign off on it.

Despite some support among Senate Republicans — including the bill's author and chair of the Judiciary Committee, Sen. Brad Zaun — the bill is unlikely to make it through the Iowa House. Rep. Steve Holt, chair of the House Judiciary Committee, listed several reasons Monday why he's skeptical of introducing the death penalty in Iowa.

Holt, R-Denison, said sentencing someone to death can be more expensive for taxpayers than sentencing that person to a life sentence. He also recognized that high-income defendants were far less likely to receive the death penalty than someone relying on a public defender.

"And then there was a concern I have, frankly, that sometimes people are wrongly convicted, and there is DNA evidence now that has exonerated a number of people that were on death row," Holt said. "Well, once those people are put to death you can’t reverse that mistake, but you certainly could reverse it when the person would be serving life in prison."

If the Senate passes its bill, Holt will decide whether the House moves it forward.

Iowa abolished the death penalty in 1965, but lawmakers have repeatedly drafted proposals to bring it back in some limited instances. In 2017, Republicans proposed a similar bill to allow capital punishment in the case of the kidnapping, rape and murder of a child ⁠— parameters spurred by the 2005 murder of 10-year-old Jetseta Gage in Cedar Rapids.

Lawmakers have also attempted more expansive capital punishment laws, including a 2018 proposal to allow those convicted of first-degree murder to be put to death.

All recent attempts to reinstate the death penalty have failed to advance through the Legislature.

However, Des Moines Register/Mediacom Iowa polls show a majority of Iowans support capital punishment in some instances. When last included in the Iowa Poll in 2018, 58% of Iowa adults said they favored a potential initiative to revive the death penalty.

Stephen Gruber-Miller contributed reporting.

Katie Akin is a politics reporter for the Register. Reach her at kakin@registermedia.com or at 410-340-3440. Follow her on Twitter at @katie_akin.

This article originally appeared on Des Moines Register: Death penalty law unlikely to pass Iowa Legislature this year