Congress Orders DC Referendum on Death Penalty

Congress voted Thursday to order a local referendum on whether to establish the death penalty in the District of Columbia, a city scorched by an epidemic of drugs and crime.

The House voted 264 to 129 to add the provision to a $630-million appropriations bill. The House, and the Senate hours later, passed the overall measure by voice vote and sent it to the White House. The money is intended to reimburse the district for lost tax revenues and for city services provided to the federal government.

Rep. Dean A. Gallo (R-N.J.), who argued for the death penalty measure, noted that there had been more than 1,000 homicides in the city during the past three years. “We’re dealing with an antiquated system of meting out justice,” he said.

But Rep. Don Edwards (D-San Jose), said the measure was “arrogant and ill-advised.”

The amendment would require a referendum on the death penalty within 90 days.

Mayor Sharon Pratt Kelly, who opposes capital punishment, said if residents go to the polls without congressional prodding to decide the death penalty and adopt it, she would accede to their judgment.