A North Carolina legislative committee that has spent...

A North Carolina legislative committee that has spent almost a year analysing the death penalty voted to make three major recommendations when the General Assembly returns in January: An outright ban on executing people deemed mentally retarded, defined as having an IQ of 70 or below; A study of the impact race has when juries recommend death sentences, and a state law ensuring a defendant can't receive the death penalty because of his or her race; A temporary halt to executions, including reprieves for people now on death row, until the state can ensure the death penalty is being applied fairly.