UPDATE: Death penalty bill fails to clear NM Senate

The New Mexico Legislature has adjourned from a special legislative session without considering a measure to reinstate the death penalty and other criminal justice initiatives backed by Republican Gov. Susana Martinez.

The Democrat-led Senate adjourned Thursday without taking up stricter sentencing provisions approved by the House or Representatives.

New Mexico repealed the death penalty in 2009. Martinez and allies in Legislature have pushed for stricter criminal sentencing as a response to the recent killing of two police officers and the August sexual assault, killing and mutilation of 10-year-old Victoria Martens in Albuquerque.

Many Democrats said it was inappropriate to consider the weighty issue of capital punishment during an abbreviated special session.