State & Federal Info
Military
People serving in the military are subject to a separate system of laws, courts, and procedures — including those regarding capital punishment.
Federal Death Penalty
Death Penalty Information Center Page: Additional Information on the Federal Death Penalty
Overview
People serving in the military are subject to a separate system of laws, courts, and procedures. Defendants retain certain rights guaranteed under the constitution, such as the right to representation.
The military death penalty has been used sparsely outside times of war. Only a few individuals are on the military death row, which is based at Fort Leavenworth, Kansas. All were convicted of murder. There have been no executions in the modern era of the death penalty.
The military also has jurisdiction over military commissions, which are tribunals convened to try people accused of unlawful conduct associated with war, such as those established in Guantánamo Bay after the September 11, 2001 attacks. No one has been sentenced to death under these commissions.
Jan 10, 2019
Chaos Continues in Guantánamo Death-Penalty Trial, As Another Military Judge Quits
The already chaotic Guantánamo death-penalty trial of Abd al Rahim al Nashiri, accused of orchestrating the October 2000 attack on the U.S. Navy destroyer USS Cole, hit another snag as the most recent judge assign…
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Mar 26, 2020
News Brief — Retirement of Guantánamo Military Judge Likely to Further Delay Sept. 11 Death-Penalty Trial
NEWS (3/25/20): Guantánamo Bay — In an action that adds further uncertainty to the already tumultuous proceedings in the Guantánamo Sept. 11 death-penalty trial, the military commission judge presiding over the case has announced that he w…
Mar 06, 2020
News Brief — Recent Death-Penalty Decisions Through March 6
NEWS (3/6/20): The United States Court of Military Appeals has upheld the conviction and death sentence of Timothy Hennis, following his acquittal in Nor…
Oct 11, 2019
100th Execution or 30th Exoneration? Florida Sets Execution Date for 73-Year-Old Military Veteran Who May Be Innocent
Florida has scheduled the execution of 73-year-old James Dailey (pictured) for November 7, 2019, despite substantial evidence that he had no involvement in the killing, including a statement by the admitted killer, Daley’s co-defe…
Sep 23, 2019
Former Guantánamo Officials Blast Waste and Mismanagement As Costs To Taxpayers Top $6 Billion
As U.S. taxpayers pick up a tab of more than $6 billion and climbing, former top officials involved in the military commission death-penalty cases against Guantánamo Bay detainees have blasted the military tribunals for waste, mis…
May 23, 2019
Florida Executes Mentally Ill Vietnam Veteran Diagnosed with “Traumatic Brain Disease”
Florida has executed Bobby Joe Long (pictured), a mentally ill Vietnam veteran with service-related traumatic brain injuries, after the U.S. Supreme Court on May 23, 2019 declined to review his ca…
Apr 17, 2019
Federal Appeals Court Strikes Two Years of Guantánamo Tribunal Decisions in USS Cole Case
A civilian federal appeals court has dealt another blow to the Guantánamo military commission death-penalty proceedings, striking more than two years of decisions in the USS Co…
Nov 12, 2018
A Veterans Day Review: Recent Cases Highlight Concerns About Veterans and the Death Penalty
As Americans become increasingly aware of the role of combat trauma in the development of Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) and other mental health disorders, the shift in public perceptions towards veterans suffering from these disorders has …
Oct 26, 2018
Split Jury Spares Iraq-War Vet in High Profile Virginia Capital Case
A Virginia jury has spared the life of Iraq war veteran Ronald Hamilton (pictured, right, with his father) in the 2016 killings of his wife and a rookie police officer. The jury split 6 – 6 on whether to impose the …
Aug 20, 2018
Military Commission Bars Guantánamo Death-Penalty Prosecutors From Using Statements by 9/11 Detainees
A Guantánamo military commission judge has barred prosecutors from using statements five accused 9⁄11 plotters made to the FBI after they had been subjected to years of torture in CIA black sites. On August 17, 2018, the military …
Aug 07, 2018
Two Servicemen Suffering From Brain Trauma, PTSD Win Death-Penalty Relief
Two servicemen — one a former airman on the U.S. military death row, another a decorated Vietnam veteran sentenced to death in Pennsylvania — have won relief from their capital convictions or death sentences.
