Court Hearing Under Way on Constitutionality of Federal Death Penalty

A court hearing is under way in the capital trial of Donald Fell in a Vermont federal district court challenging the constitutionality of the federal death penalty. This week, death penalty experts testified for the defense about systemic problems Fell’s lawyers say may render the federal death penalty unconstitutional. Fell was sentenced to death in 2006, but was granted a new trial because of juror misconduct. The hearing began on July 11 and is scheduled to continue until July 22. Judge Geoffrey W. Crawford, who is presiding over the hearing and is set to preside over Fell’s second trial in 2017, said the hearing will, “create a rich, factual record for higher courts with broader authority to rule on the big questions.” On Monday, Craig Haney, a psychology professor at the University of California Santa Cruz, discussed research on the effects of solitary confinement, the conditions under which Fell has been held on death row. “According to the National Commission on Correctional Health Care, anything greater than 15 days is inhumane, cruel and degrading treatment,” Haney said. On Tuesday, Michael Radelet, a sociology professor at the University of Colorado, testified about the decline of the death penalty both in use and in public opinion, saying, “Attitudes toward the death penalty have changed more rapidly than any other social issue other than gay marriage.” Radelet testified that research has disclosed no evidence that the death penalty deters murder or affects overall murder rates. He also emphasized the prevalence and causes of the 156 wrongful capital convictions as a major problem with capital punishment. “Last year six people were released, most having served 25 years. In 2014, seven were released from death row as innocent. One had been in for 30 years,” he said. “The number one cause of error is prejudicial prosecutorial testimony. Prosecutorial misconduct, false confessions, fraudulent forensics.”

(K. Phalen Tomaselli, “Expert: death penalty inhumane,” Barre Montpelier Times-Argus, July 12, 2016; K. Phalen Tomaselli, “Fell: Death penalty views changing,” Barre Montpelier Times-Argus, July 13, 2016.) See Studies and Innocence.