August 8, 2012

Hot Report: Death Penalty

OLR Report 2012-R-0321 describes which states abolished the death penalty and how they did so, which countries have the death penalty, and the history of the death penalty in Connecticut.
Connecticut is one of 17 states without the death penalty. The other states are Alaska, Hawaii, Illinois, Iowa, Maine, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, North Dakota, Rhode Island, Vermont, West Virginia, and Wisconsin.
In recent years, Connecticut and three other states abolished the death penalty.
  1. In 2007, New Jersey abolished the death penalty and legislatively resentenced death row inmates to life in prison without parole.
  2. In 2009, New Mexico abolished the death penalty prospectively, leaving two people on death row.
  3. In 2011, Illinois' legislature abolished the death penalty prospectively but the governor commuted the sentences of those on death row to life in prison without parole.
  4. In 2012, Connecticut abolished the death penalty prospectively, 10 inmates sentenced to death remain on death row, and anyone who committed a crime before April 25, 2012 can be charged with a capital felony and sentenced to death (PA 12-5).
According to Amnesty International, which tracks death penalty laws around the world:
  1. 97 countries have completely abolished the death penalty;
  2. 57 countries, including the United States, allow it;
  3. 36 countries allow it but in practice do not carry out the death penalty; and
  4. 8 countries only allow the death penalty in exceptional circumstances.
Connecticut's history with the death penalty stretches back to colonial times. The law changed many times over the years, generally narrowing the types of crimes eligible for the death penalty and later giving a judge or jury an alternative to sentencing a capital offender to death. The legislature also revised the state's death penalty statutes after the U.S. Supreme Court effectively ruled all state death penalty statutes unconstitutional in 1972. Finally, under PA 12-5, Connecticut abolished the death penalty prospectively by eliminating it as a sentencing option for crimes committed on or after April 25, 2012.
Based on information from the Death Penalty Information Center and The Day, Connecticut conducted 127 executions since 1639. The Connecticut State Library lists all executions since 1894 (http://www.cslib.org/executions.htm). In recent years, Connecticut's only executions occurred in 2005 and 1960.
Connecticut is one of 17 states without the death penalty. The other states are Alaska, Hawaii, Illinois, Iowa, Maine, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, North Dakota, Rhode Island, Vermont, West Virginia, and Wisconsin.
In recent years, Connecticut and three other states abolished the death penalty.
  1. In 2007, New Jersey abolished the death penalty and legislatively resentenced death row inmates to life in prison without parole.
  2. In 2009, New Mexico abolished the death penalty prospectively, leaving two people on death row.
  3. In 2011, Illinois' legislature abolished the death penalty prospectively but the governor commuted the sentences of those on death row to life in prison without parole.
  4. In 2012, Connecticut abolished the death penalty prospectively, 10 inmates sentenced to death remain on death row, and anyone who committed a crime before April 25, 2012 can be charged with a capital felony and sentenced to death (PA 12-5).
 According to Amnesty International, which tracks death penalty laws around the world:
  1. 97 countries have completely abolished the death penalty;
  2. 57 countries, including the United States, allow it;
  3. 36 countries allow it but in practice do not carry out the death penalty; and
  4. 8 countries only allow the death penalty in exceptional circumstances.
Connecticut's history with the death penalty stretches back to colonial times. The law changed many times over the years, generally narrowing the types of crimes eligible for the death penalty and later giving a judge or jury an alternative to sentencing a capital offender to death. The legislature also revised the state's death penalty statutes after the U.S. Supreme Court effectively ruled all state death penalty statutes unconstitutional in 1972. Finally, under PA 12-5, Connecticut abolished the death penalty prospectively by eliminating it as a sentencing option for crimes committed on or after April 25, 2012.
Based on information from the Death Penalty Information Center and The Day, Connecticut conducted 127 executions since 1639. The Connecticut State Library lists all executions since 1894 (http://www.cslib.org/executions.htm). In recent years, Connecticut's only executions occurred in 2005 and 1960.
For more information, read the full report.
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