Gov. Brown calls for special session to address death penalty

SALEM, Ore. – Oregon Governor Kate Brown announced plans Wednesday for a special session next month to fix a new law related to Oregon’s death penalty.

The governor, attorney general, many district attorneys and even crime victim groups think Senate Bill 1013 needs to be fixed. It passed this spring.

It sought to reduce capital punishment in Oregon by narrowing the situations that prosecutors can seek the death penalty.

This spring, lawmakers insisted it would not impact old cases but that may not be accurate.

House Minority Leader Carl Wilson said in a statement the last thing legislators should do is rush a fix to the bill.

The Grants Pass Republican said perhaps the best course of action would be to simply repeal it.