Death penalty trimmed

Guatemala’s highest court has abolished the death penalty for civil cases in a landmark ruling announced yesterday. The Constitutional Court’s decision is final and will take effect once it is published in the government’s official gazette. Until now Guatemalan law has allowed for the death penalty in cases of murders of people younger than 12 or older than 60; kidnappings where the victim is severely hurt or dies; assassination of the president or vice-president; or in certain crimes related to drug trafficking.