The Center for Constitutional Rights (CCR) and the International Federation for Human Rights (FIDH) recent­ly released find­ings on the use of the death penal­ty in California and Louisiana. The orga­ni­za­tions con­clud­ed that the use of the death penal­ty in both states was arbi­trary and dis­crim­i­na­to­ry. The study also found that con­di­tions on death row con­sti­tut­ed cru­el and inhu­mane treat­ment. The study rec­om­mend­ed that California and Louisiana improve death row con­di­tions by end­ing soli­tary con­fine­ment and pro­vid­ing vis­its with fam­i­ly mem­bers. The study con­clud­ed, ​“States must also ensure that all per­sons charged with a death-eli­gi­ble offense have time­ly-appoint­ed, com­pe­tent, and expe­ri­enced rep­re­sen­ta­tion at all stages of a cap­i­tal case, and that appoint­ed coun­sel have ade­quate fund­ing to car­ry out the tasks nec­es­sary to pro­vide effec­tive rep­re­sen­ta­tion.” Read full text of Executive Summary here.

(“Human Rights Groups Release Preliminary Death Penalty Findings: Missions to California, Louisiana find tor­ture, dis­crim­i­na­tion,” International Federation for Human Rights, June 17, 2013). See Studies and Death Row.

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