Capital Punishment
Capital Punishment is a profoundly complex and controversial aspect of the criminal justice system. This section provides articles that explore the history, legal frameworks, and ethical debates surrounding Capital Punishment in various jurisdictions. Correctional professionals can gain insights into the procedures, implications, and ongoing discussions about using the death penalty. Understanding Capital Punishment is crucial for those involved in its administration and those engaged in broader criminal justice reform efforts. For further context, explore related topics on supermax prisons.
The court ruled that discredited bite mark analysis and other new evidence meant no rational juror would have convicted Jimmie “Chris” Duncan of first-degree murder today
The new facility in Westville was designed to accommodate lethal injection and firing squads despite current law permitting only lethal injection
Dusty Ray Spencer was convicted of fatally stabbing his wife in 1992 and was resentenced to death after a new penalty hearing
Ernest Dykes alleges prosecutors systematically excluded Black and Jewish jurors, leading to decades in prison before his 2025 release
Richard Glossip, who faced multiple execution dates over three decades, will be retried without the death penalty
Drawing on 50 years as a prosecutor, lawmaker and governor, Gov. Mike DeWine said the death penalty fails to achieve its intended purpose
State prison officials will recruit trained law enforcement volunteers as Idaho becomes the nation’s only state with firing squad as its primary execution method
Ruling halts Jeffrey Lee’s scheduled execution and could set up a U.S. Supreme Court review of nitrogen hypoxia
The ruling directs a lower court to evaluate whether a firing squad was feasible ahead of Jeffery Lee’s scheduled execution
Andrew Lukehart admitted he dropped and shook the infant before disposing of her body in a pond
The judge ruled death by nitrogen hypoxia does not meet the constitutional standard for cruel and unusual punishment
State attorneys disclosed in a court filing that Nevada has no usable drugs under its current execution protocol
Medical personnel could not establish the backup IV line on Tony Carruthers, which is required under Tennessee’s execution protocol
Leroy Dean McGill was convicted of killing one man and severely burning another victim during a 2002 attack in Phoenix
Edward Busby Jr. was put to death for the 2004 killing of retired professor Laura Lee Crane after the U.S. Supreme Court lifted a last-minute stay
Richard Glossip was released on $500,000 bond after the U.S. Supreme Court overturned his conviction over false witness testimony
A judge ruled John Richard Wood, convicted of killing Trooper Eric Nicholson in 2000, suffers from schizophrenia and cannot understand why he is being executed
The courtroom was standing room only, with many of the attendees wearing Athena Strand’s favorite color of pink
The man was condemned for the 2008 shooting deaths of two men outside a suburban Dallas music studio
James Ernest Hitchcock was pronounced dead following a lethal injection; he was convicted of the July 1976 killing of 13-year-old Cynthia Driggers
Officials say the state will be ready by July with trained riflemen and a manual process, despite efforts to reduce direct staff involvement
Clark County’s district attorney is seeking death warrants for three inmates, but ongoing legal battles, drug challenges and past failures leave the state’s first execution in nearly two decades uncertain
The Trump administration is working to resume executions and expand the use of capital punishment at the federal level
Chadwick Scott Willacy, 58, was Florida’s fifth execution in 2026
Jeremy Tremaine Williams was convicted of the 2021 rape and killing of a 5-year-old girl and is asking to waive further appeals
In his latest report, AG Dave Yost argued that Ohio is failing victims’ families by allowing executions to remain on hold
Michael Domingues, who was the youngest person in modern Nevada history to be sentenced to death at the time, was released after legal shifts on juvenile sentencing opened a path to parole
Multiple 911 calls during the 2008 abduction revealed coordination failures, leading to the passage of the Denise Amber Lee Act to strengthen dispatcher training
The proposal, aligned with President Trump’s executive order, would ease certification requirements and make approvals permanent for qualifying states
