Asked simply whether or not they support the death penalty, Connecticut voters favor it 60 - 30 percent, with 11 percent undecided. But when they were asked whether the penalty for murder should be death or life in prison with no chance of parole, voters split 42 percent for death and 43 percent for life without parole, with 15 percent undecided. By a 62 - 34 percent margin, Connecticut voters do not think the death penalty deters others from committing murder. Public opinion on the death penalty is complicated. Although voters support the death penalty by a margin of 2 to 1, they also support a moratorium by almost 2 to 1.
Voters have second thoughts when offered the option of life in prison without parole.
By a 77 - 12 percent margin, Connecticut voters oppose the death penalty for persons who are mentally retarded. By a 68 - 29 percent margin, voters believe that a poor person is more likely than a rich person to get the death penalty for the same crime. By a 55 - 41 percent margin, voters believe a black person is more likely than a white person to face the death penalty. The Quinnipiac University Poll conducts public opinion surveys in New York, New Jersey and Connecticut as a public service and for research.