Video: Death penalty dying out

>>> we're back now with a surprising statistic. 2011 is ending with the lowest number of death sentences handed out by juries since capital punishment was reinstated in the u.s. 35 years ago. opponents of the death penalty say americans are turning away from it, worried that justice system sometimes gets it wrong. we get the story tonight from justice correspondent pete williams .

>> reporter: an emotional scene outside an arkansas courthouse as three men walk to freedom after 18 years in prison, one of them on death row , all wrongly convicted of murder. a similar scene in illinois, ronald kitchen released after spending 21 years in prison, 13 on death row .

>> it really hasn't hit me yet. just like surreal.

>> reporter: as these scenes are repeated, say opponents of the death penalty , with dna evidence often making the difference, jurors have become less willing to impose the ultimate punishment . this year brought 78 death sentences nation-wide, the smallest number since 1976 .

>> it was indicative of a concern among the public, among the jurors, that death penalty can't be trusted, that you might make a mistake and find out information five, ten years from now that would make you think twice .

>> reporter: this year also saw fewer executions. 43 in all down from a high of 9of 98, 12 years ago. even in texas, just 13 executions this year, about half of last year's total. illinois this year took the death penalty off the books entirely. in oregon, governor john kitzaber barred executions as long as he's in office calling them morally wrong.

>> i refuse to be part in a compromise neck roll system any longer.

>>> three more states, california, connecticut and maryland may consider repeal thing it next year. while 61% of americans say they favor the death penalty that's the least support since the 1970s . even so 34 states retain the death penalty . supporters say it's imposed less often not because jurors think it's unfair but because a sentence of life without parole doesn't invite decades of legal appeals. another factor, they say, violent crime is down.

>> it's not the society that no longer supports the death penalty . it's the fact that there are just fewer murders in the united states by almost 50%. and that's good news.

>> reporter: whatever the reasons, the numbers show that while the death penalty in america remains an option, its heyday is in the past. pete williams , nbc news, washington.

Source: http://video.msnbc.msn.com/nightly-news/45708944/

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