After consulting with the family of the murder victim, Maryland prosecutors decided not to seek the death penalty against Kenneth Collins during a recent resentencing hearing. Collins’ death sentence was overturned because of an inadequate defense at his originial trial. Margaret Breeden, the victim’s widow, noted that seeking the death penalty for Collins would result in years of agonizing appeals and that her family is “tired of reliving the memories of his death every time a new hearing is scheduled.” The prosecutor, Stephen Bailey, noted that the Breeden family is among a growing number of victims’ families who have dropped their pursuit of a death sentence. “Fewer people, though very supportive of the death penalty, are willing to put themselves through a process that many of them see as never ending and not necessarily guaranteeing the results that the system promises,” Bailey stated. Collins will serve a life sentence instead. (Baltimore Sun, February 6, 2004) See Victims and the Death Penalty and Life Without Parole.