COLUMBUS, Ohio -- Legislation to abolish the death penalty in Ohio is set to have a fourth hearing today.

The House Criminal Justice Committee will hear from interested parties on House Bill 183, which has a companion bill in the Senate.

Rev. Dr. Crystal Walker, executive director of the group Greater Dayton Christian Connections, whose son was murdered in 2013, said the death penalty cannot bring him back, and she would not want his killer's family to feel the loss she feels.

"All it does is cause sorrow and pain to another family," Walker asserted. "And we have to stop this because someone loves the perpetrator as much as they love the victim."

Opponents of repeal argued the death penalty is reserved for the "worst of the worst," offenders, and say ending it would put serial killers or mass murderers on the same level as someone else committing an aggravated murder. Ohio has not held an execution since 2018 due to problems acquiring a suitable drug for lethal injections.

Jonathan Mann, vice chair of Ohioans to Stop Executions, said he struggled with the moral implications of the death penalty after his father was murdered in 2017. He contended it is not a deterrent, adding there currently is no legal means for executions in the state.

"The cocktail of drugs that had been previously used for lethal injection have been referred to as barbaric and inhumane," Mann pointed out. "And what we're talking about here from the death penalty perspective and ending lives is philosophically humane ways to do that -- that currently does not exist."

Melinda Elkins Johnson of Barberton, the daughter of murder victim, said when her mother was murdered in 1998, her husband was falsely accused and could have been given the death penalty. She said no one believed her claims he was innocent, and did not view her as a victim herself.

"Not one time did victims' assistance or the prosecutor's office attempt to contact me for any reason," Johnson recounted. "I was given no services. I was completely a pariah in their eyes."

Proponents of repeal argued money used for executions should be redirected to provide assistance to victim's families, including mental-health care, and money to pay for funeral costs, mortgages or tuition.

A new website aims to help Kentuckians just out of prison re-enter their communities and find job training, employment and recovery services.

April is Second Chance Month - and according to the Prison Policy Initiative, about 60% of formerly incarcerated individuals are jobless.

Gov. Andy Beshear said the website - secondchance.ky.gov - is meant to cut bureaucracy around job searching, and tie resources together in one spot to make it easier for people to get back on their feet.

"We are not our worst day," said Beshear. "When we look at how many people have a criminal record in Kentucky, this is the right thing to do. But it's also necessary from a workforce standpoint."

In 2021, lawmakers passed legislation that tasked the Kentucky Department of Corrections with issuing certificates of employability to people who successfully complete programs while incarcerated.

It also helps increase access to state-issued IDs for those leaving prison.

The website includes information on resume help, job searches and local reentry services.

Beshear said eventually, the site will contain a comprehensive list of employers - such as Kentucky State Parks, which is a participant in second chance employment.

"If they need to find resources on how to get that next level of education or workforce training," said Beshear, "and then ultimately be able to see a list of employers that are willing to look at them for second chance employment."

Businesses in the Commonwealth can also find information about programs that can aid in hiring and retaining more second-chance employees - including the Fair Chance Academy, Kentucky Transformational Employment program, Prison-to-Work Pipeline, and Jobs on Day One programs.

A package to improve public safety is moving ahead in the California state Legislature - with a floor vote in the State Assembly on the first bill expected this week.

Assembly Bill 2215 puts into statute that police officers have the discretion to send people arrested for low-level offenses directly to supportive services.

Anthony DiMartino - government affairs director with the nonprofit Californians for Safety and Justice - said sometimes public safety is best served when people avoid arrest and instead get therapy, addiction support or help getting a job.

"We're also hoping to raise awareness that this is something officers can do, and then also encourage partnerships more with officers to look at what's in their community," said DiMartino, "as alternatives to jail booking."

A second bill would increase transparency and accountability on money sent to the counties as part of the Public Safety Realignment.

A third bill would require police officers, prosecuting attorneys and investigators to identify themselves any time they're interviewing a family member of someone killed or severely injured by police.

DiMartino said they also support AB 2499, which would ensure that survivors of violent crime and their family members can take unpaid time off work to address safety concerns and heal.

"We're hoping to broaden the scope a bit," said DiMartino, "and make it more clear that family members of victims are able to also tap into unpaid leave to support their family member that has been a victim."

A fifth bill would make it easier for justice-involved people and crime victims to speak freely during restorative justice programs - by making the communications inadmissible in other legal proceedings.

Missouri went through with its first execution of the year, as Brian Dorsey was put to death last night, just after 6 p.m. CT.

The U.S. Supreme Court on Tuesday declined to stop Dorsey's execution. He was convicted of murdering his cousin Sarah Bonnie and her husband Ben nearly 20 years ago.

The advocacy group Missourians to Abolish the Death Penalty launched several recent campaigns on Dorsey's behalf to spare his life.

Jenni Gerhauser, a cousin to both Dorsey and Sarah Bonnie, expressed belief in his redemption.

"Brian is more than the worst moment of his life," Gerhauser stressed. "There is so much more to him."

Gerhauser fondly remembered him as fun and charming from their visits during holidays. Dorsey's current lawyers said he was in a drug-induced psychosis when he killed the Bonnies in 2006 and his attorneys at the time had been offered money, preventing them from fighting the death penalty with his guilty plea deal.

Gov. Mike Parson confirmed Monday the state would move forward with Dorsey's death sentence, rejecting a separate request for clemency. More than 70 current and former corrections officers had urged the governor to commute Dorsey's sentence, arguing he had been rehabilitated.

Claudia Boyce, also a cousin in the family, said it should not be a decision for the state to make.

"You know, that's supposed to be God's decision, not ours," Boyce contended.

Dorsey received a lethal injection Tuesday evening. Lethal injection became an option for people on Missouri's death row in 1987, alongside lethal gas.


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