Ex-Ohio reps rally to abolish the death penalty, including Portage County’s

The Ohio Statehouse. Photo by Joe Deptowicz on Unsplash

Ex-Ohio reps rally to abolish the death penalty, including Portage County’s

- Katie Smith

In 1981, former Ohio State Reps. John Begala and Pete Crossland were among the minority who voted against the death penalty. Now, engineers of the law are calling for its abolition.

Crossland and Begala represented Summit and Portage counties, respectively, when Ohio reenacted the death penalty 44 years ago. In October, they joined 27 former Ohio lawmakers who signed a letter backing Senate Bill 133, which, if passed, would abolish the state’s death penalty. 

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