Minnesota governor proposes resuming death penalty

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CHICAGO, Illinois (Reuters) -- Minnesota Republican Gov. Tim Pawlenty called Tuesday for the resumption of the death penalty in his state, which last conducted an execution nearly a century ago.

The Minnesota Legislature would consider Pawlenty's proposal to execute "the worst of the worst" when it reconvenes next week, a spokesman for the governor said.

Thirty-eight U.S. states and the federal government have the death penalty. Of the 12 states that do not, four are considering resuming executions, the governor's office said.

Pawlenty outlined a number of proposed safeguards, including an unprecedented requirement that DNA evidence link the culprit to the crime.

The death penalty would not be carried out against mentally disabled convicts or minors and would not apply if the case was based on a single eyewitness, jailhouse informant or the uncorroborated testimony of an accomplice.

Minnesota last held an execution in 1906 -- a botched hanging where the condemned man had to be hoisted by a stretched rope. The Legislature repealed the death penalty in 1911.

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