Delaware General Assembly

Signed 7/22/02

The General Assembly has ended, the current status is the final status.

6/26/02

Adams

Sen. Sharp, Winslow
Reps. Smith, VanSant, Wagner

AN ACT TO AMEND TITLE 11 OF THE DELAWARE CODE RELATING TO THE DEATH PENALTY.

This Act will conform Delaware's death penalty sentencing procedures to the new rule announced by the United States Supreme Court in Ring v Arizona. It is unclear as to whether the Court's opinion in Ring will be found to be applicable to Delaware's statutory system. However, the uncertainty created by the Supreme Court's ruling in Ring must be resolved promptly to ensure that all pending death penalty case will be finally resolved in a constitutional and timely fashion. This Act will bar the Court from imposing a death sentence unless a jury (unless waived by the parties) first determines unanimously and beyond a reasonable doubt that at least one statutory aggravating circumstance exists. If a statutory aggravating circumstance is found by the jury to exist, the procedures set forth in Delaware's current death penalty sentencing statute will apply. The Court will continue to be responsible for ultimately determining the sentence to be imposed, after weighing all relevant evidence presented in aggravation or mitigation which bears upon the particular circumstances or details of the commission of the offenses and the character and propensities of the offender. The provisions of the Act will apply to all cases and defendants tried, re-tried, sentenced or re-sentenced after its effective date.

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Takes effect upon being signed into law

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