Watch CBS News

O'Malley Calls Death Penalty 'Ineffective'

WASHINGTON (AP) -- Former Maryland Gov. Martin O'Malley says he respects the verdict of the jury in the Boston Marathon bombing case but remains opposed to the death penalty and considers it "ineffective."

The potential Democratic presidential candidate says in a statement Friday that he hopes Boston Marathon bomber Dzhokhar Tsarnaev never enjoys a "moment of freedom." Tsarnaev was sentenced Friday to death for the April 2013 bombing.

O'Malley says the death penalty's appeals process is "expensive and cruel to the surviving family members."

He says most of the public executions around the globe are conducted by North Korea, Iran, Iraq, Yemen, China and the United States and that the U.S. "does not belong in that company."

As governor, O'Malley led the push to repeal the death penalty in Maryland.

(Copyright 2015 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)

View CBS News In
CBS News App Open
Chrome Safari Continue
Be the first to know
Get browser notifications for breaking news, live events, and exclusive reporting.