Capital Punishment
Capital Punishment is a profoundly complex and controversial aspect of the criminal justice system. This section provides articles that explore the history, legal frameworks, and ethical debates surrounding Capital Punishment in various jurisdictions. Correctional professionals can gain insights into the procedures, implications, and ongoing discussions about using the death penalty. Understanding Capital Punishment is crucial for those involved in its administration and those engaged in broader criminal justice reform efforts. For further context, explore related topics on supermax prisons.
A former prison director was among those who wrote letters to the governor, requesting that Richard Moore’s sentence be reduced to life without parole
Richard Moore mentors fellow inmates and could positively influence more if his sentence is reduced, the former S.C. DOC director said
In a letter to drop his appeals, Derrick Dearman wrote that “it’s not fair to the victims or their families to keep prolonging the justice that they so rightly deserve”
The Idaho Department of Correction retrofitted its execution chamber at the maximum security prison south of Boise to retain lethal injection as its preferred method
The inmate said he took responsibility for the slayings, regretted his actions and was praying for prison officials, officers and “for my brothers and sisters behind these walls”
The United States has reached 1,600 executions since the death penalty was reinstated by the U.S. Supreme Court in 1976
Alan Eugene Miller killed three co-workers in 1999; Miller was paranoid and believed they had been gossiping about him
The family of the victim, Lisha Gayle, and the prosecutor objected to the execution of Marcellus Williams, saying they wanted his sentence commuted to life in prison
Freddie Owens was convicted of the 1997 killing of a Greenville convenience store clerk during a robbery; while on trial, he killed an inmate at a county jail
The inmate and an accomplice befriended a Florida State University college student and his sister before jumping them; The victim was beaten and had his throat slit
State prosecutors suggested setting the minimum at no longer than four weeks between executions
Calif. DA weighing whether to retry or release death row inmate of 33 years
“There’s evidence of serious prosecutorial misconduct, and a lack of accountability in this office at the time,” Alameda County District Attorney Pamela Price said
Board recommends clemency for Okla. death row inmate
“Now, I pray that grace is contagious in Oklahoma. Governor [Kevin] Stitt, there is no reason to kill Emmanuel Littlejohn,” Rev. Dr. Jeff Hood testified
Taberon Dave Honie, 48, was convicted of aggravated murder in the July 1998 death of Claudia Benn, the maternal grandmother of his now 27-year-old daughter
The inmate has already been sentenced to life after pleading guilty in the March escape from a Boise hospital, but the murder charge is in a different county
As the state of Alabama plans additional nitrogen gas executions, questions and disagreements continue over what happened at the first one.
The state said in its argument before the state Supreme Court that lethal injection, electrocution and firing squad all fit existing death penalty protocols
Ruben Gutierrez was sent to death row after being convicted of capital murder for the 1998 killing of 85-year-old Escolastica Harrison
Indiana Gov. Eric Holcomb said that the state is seeking an execution date for Joseph Corcoran, a man convicted in the killings of four people in 1997
“He deserved nothing less than today’s final justice for the savage, barbaric, and torturous acts of suffering he inflicted upon Layla-Dawn before then ending her life,” the victim’s mother said
Ramiro Gonzales was executed at the Texas State Penitentiary on June 26 for killing Bridget Townsend, the same day that Bridget would have turned 41
Gov. Mike Parson declined to grant clemency the day before the scheduled execution, citing the inmate’s “lack of remorse” for the 2009 killings
The Alabama attorney general issued a statement that said the inmate’s “actions were cold and calculated, and his assigned punishment has never been more deserved”
The inmate alleges it would be unconstitutionally cruel for him to die by lethal injection
Pittsburg County District Judge Tim Mills wrote that psychologists found that Wade Greely Lay, 63, lacks a “rational understanding” of why he is to be executed
The moves are part of the state’s attempts to comply with Prop 66, which aims to speed up executions and mandate work and restitution for death row inmates
As of April 17, 26 death row inmates have been transferred to California Institution for Men following the closure of segregated units at San Quentin and Central California Women’s Facility
The lawsuit says California’s death penalty violates the state constitution’s equal protection guarantees because courts and prosecutors apply it in a racially biased way
More than 70 current and former prison officials, including chaplains, wardens and COs, had written a letter asking the governor to grant Brian Dorsey clemency
