How does the death penalty work in Connecticut?
A. The last execution in Connecticut was May 13, 2005. The last execution before that was in 1960. Following the overturning by the U.S. Supreme Court in 1972 of the death penalty provisions in all states, the Connecticut State Legislature revised the statutes defining capital felonies and established new procedures for the imposition of the death penalty. These changes were enacted into law, effective October, 1973. Life imprisonment without the possibility of release has existed here as a statutory alternative to the death penalty since 1985. The minimum age to receive the death penalty is 18; a new provision to forbid the execution of the mentally retarded was enacted into law effective July, 2001. In Connecticut the death sentence may be decided by three judges or a jury, but the Board of Pardons has full authority to grant clemency. The governor has the power to grant reprieves after conviction until the next session of the general assembly. This is a stay of execution privilege m
