In Topeka, legislators had been mulling over a bill that would have discontinued Kansas' death penalty. Advocates argued that it would save money and noted that nobody's been executed in Kansas for decades anyway. They were opposed by victims' families who argued that some crimes -- like the Carr brothers' slayings in Wichita -- absolutely warranted death.
But it's beside the point now. The bill failed on a 20-20 vote Friday in the state Senate, so it's effectively dead for another year.
