Poll shows 28pc want death penalty back

A poll shows nearly a third of adults want the death penalty back.

The One News Colmar Brunton poll found 28 per cent of those questioned wanted death as a sentencing option.

But 67 per cent did not want the death penalty option and 5 per cent did not know.

Justice Minister Phil Goff said the justice system could not guarantee it would always convict the right person.

"To take the life of an innocent person is the worst thing that a state can do to its citizens," he told One News.

The poll also found 58 per cent wanted compulsory DNA sampling of anyone arrested.