Publications & Testimony

A forthcoming article in the Denver Law Review discusses two theories of homicide law, the felony murder rule and accomplice liability, that create group liability for the actions of an individual. The article, written by Professors G. Ben Cohen (pictured), Justin D. Levinson, and Koichi Hioki states that “Research suggests that the administration of accomplice liability [and] felony murder doctrines disproportionately impact Black and minority defendants,” causing minority defendants to be…

On April 20, 2023, Governor Jay Inslee signed legislation removing the death penalty from the state’s laws. With that action, all three branches of the state’s government have taken steps to end capital punishment in Washington: Gov. Inslee had declared a moratorium on executions in 2014, the state Supreme Court found the statute unconstitutional in 2018, and the legislature has now stricken it from the criminal code. Inslee said the new legislation confirms the concerns that were raised about…

On April 20, 2023, Texas legislators initially approved House Bill (HB) 1736 to limit the application of the death penalty in cases where a defendant commits a felony that was accompanied by a murder carried out by someone other than the defendant. Many states have a “felony murder” rule, similar to Texas’ “Law of Parties,” which provides that if one person is found guilty of murder, the offender’s accomplices or co-conspirators may also be found guilty of murder, regardless of their intent to…

The Oklahoma Court of Criminal Appeals ruled against Richard Glossip (pictured) on April 20, 2023, despite a motion from the state’s Attorney General asking the court to vacate Glossip’s conviction and remand the case to a lower court. Glossip is scheduled for execution on May 18 but has consistently maintained his innocence. In a statement reacting to the ruling, Glossip’s attorney, Don Knight, said, “Since the State now agrees that the only witness to allege that Mr. Glossip was involved in…

On April 19, 2023, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled (6 – 3) in Reed v. Goertz that a Texas death row prisoner could continue his pursuit of DNA testing that a lower court had blocked. The Court held that Rodney Reed’s (pictured) civil rights claim was filed in federal court in a timely way. The issue in Reed’s case involved when the clock began ticking on a two-year limit to file a federal claim once his state appeal was completed. Justice Kavanaugh, writing for the six-Justice majority, held that…

On April 17, 2023, lawyers for Toforest Johnson (pictured, center), who has spent 25 years on Alabama’s death row, filed a petition for a writ of certiorari to the U.S. Supreme Court requesting a new trial. The petition was buttressed by support from the present District Attorney and from the original trial prosecutor in Johnson’s case. Johnson’s conviction rested on the testimony of a single witness who claimed to hear him confess over the phone and who was secretly paid a $5,000 reward. For…

Florida is poised to become the state with the nation’s lowest threshold for juries to recommend death sentences, after the state legislature passed a bill allowing a judge to impose death if at least eight out of twelve jurors agree. Most states, including Florida, have required a unanimous jury verdict to recommend death. Governor Ron DeSantis (pictured) is expected to sign the bill, following the House’s approval on April 13, 2023. Alabama requires at least 10 jurors to approve a death…

On March 31, 2023, Ohio Attorney General Dave Yost released the state’s annual Capital Crimes report for 2022. According to the report, the average time prisoners spend on the state’s death row before an execution date is set is nearly 21 years – a number that has consistently increased with each annual report. Even when an execution date is set, a prisoner “is more likely to die of suicide or natural causes than as a result of execution,” due to the ongoing difficulty in obtaining lethal…

The following law review articles by several key death penalty researchers were recently published in 107 Cornell Law Review, No. 6, September, 2022. They cover a variety of issues, such as the interplay between race and capital punishment, the history of the death penalty, the federal death penalty, sentencing trends, and the federal court’s role in capital punishment: Explaining the Invidious: How Race Influences Capital Punishment in America – Johnson, Sheri Lynn (pictured). Getting to…

In He Called Me Sister: A True Story of Finding Humanity on Death Row, author Suzanne Craig Robertson details her journey from reluctance to true friendship during her challenging fifteen-year relationship with Cecil Johnson, a Tennessee death-row prisoner, who was executed in December 2009. Using letters, poems, and a personal memoir written by Johnson, Robertson tells their mutual story of perseverance, recalling that “differences don’t have to be barriers.” In the Preface, journalist Bill…