Editorial Questions Maryland’s Commitment to Addressing Racial Disparities

A recent Baltimore Sun editorial criticized state leaders for failing to respond to a series of studies showing that race plays a disturbing role in capital punishment in Maryland. The paper noted that a study conducted by University of Maryland Professor Raymond Paternoster agreed with four other reviews that all revealed similar findings regarding race and the death penalty in Maryland. The paper stated:

Of the 1,311 death penalty-eligible cases that the University of Maryland researcher reviewed, he found the same troubling news: Defendants who are accused of killing white victims are more likely to be charged with capital murder and, if convicted, sentenced to death than those charged with killing non-whites. Nearly a year later, his disturbing findings have yet to compel a response from the state. What’s it going to take?
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The death penalty is the ultimate punishment, yet concerns about racial disparity have been raised time and again for more than a decade. That’s why the issue demands a vigorous response, a serious inquiry and a passionate advocate.