Colo. lawmakers consider death penalty repeal

A proposal to abolish the death penalty in Colorado is getting hours of emotional testimony from people who argue the penalty is unfair and ineffective, and others who see it as a just punishment.

The House Judiciary Committee was expected to take a first vote on the measure Tuesday evening.

There are three men on Colorado’s death row, but the bill would not affect current cases. That means the case of the Aurora theater shooting suspect will also not be affected.

Lawmakers have heard from a man whose wrongful conviction put him on death row for 12 years, and a woman whose brother was killed to prevent him from testifying at a murder trial. Two of the three men on death row were convicted in that case.