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RALEIGH – Several groups joined the NAACP in a press conference Thursday to call on lawmakers to pass the N.C. Racial Justice Act, a death penalty bill, without any amendments.

The groups said they’re against what the Senate did to water the bill down.

“That bill that came over from the Senate is an abomination,” Rep. Larry Womble said. “We need to make sure that we pass the House version of the bill.”

The bill would allow a defendant to challenge his or her conviction or death sentence if they could show the decision is based on racial bias.

Sen. Floyd McKissick, the primary bill sponsor, said it was intended only for fair sentencing and fairness in prosecution.

“It’s an act that many people who believe in the death penalty can support,” McKissick said. “They know if the death penalty is imposed, it needs to be done without racial prejudice and bias.”

The problem, as the supporters see it, is that Senate amendments to the bill go beyond the original purpose and instead attempt to resume executions in North Carolina.

“The bill is flawed form the standpoint that it takes the decision out of a jury’s hands,” Eddie Goodall said. “It takes 12 people to convict someone, and juries typically include minorities, so there is no reason to think that a jury can’t make this decision itself, and I trust juries to do that.”

The bill is in the House Ways and Means Committee. A vote is not expected until at least next week.

An amendment to the bill would allow executions to restart after a two-year halt.