New Hampshire becomes 21st US state to repeal death penalty

New Hampshire became the 21st US state to abolish the death penalty on Thursday after the state's Senate voted 16-8 to override the Republican governor's veto of a bill passed by the Democratic-controlled state legislature.

Before the vote, New Hampshire was the last state in New England that allowed for the execution of people convicted of grave crimes. The vote was largely symbolic: New Hampshire has not executed anyone since 1939, according to the Boston Globe.

New Hampshire Democratic Senator Martha Hennessey described the death penalty in a statement as "ineffective in reducing violent crime and an inefficient use of our limited criminal justice dollars."

New Hampshire Governor Chris Sununu had vetoed the repeal bill on May 3, saying ending the death penalty would be an "injustice" to law enforcement and victims of violent crime.

The Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights has condemned capital punishment as undermining human dignity.

Most US states still allow the death penalty, however, as well as the federal government and the US military, according to the National Conference of State Legislatures.

Reuters