A bill that would repeal the death penalty moved Friday to final reading, but a leading opponent said the fight on the bill would continue for another two rounds, if needed.
Omaha Sen. Ernie Chambers called the vote to advance the bill on second round another step on an arduous journey, "but a step of historical significance."
Such a bill hasn't passed since 1979, but that was vetoed by then-Gov. Charles Thone.
A similar bill by Chambers in 2013 failed to get to a vote, with 28 of the 33 needed to end a filibuster against it.
This time, 30 senators voted to advance the bill to final reading, after breaking the filibuster with 34 votes. If senators stick with their votes, it would be enough to override an expected veto from Gov. Pete Ricketts.
"When something is of truly historical significance, it is not because of one individual or one act," Chambers said.
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Omaha Sen. Beau McCoy, an opponent, said there will be a full round of debate -- two hours -- on final reading.
Several senators were critical of the vote trading they believe went on with the bill, involving other bills such as the gas tax (LB610), the Dreamers' driver's license bill (LB623), medical marijuana (LB643), changes to the mandatory minimum and sentencing habitual criminal statute (LB173).
It's become somewhat the norm the past several years in the Legislature, McCoy said, that four or five bills become the center of vote trading. It's a way people have found to get bills passed with cloture-proof majorities.
In 2012, for example, there was what he called "bundling" of bills including votes on the state paying for prenatal care for undocumented mothers, the local option sales tax and historic horseracing bills.
It happened again last year, he said.
McCoy acknowledged that alliances and coalitions are always part of politics, but he said historically the unicameral Legislature hasn't had this level of vote trading.
"There's always been a respect toward the concept that the people are the second house," he said.
Vote trading is a byproduct of term limits, he said, because people are trying to get as much done as they can while here for one or two terms.
On first round, LB268 advanced on a 30-13 vote. On second round the vote was 30-16. Sen. John Murante voted in favor on first round, but was excused from the chamber Friday. Sen. Patty Pansing Brooks had been excused on first round, but voted in favor Friday.
As senators began the four-hour debate Friday, the mood was somber, with low light from the cloudy weather outside.
“It’s dark in the chamber and that is as it should be,” said Sen. Dave Bloomfield of Hoskins.
McCoy started debate by highlighting a recent case in Douglas County in which prosecutors say they will ask for the death penalty. A man is charged with killing his mother, throwing his 4-year-old half brother in a river and leaving his 11-month-old half brother in a dumpster.
McCoy introduced an amendment that would allow the people of Nebraska to vote in May 2016 on whether they support the death penalty. That failed, getting only 18 votes of the 25 needed.
Early on, Omaha Sen. Bob Krist asked senators to tone down the details of gruesome Nebraska death penalty cases, as were brought up in the first round of debate. Children often visit the Capitol and sit in the balconies to watch the Legislature as it debates.
But McCoy said senators weren’t called here to “talk about nice things.” He said if needed, he would ask Speaker Galen Hadley to “clear the galleries” so senators could speak freely.
Chambers questioned Ricketts’ late afternoon announcement Thursday that he had purchased the three drugs necessary to carry out the death penalty.
“Nebraska has not procured these drugs,” he said. “No company in America produces sodium thiopental. There is none that will be exported by European countries.”
The governor is going to have to show where these drugs come from, he said.
“So the timing of this announcement is very problematic,” he said.
The governor and Attorney General Doug Peterson hoped that they could mislead members of the Legislature into thinking the drugs were here and that the Nebraska Supreme Court will issue death warrants, he said.
“But I guarantee you that is not going to happen,” he said.
“When you implement something like this you unleash a whole new series of appeals that will start at the state level, go through the federal level.”
Three of Nebraska's 11 death-row inmates have exhausted all of their appeals. There hasn't been an execution since 1997.
Nebraska went to lethal injection after the state Supreme Court ruled in 2008 that the electric chair amounted to unconstitutionally cruel and unusual punishment.
