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SALT LAKE CITY — A plan that would expand capital punishment in Utah so criminals convicted of aggravated human trafficking or child sex exploitation that leads to death could be executed has made it through the Utah House of Representatives.
The plan passed by a single vote Tuesday when House Speaker Greg Hughes, R-Draper, returned to the floor to break the tie.
HB176 sponsor Republican Rep. Paul Ray, R-Clearfield, says human trafficking is one of the most heinous crimes, so the death penalty should be an option for prosecutors.
The proposal is the latest effort by Ray to institute hardline death-penalty rules. He ushered in a law in 2015 allowing Utah to use firing squads in executions if the state can't obtain lethal injection drugs.
The bill next moves to the Senate for consideration.
— Associated Press
