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Anti-death penalty protesters gather in Lincoln

Posted at 10:24 PM, Aug 14, 2018
and last updated 2018-08-14 23:24:20-04

Nebraskans for Alternatives to the Death Penalty gathered on the steps of the State Capital Tuesday evening hours after Carey Dean Moore's execution. Politicians, priests and other community leaders spoke out against the death penalty.

Many holding signs condemning Governor Pete Ricketts' involvement with Moore's execution.

"I would tell [Ricketts] that Carey Dean Moore today was not the same man he was in 1979, and no one is safer because of his death," one demonstrator said.

The group believes capital punishment is costly and a flawed process.

"This morning, Governor Ricketts abandoned his conservative principles, his pro-life principles, his pro-life principles, and Nebraska principles," group organizer Matt Mauly said. "The death penalty is as broken as it's ever been.

Lincoln State Senator Patty Pansing Brooks went as far as calling the execution, "state-sponsored murder."

Governor Ricketts was attending Tuesday night's the Nebraska Broadcasters Association hall of fame induction, refusing to comment on camera. Instead, he issued a statement.

"Today, the Nebraska Department of Correctional Services carried out the sentence the court ordered in accordance with the will of the people of Nebraska. The death penalty remains a critical took to protect law enforcement, corrections officers, and public safety," Ricketts said in the statement.