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Washington, DC 20036
Phone: (202) 289 - 2275
dpic@deathpenaltyinfo.org
www.deathpenaltyinfo.org
D|P
IC
DEATH PENALTY
INFORMATION CENTER
DEATH PENALTY AT A GLANCE
THE DEATH PENALTY IN DECLINE
DEATH PENALTY 5941 2010 2000
STATISTICS
Executions 43 46 85
New Inmates Under 7g 104 224
Death Sentence
Death Row population
(as of Oct. 1, 2011) 2199 3.242 3,703
Executions Since 1976 1,289
Executions in 2012
(as of Mar. 31) ‘2
+ New death sentences dropped to 78 in 2011,
representing a dramatic 75% decline since 1996, when
315 individuals were sentenced to death. It was the first
time since 1976 that the country produced fewer than
100 death sentences in a single year.
+ Executions have steadily decreased nationwide, with
43 in 2011 and 46 in 2010, representing a 56% decline
since 1999, when there were 98.
+ Over the last decade, the total population of state and
federal death rows has decreased significantly, from
3,703 inmates in 2000 to 3,199 inmates as of October
2011.
+ In recent years, Illinois, New Mexico and New Jersey
voted to abolish the death penalty. New York's death
penalty law was declared unconstitutional in 2004, and
the legislature has repeatedly rejected attempts to
reinstate capital punishment. The number of states with
the death penalty has recently dropped from 38 to 34.
* Other states, including Maryland, Kansas, Kentucky and California, are likely to consider efforts to
abolish the death penalty in the near future.
PUBLIC OPINION
* The 2011 Gallup Poll recorded the
lowest level of support, and the highest
level of opposition, in almost 40 years.
Only 61% supported the death penalty,
compared to 80% in 1994; 35% were
opposed, compared to 16% in 1994.
+ Ina 2011 CNN poll that gave
respondents a choice between the death
penalty and a sentence of life without
parole for those who commit murder,
50% chose a life sentence, while 48%
chose death.
+ In a 2010 poll conducted by Lake
Research Partners, 61% of U.S. voters
80 57 Gallup: Death Penalty Support/Opposition
80 71 70 70 69
67 68 67
70 64 64 64 65 64 «5
60 support
50 a
40 28 26 25 28 31 30 2g 27 30 31 30
30 46 22
20 13
10 oppose
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chose various alternative sentences over
the death penalty as the proper punishment for murder. Only 33% chose the death penalty.
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NOTABLE QUOTES
Connecticut leaders, including experts in law enforcement, criminologists, state legislators, and victims’
families, have voiced concerns about the death penalty in Connecticut.
Daryl K. Roberts, Retired Hartford Chief of Police
“| think the death penalty is in fact a hindrance to law enforcement. | have devoted my career to
developing programs that we know would help keep our communities safe: educational
programs and programs for community involvement. Some of these programs are suffering in
these times of tough budget cuts. If given the choice between our ineffective death penalty or
effective community crime prevention programs, | would choose the latter every
time.” (Testimony Before the Judiciary Committee, March 14, 2012)
Dr. Khalilah Brown-Dean, Associate Professor of Political Science, Quinnipiac University, and murder
victim's survivor
“There are those who say that the death penalty is about bringing closure for victims’ families.
For us, there is no closure. No sense of peace. Because the arbitrary way in which we decide
which lives are more important, leaves us with a system that is far from just. We know that there
are disparities based on class, race, and gender when it comes to who is more likely to receive
a death sentence.” (Testimony Before the Judiciary Committee, March 14, 2012)
Michael L. Molgano, Republican State Representative, Stamford, Connecticut
“Life imprisonment without the possibility of release ... holds severe consequences when one
considers the magnitude of a time a person will serve, life. A person permanently remanded in
prison under this penalty is forever removed from free society, a loss of life in my opinion.
Moreover, if by chance anyone serving a life sentence is later found innocent due to errors ina
case, the risk of wrongful death is removed; the State of Connecticut is able to err on the side of
life and there allow justice to be truly served.” (Testimony Before the Judiciary Committee,
March 14, 2012)
Dr. John J. Donohue Ill, Professor of Law, Stanford Law School
In a study of death penalty cases in Connecticut between 1973-2007, Professor Donohue
concluded that "the state’s record of handling death-eligible cases represents a chaotic and
unsound criminal justice policy that serves neither deterrence nor retribution. ... At best, the
Connecticut system haphazardly singles out a handful for execution from a substantial array of
horrible murders. ... [A]rbitrariness and discrimination are defining features of the state’s capital
punishment regime." ("Capital Punishment in Connecticut, 1973-2007: A Comprehensive
Evaluation from 4686 Murders to One Execution," Stanford Law School, National Bureau of
Economic Research, October 15, 2011)
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