Entries tagged with “Andrew Ramseur”

Issues

Jun 30, 2020

New Podcast: Henderson Hill and North Carolina’s Historic Racial Justice Act Rulings

In the June 2020 episode of Discussions with DPIC, Henderson Hill (pictured), Senior Counsel at the American Civil Liberties Union Capital Punishment Project, speaks with Death Penalty Information Center Executive Director Robert Dunham about North Carolina’s Racial Justice Act. Hill, who has spent decades as a public defender, capital defense attorney, and civil rights advocate, is currently representing North Carolina death-row prisoners in the Racial Justice Act litigation challenging their…

Issues

Jun 08, 2020

North Carolina Supreme Court Strikes Down Racial Justice Act Repeal, Permits Race Challenges by 140 Death-Row Prisoners

The North Carolina Supreme Court has struck down the state legislature’s attempted retroactive repeal of the state’s Racial Justice Act (RJA), restoring the rights of approximately 140 death-row prisoners to seek redress of death sentences that they had claimed were substantially affected by racial bias. The Court issued its rulings in the cases of death-row prisoners Andrew Ramseur (pictured, left) and Rayford Burke (pictured, right) on June 5, 2020, holding that ​“the retroactive application…

Issues

Executions Overview

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Jun 06, 2020

Capital Case Roundup — Death Penalty Court Decisions the Week of June 1, 2020

NEWS (6/​5/​20) — North Carolina: The North Carolina Supreme Court has struck down the state legislature’s attempted retroactive repeal of the state’s Racial Justice Act, restoring the rights of approximately 130 death-row prisoners to seek redress of death sentences that they had claimed were substantially affected by racial bias. The Court issued its 6 – 1 rulings in the cases of death-row prisoners Andrew Ramseur (pictured, left) and Rayford Burke (pictured, right), holding that ​“the…

Issues

Sep 03, 2019

North Carolina Supreme Court Hears Argument on Retroactive Repeal of State’s Racial Justice Act

The North Carolina Supreme Court (members pictured) heard arguments on August 26 and 27, 2019 on whether the state may retroactively apply the legislative repeal of its Racial Justice Act to death-row prisoners who had overturned their death sentences or filed claims under the act before it was repealed. Four prisoners had won reduced sentences under the state’s 2009 Racial Justice Act, which had allowed death-row prisoners to overturn their sentences if race had been a ​“significant factor” in…

Issues

Mar 05, 2018

North Carolina Supreme Court Agrees to Hear Racial Justice Act Death-Penalty Cases

The North Carolina Supreme Court announced on March 2 that it will hear appeals from three of the four prisoners whose death sentences were reduced to life without parole under the state’s Racial Justice Act, then reinstated after the legislature repealed the law. Passed in 2009 and repealed in 2013, the landmark legislation allowed death-row prisoners to challenge their sentences on the basis of statistical evidence of racial discrimination. Marcus Robinson (pictured), Quintel Augustine…