Publications & Testimony

On November 28 the North Carolina Senate voted to repeal the state’s Racial Justice Act, which allowed death row inmates to use statistical evidence of racial bias to challenge their sentences. The House had earlier approved the repeal measure. The Act was passed in 2009, and the first cases brought under the law are just now being considered in state court. There were considerable shifts in the state’s legislature in the wake of the 2010 elections, leading to the repeal bill. Prosecutors had…

The Orlando Sentinel in Florida recently called on the state to change the unusual way in which it arrives at death sentences, recommending instead unanimous jury decisions for a death sentence, the prevailing practice in the vast majority of states. In June, a federal judge declared Florida’s death penalty unconstitutional because it only requires a simple majority to decide whether aggravating factors exist and to recommend a death sentence to the presiding judge. In 2005, former Florida…

In a statement released on Nov. 22, Governor John Kitzhaber of Oregon announced a halt to all executions in the state. “I am convinced we can find a better solution that keeps society safe, supports the victims of crime and their families and reflects Oregon values,” he wrote. “I refuse to be a part of this compromised and inequitable system any longer; and I will not allow further executions while I am Governor.” His action halts the upcoming execution of Gary Haugen, an inmate who waived his…

A classic book about the death penalty has recently been re-published and is now available in paperback and electronic form. Cruel and Unusual: The Supreme Court and Capital Punishment was written by Michael Meltsner, currently a professor at Northeastern University School of Law, and one of the key architects at the NAACP Legal Defense Fund behind the challenge that led to Furman v. Georgia in 1972. This Supreme Court decision resulted in overturning every death penalty law and every death…

Leaders from North Carolina’s civil rights groups, such as the NAACP, and from the defense bar have re-affirmed the need for the state’s Racial Justice Act, which was passed in 2009. The Act allows death row inmates to challenge their death sentences using data from statistical studies of racial bias within the state. The North Carolina Conference of District Attorneys is attempting to have the law repealed because they say it threatens the entire death penalty system. Tye Hunter from the…

The Death Penalty Information Center is pleased to announce that our List of Those Exonerated from Death Row (1973-Present) is now available in a searchable, database format through our new Innocence Database. This resource allows users to search through the list of those freed from death row after their convictions were dismissed by name, year of exoneration, state from which they were released, the inmate’s race, and whether DNA evidence factored into their release. Lists of cases can also be…

DPIC is pleased to announce the completion of our State Information Pages for all 50 states and the District of Columbia. These state profiles provide historical and current information on the death penalty for each state, including famous cases, past legislative actions, and links to key organizations and state officials. For frequently updated information, such as execution totals, the size of death row, or the number of exonerations, see our State-by-State Database. Readers are encouraged to…

A recent study by David McCord, Professor of Law at Drake University Law School, titled What’s Messing with Texas Death Sentences?, found five significant causes for the recent decline in death sentences in Texas. McCord sought to explain a 65% drop in Texas death sentences from their peak five-year period of 1992 – 1996 (when there was an annual average of 40 death sentences) to the recent five-year period of 2005 – 2009 (when only 14 death sentences were handed down on average each year). The…

Bob Van Steenburg (pictured), served for 27 years in the military and retired as a United States Army Colonel in 1991. He currently serves as the President of the Board of Directors of the Texas Coalition to Abolish the Death Penalty. On Veterans Day, he reflected on how his opposition to the death penalty grew from his commitments as a soldier. He wrote, “A soldier stands for more than just him or herself. A soldier stands for the nation and its citizens. A soldier gives of his or her life to…