Below are reports released by the Death Penalty Information Center since its inception, covering subjects such as race, innocence, politicization, costs of the death penalty, and more. When opening a report, please allow the report page to load fully before selecting links to sections or footnotes. Most of these reports are also available in printed form from DPIC. For a copy of one of these reports, e-mail DPIC. For bulk orders, please download our Resource Order Form.
Reports are separated into Year End Reports, In-Depth Reports, and Special Reports. In-Depth Reports are DPIC's signature long, thorough reports on major death-penalty issues. These include "The 2% Death Penalty," examining geographic arbitrariness in capital punishment, and "Behind the Curtain," covering secrecy in the death penalty system. Special Reports are shorter, and typically address a specific event or question. These include DPIC's explanation of the 2017 spate of executions that were scheduled in Arkansas, and our analysis of the largest number of executions performed on a single day.
DPIC Year-End Reports
Dec 19, 2000
A broad change in the way the American public views capital punishment was precipitated by a steady sequence of eye-opening events, including releases from death row, reports on the unfairness of the process, and governmental action to limit or halt the death penalty.
DPIC Year-End Reports
Dec 01, 1999
Such mistakes in the application of the death penalty have resulted in proposals from state legislators, judges, and religious and international leaders to impose a moratorium on the death penalty. Legislation to reform or stop the death penalty progressed further than at any time in recent years.
Oct 01, 1999
Commission on Human Rights has called for a moratorium on all executions. ignores these appeals and even the more moderate steps called for by the international human rights community. This violation alone has resulted in multiple adverse decisions from the International Court of Justice, in repeated criticism from our closest allies, and by…
DPIC Year-End Reports
Dec 18, 1998
The number of executions in 1998 declined slightly from the record number in 1997. The number of people on death row again moved to a record high and now stands at 3,517, though the Bureau of Justice Statistics reported a 19% drop in new death sentences in 1997.
DPIC In-Depth Reports
Jun 04, 1998
The results of two new studies which underscore the continuing injustice of racism in the application of the death penalty are being released through this report. The first study documents the infectious presence of racism in the death penalty, and demonstrates that this problem has not slackened with time, nor is it restricted to a single region…
