#death penalty

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The Two-Way

Supreme Court Strikes Down Florida's Process Of Imposing Death Penalty

   January 12, 2016 • Justice Sonia Sotomayor wrote that Florida's capital
   punishment sentencing process is unconstitutional because it allows
   judges, not juries, to decide whether to impose the death penalty.
   Family members of Shafqat Hussain, who was convicted and hanged in
   Pakistan in August for killing a boy in 2004, waited to receive his
   body outside the central jail in Karachi. Pakistan executed more than
   300 people last year.

   Family members of Shafqat Hussain, who was convicted and hanged in
   Pakistan in August for killing a boy in 2004, waited to receive his
   body outside the central jail in Karachi. Pakistan executed more than
   300 people last year. Fareed Khan/AP hide caption
   toggle caption Fareed Khan/AP

Parallels

Fewer Countries Are Relying On Death Penalty, But They're Executing More

   January 7, 2016 • Saudi Arabia's spate of 47 executions last week
   continued a trend from 2015, in which several countries that have the
   death penalty used it more often.
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   The death chamber of the lethal injection facility at San Quentin State
   Prison in San Quentin, Calif.

   The death chamber of the lethal injection facility at San Quentin State
   Prison in San Quentin, Calif. Eric Risberg/AP hide caption
   toggle caption Eric Risberg/AP

The Two-Way

Use Of Death Penalty Continues Its Decline In The United States

   December 16, 2015 • According to numbers compiled by the Death Penalty
   Information Center, the number of people executed in the United States
   is at its lowest level since 1991. Death sentences are down 33 percent.
   Anti-death penalty activists, including members of MoveOn.org and other
   advocay groups, rally outside the U.S. Supreme Court in a final attempt
   to prevent the execution of Oklahoma inmate Richard Glossip on Sept.
   29.

   Anti-death penalty activists, including members of MoveOn.org and other
   advocay groups, rally outside the U.S. Supreme Court in a final attempt
   to prevent the execution of Oklahoma inmate Richard Glossip on Sept.
   29. Larry French/Getty Images hide caption
   toggle caption Larry French/Getty Images

Law

Are Last-Minute Death Penalty Delays Cruel And Unusual Punishment?

KGOU

   November 23, 2015 • The death penalty in the U.S. is under scrutiny
   after a series of botched executions. Some death row lawyers and
   activists say the repeated delays are torture for prisoners like
   Richard Glossip.
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   California's death row at San Quentin State Prison.

   California's death row at San Quentin State Prison. Eric Risberg/AP
   hide caption
   toggle caption Eric Risberg/AP

The Two-Way

Federal Appeals Court Upholds California's Deliberative Death Penalty Process

   November 12, 2015 • A judge ruled last year that the decades of
   uncertainty California death row inmates have to endure violated their
   rights. An appeals court said it couldn't uphold that constitutional
   interpretation.
   Dylann Roof faces nine counts of murder as well as charges of attempted
   murder and a weapons charge in connection with the June 17 killings
   inside the Emanuel AME Church in Charleston, S.C.

   Dylann Roof faces nine counts of murder as well as charges of attempted
   murder and a weapons charge in connection with the June 17 killings
   inside the Emanuel AME Church in Charleston, S.C. Getty Images hide
   caption
   toggle caption Getty Images

The Two-Way

S.C. To Seek Death Penalty For Dylann Roof In Charleston Shooting

   September 3, 2015 • Roof has been charged with murdering nine people at
   Emanuel African Methodist Episcopal Church in South Carolina in June.
   He also faces federal hate crime charges.

The Two-Way

Tennessee Court Upholds Lethal Injection Procedures

   August 26, 2015 • A county judge ruled the state's use of the lethal
   injection was constitutional, but further appeals are all but certain.
   Members of the Nicaraguan Human Rights Center, CENIDH, hold signs
   against the execution in the U.S. of Nicaraguan Bernardo Aban Tercero
   in Managua, Nicaragua.

   Members of the Nicaraguan Human Rights Center, CENIDH, hold signs
   against the execution in the U.S. of Nicaraguan Bernardo Aban Tercero
   in Managua, Nicaragua. Esteban Felix/AP hide caption
   toggle caption Esteban Felix/AP

The Two-Way

Texas Set To Execute Nicaraguan National, Despite Legal Controversy

   August 25, 2015 • Bernardo Tecero was convicted of killing a Texas
   school teacher. Supporters say he should not be executed because he
   wasn't informed of his right to contact a consular official.

The Two-Way

Connecticut Supreme Court Ruling Bars Execution Of 11 Death Row Inmates

   August 13, 2015 • The inmates had been subject to execution because
   their capital offenses occurred before the state repealed the death
   penalty in 2012. The new ruling says the current law is
   unconstitutional.
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Around the Nation

Jury Begins Debating Whether Colorado Should Execute Theater Shooter

Colorado Public Radio

   August 7, 2015 • This week jurors heard victim impact statements from
   family members of the 12 people James Holmes killed in an Aurora,
   Colo., movie theater. They start death penalty deliberations today.
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   In this image taken from video, James Holmes (upper far left) listens
   to defense attorney Daniel King give closing arguments during Holmes'
   trial in Centennial, Colo., on Tuesday. Holmes was found guilty
   Thursday of first-degree murder in the deaths of 12 people at a
   Colorado theater.

   In this image taken from video, James Holmes (upper far left) listens
   to defense attorney Daniel King give closing arguments during Holmes'
   trial in Centennial, Colo., on Tuesday. Holmes was found guilty
   Thursday of first-degree murder in the deaths of 12 people at a
   Colorado theater. Colorado Judicial Department /AP hide caption
   toggle caption Colorado Judicial Department /AP

Around the Nation

Jury Rejects Insanity Defense For Theater Shooter, Who May Get Death Penalty

Colorado Public Radio

   July 17, 2015 • James Holmes was found guilty of storming a midnight
   premier for the latest Batman movie, where he shot and killed 12 people
   and hurt 70 more. The question now is if Holmes will get the death
   penalty.
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Around the Nation

Prosecutors Say Theater Shooter's Detailed Plan Showed Intent — And Sanity

Colorado Public Radio

   July 15, 2015 • Jurors in the trial James Holmes heard closing
   arguments Tuesday. Colorado Public Radio's Ben Markus reports on the
   cases made for and against Holmes' insanity at the time of the
   killings.
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   The gurney in the the execution chamber at the Oklahoma State
   Penitentiary in McAlester, Okla. On Monday the Supreme Court voted 5-4
   in a case from Oklahoma that the sedative midazolam can be used in
   executions without violating the prohibition on cruel and unusual
   punishment.

   The gurney in the the execution chamber at the Oklahoma State
   Penitentiary in McAlester, Okla. On Monday the Supreme Court voted 5-4
   in a case from Oklahoma that the sedative midazolam can be used in
   executions without violating the prohibition on cruel and unusual
   punishment. Sue Ogrocki/AP hide caption
   toggle caption Sue Ogrocki/AP

Law

Supreme Court Concludes Term With Death Penalty Ruling, Looks Ahead

   June 30, 2015 • The court wrapped up on Monday, supporting the use of a
   controversial drug for executions by lethal injection. The justices
   also set up cases to be heard next term on affirmative action and
   abortion.
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The Two-Way

Supreme Court Says Use Of Lethal Injection Drug Is Legal

   June 29, 2015 • Lawyers for Oklahoma death row inmates argued midazolam
   does not reliably induce a comalike sleep, violating the Constitution's
   ban on cruel and unusual punishment.
   A Tea Party supporter rings a bell in protest of the health care law in
   front of the U.S. Supreme Court, as Obamacare supporters shout behind
   her.

   A Tea Party supporter rings a bell in protest of the health care law in
   front of the U.S. Supreme Court, as Obamacare supporters shout behind
   her. Alex Wong/Getty Images hide caption
   toggle caption Alex Wong/Getty Images

It's All Politics

Drama On The Docket: High Court's Term Set To End With Slate Of Big Cases

   June 15, 2015 • It's crunch time for the U.S. Supreme Court, as
   consequential decisions will be coming soon. The biggest issues left:
   same-sex marriages, subsidies under Obamacare and lethal injection
   drugs.
   States that have the death penalty
   Christopher Groskopf/NPR

It's All Politics

Map: Where (And How) The Government Can Execute People

   May 27, 2015 • Nebraska just repealed its death penalty. Here's a look
   at where the law stands in your state.
   A view of the death chamber from the witness room at the Southern Ohio
   Correctional Facility.

   A view of the death chamber from the witness room at the Southern Ohio
   Correctional Facility. Mike Simons/Getty Images hide caption
   toggle caption Mike Simons/Getty Images

It's All Politics

Nebraska Repeals Death Penalty, But U.S. Isn't Quite Ready To Abandon It

   May 27, 2015 • Cost and lethal injection complications have led some
   states to reconsider the death penalty. U.S. support for the practice
   has declined over the last two decades, but 3 in 5 still support it.

The Two-Way

Nebraska Lawmakers Override Governor's Veto Of Death Penalty Repeal

   May 27, 2015 • The vote was 30-19. Nebraska is now the first
   Republican-controlled state in the U.S. to repeal the death penalty
   since North Dakota in 1973.

The Two-Way

Nebraska Governor Vetoes Bill That Repealed Death Penalty

   May 26, 2015 • The move sets up a showdown Wednesday with lawmakers in
   the state's unicameral Legislature. A close vote is expected as
   lawmakers try to override the veto.

The Two-Way

Nebraska Lawmakers Move Step Closer To Repealing Death Penalty

   May 20, 2015 • The vote in the Republican-controlled unicameral
   Legislature was 32-15 — enough support to override a threatened veto
   from Gov. Pete Ricketts.
   Supreme Court Justice Sonia Sotomayor grilled lawyers arguing the
   constitutionality of new lethal-injection cocktails.

   Supreme Court Justice Sonia Sotomayor grilled lawyers arguing the
   constitutionality of new lethal-injection cocktails. Win McNamee/Getty
   Images hide caption
   toggle caption Win McNamee/Getty Images

It's All Politics

It's Sotomayor V. Roberts In Supreme Court Death Penalty Drama

   April 29, 2015 • Justice Sonia Sotomayor and lawyers arguing in favor
   of Oklahoma's lethal-injection cocktail got into a clash so pronounced
   that Chief Justice John Roberts chastised Sotomayor for talking too
   much.
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   Diann Rust-Tierney, executive director of the National Coalition to
   Abolish the Death Penalty, with teammate Barry Scheck, co-director of
   the Innocence Project.

   Diann Rust-Tierney, executive director of the National Coalition to
   Abolish the Death Penalty, with teammate Barry Scheck, co-director of
   the Innocence Project. Samuel LaHoz/Intelligence Squared U.S. hide
   caption
   toggle caption Samuel LaHoz/Intelligence Squared U.S.

Intelligence Squared U.S.

Debate: Is It Time To Abolish The Death Penalty?

   April 22, 2015 • The practice is under renewed scrutiny after a series
   of botched executions in several states last year. The emotionally
   charged issue is at the center of the latest Intelligence Squared U.S.
   debate.
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The Two-Way

Pharmacists Group Votes To Discourage Members From Providing Execution Drugs

   March 30, 2015 • The measure could make it harder for states using
   made-to-order execution drugs to buy them. The American Pharmacists
   Association voted on the policy at its annual meeting.

Around the Nation

Utah Brings Back Firing Squads As Lethal Injection Drugs Remain Scarce

   March 23, 2015 • The Republican governor, who signed the bill Monday,
   has said Utah needs a backup execution method in case a shortage of
   drugs persists — though he's called firing squads "a little bit
   gruesome."
   Indonesian President Joko Widodo inspects an honor guard during a visit
   to Manila, Philippines, on Feb. 9. Widodo's supporters see him as very
   different from the strongmen who have long run Indonesia. But he has
   dismayed some of his backers with his strong support of the death
   penalty.

   Indonesian President Joko Widodo inspects an honor guard during a visit
   to Manila, Philippines, on Feb. 9. Widodo's supporters see him as very
   different from the strongmen who have long run Indonesia. But he has
   dismayed some of his backers with his strong support of the death
   penalty. Jay Directo/AFP/Getty Images hide caption
   toggle caption Jay Directo/AFP/Getty Images

Parallels

Indonesia's President: Fan Of Megadeth, Defender Of Death Penalty

   February 21, 2015 • Indonesia's recently elected President Joko Widodo
   is a heavy metal fan seen as an advocate for human rights and political
   change. But his strong stance on the death penalty has dismayed many.
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