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KANSAN.COM
NEWS
Repealing death penalty could save Kansas millions of dollars, lawmakers say
MIRANDA DAVIS @mirandardavis
OPEKA - A group of bipartisan representatives are advoct
Chris Neal/AP Photo
Chris Neal/AP Photo Kansas Rep. Steven Becker, R-Buhler, speaks about his bill, House Bill 2515, to abolish the death penalty in Kansas on Thursday Jan. 28, 2016, at the Kansas Statehouse in Topeka, Kan.
latives are advocating the repeal of the death penalty as a way to save the state money.
Reps. Steven Becker (R-Buhler), John Bradford (R-Lansing) and Dennis "Boog" Highberger (D-Lawrence) made the argument Thursday at a press conference held in conjunction with the Kansas Coalition Against the Death Penalty (KCADP).
"The death penalty is such an inefficient practice in our state that could truly save millions of dollars."
STEVEN BECKER representative
Becker said that while many proponents of repeal focus on the moral or criminal justice concerns with the penalty, the state
can no longer ignore the economic incentive.
"The death penalty is such an inefficient practice in our state that
people are on death row in Kansas.
However, when the state seeks the death penalty in a case, it goes though
save millions of dollars," Becker said. "This morning we received a Supreme Court opinion that I think requires us to come up with about $54 million more for public education in the state. We are desperate for money, and one of the sources we could find would be
execution on hand at all times, and they have a short shelf life, Bradford said.
"Even without the execu-
the repeal of the death penalty."
Kansas reinstated the death penalty in 1994 but has not carried out an execution in more than 50 years. Currently, nine
additional safeguards to prevent a wrongful conviction, which end up costing the state money, Becker said.
In addition, the state has to keep the drugs for
The cost for the state goes up every year as more cases are added and appeals are filed for existing cases, the Kansas Coalition Against the Death Penalty reported. The coalition is advocating for reallocation of the death penalty budget to other
tions, we're wasting money." Becker said.
areas of public safety
"I think there are much better uses for the resources that we're using for the death penalty in the state of Kansas," Highberger said.
Bradford said bipartisan support shows the importance of repealing the death penalty.
"This isn't partisan; it's a moral issue," Bradford said. The three representatives
said they would like to replace the penalty with life in prison without parole. Highberger said he understands the severity of the crimes in cases where the death penalty is sought,
but he thinks the legislature needs to look at the flaws in the death penalty system.
"This isn't about the seriousness of the crimes; we all agree that the death penalty goes for very,very serious crimes. This is about what's best for society," Highberger said.
Becker and Bradford are sponsors on House Bill 2515, which would abolish the death penalty and create the crime of aggravated murder. The repeal would not be retroactive and would apply only to cases after July 1, 2016.
Floyd Bledsoe, who was on death row for a crime he did not commit and was released from prison in November, supports the bill and cites his own case as an example of the imperfect justice system.
The bill has yet to be granted a hearing in the House Judiciary Committee. Becker said he and other representatives will continue to push for a hearing to present their arguments.
KU School of Engineering receives $4.7 million grant to train future cybersecurity personnel
▶ TANNER HASSELL
@thassell17
Bo Luo, associate professor of electrical engineering and computer science, is the director of a program that prepares students to take cybersecurity jobs for government agencies.
Kelcie Matousek/KANSAN is to take cybersecurity inla
The School of Engineering has received a $4.7 million grant from the National Science Foundation to support a new program that will train students to take government cybersecurity jobs, according to a University news release.
The program, called CyberCorps: New Scholarship for Service Program at the University of Kansas - Jayhawk SFS will prepare students to take public service jobs at agencies like the CIA National Security Agency and the Department of Defense.
Bo Luo, program director and associate professor of electrical engineering and computer science, said the new program will train 36 undergraduate, graduate and doctoral students over a five-year period.
"Each student will be supported for two to three years, during which we will provide cybersecurity education, research and professional training," Luo said.
According to CyberCorps' website, the program gives scholarships to full time students to cover academic and living expenses that they may have, as well as a $22,500 stipend for undergraduate students and $34,000 for graduate students.
Victor Frost, a University electrical engineering and computer science professor, said students graduating from the program will work in a federal, state, local or tribal agency for the number of years they accept the scholarship.
"Cybersecurity is a very prominent issue in the world right now," Frost said. "Students entering this program will learn about many topics within the very broad area of cybersecurity."
Luo said some of the courses students will participate in include: introduction to cryptography and computer security, network security, security management, resilient networks and some others.
"We have several undergraduate and graduate-level security courses that are already being taught here at KU." Luo said. "With this program, most likely we will get a new faculty member and start some new courses."
Luo also said that students will have hands-on
system-security practice and cyber-defense competition opportunities through the information security club at the University.
The program will work to recruit veteran and active duty members of the U.S.
military, according to the news release.
"With the help of KU's Graduate Military Program, we will collaborate with the Kansas National Guard, the First Infantry Division, ARCYBER (U.S. Army Command) and other DoD (Department of Defense) agencies," Luo said.
- Edited by Deanna Ambrose
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on a coalition or candidate if this spending cap is exceeded.
Violations, which are classified as either egregious or nonegregious, are reported to the Elections Commission, which then has some discretion to decide the seriousness of the violation. Burbank said.
"A lot of violations are self-reported or reported by others. The ones [the Elections Commission] gets wind of, whether it be on campaign finance reports or anything like that, we'll take actions on that," he said. "It just depends on how severe the violation is."
Burbank said other violations including intimidation, anything involving violence, failure to comply with an audit from the Elections Commission, or any effort
to falsify finance reports can also be classified as an egregious violation, which can carry a fine for the coalition or candidate of up to $500.
Common Misconceptions
Burbank said many students have a common misconception that Student Senate and the elections process can be a daunting activity to be involved in, when it can be as simple as attending meetings and events.
Burbank said students who want to get involved in the elections process, Student Senate or in a committee on Student
"A lot of people think they can't get involved in [Senate] and they think it's just something that happens around them, but that's definitely not the case," he said.
Senate only need to show up at meetings or the election events.
"It's not as intimidating as it might look, and it's not even as dramatic as it might look," he said. "Whenever you hear about things, it's always about the high drama that's going on, but most of the time student government is trying to take small, but meaningful steps towards making the University better."
- Edited by Brendan Dzwierzynski
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