Death Penalty Statistics

1
Death Penalty Statistics

• From 1976 (new DP) through 2008
• 600,000 homicides in the US
• (see next slide for more details)
• 8,000 death sentences in the US
• (only 1 in 75 homicides results in a death
  sentence)
• 1136 executions in the US
• (only 1 in 550 homicides results in an execution)

2
Death Penalty Statistics
Declining homicides and homicide rates since
1991 600,000 homicides since DP reinstated in
1976
1976 8.8 18,780 1977 8.8 19,120 1978 9.0 19,560 19
79 9.7 21,460 1980 10.2 23,040 1981 9.8 22,520
1982 9.1 21,010 1983 8.3 19,308 1984 7.9 18,692 1
985 7.9 18,976 1986 8.6 20,613 1987 8.3 20,096 198
8 8.4 20,675 1989 8.7 21,500 1990 9.4 23,438
1991 9.8 24,703 1992 9.3 23,760 1993 9.5 24,526 19
94 9.0 23,326 1995 8.2 21,606 1996 7.4 19,645 1997
6.8 18,208 1998 6.3 16,974 1999 5.7 15,522 2000 5
.5 15,586 2001 5.6 16,039 2002 5.6 16,229 2003 5.7
16,582 2004 5.5 16,137 2005 5.6 16,692
3
Death Penalty Statistics
4
Death Penalty Statistics
The huge growth of death row, and the recent
decline
5
Death Penalty Statistics
6
Death Penalty Statistics
7
Death Penalty Statistics
Executions continued a long-term drop in 2008
with 37
8
Death Penalty Statistics
The decline, re-emergence, and new decline of the
DP
9
Death Penalty Statistics
37
.
10
Death Penalty Statistics
11
Death Penalty Statistics
The top 8 post-Furman execution states
12
Death Penalty Statistics

• In 2007, 42 persons in 10 states were executed --
  26 in Texas 3 each in Alabama and Oklahoma 2
  each in Indiana, Ohio, and Tennessee and 1 each
  in South Dakota, Georgia, South Carolina, and
  Arizona
• Of persons executed in 2007-- 28 were white
  (includes Hispanic, Asian, Native American)-- 14
  were black
• All 42 inmates executed in 2007 were men
• Lethal injection was used in 41 executions in
  2007
• 1 execution was by electrocution.

13
Death Penalty Statistics

• Death row goes to zero with Furman.
• Steady buildup comes from
• Incr sentences thru 1970s 1980s very
  slow incr in exec
• Then levels off in 1990s, followed by decreasing
  sentences and exec
• Two features continued from the early 1900s
• Southernization of the dp
• Racialization of the dp (min/white)

14
Death Penalty Statistics
Furman arbitrary, capricious, discrim DP
concentrated in urban areas of southern and
western states with large minority pops -
(Hous, LA, Atlanta, Phoenix, etc.) Smaller
numbers in Phil, Cleveland, Chicago, etc. Very
rare everywhere else!! Who? Young, Poor,
Males, Uneducated, Unattached, Disprop
min/white, Mostly not repeat offenders (90 )