Alabama Discovers There Is No 'Humane' Way To Execute Someone
Instead of searching for gentle execution methods, states should just stop killing prisoners.
Death Penalty
Writer's Suspended Death Sentence Is a Reminder of China's Awful Record on Human Rights
Yang Hengjun's punishment will be commuted to life in prison if he passes a probationary period. But the espionage accusations against him are highly spurious.
Alabama Killed an Inmate With an Experimental Execution Method. Ohio Could Be Next.
Following the nitrogen hypoxia execution of Kenneth Eugene Smith last week, Ohio lawmakers introduced a bill to bring the execution method to their state.
'The Most Horrible Thing I've Ever Seen': Alabama Executes Inmate With Experimental Method
Kenneth Eugene Smith was likely the first person in the world to be executed by nitrogen hypoxia.
This Death Row Inmate Says He's Innocent. The Supreme Court Has Agreed To Hear His Case.
After multiple investigations shed doubt on his conviction, the Supreme Court has agreed to decide whether Oklahoma death-row inmate Richard Glossip will get a new trial.
Alabama Set To Use Experimental Execution Method
In killing Kenneth Eugene Smith by nitrogen hypoxia, the state would be using him as a "test subject," Smith's lawyers argue.
Alabama Set To Execute Man for a Crime He Committed While Legally a Minor
"Alabama law sets the age of majority at 19 years old, not 18 years. An 18-year-old is thus a minor," say Casey McWhorter's lawyers.
No, Mike Pence, We Should Not Make It Easier To Execute Mass Shooters
Pence suggested executing mass shooters in "months, not years," but that would remove crucial procedural protections—and not just for those who are obviously guilty.
Alabama Set To Try New, Untested Execution Method
The state has filed a motion to set an execution date for Kenneth Eugene Smith, who survived a previous execution attempt.
Should the Philadelphia D.A.'s Office Have Been Sanctioned for Failing to Protect Crime Victims' Rights?
My amicus brief to the Third Circuit argues that the district court appropriately sanctioned the Philadelphia D.A.'s Office for making misleading representations about whether they had conferred with a crime victims' family.
Could Louisiana's Governor Empty the State's Death Row?
Gov. John Bel Edwards has directed the state to review 56 death-row clemency applications after he made comments opposing capital punishment in April.
Idaho Keeps Scheduling This Inmate's Execution Even Though It Lacks the Means To Kill Him
A federal judge ruled in favor of an Idaho death-row inmate who says that the state is "psychologically torturing" him.
Trump Can't Decide Whether To Free Drug Dealers or Kill Them
His bloody rhetoric undermines his defense of the sentencing reforms he proudly embraced as president.
Alabama Isn't Ready To Kill Inmates By Nitrogen Hypoxia. It Wants To Try Anyway.
James Barber is set to be killed next month, the first execution after a string of botched lethal injection executions in the state.
Economic Freedom Is Declining in the U.S.
We once ranked No. 4 in the world, according to the Heritage Foundation. Now we're 25th.
Louisiana Gov. Said He Opposed the Death Penalty. Then Almost Every Death Row Inmate Applied for Clemency.
Only two clemency applications from death row inmates in Louisiana have been granted in the past 50 years.
What is the Significance of an Attorney General's Confession of Error in a State Capital Case?
In my Supreme Court amicus brief for the victim's family in Oklahoma v. Richard Glossip, I argue that the Oklahoma Attorney General's unfounded confession of "error" should not dictate the case's outcome.
Alabama Botched His Execution. Now He Wants To Die Differently.
On Monday, the Supreme Court sided with an Alabama death-row inmate who, after surviving a botched lethal injection attempt last year, says he wants to die by gas chamber instead.
Alabama Schedules First Execution After Monthslong Moratorium and 'Sham' Investigation
After an array of botched and unsuccessful executions, the state's Department of Corrections says its ready to start executing inmates again.
The Supreme Court Has Halted Richard Glossip's Execution
The state's own attorney general has said Glossip deserves a new trial.
As Oklahoma's Attorney General Calls for Clemency, the State Keeps Planning To Execute Richard Glossip
Two damning investigations and a request from the state attorney general haven't been enough to stop the execution.
Oklahoma Says Richard Glossip Was Denied a Fair Trial. An Appeals Court Still Won't Overturn His Conviction.
"While I respect the Court of Criminal Appeals' opinion, I am not willing to allow an execution to proceed despite so many doubts," said Oklahoma's attorney general.
Ron DeSantis Signs Florida Law Setting Lowest Threshold for Death Penalty Sentences in the Country
Florida will now only require an 8–4 majority for a jury to recommend a death sentence. Alabama is the only other state that allows split juries to recommend death sentences.
Will Ohio Kill The Death Penalty?
Recent efforts from the governor, the attorney general, and state legislators suggest the state is moving away from capital punishment.
Oklahoma Almost Killed Him 3 Times. Now, the State Is Trying To Vacate His Conviction.
"It is critical that Oklahomans have absolute faith that the death penalty is administered fairly and with certainty," said the state's attorney general in a Thursday press release.
Idaho Likely To Authorize Execution by Firing Squad
"The firing squad, in my opinion, is beneath the dignity of the state of Idaho," said one state senator. "We have to find a better way."
Cruz v. Arizona's Very Odd Jurisdictional Holding
Did the Court misunderstand its "adequate and independent state ground" doctrine?
Women Who Get Abortions Could Be Charged With Homicide Under South Carolina Bill
Plus: ACLU sues over low-flying helicopter during protests, Canada's Online News Act, and more...
Alabama Set To Resume Executions. But Will They Stop Botching Them?
"No one buys this sham of a review," wrote one critic. "And the reason we don't buy it is because we all have functioning brains."
Pennsylvania Governor Says He Won't Sign Execution Warrants
"This is a fundamental statement of morality, of what's right and wrong," Democratic Gov. Josh Shapiro said Thursday. "And I believe Pennsylvania must be on the right side of this issue."
Oklahoma Pulls Back the Relentless Pace of Planned Executions
A plan to put 25 inmates to death over two years is reconsidered.
Arizona Pauses Executions After Gov. Hobbs Orders a Review of the State's Procedures.
"It's time to address the fact that this is a system that needs better oversight on numerous fronts," Gov. Katie Hobbs said in a Friday press release.
Ron DeSantis Says Florida Shouldn't Require Unanimous Juries for Death Sentences
"We can't be in a situation where one person can just derail this," DeSantis told a gathering of law enforcement officials.
In Alabama, New Rules Make Botched Executions More Likely
"Under the new rule, the State would have been able to prolong the botched execution process indefinitely," the Equal Justice Initiative wrote in a press release.
Texas Executes Man Using Expired Drugs
A last-minute injunction gets tossed, allowing the state to give Robert Fratta a lethal dose of pentobarbital.
South Carolina Supreme Court To Decide the Future of the Death Penalty in the State
On Thursday, the South Carolina Supreme Court began hearing arguments in a case that could see the state's attempt to execute inmates by electrocution or firing squad declared unconstitutional.
Is Texas About To Use Expired Drugs To Execute Death Row Inmates?
Defendants say this practice violates the state’s own laws. The attorney general is pushing onward anyway.
Amber McLaughlin's Jury Deadlocked—So the Judge Decided She Should Be Executed
Today's scheduled execution is getting attention because she's trans. But the bigger story here is how she was sentenced to die.
2022 Was a Year of Bad, Botched Death Row Executions
Fortunately, government kills fewer prisoners each year.
Oregon's Governor Commutes Sentences of All State Death Row Inmates
Brown: “The state should not be in the business of executing people.”
Court to Girl: You Have To Wait 2 Years To Comfort Your Father as He Dies. And We're Killing Him Next Week.
Missouri law bans those under 21 from witnessing executions. Despite attempts to challenge the law, 19-year-old Khorry Ramey will be barred from attending her father's execution on Tuesday.
Alabama's Governor Calls for a Moratorium on Executions in the State
While the pause comes as a relief to those opposed to the death penalty, Ivey's full-throated defense of the practice makes it clear that she seeks only a temporary pause in executions, not an end to the policy.
Alabama Execution Called Off Because Officials Couldn't Insert Needle
For the second time in three months, the state struggles and fails to execute a death row inmate.
Justice Thomas Says "Sixth Circuit Must Do Better" in AEDPA Cases
The Supreme Court often reverses the U.S. Court of Appeals in habeas cases, but not this time.
Oklahoma Court Denies New Evidence Hearing for Death Row Inmate Richard Glossip
After the latest reprieve from the governor, he’s scheduled for execution in February.
Jackson, in First Supreme Court Opinion, Defends Death Row Inmate
In her short, yet searing dissent, Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson argues that the court should have granted the petition of an Ohio man sentenced to death after prosecutors hid a key witness' severe intellectual disability from jurors.
Some Supreme Court Justices Want the Court To Tackle More Government Abuse Cases
Unfortunately, in five separate cases today, they're outnumbered.