Friday, May 13, 2005 
 
  Poll: Backing is strong for death penalty
  By Erik Arvidson, Eagle Boston Bureau 
 
  BOSTON -- Gov. Mitt Romney appears to have strong backing among voters 
  for his proposal to reinstate a "foolproof" death penalty system in 
  Massachusetts, according to a poll released yesterday.
 
  In a survey of 400 Massachusetts residents, sponsored by the State House 
  News Service and conducted by KRC Communications Research, 65 percent of 
  the respondents said they support Romney's proposal, while some 32 
  percent opposed it.
 
  KRC Communications pollster Gerry Chervinsky said the new poll shows 
  resident support moving the standard for capital cases from "beyond a 
  reasonable doubt" to "no doubt." "Traditionally, a majority of 
  Massachusetts residents has been supportive of the death penalty. So 
  it's no surprise that this poll would show a majority supporting it," 
  Chervinsky said. "The only surprise could be in the margin, which is a 
  32-point spread."
 
  He added, "The concept of guilty with no doubt, that really resonates 
  with people. No one has ever talked about 'guilty with no doubt.' There 
  has always been "beyond a reasonable doubt.' "
 
  The poll -- conducted between May 4 and May 6 and having a 4.8 percent 
  margin for error -- specifically asked residents about Romney's plan to 
  require that irrefutable scientific evidence be the standard of proof of 
  capital cases.
  Romney's bill would allow the state to execute people convicted of 
  crimes such as terrorism, murder involving torture and murder of a 
  police officer. The death penalty could not be imposed if even a single 
  juror had a "residual or lingering doubt" about whether a defendant was 
  guilty, even if he or she felt the evidence was "beyond a reasonable 
  doubt."
 
  But many state lawmakers who oppose the death penalty say that they will 
  not be swayed by this poll or by recent assertions by Romney that an 
  overwhelming majority of people would approve a death penalty for 
  certain heinous crimes.
 
  State Rep. Daniel E. Bosley, D-North Adams, an opponent of the death 
  penalty, said that every poll he has seen shows that a large majority of 
  people support capital punishment if they aren't given any alternatives.
 
  "Once you start introducing variables, that number goes down. It's once 
  you tell people that more poor people than wealthier people are 
  convicted of capital crimes, that the cost of executing somebody is more 
  than locking them up, or that it doesn't reduce violent crime," Bosley 
  said.
 
  Bosley added that "nothing in government is foolproof," and that there 
  are cases where even DNA evidence found at the scene of a crime may not 
  be totally reliable to obtain a guilty verdict.
 
  "The governor is playing to people's emotions, rather than using cold, 
  hard facts," he said. "I don't know why the governor is bringing this 
  up. It's just not an issue that comes up. If you poll people, they'll 
  say the issues important to them are health care and housing."
 
  State Sen. Andrea F. Nuciforo Jr., D-Pittsfield, who also opposes the 
  death penalty, said he, too, was not surprised by the margin in favor 
  demonstrated by the poll.
 
  "The death penalty topic rarely comes up. The conversations with my 
  colleagues have involved health care, education and local aid. We've 
  spent almost no time talking about the death penalty," Nuciforo said.
 
  There has not been an execution in Massachusetts since 1947.
 
  Massachusetts is one of 14 states without capital punishment, while the 
  state of Illinois has had a moratorium on executions since 2000.
 
  Romney filed the death penalty bill in April. The bill called for 
  numerous safeguards to prevent an innocent person from being sentenced 
  to death, including providing capable legal representation to indigent 
  people.
 
  Julie Teer, Romney's press secretary, said the poll was "very 
  interesting," but that the governor's support of capital punishment was 
  based on "his deeply held beliefs that the death penalty should be 
  applied in the most heinous of crimes."
 
 
      RESULTS: 65 percent of the respondents said they support 
      Romney's proposal for 'foolproof' death penalty; 32 percent 
      opposed it.
 
      WHO: Survey of 400 Massachusetts residents, sponsored by 
      the State House News Service and conducted by KRC Communications 
      Research.
 
      WHEN: Poll conducted between May 4 and May 6 and having a 
      4.8 percent margin for error.