death penalty

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Landmark Racial Ruling Takes Inmate Off Death Row

North Carolina judge says prosecutors kept jury mostly white

(Newser) - A black inmate in North Carolina came off death row today thanks to a controversial new law in the state. A judge reduced the sentence of Marcus Reymond Robinson to life without parole after ruling that prosecutors purposely sought to keep blacks off his jury, reports the News & Observer...

Experts Can't Figure Out If Death Penalty Deters Murder

Existing studies are flawed, and shouldn't be considered: committee

(Newser) - Ohio executed one death-row inmate yesterday and has 11 executions on the books over the next 20 months. The AP notes that could once again make the state one of the country's busiest executioners. So is all that capital punishment deterring murders there? Who knows? That's basically the...

Battling the Death Penalty: Two Men Who Fought for It
Battling the Death Penalty:
Two Who Fought for It
'a colossal failure'
Apr 7, 2012 3:31 PM CDT

Battling the Death Penalty: Two Who Fought for It

Ron Briggs and Donald Heller wish they could undo Proposition 7

(Newser) - Californians will soon consider an initiative to repeal the state's death penalty. Two of its biggest backers? The men who successfully championed the expansion of California's death penalty 34 years ago, the New York Times reports. Ron Briggs, now a farmer and Republican county official, ran the campaign...

Connecticut to Kill the Death Penalty

Senate OKs bill repealing capital punishment

(Newser) - The death penalty is a dead man walking in Connecticut. The state is almost certain to become the 17th one to do away with capital punishment, following a 20-16 vote in the state Senate. That—the 10 hours of debate and the 2:05am vote—was the hard part, explains...

US World's No. 5 Executioner: Amnesty

Executions surge in Middle East

(Newser) - Fewer countries than ever are executing people, but those countries are doing so with gusto, according to a new report from Amnesty International. Just 20 nations still use the death penalty. The US executed 43 people last year, making it 5th globally, and the only Western democracy on the list,...

Death Penalty May Await Soldier in Afghan Killings

Army soldier accused of killing 16 Afghans would face lethal injection: lawyer

(Newser) - The US soldier accused of gunning down 16 Afghan civilians near Kandahar may himself be killed for the crime, a military defense attorney tells MSNBC . "Based on what we’re hearing I suspect this will be prosecuted as a death penalty case," says Philip Cave, who is based...

Prosecutor: Mubarak Must Hang
 Prosecutor: Mubarak Must Hang
Jan 5, 2012 9:06 AM CST

Prosecutor: Mubarak Must Hang

Opening arguments conclude after three days

(Newser) - The team prosecuting Hosni Mubarak says he and all the other defendants in his case must die. Mustafa Khater, one of the prosecutors, concluded the team's three-day opening statement in Mubarak's trial today with a call for the death penalty, according to Reuters and the AP . "The...

Iran: We Might Still Stone Adulteress

Tehran apparently still itching to execute Ashtiani

(Newser) - The dizzying saga of Sakineh Mahammadi Ashtiani took another turn today, with Iran saying that it was going forward with plans to execute the convicted adulteress by stoning—unless, of course, it decides to just hang her instead, reports the AP . "There is no haste," said Malek Ajdar...

New Death Sentences Hit 35-Year Low

Just 78 sentenced this year: new report

(Newser) - The number of death sentences handed down this year dropped 30% compared to last, hitting the lowest level in 35 years, according to a new report. Just 78 people were sentenced to death this year—marking "the first time we've had fewer than 100 new death sentences in...

Troy Davis' Sister, Martina Davis-Correia, Dies
 Troy Davis' Sister Dies 
obituary
Dec 2, 2011 6:32 AM CST

Troy Davis' Sister Dies

Martina Davis-Correia spread word about his case between cancer treatments

(Newser) - Martina Davis-Correia died yesterday after a long battle with breast cancer—much of which coincided with her battle on behalf of her brother, controversial death row inmate Troy Davis, who was put to death in September . Davis-Correia, 42, had campaigned for Troy, delivering speeches and attending rallies in between her...

Turkey Pardon as Barbaric as Death Penalty

Thanksgiving tradition a reminder of 'arbitrary' punishment: Justin Smith

(Newser) - On the surface, the annual presidential pardon of a turkey may be all in fun, but it’s also a disturbing reminder of the continued existence of the death penalty in this country. The pardon makes light of “the strange power vested in politicians to decide the earthly fates...

Support for Death Penalty Hits 39-Year Low
Support for Death Penalty Hits 39-Year Low
survey says
Oct 13, 2011 12:25 PM CDT

Support for Death Penalty Hits 39-Year Low

New poll finds 61% back capital punishment

(Newser) - A full 61% of Americans back the death penalty, but even so, support is at a 39-year low. A new Gallup poll finds that support is down from 64% last year, and is at its lowest level since a brief moratorium on capital punishment began in 1972 with the Supreme...

No More Last Meals for Death Row Cons in Texas
No More Last Meals for
Death Row Cons in Texas
IN CASE YOU MISSED IT
Sep 25, 2011 7:00 PM CDT

No More Last Meals for Death Row Cons in Texas

They can no longer make special requests

(Newser) - Death row inmates in Texas can no longer request special last meals, and they can blame racist killer Lawrence Russell Brewer. Before he was executed this week , Brewer ordered up a Texas-sized feast, according to the Austin American-Statesman : "Two chicken fried steaks, a triple-meat bacon cheeseburger, a cheese omelet,...

Michael Moore Urges Boycott of Georgia Over Execution

Don't do business with state in the name of Troy Davis, he writes

(Newser) - Michael Moore wants all his fans to boycott "the murderous state of Georgia" because of the Troy Davis execution . "I encourage everyone I know to never travel to Georgia, never buy anything made in Georgia, to never do business in Georgia," he writes on his website . Moore...

Troy Davis Dies Proclaiming Innocence

He loses his final appeal

(Newser) - Troy Davis was put to death by lethal injection last night after the US Supreme Court refused to stop his execution in Georgia. Davis' attorneys made the last-ditch plea after all other options were exhausted. Davis, who was convicted of killing off-duty police officer Mark MacPhail in 1989 but...

Troy Davis' Request to Take Polygraph Rejected

His execution is just hours away

(Newser) - One more rejection for Troy Davis: Prison officials rebuffed his lawyers' attempts this morning to have him take a polygraph test , reports the Atlanta Journal-Constitution . The decision makes his execution at 7pm EDT all the more likely, though furious efforts continue to win a reprieve. His lawyers filed another appeal...

Troy Davis: I Want to Take a Polygraph Test

In effort to save him, Georgia Democrats urge prison strike

(Newser) - Troy Davis is hours from death, but he’s not giving up. The Georgia death row inmate, who claims he was wrongly convicted of killing a police officer in 1989, wants to take a polygraph test. "Mr. Davis believes he is innocent and he wants to show it,"...

Georgia Refuses to Spare Troy Davis' Life

Decision means tomorrow's execution will likely occur

(Newser) - Troy Davis will die tomorrow. Georgia's pardons board today rejected a last-ditch plea for clemency for the death row inmate, despite calls from the likes of Pope Benedict, Amnesty International, and Jimmy Carter for his sentence to be commuted. The panel announced its decision after hearing hours of testimony...

Troy Davis Execution: Former FBI Chief William Sessions Says Too Much Doubt Exists for Death Penalty
 Georgia May 
 Execute an 
 Innocent Man 
OPINION
Sep 15, 2011 12:32 PM CDT

Georgia May Execute an Innocent Man

State should commute sentence of Troy Davis: Ex-FBI chief William Sessions

(Newser) - Former FBI chief William Sessions joins those pleading with Georgia to call off next week's execution of Troy Davis, a death row inmate convicted of killing a police officer in 1989. "Serious questions about Mr. Davis' guilt, highlighted by witness recantations, allegations of police coercion, and a lack...

Rick Perry Asked to Halt Tomorrow's Execution

Jury told black men pose greater danger

(Newser) - Lawyers for Duane Edward Buck are urging Texas Gov. Rick Perry to step in and stay their client's execution, scheduled for tomorrow, citing racially biased testimony presented at his sentencing hearing. Texas law requires juries to decide if a defendant poses a “future danger” when deciding whether to...

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