“The last time it took us seven years,” I told my co-sponsor, Delegate Dumais.

“It” was repeal of the death penalty.

The first time we introduced that bill was in 2007.  It passed in 2013.

A persuasive argument for many of my colleagues was that we would be replacing execution with the sentence of life without the possibility of parole.

A jury, not the judge, had to determine whether the sentence should be death, unless the defendant waived that right.

That would also be the case under this year’s legislation.

There are several pending court cases on this question.

Passage of the bill would make certain that a jury has this responsibility.