Relatives of murder victims argued to Kansas legislators yesterday that the state's death penalty should be retained as justice for them, reports the Wichita Eagle. “You cannot put a price tag on my sister's life,” Jennifer Sanderholm told the Senate Judiciary Committee. “That is ultimately what you will do if you abolish the death penalty.” Justin Thurber raped, sodomized, and murdered 19-year-old Jodi Sanderholm in 2007 and was sentenced to die by lethal injection last year.
Supporters of the death penalty said it is used sparingly – only for the most egregious crimes –and shouldn't be weighed in terms of cost. “By repealing the death penalty in Kansas, you will be placing the lives of others in jeopardy,” said Lois Muller, whose daughter ws murdered in 2000. Lawmakers are considering two bills to repeal the death penalty in future cases; there are 10 people on death row in Kansas.