Miller, who supports the death penalty, said he told the governor that he would vote to send the issue to referendum through a constitutional amendment. Even if a repeal passes, the issue might go to referendum anyway. In Maryland, citizens can attempt to overturn acts of the General Assembly by gathering enough signatures for a ballot question.
But other lawmakers - and some death penalty activists - questioned the idea of a constitutional amendment.
"I think [legislators] should face this straight on and do their job," said Jane Henderson, director of Maryland Citizens Against State Executions. "They're the ones who gave Maryland capital punishment, and they're the ones who should take it away."
Sen. Bryan W. Simonaire, an Anne Arundel County Republican who voted against the repeal bill last year in committee, said a referendum "would not necessarily be fair." Pointing to slots, he said one side of the issue spent far more money on advertising than the other, possibly skewing the votes.
"I would really, really have to think about that," he said of a referendum. He also said O'Malley's sponsorship this year "certainly validates that it's an important issue for Maryland."
Simonaire said he is still studying the issue and would vote his conscience, even if it means the full Senate would never get to vote on the death penalty.
Sen. Alex X. Mooney, a Frederick County Republican who has said his Roman Catholic faith gives him doubts about capital punishment, was the key vote against the 2007 repeal bill but pledged yesterday to keep an open mind as he reads the governor's death penalty commission report and listens to witnesses at the committee hearing, which has not been scheduled. But he said that concern about the way the death penalty is applied, "doesn't mean you throw it out altogether" and that he favors executions in some circumstances.
The commission, led by former U.S. Attorney General Benjamin R. Civiletti, cited the possibility of executing an innocent person, huge financial costs, and racial and regional biases as compelling reasons to eliminate capital punishment.
Scott D. Shellenberger, a commission member and Baltimore County state's attorney, wrote a dissenting opinion, signed by seven other members. He said prosecutors must be able to "reflect the will of the people."
A Gonzales Research and Marketing Strategies poll showed that 53 percent of Marylanders favor the death penalty.
