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Chapter 20

Chapter 20. The Death Penalty. the entrance to death row San Quentin, California. women’s death row: Central California Women’s Facility. capital punishment debate the PRO side. moral arguments retribution calls for death penalty utilitarian arguments (deterrence)

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Chapter 20

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  1. Chapter 20 The Death Penalty

  2. the entrance to death rowSan Quentin, California

  3. women’s death row:Central California Women’s Facility

  4. capital punishment debatethe PRO side • moral arguments • retribution calls for death penalty • utilitarian arguments (deterrence) • 200 studies: most--no evidence of deterrence: • Peterson & Bailey: murder rates were higher in states with death penalty than in adjacent states without it • Lempert: confirmed no effect • Ehrich: each execution between 1933 & 1969 prevented between 7 & 8 murders • National Academy of Sciences reanalyzed data & dismissed findings • economic arguments • death penalty is less expensive than life imprisonment 

  5. capital punishment debate the CON side • moral arguments • capital punishment is not moral • state does not have the right to take a life • utilitarian arguments (deterrence) • no convincing evidence that capital punishment deters • many capital crimes cannot be deterred • drug/alcohol-based, psychological disturbance, rage • economic arguments • death penalty more expensive than life sentence extra $216,000 to prosecute; $2.16 million to execute • other arguments • mistakes are unavoidable & irreversible • death sentence imposed in unfair & discriminatory way eg, by race, jurisdiction, even politics (see Houston) eg, 1,000 murders to 1 execution

  6. public opinion: death penalty • nearly 3/4 Americans support death penalty. • majority have supported it since Gallup survey first asked about it in 1936 • only exception was 1960 - 1965 • support generally risen over last 35 years • important note on survey methodology: • support level depends on how question worded • when offered alternative to capital punishment, many supporters opt for the alternative • life without possibility of parole • >20% shift to “opposition,” when given this option • life, in addition to restitution to the victim

  7. % states with death penalty NO death penalty WITH death penalty

  8. death penaltyby the numbers • 270 death sentences are pronounced yearly • compared to 22,000 yearly arrests for murder & non-negligent manslaughter • # persons on death row exceeds 3,700 • 54 women are on death row • 722 executions from 1976 - July, 2001 • yearly executions generally > 74 since 1976

  9. Furman v. Georgia, 1972 • U.S. Supreme Court ruled that the death penalty, as administered, constituted cruel and unusual punishment, in violation of the 8th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution • invalidated death penalty laws of 39 states & D.C. • 35 states re-enacted laws • issue returned to Supreme Court...

  10. Gregg v. Georgia, 1976 • U.S. Supreme Court upheld death penalty laws which • required the sentencing judge or jury to take into account specific aggravating and mitigatingcircumstances in deciding which convicted murders should be sentenced to death, and which • authorized a “bifurcated” proceeding (trial to determine guilt and a separate hearing exclusively to determine penalty)

  11. McCleskey v. Kemp, 1987 • U.S. Supreme Court rejected a constitutional challenge (to Georgia’s death penalty law) on the grounds of racial discrimination • attorney cited rigorous research showing the application of the death sentence in Georgia was racially biased. • Court rejected claim (5-4 vote), ruling: • in cases alleging racial discrimination, defendant has to provedecision makers acted with adiscriminatory purpose in that specific case. • statistical evidence showing discrimination throughout the state was notadequate proof. • McKleskey executed in 1991

  12. legal issues re: capital punishment execution of “insane” counsel execution of juveniles populations & processes appeals execution of retarded

  13. Ford v. Wainwright, 1986 • U.S. Supreme Court ruled the 8th Amendment prohibited the state from executing the incompetent; the accused must comprehend both the fact that he has been sentenced to death and reason for it. • accused was delusional, claiming KKK was part of a conspiracy to get him to commit suicide • Court ruled there is no deterrent or retributive value to executing the mentally disturbed • idea is offensive to humanity

  14. execution of juveniles • minimum age for execution varies by state • 8 states don’t specify • in some, age is same as juvenile “waiver” age • 84 males on death row who were < 18 (at time of offense) • Thompson v. Oklahoma, 1988 • decided that William Thompson, 15 when he committed murder, could not be executed • Sanford v. Kentucky & Wilkins v. Missouri, 1989 • offenders aged 16 and 17 can be executed

  15. execution of the retarded • 360 offenders on death row are retarded • the retarded account for 10% of executions • Penry v. Lynaugh, 1989 • Supreme Court held 8th Amendment does NOT prohibit execution of the mentally retarded; • Penry was a convicted killer with an IQ of 56 and mental capacity of a 7-year-old.

  16. definition “habeas corpus petition” • a writ requesting a court to review the conditions of incarceration or the basis of detention • habeas corpus is the only means by which a federal court can hear challenges by state inmates to their convictions and/or sentences • before an inmate may file a complaint in federal court, he must “exhaust” all the administrative remedies that the state courts make available to him.

  17. appeals • average time sentence--execution: 7- 8 yrs • recent moves to limit that interval • McCleskey v. Zant, 1991, Supreme Court: except in exceptional circumstances, lower federal courts must dismiss prisoner’s second and subsequent habeas corpus petitions. • 1993 Supreme Court: offender who presents belated evidence of innocence not necessarily entitled to new hearing in federal court; evidence must be “truly persuasive” • Anti-Terrorism & Effective Death Penalty Act, 1996 • death row inmates must file habeas corpus petition within one year

  18. counsel • appointed counsel often receive small fees • eg, $1,000 per case; $20/hr (Alab.); $11.75/hr (Miss.) • Stickland v. Washington, 1984, Supreme Crt: • defendant has a right to representation that meets an “objective standard of reasonableness” • accused must show “that there is a reasonable probability that, but for counsel’s unprofessional errors, the result of the proceeding would have been different.”

  19. where death penalty imposed % of all death sentences imposed

  20. where executions happen, 1976 - July, 2001 722 executions carried out since 1976

  21. inmates on death rowby race

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