Publications & Testimony
Items: 5031 — 5040
Oct 17, 2006
NEW VOICES: Chief Judge of the Fourth Circuit Ponders Worth of the Death Penalty
In a recent speech to law students from Furman University, William W. Wilkins, the Chief Judge of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit, expressed doubts about the value of the death penalty given its high costs and probable lack of deterrence. He also noted that the existence of the death penalty in the U.S. makes it very difficult to extradite suspects from foreign countries who oppose capital punishment.With respect to the extra costs…
Read MoreOct 17, 2006
North Carolina Study Finds Substandard Representation
The Common Sense Foundation of North Carolina released a study on October 11, 2006 that found that at least 37 people now on death row had trial lawyers who would not have met today’s minimum standards of qualification. Nearly a third of the cases where sufficient data was available fell into this substandard…
Read MoreOct 16, 2006
Supreme Court Takes Two More Cases Regarding Texas’ Faulty Jury Instructions
On October 13, the U.S. Supreme Court agreed to hear two capital cases from Texas in which the defendant was sentenced to death after the jury was given instructions that the Court has since found unconstitutional. Unlike in most states where the jury considers a range of aggravating and mitigating circumstances about the crime and the defendant before choosing a sentence of life or death, in Texas the jury was (the law has since been modified) given a series…
Read MoreOct 15, 2006
Religious Leaders of Wisconsin Issue Statement on Death Penalty
A broad spectrum of religious leaders from Wisconsin issued a joint statement regarding their views on the death penalty on October 14. The statement…
Read MoreOct 13, 2006
Supreme Court Agrees to Hear Texas Death Case a Second Time
The U.S. Supreme Court agreed to hear an appeal from Texas death row inmate LaRoyce Smith even though they had reviewed his case once before. On October 6, 2006, the Court granted certiorari to decide whether the Texas Court of Criminal Appeals had applied the wrong standard after the Supreme Court had sent Smith’s case back to them earlier. The dispute does not involve Smith’s 1991 conviction for the murder of a Taco Bell manager in Dallas. Rather the Supreme Court…
Read MoreOct 12, 2006
NEW VOICES: New Jersey Law Enforcement Official Discusses Problems with the Death Penalty
Edward Johnson is a former FBI Agent who currently oversees investigative work for the Union County (NJ) Prosecutor’s Office. He recently expressed his personal opinions about the state’s death penalty. He concluded that in New Jersey public opinion may now have moved to the point where the death penalty will be abolished. He…
Read MoreOct 12, 2006
INTERNATIONAL: World Day Against the Death Penalty Marked Throughout Europe
At a joint press conference held by the European Commission (EC) and the Council of Europe, Vice-President Franco Frattini of the EC stated that“the administration of State killing via the judicial system serves no useful purpose in preventing crime but can have a brutalising effect on societies…
Read MoreOct 09, 2006
New Resource: DPIC Introduces Student Resource Page
As part of DPIC’s ongoing mission to serve the public with analysis and information on issues concerning capital punishment, we have developed a resource center for students. This page will assist students wishing to do explore issues surrounding the death penalty. There are ideas for debates and research papers as well as links to connect students with academic resources on capital punishment. The new link answers frequently asked questions, such as DPIC’s…
Read MoreOct 09, 2006
The Military Commissions Act of 2006: A Short Primer
Part One (Part Two Follows)October 9th, 200610 days ago, by a vote of 65 to 34, Congress passed the Military Commissions Act of 2006 (MCA). To facilitate the prosecution of detainees that the Bush Administration“disappeared” into secret CIA custody for several years, Congress created a system of justice that is far inferior to that of the federal courts and courts-martial. And not only did Congress give the Administration much of what sought in terms of substandard…
Read MoreOct 07, 2006
Capital Punishment Research Initiative: The Future of Innocence by Richard C. Dieter
Capital Punishment Research Initiative: The Future of Innocence by Richard C. Dieter (October…
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