Recent Death Sentences By Name, Race, County, And Year
2017 Death Sentences by Name, Race, and County
39 New Death Sentences were imposed in the U.S. in 2017. That is the second fewest number of new death sentences imposed in any year in the modern history of U.S. capital punishment, which dates back to 1972 when the Supreme Court declared the country’s death penalty laws unconstitutional in Furman v. Georgia.
Fewer than one-tenth of 1% of counties in the U.S. accounted for more than 30% of all the death sentences imposed in the United States in 2017. Three outlier counties — Riverside, California; Clark County, Nevada, and Maricopa, Arizona — imposed 12 death sentences.
Defendants Sentenced to Death in 2017
| First | Last | State | County | Race |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ryan | Petersen | AL | Houston | W |
| Jamal | Jackson | AL | Mobile | B |
| Brad | Hunter Smith | AR | Cleveland | W |
| Samantha | Allen | AZ | Maricopa | W |
| John | Allen | AZ | Maricopa | W |
| Alan | Champagne | AZ | Maricopa | NA |
| Preston | Strong | AZ | Yuma | B |
| Darnell | Washington | CA | Contra Costa | B |
| Heraclio | Meza | CA | Los Angeles | L |
| Steven | Gordon | CA | Orange | W |
| Cherie | Rhoades | CA | Placer | NA |
| Raymond | Barrera | CA | Riverside | L |
| David | Contreras | CA | Riverside | L |
| Lorraine Alison | Hunter | CA | Riverside | B |
| Elias | Lopez | CA | Riverside | L |
| Johnny | Lopez | CA | Riverside | L |
| James | Ellis | CA | San Bernardino | B |
| Christopher | Cheary | CA | Tulare | W |
| Dylann | Roof | Federal | South Carolina | W |
| Mesac | Demas | FL | Collier | B |
| Shawn | Rogers | FL | Santa Rosa | B |
| Sean | Bush | FL | St. Johns | B |
| Jonathan | Renfro | ID | Kootenai | W |
| Marvin | Rice | MO | Dent (tried in St. Charles) | W |
| Alberto | Garcia | MS | Harrison | L |
| Nikko | Jenkins | NE | Douglas | B |
| Norman | Belcher | NV | Clark | B |
| Thomas | Randolph | NV | Clark | W |
| Javier | Righetti | NV | Clark | L |
| Will | Sitton | NV | Clark | W |
| Terry | Froman | OH | Warren | B |
| Alton | Nolen | OK | Cleveland | B |
| Ronnie | Fuston | OK | Oklahoma | B |
| Leeton | Thomas | PA | Lancaster | B |
| Eric | Frein | PA | Pike (jury selected from Chester) | W |
| William | Hudson | TX | Anderson (tried in Brazos) | W |
| Billy | Tracy | TX | Bowie | W |
| Joseph | Colone, Jr. | TX | Jefferson | B |
| John Ray | Falk | TX | Walker (tried in Angelina) | W |
Death Sentences by Race of Defendant in 2017
| Race | Defendants |
|---|---|
| Black | 15 |
| Latinx | 7 |
| Native American | 2 |
| White | 15 |
2017 Death Sentences by County
| County | Death Sentences in 2017 |
|---|---|
| Riverside, CA | 5 |
| Clark, NV | 4 |
| Maricopa, AZ | 3 |
| Anderson, TX | 1 |
| Bowie, TX | 1 |
| Cleveland, AR | 1 |
| Cleveland, OK | 1 |
| Collier, FL | 1 |
| Contra Costa, CA | 1 |
| Douglas, NE | 1 |
| Harrison, MS | 1 |
| Houston, AL | 1 |
| Jefferson, TX | 1 |
| Kootenai, ID | 1 |
| Lancaster, PA | 1 |
| Los Angeles, CA | 1 |
| Mobile, AL | 1 |
| Oklahoma, OK | 1 |
| Orange, CA | 1 |
| Pike, PA | 1 |
| Placer, CA | 1 |
| San Bernardino, CA | 1 |
| Santa Rosa, FL | 1 |
| St. Charles, MO | 1 |
| St. Johns, FL | 1 |
| Tulare, CA | 1 |
| Walker, TX | 1 |
| Warren, OH | 1 |
| Yuma, AZ | 1 |
| US Govt (South Carolina) | 1 |
2017 Death Sentences by State
| State | Death Sentences in 2017 |
|---|---|
| California | 11 |
| Arizona | 4 |
| Nevada | 4 |
| Texas | 4 |
| Florida | 3 |
| Alabama | 2 |
| Oklahoma | 2 |
| Pennsylvania | 2 |
| Arkansas | 1 |
| Idaho | 1 |
| Mississippi | 1 |
| Missouri | 1 |
| Nebraska | 1 |
| Ohio | 1 |
| U.S. Govt | 1 |
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