death penalty news May 13, 2005
USA: Abolitionists eye end to death penalty Serial killer Michael Ross's execution is the first state-sanctioned killing in New England for 45 years. Across the United States, however, there are signs America's appetite for the death penalty is on the wane. It is said that even the dozen US states without capital punishment are just one hideous murder away from bringing in the death penalty. But recent years have seen a steady decline in the numbers of death sentences handed down, and a series of legal steps limiting the use of the ultimate sanction. For the first time in decades, abolitionists are daring to think the unthinkable. Professor Michael Mello, a former Florida capital crime defender, says for the first time in his life the US is "engaged in a grown-up debate about capital punishment". "Three years ago I would not have envisaged a United States without the death penalty in my lifetime. Now I am not so sure," he told the BBC. "The arguments are the same as 10, 20 or 50 years ago - the difference is that ordinary people are thinking about them." Troubling aspects In 1996 some 320 death sentences were passed in the US. In 2003 there were just 144, the lowest number since 1977. Earlier this year, the US Supreme Court banned the death penalty for crimes committed by minors. That move came just three years after it banned the execution of the mentally retarded. -------- There is not anywhere close to a level playing field - the demographics of Death Row bear that out Professor Michael Mello -------- Richard Dieter, head of the Death Penalty Information Center, said: "There is not the enthusiasm there was for the death penalty during the 1990s - public opinion is still supportive, but it is not as high. "There are areas that need fixing, so let's fix them - that is the attitude today, rather than let's get more capital offences onto the statute books." A majority of Americans still support the death penalty for the worst of crimes, but increasingly those who have to put it into practice are finding themselves troubled. Professor Mello - who represented serial killer Ted Bundy - says agreeing or disagreeing with the death penalty in theory means answering the wrong question. -------- METHODS OF EXECUTION Lethal injection: Authorized in 37 states Electrocution: In 10 states (sole method in Nebraska) Gas chamber: In five states (all of which have lethal injection as alternative) Hanging: Only in New Hampshire and Washington Firing squad: In Idaho and Oklahoma Source: DPIC -------- "We need to look at the reality of the system, of how it is administered. It is done so imperfectly, innocent people are discriminated against," he says. "There is not anywhere close to a level playing field - the demographics of Death Row bear that out." "What we have is Poor House justice - court-appointed defenders hopelessly outgunned by the resources of the prosecution." Since 1973, more than 100 people sentenced to die have later been acquitted, many through advances in DNA technology. This is seen by some as a factor pushing juries to opt for life imprisonment, rather than the death sentence. Texas, which executes more than any other US state, does not give juries the option of a "life without parole" sentence. 'Medicine is working' Supporters of capital punishment say signs of a waning appetite for the death penalty are a mirage. -------- I think there is a possibility that the Supreme Court again may take a stab at doing what it thinks the public may want Michael Rushford -------- A decline in sentencing is due to a fall in the US murder rate in recent years, some argue. "The medicine is working," Michael Rushford, president of the Criminal Justice legal Foundation, told the BBC. "The idea that people's minds have changed, while the statistics are going the other way, is just plain wrong." If there is misrepresentation on Death Row, it affects whites, not blacks, Mr Rushford argues. "Out of all the people who commit capital murder, whites are sentenced proportionally more than blacks - but there are so many more black murderers," he said. Moratorium There was a 10-year moratorium on executions in the United States that ended in 1977 with the execution of murderer Gary Gilmore by firing squad in Utah. Through consideration of a number of cases, the Supreme Court shaped new guidelines for juries and judges. In 2003, in one of the most radical moves of recent years, the governor of Illinois commuted the sentences of all 156 people on the state's Death Row, saying he had lost faith in the system. The action was hailed a "watershed" moment. But Michael Rushford claims abolitionists have "lost traction" since then. "I think there is a possibility that the Supreme Court again may take a stab at doing what it thinks the public may want," he said. "But it was wrong before and it will be wrong again." (source: BBC News)
