Entries tagged with “Donald Trump”
Facts & Research
Public Opinion
,Methods of Execution
,Federal Death Penalty
,Sep 03, 2024
Articles of Interest: The New York Times Editorial Board Argues United States “Does Not Need the Death Penalty”
In an August 31, 2024, editorial from The New York Times, the newspaper’s editorial board writes that capital punishment is “immoral, unconstitutional and useless as a deterrent to crime,” and asserts that President Joseph Biden should follow through with his campaign pledge to end the federal death penalty. The Times believes “it would be an appropriate and humane finale to his presidency for Mr. Biden to fulfill that pledge and try to eliminate the death penalty for federal…
Policy Issues
Secrecy
,Lethal Injection
,Apr 12, 2024
John Oliver’s “Last Week Tonight” Criticizes Execution Secrecy Laws and “Sketchy” Procurement of Pentobarbital by Federal Government
During the April 7, 2024, episode of “Last Week Tonight,” host John Oliver focused on “grim developments” in the death penalty since his last segment covering lethal injection in 2019. Since then, 91 people have been executed, including 13 federal prisoners during former President Donald Trump’s administration. “Our federal and state governments have continued to pursue questionably legal and definitely horrifying ways, that, again, I would argue they shouldn’t be doing at all,” Mr. Oliver…
State & Federal Info
Federal Death Penalty
,Oct 23, 2023
In New Podcast, Rush to Kill Documents 6‑Month Federal Execution Spree Under President Donald Trump’s Administration
In July 2020, President Donald Trump’s Department of Justice, under the direction of Attorney General Bill Barr, resumed federal executions for the first time in 17 years. Over the course of the following six months, 13 federal death row prisoners were executed. During those six months, the WFIU News team was granted the opportunity to report on and witness all 13 executions at United States Penitentiary, Terre Haute in Indiana. In the time since these executions, the WFIU News team collected…
Executions
Federal Death Penalty
,Oct 06, 2023
New Details Emerge Surrounding Federal Executions Under Trump Administration
A recent article by Associated Press journalist Michael Tarm reports new details about the thirteen federal executions that took place in 2019 – 2020, including last-minute clemency appeals for death-sentenced prisoners like Brandon Bernard. Mr. Tarm witnessed ten of the executions and spoke with a number of individuals who were involved in the process for his story. As a result of these interviews, he says that the fuller picture that has emerged shows that “officials cut corners and relied…
Facts & Research
United States Supreme Court
,Federal Death Penalty
,Oct 03, 2023
Analysis Shows Supreme Court’s Changing View of Death Penalty Cases
A recent analysis by Bloomberg Law concluded that death-sentenced prisoners have fewer avenues to relief at the Supreme Court than ever before. Bloomberg identified 270 emergency requests to stay executions since 2013 and found that the Court agreed to block an execution just 11 times. Since 2020, when the Court shifted to a 6 – 3 conservative majority following the death of Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg and the appointment of Justice Amy Coney Barrett, the Court has granted just…
Facts & Research
Public Opinion
,Aug 30, 2023
Former Pro-Death Penalty District Attorney Explains Why He Now Supports Abolition and Fears Political Promises to Expand Use of the Death Penalty
Former Denver Chief Deputy District Attorney Craig Silverman recently wrote about why he changed his mind about supporting the death penalty and expressed new fears regarding its future use. His op-ed was published on August 29, 2023 in the Colorado Sun. Mr. Silverman writes that capital punishment was a prominent issue in his campaign for Denver District Attorney, and he himself prosecuted death penalty cases and publicly supported its use. But he writes that he now has “newfound support…