Chapter 27: Capital Punishment Pt. 2 Flashcards
Executions over the years: increased from the _____s through the _____s; dropped in the _____s until the ______s; increasing again until the ______s
1910s 1930s 1940s 1970s 1990s
In both 2011 and 2012, there were ___ executions in the U.S.
43
What are the major cases/rules on the death penalty (in the U.S.)?
(1) Furman vs. Georgia
2) Gregg vs Georgia (1976); Woodson vs North Carolina (1976); Roberts vs Lousiana (1976
What happened in the Furman vs. Georgia case?
rules that the death penalty was “cruel and unusual punishment” under the 8th and 14th Amendment
the court objected to this
What was the result of the Furman vs. Georgia case
voided the laws about the death penalty in 39 states and the District of Columbia
What happened in the Gregg vs Georgia (1976); Woodson vs North Carolina (1976); Roberts vs Lousiana (1976) case?
struck down the constitutionality of mandatory death penalties
Which states have the highest execution rates (around 2010)?
(1) Texas
(2) Oklahoma
(3) Arizona
(4) Mississippi
(5) Florida & Ohio
(6) South Dakota
(7) Delaware & Idaho
What are the top 5 states for executions in the Post-Furman era?
(1) Texas
(2) Virginia
(3) Oklahoma
(4) Florida
(5) Missouri
What is the largest numbers of death row inmates per state?
(1) California
(2) Florida
(3) Texas
(4) Pennsylvania
99% of persons executed in the U.S. form 1976 to 2012 were ____
men
35% of persons executed in the post-Furnman era were _____ and 7% were _______
black
Hispanic
56% of those executed in 2012 had been under a death sentence for at least ___ years
15
What are the primary methods for U.S. execution?
lethal injection, electrocution, and gas chamber
What is the difference between retentionist and abolitionist?
Retentionists- large group of people/organization that want to retain capital punishment
Abolitionists- large group of people/organization that want to abolish capital punishment
What are the type of issues that retentionist and abolitionists disagree on?
(1) Moral Issue
(2) Protection of Society
(3) Economic Costs
(4) Marginal Deterrence
(5) The Nature of Homicide
(6) Discriminatory Application
(7) Possibility of Error
(8) The Brutalization Effect
What is the moral stance of retentionist and abolitionists when it comes to the death penalty?
Retentionists- moral obligation of society to execute murderers; this also protects other prisoners and prison guards
Abolitionists- it hypocritical to murder murderers
What is the stance of retentionist and abolitionists on the protection of society when it comes to the death penalty?
Retentionists- pubic safety is not guaranteed by imprisonment
Abolitionists- maximum security prisons protect society from murderers
What is the stance of retentionist and abolitionists on the economic costs of the death penalty?
Retentionists- why pay all the money for life imprisonment
Abolitionists- it costs more to execute someone
There is little to no evidence of _______ _________ when it comes to the death penalty.
marginal deterrence
What is the stance of retentionist and abolitionists on the marginal deterrence of the death penalty?
Retentionists- argue you cannot compare state;s because they differ on other characteristics that affect murder rates
Abolitionists- use the fact that, states with the death penalty often have a slightly higher murder rate than other states in their vicinity that don’t have the death penalty
What is the stance of retentionist and abolitionists on the nature of homicide in relation to the death penalty?
Retentionists- argue that 95% of homicides are impulsive and spontaneous acts, because capital punishment is deterring the planned and calculated murders
Abolitionists- capital punishment is not going to be a deterrent and should therefore be abolished
What is the stance of retentionist and abolitionists on the discriminatory application of the death penalty?
Retentionists- attributed disparities to outside factors other than overt racial biases
Abolitionists- wide disparity is due to racial discrimination against black offenders
What is the stance of retentionist and abolitionists on the possibility of error in the death penalty process?
Retentionists- the risks are extremely rare
Abolitionists-the risks are too high
What is the stance of retentionist and abolitionists on the brutalization effect?
Retentionists- focus on the pre‐execution leveling of homicides as supporting evidence
Abolitionists- focus on the post-execution increase in homicides as evidence
