RALEIGH, NC -- Advocates of a North Carolina law aimed at driving racial prejudice from death penalty cases are pressuring five Statehouse Democrats to stop supporting a bid to dilute it.

The News & Observer of Raleigh reports  a Durham-based civil rights advocacy group says it's delivered lawmakers a petition with 5,000 signatures urging the five Democrats to uphold Gov. Beverly Perdue's rejection of changes to the state's Racial Justice Act.

The 2009 law allows judges to consider statistical analysis of death row cases showing race must have been a factor in prosecution decisions, even if no one testifies bias played a role in a specific case. If a judge finds racial bias played a role in their case, a killer's death sentence can be converted to life in prison without parole.