The sticker adorning George White's blazer may have seemed odd to those wandering the Capitol Wednesday morning.

It read "Please Don't Kill Me."

But White was in Helena to explain why the other statement on the badge, "I oppose the death penalty," is true.

White's tragic tale of capital punishment began in 1985.

"I have a story to tell. Although, I'd give everything I'd ever have to not have this story," White said in an interview Wednesday.

One of many people's worst nightmares happened to White n his 34-year-old wife died in his arms from multiple gunshots.

White and his love Charlene, the mother of his two children, were both shot by an armed robber. White's left arm, right leg and abdomen were hit with gunfire during a robbery of the business he managed in Alabama.

This was just the beginning of White's terror, or, as he refers to it -- "long torturous journey."

After fully believing in capital punishment and wishing the man who shattered his life dead, White himself ended up facing the death penalty.

Sixteen months after the shooting, he was charged with murdering his beloved Char, as he called her, and faced a possible punishment of death. The prosecution's main argument against him being that his version of the shooting varied in interviews, White said. After he was convicted by a jury, White was sentenced to life in prison.

Two years and 103 days of incarceration later, an appeals court overturned White's conviction and released him from prison.

The charge against him was then dismissed in 1992 when new evidence emerged, including ballistics tests, which concluded that one of the bullets that hit him must have been fired from at least five feet away.

He spoke at the Capitol Wednesday to about 20 people, including legislators who support a bill that would abolish the death penalty in the state. The bill was passed by the Senate then tabled in the House Judiciary Committee by one vote.

Supporters of the bill argue that capital punishment is costly and can be applied unfairly.

Opposing lawmakers say the death penalty is a successful crime deterrent.

Montana conducted three executions in the last 12 years, and two prisoners are on death row.

The bill's sponsor, Sen. Dan Harrington, D-Butte. said he thought the discussion on the Senate floor was one of the finest he's seen and the House should have the same opportunity.

Rep. Julie French, D-Scobey, a member of the Judiciary Committee, said the group's discussion of the bill was limited to about 10 minutes and further talks are needed.

White agreed.

"Yeah, it's a difficult subject. Yeah, it's tough to talk about, but let's talk," White said.

Harrington said having White speak was important to show "what could have happened" and "what has happened" to the wrongly accused.

For the last 25 years, White has traveled the country speaking about his life and against the death penalty, which very well could have been his fate.

White said he conveys his story in hopes of making the best of a horrible situation. He aided in the formation of Journey of Hope...From Violence to Healing, a group of family members of murder victims who extol alternatives to the death penalty.

The Charlene White's death is still under investigation, he said.

White said he believes law enforcement in the small Alabama town of Enterprise needed someone to pin the murder on and he ended up that person.

If the real killer is ever found, White said he would want the punishment to be life in prison without the possibility of parole.

"What began with a horrible act of violence should not be memorialized by an act of vengeance," he said.

Instead, prisoners should work for a fair wage, with their earnings going toward their upkeep and victims' assistance.

"Who better to pay then those who caused the pain?" White asked after his speech.