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Article: People v. Cahill: domestic violence and the death penalty debate in New York.
- Article from:
- Albany Law Review
- Article date:
- September 22, 2005
- Author:
CopyrightCOPYRIGHT 2005 Albany Law School. This material is published under license from the publisher through the Gale Group, Farmington Hills, Michigan. All inquiries regarding rights should be directed to the Gale Group. (Hide copyright information)
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INTRODUCTION
For much of its history, New York has been a death penalty state. In 1995, after much controversy, and with great fanfare, Governor Pataki signed a new capital punishment statute, New York Penal Law section 125.27. (1) This law and related statutes manifested a community commitment to capital punishment, a belief in its efficiency as a criminal justice tool, and an expression of democratic majoritarian will that it be carried out. Recently, several trial courts imposed the death penalty pursuant to this statute. However, the New York Court of Appeals reversed the convictions and set aside the death sentences in each one of these cases. (2) And, in ...