DYK (#13) The Links Between Lynchings and Executions
This is well represented by the fact that 41.38 percent of death row inmates nationally are black, and 84 out of 164 death row exonerees are black, yet black people make up only 15 percent of our national population, and black men are a significantly smaller percentage. Furthermore, The Equal Justice Initiative points out that “More than eight in ten American lynchings between 1889 and 1918 occurred in the South, and more than eight in ten of the more than 1400 executions carried out in this country since 1976 have been in the South.” Continue reading DYK (#13) The Links Between Lynchings and Executions
DYK (#12) How Young is Too Young to Execute?
Between 1976 and 2003, the US executed 22 people for crimes committed under the age of 18. If we look back to the colonial era, that number grows to approximately 365 people, according to DPIC. Continue reading DYK (#12) How Young is Too Young to Execute?
DYK(#11) The Boy Who Was Executed Twice and the Return of the Electric Chair
Willie Francis survived his first execution in 1946, at the age of 16, because prison staff in Louisiana did not properly set up the electric chair. Continue reading DYK(#11) The Boy Who Was Executed Twice and the Return of the Electric Chair
DYK (#10)Texas Death Row and Indefinite Solitary Confinement
What wasn’t included in the text of their death sentences are the cruel conditions and punishments inflicted on prisoners and their families due to TDCJ’s policies for Death Row. Not only are these men automatically held in indefinite solitary confinement, many for over a decade now, but they are also denied television, educational classes, religious services, jobs, and regular phone access that many prisoners take for granted. Continue reading DYK (#10)Texas Death Row and Indefinite Solitary Confinement
DYK (#9) Sentenced to Death Without Killing Anyone
Many states, notably Texas and California, have a Felony Murder Law or “Law of Parties” which allows for someone to be sentenced to death even if they did not kill the victim, but only acted as a participant in the crime. This law works by mandating that if you were involved in committing a felony that resulted in death(s), you are equally as responsible for … Continue reading DYK (#9) Sentenced to Death Without Killing Anyone
DYK (#8) Political History of Executions
Regardless of the era, or even the country, executions remain a major tool for social control and political repression. This is an often overlooked aspect of the Death Penalty system that must be discussed more in depth, especially in the context of our current political climate nationally and globally. Continue reading DYK (#8) Political History of Executions
DYK(#7)Execution: You Can Volunteer for That?
The death of Scott Dozier on Nevada’s Death Row will surely renew discussion on prisoners who “volunteer” to be executed. Dozier was one of a growing number of condemned people who gave up their appeals in hopes of being executed sooner. Because Nevada could not acquire the correct drugs to legally or “humanely” kill him, his execution in July 2018 was called off. It seems … Continue reading DYK(#7)Execution: You Can Volunteer for That?
