Category: capital punishment

Dr. Phil Convinced Oklahoma Death Row Inmate Richard Glossip’s Trial Was Unfair

OKLAHOMA CITY—Talk show host and clinical psychologist Dr. Phil McGraw stood on the steps of the Oklahoma Capitol and said the state planned to execute an innocent man but still had time to correct its error. “The highest law enforcement officer in the state of Oklahoma courageously stood up and said, ‘We blew this.’ You’ve…


Supreme Court Halts Execution of Oklahoma Death Row Inmate Richard Glossip

The U.S. Supreme Court on May 5 granted death row inmate Richard Glossip a stay of execution. At the same time, it considers two writs of certiorari in his murder case. Glossip’s attorney is hopeful he is one step closer to saving Glossip from the execution chamber. “We hope that the Court will reverse the…


Oklahoma Attorney General Says State Should Give Death Row Inmate New Trial

The state of Oklahoma is scheduled to execute Richard Glossip on May 18 for the 1997 murder of his employer Barry Van Treese. The Oklahoma Pardon and Parole Board denied Glossip’s application for clemency on April 26. An unusual partnership of anti-death penalty activists and capital punishment advocates will gather at the state capitol in…


DeSantis Signs Bill Ending Unanimous Jury Vote Requirement for Death Sentence

Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis gave final approval to a measure that puts an end to the requirement that all jury members need to vote unanimously to recommend the death penalty in capital cases. The new law, also referred to as Senate Bill 450, now requires just eight out of the total 12 jury members to vote…


Florida Puts End to Unanimous Jury Vote Requirement for Death Sentence

Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis gave final approval to a measure that puts an end to the requirement that all jury members need to vote unanimously to recommend the death penalty in capital cases. The new law, also referred to as Senate Bill 450, now requires just eight out of the total 12 jury members to vote…


Pence Calls for Federal Death Penalty Law for School Shooters

INDIANAPOLIS, Ind. — Former Vice President Mike Pence told the National Rifle Association’s Institute for Legislative Action (NRA-ILA) Leadership Forum that the solution to school shootings and increased violent crime isn’t the plan pushed by Democrats. “We don’t need gun control; we need crime control,” Pence told the group. “We need solutions to protect our…


Florida Lawmakers Unanimously Advance Bill Seeking Death Penalty for Pedophiles

A new Florida bill allowing capital punishment for those committing sexual battery on children under 12 cleared the state’s rules committee this week and is now heading to the full Senate. Senate Bill 1342 (pdf), a bipartisan effort by Sen. Lauren Book (D-Fla.) and Sen. Jonathan Martin (R-Fla.), cleared the Florida Senate Rules Committee on…


Reflections on Capital Punishment: Brutal or Proportionate?

Commentary What is the usefulness, morality, and appropriateness of the death penalty, especially as a deterrent and a consequence of carrying out atrocious crimes? Published last year, “The Boys of Biloxi” is John Grisham’s new vintage legal thriller novel that deals with an important and perennial issue: the use of the death penalty as a…


Bipartisan Bill to Abolish Death Penalty Is Filed in Kentucky

A bipartisan bill proposed in the Kentucky legislature would eliminate the death penalty and replace it with life imprisonment without parole for inmates sentenced to capital punishment. The bill was filed in the Kentucky Senate in January by Democrat Sen. Gerald Neal and Republican Sens. Julie Raque Adams and Stephen Meredith. The bill would “abolish…


Letters From Death Row Offer Pen Pals a Leap of Faith Into the Unknown

The story is without a happy ending for most prisoners sitting on death row in the United States. But the fact remains that most of the 2,450 men and women awaiting execution committed brutal crimes. Some feel remorse, while others do not. The victims’ families demand closure, but the gears of justice grind slowly. The months drag…