Publications & Testimony

On March 31, the Supreme Court declined to hear the appeal of Lance Shockley of Missouri, the 36^th death-sentenced person to be denied certiorari by the Court this year. At trial, Mr. Shockley’s jury foreman was removed before the sentencing phase based on evidence of serious bias — but Mr. Shockley’s attorney declined the opportunity to question the foreman or other jurors about the misconduct, and his conviction, which the foreman participated in, was allowed to stand. Mr. Shockley’s claim on…

According to Amnesty International’s Annual Death Penalty Report, 15 countries carried out 1,518 known executions in 2024, constituting the lowest number of executing countries for the second consecutive year and the highest recorded execution figure since 2015, driven by increases in Iran, Saudi Arabia, and Iraq. 46 countries imposed 2,087 new death sentences in 2024, a 14% decrease from the prior year; however, changes in the accessibility of information across countries make year-to-year…

To commemorate the 20^th anniversary of the United States Supreme Court decision that ended the juvenile death penalty, DPI will release a report examining the legacy of this decision and its implications for emerging adults. This article examines one area of focus in the report: recent state courts decisions that have extended legal protections to emerging adults ages 18 to 20. In 2012, in Miller v. Alabama, the U.S. Supreme Court emphasized that “youth matters” in determining the…

According to public records released to the Indiana Capital Chronicle, the Indiana Department of Corrections (IDOC) spent $900,000 on the drugs needed to carry out the lethal injection execution of Joseph Corcoran in December 2024. The newly released record is so highly redacted that just one line of text appears: “IDOC shall pay the Contractor the sum of nine hundred thousand dollars ($900,000).” The document does not show how much pentobarbital was purchased, when it was purchased, or from…

On April 1, 2025, U.S. Attorney General Pam Bondi announced she has directed acting U.S. Attorney for Manhattan, Matthew Podolsky, to seek the death penalty against Luigi Mangione for the 2024 killing of UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson. This is the first time AG Bondi has directed prosecutors to seek the death penalty since President Donald Trump assumed office in January 2025, when he issued an executive order including a call to “restore” the federal death penalty. In a statement…

Update: On May 13, 2025, Georgia Governor Brian Kemp signed HB 123 into law, which goes into effect immediately. On March 31, 2025, the Georgia Senate, in a 53 – 1 vote, passed HB 123, sending the bill to Governor Brian Kemp’s desk to be signed. HB 123 provides pretrial hearings for capital defendants to raise intellectual disability claims and would lower the standard of proof for those claims from “beyond a reasonable doubt” to a “preponderance of evidence,” in line with the other 26 states…

On March 24, 2025, Iwao Hakamada was awarded just over $217 million yen ($1.4 million) in compensation after spending 46 years wrongfully incarcerated on Japan’s death row. According to Mr. Hakamada’s legal representative, Hideyo Ogawa, this award marks the “highest” compensation ever provided for a wrongful conviction. Mr. Hakamada, who was exonerated last year, is only the fifth death-sentenced prisoner to receive a retrial in post-World War II Japan, all of which have resulted in…

This month marks the 20^th anniversary of the landmark U.S. Supreme Court decision in Roper v. Simmons. In a series of posts anticipating the April 2025 release of DPI’s report commemorating the 20^th Anniversary of the Roper decision and its implications for emerging adults , we are exploring scientific and legal developments related to juveniles and emerging adults in the death penalty system. Adverse childhood experiences (ACEs) refer to potentially traumatic events and circumstances that…