The Death Penalty

The Death Penalty Study Notes

Overview of Capital Punishment

  • Definition: Capital punishment, also known as the death penalty, is a legal sentence in which individuals are executed by the state for certain offenses.

  • Jurisdiction: Currently, the federal government and 28 states allow capital punishment, with 5 states (Texas, Virginia, Oklahoma, Florida, Missouri) accounting for 64% of capital cases.

    • Texas: Accounts for 38% of capital cases among those 5 states.

  • Status of Moratoriums: Three states (California, Oregon, Pennsylvania) have governors who have imposed moratoriums, temporarily halting the use of the death penalty without abolishing it entirely (Costanzo & Krauss, 2021).

Legal Boundaries of Capital Punishment

  • Permissibility: The death penalty is confined to specific crimes and does not extend to juveniles as established in the case of Roper v. Simmons (2005), which ruled that sentencing juvenile defendants to death is unconstitutional.

  • Capital Offenses:

    • State Level:

    • Aggravated murder

    • Murder of multiple individuals

    • Murder of a child

    • Murder of a police officer

    • Murder during another crime

    • Murder for hire

    • Federal Level:

    • Espionage

    • Murder of government officials

    • Related to weapons of mass destruction

    • Sending biohazardous or explosive materials through USPS

Public Sentiment and Support for the Death Penalty

  • Fluctuation in Support: Public support for the death penalty has changed over time, often aligned with demographic factors.

    • Recent surveys show a preference for life in prison without parole (60%) compared to capital punishment (36%) (Jones, 2019; Williams et al., 2019).

  • Trends: Higher rates of violent crime correlate with increased support for the death penalty.

  • Demographics: Support tends to be greater among Republicans, middle-aged males, and White populations (Costanzo & Krauss, 2021).

Constitutional Aspects of Capital Punishment

  • Supreme Court Interventions: The death penalty has faced extensive litigation concerning Eighth and Fourth Amendment rights.

    • Furman v. Georgia (1972): The Supreme Court held that the capital punishment as it existed was unconstitutional, deemed as “wantonly and freakishly applied” (p. 408).

    • Resulted in states revising laws rather than abolishing the death penalty entirely.

Two-Phase Deliberation in Capital Cases

  • Gregg v. Georgia (1976): Introduced guided discretion statutes to limit the discretion of juries in capital cases.

    • Jury proceedings established a two-phase process:

    • Phase 1: Determine guilt.

    • Phase 2: Decide on sentencing (death or life imprisonment).

    • Requirements for state supreme courts to review capital cases.

Aggravating and Mitigating Factors

  • Aggravating Factors:

    • Characteristics that warrant the death penalty, indicating the harmfulness of the defendant’s actions.

    • Example from Texas capital cases: High likelihood of future dangerousness.

  • Mitigating Factors:

    • These factors decrease the perceived culpability of the defendant and promote life imprisonment as a suitable alternative.

    • Variety of variables can be considered, and jurors must weigh their significance.

    • Lockett v. Ohio (1978): Ruled that jurors cannot completely disregard mitigating factors.

Role of the Jury in Sentencing

  • Burden of Proof: Post Ring v. Arizona (2002), juries must establish the presence of at least one aggravating factor beyond a reasonable doubt during deliberation.

  • Jury’s Verdict: Wurst v. Florida (2016) underscored that the decision to execute must be driven by a jury's verdict rather than a judge’s fact-finding.

Death Qualification of Juries

  • Death Qualification: An additional voir dire step exclusive to capital cases to eliminate jurors who cannot consider the death penalty.

  • Demographic Traits:

    • Jurors likely to favor the death penalty are often: male, White, and hold firm beliefs in punishment for murderers (Summers et al., 2010).

    • Conversely, non-death-qualified jurors may be female, Black, and more liberal.

Criticisms of Death Qualification

  • Issues for Defendants: Death-qualified juries are statistically more prone to convict, acknowledged by the Court in Lockhart v. McCree (1986).

  • Impact on Objective Weighing:

    • Death-qualified jurors tend to focus on aggravating factors while paying less attention to mitigating factors (Bowes et al., 1998).

    • Jury instructions for weighing these factors are often vague and lack clarity (Costanzo & Krauss, 2021).

Challenges in Juror Decision-Making

  • Lack of Clear Instructions: Jurors can struggle with weighing factors effectively, leading to biases.

  • Emotional Influence: Frustration can lead to lowered objectivity and contribute to biased verdicts (Nunez et al., 2018).

    • Anger can particularly reduce the consideration of mitigating factors (Georges et al., 2013).

Racial Disparities in Capital Punishment

  • Study by Shaked-Schroer et al. (2008): Simplified jury instructions resulted in fewer racial biases in verdicts between Black and White defendants.

    • Notably, prior research indicated significant disparities in sentencing: 22% of Black convicts vs. 3% of White convicts receiving death sentences (Costanzo & Krauss, 2021).

Logistical Considerations of Capital Punishment

  • Financial Implications: According to the Death Penalty Information Center, as of January, approximately 2,100 convicts are on death row.

    • Example: In Maryland, prosecuting capital cases costs about $1.9 million more than non-capital cases due to extended investigations and legal processes, maintaining secure death rows, and execution costs (Cunningham et al., 2018).

Length of Time on Death Row

  • Average Incarceration: Inmates typically spend around 20 years on death row, with some waiting up to 36 years (Costanzo & Krauss, 2021).

    • Many inmates die of natural causes before execution (Costanzo & Krauss, 2021).

Deterrence Theories Surrounding the Death Penalty

  • Purpose: The death penalty aims to incapacitate criminals and deter potential murderers by instilling fear of execution.

  • Paradox: Studies show that states with capital punishment often exhibit higher homicide rates (Donohue & Wolfers, 2006; Sellin, 1980).

  • Brutalization Effect: The presence of executions may desensitize citizens to violence and justify violent behavior, with evidence suggesting increased murders following executions (Bowers, 1998; Donohue & Wolfers, 2006, 2007).

Limitations of Deterrence Theory

  • Rationality Assumption: Not all individuals engage in a rational analysis before committing violent crimes, especially under emotional states like fear or rage (Costanzo, 1997).

  • Misunderstandings: Some individuals may not perceive death as the most severe outcome, viewing life imprisonment as a worse scenario.

Issues of Wrongful Conviction

  • Greatest Legal Error: Wrongful conviction leading to execution is a significant concern in capital punishment cases.

  • Study by Radelet et al. (1992): Analyzed 416 wrongful death sentences and identified contributing factors:

    • Law Enforcement Errors: Poor investigations; coerced or false confessions.

    • Prosecutorial Errors: Suppression of exculpatory evidence.

    • Witness Errors: Eyewitness misidentifications; perjury.

    • Errors in Forensic Science: Misleading circumstantial evidence influenced by community outrage and pressure.

Exonerations of Wrongfully Convicted Defendants

  • Research from 1973 to 2019: 167 exonerated prisoners were released from death row (Death Penalty Information Center, 2020).

    • Technological advancements and DNA evidence have aided in exoneration, although such advancements must have been available at the time of the crime for applicability.