Political courage is in short supply these days, and Gov. Steve Sisolak seems intent on proving it.
Last week, the governor requested that the Tuesday meeting of the Nevada Board of Pardons include an agenda item commuting the sentences of all state prisoners who are awaiting lethal injection for their crimes. Although the state hasn’t executed an inmate since 2006, there are currently 57 men on death row.
Gov. Sisolak, a Democrat, sits on the Board of Pardons, along with Attorney General Aaron Ford and the seven justices of the Nevada Supreme Court. A majority would have to approve the proposal. The governor “believes this is an appropriate and necessary step in the ongoing conversation and discussion around capital punishment,” a spokeswoman said.
What nonsense. The governor isn’t trying to promote debate, he’s trying to end it. Have the families of the victims been consulted? No. Will there be individual consideration of the circumstances in each of the 57 cases? Of course not. What happens moving forward when a Nevada jury sentences the next killer to death? Defense lawyers will have a field day.
Make no mistake, this is a backdoor attempt to abolish capital punishment in Nevada — an effort the governor conveniently embarks upon just weeks after losing his re-election bid.
That is no coincidence. Gov. Sisolak did all he could during two legislative sessions to avoid this issue. A 2019 bill outlawing capital punishment died in the Assembly Judiciary Committee. In 2021, a similar effort passed the Assembly, but never made it out of a Senate committee. With just the slightest bit of arm-twisting, Gov. Sisolak could have moved either bill — or a modified alternative — through the Democratic Legislature to his desk. Yet he declined in an attempt to preserve his political future.
Whether Nevada should continue to sentence prisoners to death is indeed a matter of legitimate debate, particularly given how activists have perfected using the judicial system to delay executions for decades, increasing costs for taxpayers. There are reasonable and principled arguments for and against the death penalty. Polls show that support for the practice has declined in recent years, although a 2021 Gallup survey found 59 percent of respondents favored capital punishment, particularly for convicted killers.
But the proper venue for this discussion is in the Legislature or during a ballot initiative campaign in which Nevada voters can make their voices heard. Gov. Sisolak had his chance and he balked. For him to now advocate that the Board of Pardons unilaterally and unconditionally issue blanket reprieves to those who have been found guilty of the most heinous offenses makes a mockery of the judicial process.
Gov. Sisolak’s agenda item is a testament to political cowardice. The Nevada Board of Pardons should refuse to go along.