the Stephenson King administration in St Lucia plans to propose new measures to reintroduce the death penalty after more than a decade

the Stephenson King administration in St Lucia plans to propose new measures to reintroduce the death penalty after more than a decade. National Security Minister Guy Mayers said that with 38 persons killed on the island in 2008, an increase of 13 compared to 2007, he will be recommending legislative changes for the reintroduction of the death penalty. Mayers said he was convinced that the execution of criminals was one of the measures that will deter violent crime. He said certain technicalities in the law must be addressed before the death penalty can be used as its takes too long for appeals to be heard. "After five years have passed the death sentence must legally be commuted to life imprisonment. So that what I would like to see is when the judge is passing judgment that a time is placed on the date of execution, so the person on whom sentence is being passed will know in advance his date with the hangman," he said.