U.S. Department of Justice Office of Justice Programs Bureau of Justice Statistics Bulletin This report is one in a series. More recent editions may available. To view a list of all in the series go to http://www.ojp.usdoj.gov/bjs/pubalp2.htm#cp Revised 1/14/99 from 12/13/98 release Consistent with printed version Capital Punishment 1997 December 1998, NCJ 172881 Tracy L. Snell BJS Statistician -------------------------------------------------- *************** Highlights *************** Status of the death penalty, December 31, 1997 Executions during 1997 Texas 37 Virginia 9 Missouri 6 Arkansas 4 Alabama 3 Arizona 2 Illinois 2 South Carolina 2 Colorado 1 Florida 1 Indiana 1 Kentucky 1 Louisiana 1 Maryland 1 Nebraska 1 Oklahoma 1 Oregon 1 Total 74 Number of prisoners under sentence of death California 486 Texas 438 Florida 370 Pennsylvania 214 Ohio 177 North Carolina 176 Alabama 159 Illinois 159 Oklahoma 137 Arizona 120 Georgia 115 Tennessee 98 Missouri 88 Nevada 87 Louisiana 70 South Carolina 68 Mississippi 64 18 other jurisdictions 309 Total 3,335 Jurisdictions without a death penalty Alaska District of Columbia Hawaii Iowa Maine Massachusetts Michigan Minnesota North Dakota Rhode Island Vermont West Virginia Wisconsin *At yearend 1997, 34 States and the Federal prison system held 3,335 prisoners under sentence of death, 3% more than at yearend 1996. Persons under sentence of death, by race 1987 1997 White 1,128 1,876 Black 813 1,406 American Indian 17 28 Asian 9 17 Other 0 8 *The 283 Hispanic inmates under sentence of death accounted for 9.2% of inmates with a known ethnicity. *Forty-four women were under a sentence of death in 1997. *Among persons for whom arrest information was available, the average age at time of arrest was 28; 2% of inmates were age 17 or younger. *At yearend the youngest inmate was 18; the oldest was 82. *Of the 5,796 people under sentence of death between 1977 and 1997, 7.5% were executed, 2.7% died by causes other than execution, and 32.2% received other dispositions. *The number of States authorizing lethal injection increased from 18 in 1987 to 32 in 1997. In 1997, 92% of all executions were by lethal injection, compared to 28% in 1987. -------------------------------------------------- Seventeen States executed 74 prisoners during 1997. The number executed was 29 greater than in 1996 and was the largest annual number since the 76 executed in 1955. The prisoners executed during 1997 had been under sentence of death an average of 11 years and 1 month, 8 months more than that for inmates executed in 1996. At yearend 1997, 3,335 prisoners were under sentence of death. California held the largest number on death row (486), followed by Texas (438), Florida (370), and Pennsylvania (214). Fifteen prisoners were under a Federal sentence of death. During 1997, 29 States and the Federal prison system received 256 prisoners under sentence of death. California (36 admissions), Texas (32), North Carolina (22) and Florida (18) accounted for 42% of those sentenced to death. During 1997, 74 men were executed. Of those executed, 41 were non-Hispanic whites; 26 were non-Hispanic blacks; 4, white Hispanics; 1, black Hispanic; 1, American Indian; and 1, Asian. Sixty-eight of the executions were carried out by lethal injection, and 6 by electrocution. From January 1, 1977, to December 31, 1997, 432 executions took place in 29 States. Nearly two-thirds of the executions occurred in five States: Texas (144), Virginia (46), Florida (39), Missouri (29), and Louisiana (24). During this 21-year period, a total of 5,416 persons entered State and Federal prisons under sentences of death, among whom 50% were white, 41% were black, 7% were Hispanic, and about 2% were of other races. Also during 1977-97, 2,029 prisoners were removed from a death sentence as a result of dispositions other than execution (resentencing, retrial, commutation, or death while awaiting execution). Of persons removed by other means, 52% were white, 41% were black, 5% were Hispanic, 1% were American Indian, and 0.5% were Asian. -------------------------------------------------- Figure 1. Persons under sentence of death, 1957-97 Number under Year sentence of death 1953 131 1954 147 1955 125 1956 146 1957 151 1958 147 1959 164 1960 210 1961 257 1962 267 1963 297 1964 315 1965 331 1966 406 1967 435 1968 517 1969 575 1970 631 1971 642 1972 334 1973 134 1974 244 1975 488 1976 420 1977 423 1978 483 1979 595 1980 697 1981 863 1982 1073 1983 1216 1984 1421 1985 1589 1986 1800 1987 1964 1988 2111 1989 2232 1990 2346 1991 2466 1992 2575 1993 2716 1994 2890 1995 3064 1996 3242 1997 3335 -------------------------------------------------- ***************************** Capital punishment laws ***************************** At yearend 1997 the death penalty was authorized by the statutes of 38 States and by Federal statute (tables 1 and 2). -------------------------------------------------- Table 1. Capital offenses, by State, 1997 Alabama. Intentional murder with 18 aggravating factors (13A-5-40). Arizona. First-degree murder accompanied by at least 1 of 10 aggravating factors. Arkansas. Capital murder (Ark. Code Ann. 5-10-101) with a finding of at least 1 of 9 aggravating circumstances; treason. California. First-degree murder with special circumstances; train-wrecking; treason; perjury causing execution. Colorado. First-degree murder with at least 1 of 13 aggravating factors; treason. Capital sentencing excludes persons determined to be mentally retarded. Connecticut. Capital felony with 9 categories of aggravated homicide (C.G.S. 53a-54b). Delaware. First-degree murder with aggravating circumstances. Florida. First-degree murder; felony murder; capital drug-trafficking. Georgia. Murder; kidnaping with bodily injury or ransom where the victim dies; aircraft hijacking; treason. Idaho. First-degree murder; aggravated kidnaping. Illinois. First-degree murder with 1 of 15 aggravating circumstances. Indiana. Murder with 15 aggravating circumstances. Capital sentencing excludes persons determined to be mentally retarded. Kansas. Capital murder with 7 aggravating circumstances (KSA 21-3439). Capital sentencing excludes persons determined to be mentally retarded. Kentucky. Murder with aggravating factors; kidnaping with aggravating factors. Louisiana. First-degree murder; aggravated rape of victim under age 12; treason (La. R.S. 14:30, 14:42, and 14:113). Maryland. First-degree murder, either premeditated or during the commission of a felony, provided that certain death eligibility requirements are satisfied. Mississippi. Capital murder (97-3-19(2) MCA); capital rape (97-3-65(1) MCA); aircraft piracy (97-25-55(1) MCA). Missouri. First-degree murder (565.020 RSMO). Montana. Capital murder with 1 of 9 aggravating circumstances (46-18-303 MCA); capital sexual assault (45-5-503 MCA). Nebraska. First-degree murder with a finding of at least 1 statutorily- defined aggravated circumstance. Nevada. First-degree murder with 13 aggravating circumstances. New Hampshire. Capital murder (RSA 630:1). New Jersey. Purposeful or knowing murder by one's own conduct; contract murder; solicitation by command or threat in furtherance of a narcotics conspiracy (NJSA 2C:11-3C). New Mexico. First-degree murder (Section 30-2-1 A, NMSA). New York. First-degree murder with 1 of 10 aggravating factors. Capital sentencing excludes persons determined to be mentally retarded. North Carolina. First-degree murder (N.C.G.S. 14-17). Ohio. Aggravated murder with at least 1 of 8 aggravating circumstances. (O.R.C. secs. 2929.01, 2903.01, and 2929.04). Oklahoma. First-degree murder in conjunction with a finding of at least 1 of 8 statutorily-defined aggravating circumstances. Oregon. Aggravated murder (ORS 163.095). Pennsylvania. First-degree murder with 18 aggravating circumstances. South Carolina. Murder with 1 of 10 aggravating circumstances (16-3-20(C)(a)). Mental retardation is a mitigating factor. South Dakota. First-degree murder with 1 of 10 aggravating circumstances; aggravated kidnaping. Tennessee. First-degree murder. Texas. Criminal homicide with 1 of 8 aggravating circumstances (TX Penal Code 19.03). Utah. Aggravated murder; aggravated assault by a prisoner serving a life sentence if serious bodily injury is intentionally caused (76-5-202, Utah Code annotated). Virginia. First-degree murder with 1 of 11 aggravating circumstances (VA Code 18.2-31). Washington. Aggravated first-degree murder. Wyoming. First-degree murder. -------------------------------------------------- -------------------------------------------------- Table 2. Federal laws providing for the death penalty, 1997 8 U.S.C. 1342 -- Murder related to the smuggling of aliens. 18 U.S.C. 32-34 -- Destruction of aircraft, motor vehicles, or related facilities resulting in death. 18 U.S.C. 36 -- Murder committed during a drug-related drive-by shooting. 18 U.S.C. 37 -- Murder committed at an airport serving international civil aviation. 18 U.S.C. 115(b)(3) [by cross-reference to 18 U.S.C. 1111] -- Retaliatory murder of a member of the immediate family of law enforcement officials. 18 U.S.C. 241, 242, 245, 247 -- Civil rights offenses resulting in death. 18 U.S.C. 351 [by cross-reference to 18 U.S.C. 1111] -- Murder of a member of Congress, an important executive official, or a Supreme Court Justice. 18 U.S.C. 794 -- Espionage. 18 U.S.C. 844(d),(f),(i)-- Death resulting from offenses involving transportation of explosives, destruction of government property, or destruction of property related to foreign or interstate commerce 18 U.S.C. 924(i)-- Murder committed by the use of a firearm during a crime of violence or a drug trafficking crime. 18 U.S.C. 930 -- Murder committed in a Federal Government facility. 18 U.S.C. 1091-- Genocide. 18 U.S.C. 1111 -- First-degree murder. 18 U.S.C. 1114 -- Murder of a Federal judge or law enforcement official. 18 U.S.C. 1116 -- Murder of a foreign official. 18 U.S.C. 1118 -- Murder by a Federal prisoner. 18 U.S.C. 1119 -- Murder of a U.S. national in a foreign country. 18 U.S.C. 1120 -- Murder by an escaped Federal prisoner already sentenced to life imprisonment. 18 U.S.C. 1121 -- Murder of a State or local law enforcement official or other person aiding in a Federal investigation; murder of a State correctional officer. 18 U.S.C. 1201 -- Murder during a kidnaping. 18 U.S.C. 1203 -- Murder during a hostage-taking. 18 U.S.C. 1503 -- Murder of a court officer or juror. 18 U.S.C. 1512 -- Murder with the intent of preventing testimony by a witness, victim, or informant. 18 U.S.C. 1513 -- Retaliatory murder of a witness, victim, or informant. 18 U.S.C. 1716 -- Mailing of injurious articles with intent to kill or resulting in death. 18 U.S.C. 1751 [by cross-reference to 18 U.S.C. 1111]-- Assassination or kidnaping resulting in the death of the President or Vice President. 18 U.S.C. 1958 -- Murder for hire. 18 U.S.C. 1959 -- Murder involved in a racketeering offense. 18 U.S.C. 1992 -- Willful wrecking of a train resulting in death. 18 U.S.C. 2113 -- Bank-robbery-related murder or kidnaping. 18 U.S.C. 2119 -- Murder related to a carjacking. 18 U.S.C. 2245 -- Murder related to rape or child molestation. 18 U.S.C. 2251 -- Murder related to sexual exploitation of children. 18 U.S.C. 2280 -- Murder committed during an offense against maritime navigation. 18 U.S.C. 2281 -- Murder committed during an offense against a maritime fixed platform. 18 U.S.C. 2332 -- Terrorist murder of a U.S. national in another country. 18 U.S.C. 2332a -- Murder by the use of a weapon of mass destruction. 18 U.S.C. 2340 -- Murder involving torture. 18 U.S.C. 2381 -- Treason. 21 U.S.C. 848(e)-- Murder related to a continuing criminal enterprise or related murder of a Federal, State, or local law enforcement officer. 49 U.S.C. 1472-1473 -- Death resulting from aircraft hijacking. -------------------------------------------------- During 1997 there were no successful challenges to the constitutionality of State death penalty laws, and no State enacted any new legislation authorizing capital punishment. ***************************** Statutory changes ***************************** During 1997, six States revised statutory provisions relating to the death penalty. Most of the changes involved additional aggravating or mitigating circumstances, procedural amendments, and revisions to capital offenses. By State, the changes were as follows: Montana -- Revised its penal code. One revision eliminated hanging as a method of execution (MCA 46-18-103), effective 3/19/97. As a result, lethal injection is now the sole method of execution in Montana. Another penal code revision added to Montana's capital offenses. Any offender convicted for a second time of rape with serious bodily injury, regardless of the jurisdiction of the first offense, may be punished by death or by life in prison without the possibility of release (MCA 45-5-503(3)(c)), effective 10/1/97. Montana legislators also amended the code of criminal procedure to specify that, upon determination of guilt in a capital case, a sentence must be rendered within 120 days or within 120 days after the Montana Supreme Court enters a final decision on appeal. The statute allows for not more than one extension of up to 60 days upon a showing of undue hardship to a party (MCA 46-18-301(2)), effective 4/24/97. Nevada -- Added to its penal code as an aggravating factor forced sexual penetration of the victim before, during, or immediately after the commission of the murder (NRS 200.033), effective 7/8/97. Oregon -- Added to the penal code and amended the code of criminal procedure. These changes became effective 10/4/97. Oregon added to its definition of aggravated murder intentional homicide of a person under 14 years of age (ORS 163.095). Oregon legislators also amended the code of criminal procedure to establish that court instructions to the jury upon conclusion of the presentation of evidence will include consideration of victim impact evidence, in addition to aggravating and mitigating circumstances, presented during the sentencing phase of capital proceedings (ORS 163.150). Pennsylvania -- Added a section to its penal code and revised its code of criminal procedure. These changes became effective 6/25/97. Pennsylvania added to its penal code as an aggravating factor murder of a person who had a protective order filed against the defendant (42 Pa.C.S. 9711(d)(18)). Pennsylvania lawmakers also revised the code of criminal procedure to rescind a requirement that the Pennsylvania Supreme Court consider the proportionality of the death sentence in the course of the automatic review of the conviction and sentence (42 Pa.C.S. 9711(h)(3)(iii)). Tennessee -- Revised an aggravating circumstance from the murder "in a similar fashion" of three or more persons within a 4-year time period "within the State of Tennessee" to any murder of three or more persons during that time period (Tenn. Code Ann. 39-13-204(i)(12)), effective 5/30/97; and added as an aggravating circumstance the murder of a person who was had a significant handicap or disability when the defendant knew or reasonably should have known of the disability (Tenn. Code Ann. 39-13-204(i)(14)), effective 7/1/97. Tennessee legislators also revised the code of criminal procedure to set aside case law which required a specific jury instruction on nonstatutory mitigating factors. Previously the failure to give such an instruction was considered reversible error (Tenn. Code Ann. 39-13-204(e)(1)), effective 4/29/97. Virginia -- Amended the definition of capital murder to include among law enforcement murder victims officers from other States or the United States; to add premeditated murder in the course of a continuing criminal enterprise; and to add killing a pregnant woman where the defendant had knowledge of the pregnancy and had intent to terminate the pregnancy to prevent a live birth (Va. Code 18.2-31(6), (10), and (11)), effective 7/1/97. ***************************** Automatic review ***************************** Of the 38 States with capital punishment statutes at yearend 1997, 36 provided for review of all death sentences regardless of the defendant's wishes. Arkansas had no specific provisions for automatic review. The Federal death penalty procedures did not provide for automatic review after a sentence of death had been imposed. In South Carolina the defendant had the right to waive sentence review if the defendant was deemed competent by the court (State v. Torrence, 473 S.E.2d. 703 (S.C. 1996)). In Mississippi the question of whether a defendant could waive the right to automatic review of the sentence had not been addressed, and in Wyoming neither statute nor case law clearly precluded a waiver of appeal. While most of the 36 States authorized an automatic review of both the conviction and sentence, Idaho, Indiana, Oklahoma, and Tennessee required review of the sentence only. In Idaho review of the conviction had to be filed through appeal or forfeited. In Indiana and Kentucky a defendant could waive review of the conviction. The review is usually conducted by the State's highest appellate court regardless of the defendant's wishes. If either the conviction or the sentence was vacated, the case could be remanded to the trial court for additional proceedings or for retrial. As a result of retrial or resentencing, the death sentence could be reimposed. ***************************** Method of execution ***************************** As of December 31, 1997, lethal injection was the predominant method of execution (32 States) (table 3). -------------------------------------------------- Table 3. Method of execution, by State, 1997 Lethal injection Electrocution Lethal gas Hanging Firing squad Arizona/a,b New Hampshire/a Alabama Arizona/a,b Delaware/a,c Idaho/a Arkansas/a,d New Jersey Arkansas/a,d California/a New Hampshire/a,e Oklahoma/f California/a New Mexico Florida Mississippi/a,g Washington/a Utah/a Colorado New York Georgia Missouri/a Connecticut North Carolina/a Kentucky North Carolina/a Delaware/a,c Ohioa Nebraska Wyoming/a,h Idaho/a Oklahoma/a Ohio/a Illinois Oregon Oklahoma/f Indiana Pennsylvania South Carolina/a Kansas South Carolina/a Tennessee Louisiana South Dakota Virginia/a Maryland Texas Mississippi/a,g Utah/a Missouri/a Virginia/a Montana Washington/a Nevada Wyoming/a Note: The method of execution of Federal prisoners is lethal injection, pursuant to 28 CFR, Part 26. For offenses under the Violent Crime Control and Law Enforcement Act of 1994, the method is that of the State in which the conviction took place, pursuant to 18 USC 3596. a/Authorizes 2 methods of execution. b/Arizona authorizes lethal injection for persons whose capital sentence was received after 11/15/92; for those sentenced before that date, the condemned may select lethal injection or lethal gas. c/Delaware authorizes lethal injection for those whose capital offense occurred after 6/13/86; for those whose offense occurred before that date, the condemned may select lethal injection or hanging. d/Arkansas authorizes lethal injection for those whose capital offense occurred on or after 7/4/83; for those whose offense occurred before that date, the condemned may select lethal injection or electrocution. e/New Hampshire authorizes hanging only if lethal injection cannot be given. f/Oklahoma authorizes electrocution if lethal injection is ever held to be unconstitutional, and firing squad if both lethal injection and electrocution are held unconstitutional. g/Mississippi authorized lethal injection for those convicted after 7/1/84 and lethal gas for those convicted prior to that date. h/Wyoming authorizes lethal gas if lethal injection is ever held to be unconstitutional. -------------------------------------------------- Eleven States authorized electrocution; 6 States, lethal gas; 3 States, hanging; and 3 States, a firing squad. Sixteen States authorized more than one method -- lethal injection and an alternative method -- generally at the election of the condemned prisoner; however, 4 of these 16 stipulated which method must be used, depending on the date of sentencing; 1 authorized hanging only if lethal injection could not be given; and, if lethal injection is ever ruled unconstitutional, 1 authorized lethal gas, and 1 authorized electrocution. The Federal Government authorizes the method of execution under two different laws. Offenses prosecuted under 28 CFR, Part 26, mandate lethal injection, while those prosecuted under the Violent Crime Control act of 1994 (18 USC 3596) call for the method of the State in which the conviction took place. ***************************** Minimum age ***************************** In 1997 eight jurisdictions did not specify a minimum age for which the death penalty could be imposed (table 4). -------------------------------------------------- Table 4. Minimum age authorized for capital punishment, 1997 Age 16 or less Age 17 Age 18 None specified Alabama (16) Georgia California Arizona Arkansas (14)/a New Hampshire Colorado Idaho Delaware (16) North Carolina/b Connecticut/c Louisiana Florida (16) Texas Federal system Montana Indiana (16) Illinois Pennsylvania Kentucky (16) Kansas South Carolina Mississippi (16)/d Maryland South Dakota/e Missouri (16) Nebraska Utah Nevada (16) New Jersey Oklahoma (16) New Mexico Virginia (14)/f New York Wyoming (16) Ohio Oregon Tennessee Washington Note: Reporting by States reflects interpretations by State attorney general's offices and may differ from previously reported ages. a/See Arkansas Code Ann. 9-27-318(b)(2)(Repl. 1991). b/Age required is 17 unless the murderer was incarcerated for murder when a subsequent murder occurred; then the age may be 14. c/See Conn. Gen. Stat. 53a-46a(g)(1). d/The minimum age defined by statute is 13, but the effective age is 16 based on interpretation of U.S. Supreme Court decisions by the State attorney general's office. e/Juveniles may be transferred to adult court. Age can be a mitigating factor. f/The minimum age for transfer to adult court by statute is 14, but the effective age is 16 based on interpretation of U.S. Supreme Court decisions by the State attorney general's office. -------------------------------------------------- In some States the minimum age was set forth in the statutory provisions that determine the age at which a juvenile may be transferred to criminal court for trial as an adult. Fourteen States and the Federal system required a minimum age of 18. Sixteen States indicated an age of eligibility between 14 and 17. ***************************** Characteristics of prisoners under sentence of death at yearend 1997 ***************************** Thirty-four States and the Federal prison system held a total of 3,335 prisoners under sentence of death on December 31, 1997, a gain of 93 or 2.9% more than at the end of 1996 (table 5). -------------------------------------------------- Table 5. Prisoners under sentence of death, by region, State, and race, 1996 and 1997 Removed from Prisoners Prisoners under sentence Received under death row under sentence Region of death, 12/31/96 sentence of death (excluding executions Executed of death, 12/31/97 and State/b Total/c White/d Black/d Total/c White Black Total/c White Black Total/c White Black Total/c White Black U.S. total 3,242 1,833 1,358 256 146 106 89 58 31 74 45 27 3,335 1,876 1,406 Federal/e 12 4 8 3 2 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 15 6 9 State 3,230 1,829 1,350 253 144 105 89 58 31 74 45 27 3,320 1,870 1,397 Northeast 223 81 135 13 6 7 4 2 2 0 0 0 232 85 140 Connecticut 4 1 3 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 4 1 3 New Hampshire 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 New Jersey 11 5 6 3 3 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 14 8 6 New York 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 Pennsylvania 208 75 126 10 3 7 4 2 2 0 0 0 214 76 131 Midwest 482 236 244 27 18 9 18 13 5 10 5 5 481 236 243 Illinois 161 61 100 6 3 3 6 4 2 2 0 2 159 60 99 Indiana 46 31 15 1 1 0 2 2 0 1 0 1 44 30 14 Kansas 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 Missouri 93 50 43 10 8 2 9 7 2 6 5 1 88 46 42 Nebraska 11 8 2 1 1 0 0 0 0 1 0 1 11 9 1 Ohio 170 85 84 8 4 4 1 0 1 0 0 0 177 89 87 South Dakota 1 1 0 1 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 2 2 0 South 1,793 1,024 747 157 80 75 52 34 18 60 36 22 1,838 1,034 782 Alabama 152 89 62 15 7 8 5 4 1 3 2 1 159 90 68 Arkansas 38 21 17 5 1 4 1 0 1 4 3 1 38 19 19 Delaware 11 5 6 4 3 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 15 8 7 Florida/f 374 234 139 18 14 4 21 11 10 1 0 1 370 237 132 Georgia 102 58 44 13 3 9 0 0 0 0 0 0 115 61 53 Kentucky 29 22 7 2 2 0 0 0 0 1 1 0 30 23 7 Louisiana 62 22 40 12 2 10 3 1 2 1 1 0 70 22 48 Maryland 19 4 15 0 0 0 1 1 0 1 0 1 17 3 14 Mississippi 57 26 31 7 4 3 0 0 0 0 0 0 64 30 34 North Carolina 161 77 81 22 7 14 7 6 1 0 0 0 176 78 94 Oklahoma 134 81 42 11 7 4 7 6 1 1 0 0 137 82 45 South Carolina 68 30 38 5 3 2 3 2 1 2 1 1 68 30 38 Tennessee 93 63 28 7 5 2 2 2 0 0 0 0 98 66 30 Texas/g 444 268 172 32 20 12 1 1 0 37 23 13 438 264 171 Virginia 49 24 25 4 2 2 1 0 1 9 5 4 43 21 22 West 732 488 224 56 40 14 15 9 6 4 4 0 769 515 232 Arizona 121 101 14 8 7 0 7 3 4 2 2 0 120 103 10 California 455 273 171 36 25 11 5 3 2 0 0 0 486 295 180 Colorado 5 3 2 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 1 0 4 2 2 Idaho 18 18 0 1 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 19 19 0 Montana 7 6 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 7 6 0 Nevada 83 48 34 4 3 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 87 51 35 New Mexico 4 4 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 4 4 0 Oregon 19 18 0 3 3 0 1 1 0 1 1 0 20 19 0 Utah 9 7 2 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 10 7 2 Washington 11 10 1 3 1 2 2 2 0 0 0 0 12 9 3 Wyoming 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 Note: States not listed and the District of Columbia did not authorize the death penalty as of 12/31/96. Some figures shown for yearend 1996 arerevised from those reported in Capital Punishment 1996 NCJ-167031. The revised figures include 22 inmates who were either reported late to the National Prisoner Statistics Program or were not in custody of State correctional authorities on 12/31/96 (6 each in Pennsylvania and Texas; 2 each in Oklahoma, Tennessee, and Nevada; and 1 each in Indiana, Alabama, Florida, and California), and exclude 7 inmates who were relieved of the death sentence on or before 12/31/96 (2 each in Arkansas; and 1 each in Pennsylvania, Louisiana, Mississippi, Oklahoma, and Oregon). The data for 12/31/96 also include 8 inmates who were listed erroneously as being removed from death row (6 in Georgia, and 1 each in Mississippi and the Federal Bureau of Prisons). a/Includes 8 deaths from natural causes (2 in California; and 1 each in Missouri, North Carolina, Oklahoma, South Carolina, Tennessee, and Oregon), 4 suicides (in Alabama, Texas, Arizona, and California); and 1 inmate who was killed during an attempted escape (in Arizona). b/Alaska, the District of Columbia, Hawaii, Iowa, Maine, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, North Dakota, Rhode Island, Vermont, West Virginia,and Wisconsin did not authorizes the death penalty as of 12/31/96, and no changes occurred during 1997. c/Totals include persons of other races. d/The accounting of race and Hispanic origin differs from that presented in tables 9 and 11. In this table white and black inmates include Hispanics. e/Excludes persons held under Armed Forces jurisdiction with a military death sentence for murder. f/Race has been changed from white to American Indian for 1 inmate. g/Race has been changed from black to white for 1 inmate. -------------------------------------------------- The Federal prison system count rose from 12 at yearend 1996 to 15 at yearend 1997. Three States reported 39% of the Nation's death row population: California (486), Texas (438), and Florida (370). Of the 39 jurisdictions with statutes authorizing the death penalty during 1997, New Hampshire, New York, Kansas, and Wyoming had no one under a capital sentence, and Connecticut, South Dakota, Colorado, and New Mexico had 4 or fewer. Among the 35 jurisdictions with prisoners under sentence of death at yearend 1997, 20 had more inmates than a year earlier, 9 had fewer inmates, and 6 had the same number. California had an increase of 31, followed by North Carolina (15), and Georgia (13). Virginia and Texas had the largest decrease (6 each). During 1997 the number of black inmates under sentence of death increased by 48; the number of whites increased by 43; and the number of persons of other races (American Indians, Alaska Natives, Asians, or Pacific Islanders) rose from 51 to 53. The number of Hispanics sentenced to death rose from 264 to 283 during 1997 (table 6). Twenty-six Hispanics were received under sentence of death, 2 were removed from death row, and 5 were executed. More than three-fourths of the Hispanics were incarcerated in 4 States: Texas (88), California (79), Florida (41), and Arizona (18). -------------------------------------------------- Table 6. Hispanics and women under sentence of death, by State, 1996 and 1997 Under sentence Received under Death sentence Under sentence Region of death, 12/31/96/a sentence of death removed/b of death, 12/31/97 and State Hispanics Women Hispanics Women Hispanics Women Hispanics Women U.S. total 264 47 26 2 2 5 283 44 Alabama 0 4 0 0 0 1 0 3 Arizona 18 1 0 0 0 0 18 1 Arkansas 2 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 California 68 8 11 0 0 0 79 8 Colorado 1 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 Florida 40 6 2 0 0 0 41 6 Georgia 1 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 Idaho 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 1 Illinois 8 4 1 0 2 2 7 2 Indiana 2 0 0 0 0 0 2 0 Louisiana 1 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 Mississippi 1 1 0 0 0 0 1 1 Missouri 0 2 0 0 0 1 0 1 Nevada 8 1 0 0 0 0 8 1 New Jersey 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 1 New Mexico 1 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 North Carolina 3 3 0 0 0 0 3 3 Ohio 5 0 0 0 0 0 5 0 Oklahoma 6 4 1 0 0 1 7 3 Oregon 1 0 1 0 0 0 2 0 Pennsylvania 13 4 0 0 0 0 13 4 Tennessee 1 2 0 0 0 0 1 2 Texas 80 6 10 1 0 0 88 7 Utah 2 0 0 0 0 0 2 0 Virginia 2 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 a/The count of women under sentence of death at yearend 1996 has been revised; one inmate in Mississippi was erroneously reported as a female in previous report years. b/Five Hispanic men were executed in 1997 (2 in Texas; and 1 each in Arkansas, Florida, and Virginia). No women were executed during 1977. -------------------------------------------------- During 1997 the number of women sentenced to be executed decreased from 47 to 44. Two women were received under sentence of death, five were removed from death row, and none were executed. Women were under sentence of death in 15 States. Half of all women on death row at yearend were in California, Texas, Florida, and Pennsylvania. ------------------------------------------------- Women under sentence of death, 12/31/97 State Total White Black Total 44 30 14 California 8 6 2 Texas 7 5 2 Florida 6 4 2 Pennsylvania 4 1 3 North Carolina 3 3 0 Alabama 3 2 1 Oklahoma 3 2 1 Tennessee 2 2 0 Illinois 2 0 2 Arizona 1 1 0 Idaho 1 1 0 Mississippi 1 1 0 Missouri 1 1 0 New Jersey 1 1 0 Nevada 1 0 1 ----------------------------------------------- Men were 99% (3,291) of all prisoners under sentence of death (table 7). Whites predominated (56%); blacks comprised 42%; and other races (1.6%) included 28 American Indians, 17 Asians, and 8 persons of unknown race. Among those for whom ethnicity was known, 9% were Hispanic. -------------------------------------------------- Table 7. Demogrpahic characteristics of prisoners under sentence of death, 1997 Prisoners under sentence of death, 1997 Characteristic Yearend Admissions Removals Total number under sentence of death 3,335 256 163 Sex Male 98.7 % 99.2 % 96.9 % Female 1.3 0.8 3.1 Race White 56.3 % 57.0 % 63.2 % Black 42.2 41.4 35.6 Other* 1.6 1.6 1.2 Hispanic origin Hispanic 9.2 % 12.0 % 4.5 % Non-Hispanic 90.8 88.0 95.5 Education 8th grade or less 14.2 % 13.3 % 16.2 % 9th-11th 37.6 34.1 34.6 High school graduate/GED 38.0 45.0 40.4 Any college 10.1 7.6 8.8 Median 11th grade 12th grade 11th grade Marital status Married 24.5 % 23.9 % 32.5 % Divorced/separated 21.3 20 19.5 Widowed 2.6 4.3 5.8 Never married 51.5 51.7 42.2 Note: Calculations are based on those cases for which data were reported. Missing data by category were as follows: Yearend Admissions Removals Hispanic origin 258 39 6 Education 504 45 27 Marital status 304 26 9 *At yearend 1996, "other" consisted of 25 American Indians, 18 Asians, and 8 self-identified Hispanics. During 1997, 4 American Indians were admitted; 1 American Indian and 1 Asian were removed. -------------------------------------------------- The sex, race, and Hispanic origin of those under sentence of death at yearend 1997 were as follows: Persons under sentence of death, by sex, race, and Hispanic origin, 12/31/97 White Black Other Male 1,846 1,392 53 Hispanic 262 12 7 Female 30 14 0 Hispanic 1 1 0 Among inmates under sentence of death on December 31, 1997, for whom information on education was available, three-fourths had either completed high school (38%) or finished 9th, 10th, or 11th grade (38%). The percentage who had not gone beyond eighth grade (14%) was larger than that of inmates who had attended some college (10%). The median level of education was the 11th grade. -------------------------------------------------- Figure 2. Persons under sentence of death, by race, 1968-97 Year White Black Other Total 1968 243 271 3 517 1969 263 310 2 575 1970 293 335 3 631 1971 306 332 4 642 1972 167 166 1 334 1973 64 68 2 134 1974 110 128 6 244 1975 218 262 8 488 1976 225 195 0 420 1977 229 192 2 423 1978 281 197 4 482 1979 354 236 3 593 1980 423 264 4 691 1981 498 354 8 860 1982 611 440 12 1063 1983 692 505 12 1209 1984 806 598 16 1420 1985 896 664 15 1575 1986 1013 762 25 1800 1987 1128 813 26 1967 1988 1235 848 34 2117 1989 1308 898 37 2243 1990 1368 940 38 2346 1991 1449 979 37 2465 1992 1511 1031 38 2580 1993 1577 1111 41 2729 1994 1653 1203 49 2905 1995 1732 1284 48 3064 1996 1833 1358 51 3242 1997 1876 1406 53 3335 -------------------------------------------------- Of inmates under a capital sentence and with reported marital status, half had never married; a fourth were married at the time of sentencing; and nearly a fourth were divorced, separated, or widowed. Among all inmates under sentence of death for whom date of arrest information was available, more than half were age 20 to 29 at the time of arrest for their capital offense; 13% were age 19 or younger; and less than 1% were age 55 or older (table 8). The average age at time of arrest was 28 years. On December 31, 1997, 39% of all inmates were age 30 to 39, and 70% were age 25 to 44. The youngest offender under sentence of death was age 18; the oldest was 82. -------------------------------------------------- Table 8. Age at time of arrest for capital offense and age of prisoners under sentence of death at yearend, 1997 Prisoners under sentence of death At time of arrest On December 31, 1997 Age Number* Percent Number Percent Total number under sentence of death on 12/31/97 2,975 100% 3,335 100% 17 or younger 69 2.3 0 18-19 311 10.5 14 0.4 20-24 824 27.7 275 8.2 25-29 685 23 497 14.9 30-34 471 15.8 578 17.3 35-39 315 10.6 727 21.8 40-44 155 5.2 521 15.6 45-49 85 2.9 354 10.6 50-54 35 1.2 216 6.5 55-59 16 0.5 88 2.6 60 or older 9 0.3 65 1.9 Mean age 28yrs 37yrs Median age 26yrs 37yrs Note: The youngest person under sentence of death was a black male in Alabama, born in November 1979 and sentenced to death in October 1997. The oldest person under sentence of death was a white male in Arizona born in September 1915 and sentenced to death in June 1983. *Excludes 360 inmates for whom the date of arrest for capital offense was not available. -------------------------------------------------- ***************************** Entries and removals of persons under sentence of death ***************************** Between January 1 and December 31, 1997, 29 State prison systems reported receiving 253 prisoners under sentence of death; the Federal Bureau of Prisons received 3 inmates. Forty-two percent of the inmates were received in 4 States: California (36), Texas (32), North Carolina (22), and Florida (18). All 256 prisoners who had been received under sentence of death had been convicted of murder. By sex and race, 144 were white men, 106 were black men, 4 were American Indian men, and 2 were white women. Of the 256 new admissions, 26 were Hispanic men. Eighteen States reported a total of 76 persons whose sentence of death was overturned or removed. Appeals courts vacated 38 sentences while upholding the convictions and vacated 35 sentences while overturning the convictions. Florida (21 exits) had the largest number of vacated capital sentences. South Carolina reported two commutations of a death sentence, and Virginia reported one. As of December 31, 1997, 43 of the 76 persons who were formerly under sentence of death were serving a reduced sentence, 23 were awaiting a new trial, 9 were awaiting resentencing, and 1 was found not guilty after being retried. In addition, 13 persons died while under sentence of death in 1997. Eight of these deaths were from natural causes -- two in California and one each in Missouri, North Carolina, Oklahoma, Oregon, South Carolina, and Tennessee. Four suicides occurred -- one each in Alabama, Arizona, California, and Texas. One inmate in Arizona was killed during an attempted escape. From 1977, the year after the Supreme Court upheld the constitutionality of revised State capital punishment laws, to 1997, a total of 5,416 persons entered prison under sentence of death. During these 21 years, 432 persons were executed, and 2,029 were removed from under a death sentence by appellate court decisions and reviews, commutations, or death. ****Fotenote 1**** An individual may have been received and removed from under a sentence of death more than once. Data are based on the most recent sentence. **** Among individuals who received a death sentence between 1977 and 1997, 2,726 (50%) were white, 2,208 (41%) were black, 401 (7%) were Hispanic, and 81 (1%) were of other races. The distribution by race and Hispanic origin of the 2,029 inmates who were removed from death row between 1977 and 1997 was as follows: 1,057 whites (52%), 835 blacks (41%), 107 Hispanics (5%), and 30 persons of other races (2%). Of the 432 who were executed, 241 (56%) were white, 160 (37%) were black, 26 (6%) were Hispanic, and 5 (1%) were of other races. ***************************** Criminal history of inmates under sentence of death in 1997 ***************************** Among inmates under a death sentence on December 31, 1997, for whom criminal history information was available, 65% had past felony convictions, including 9% with at least one previous homicide conviction (table 9). -------------------------------------------------- Table 9. Criminal history profile of prisoners under sentence of death, by race and Hispanic origin, 1997 Prisoners under sentence of death Number Percent/a All/b White Black Hispanic All/b White Black Hispanic U.S. total 3,335 1,613 1,393 283 100% 100% 100% 100% Prior felony convictions Yes 2,011 939 895 153 65.3% 63.0% 69.5% 59.5% No 1,068 552 393 104 34.7 37.0 30.5 40.5 Not reported 256 Prior homicide convictions convictions Yes 281 127 125 22 8.6% 8.0% 9.2% 8.1% No 2,980 1,457 1,234 251 91.4 92.0 90.8 91.9 Not reported 74 Legal status at time of capital offense Charges pending 225 121 86 16 7.6% 8.4% 7.0% 6.5% Probation 301 141 132 25 10.1 9.7 10.7 10.2 Parole 578 237 270 63 19.5 16.4 21.8 25.7 Prison escapee 38 25 10 2 1.3 1.7 0.8 0.8 Incarcerated 76 35 35 4 2.6 2.4 2.8 1.6 Other status 30 16 12 1 1 1.1 1.0 0.4 None 1,721 872 691 134 58 60.3 55.9 54.7 Not reported 366 a/Percentages are based on those offenders for whom data were reported. Detail may not add to total because of rounding. b/Includes persons of other races. -------------------------------------------------- Among those for whom legal status at the time of the capital offense was reported, 42% had an active criminal justice status. Nearly half of these were on parole, and about a fourth were on probation. The others had charges pending, were incarcerated, had escaped from incarceration, or had some other criminal justice status. Criminal history patterns differed by race and Hispanic origin. More blacks (70%) than whites (63%) or Hispanics (60%) had a prior felony conviction. About the same percentage of blacks (9%), whites (8%), and Hispanics (8%) had a prior homicide conviction. A slightly higher percentage of Hispanics (26%) or blacks (22%) than whites (16%) were on parole when arrested for their capital offense. Since 1988 data have been collected on the number of death sentences imposed on entering inmates. Among the 2,868 individuals received under sentence of death during that time, about 1 in every 7 entered with 2 or more death sentences. Number of death sentences received Inmates Total 100% 1 86 2 10 3 or more 4 Number admitted under sentence of death, 1988-97 2,868 ***************************** Executions ***************************** According to data collected by the Federal Government, from 1930 to 1997, 4,291 persons were executed under civil authority (table 10).****Footnote 2**** Military authorities carried out an additional 160 executions,1930-97. **** -------------------------------------------------- Table 10. Number of persons executed, by jurisdiction, Number executed State Since 1930 Since 1977 U.S. total 4,291 432 Texas 441 144 Georgia 388 22 New York 329 California 296 4 North Carolina 271 8 Florida 209 39 South Carolina 175 13 Ohio 172 Mississippi 158 4 Louisiana 157 24 Pennsylvania 154 2 Alabama 151 16 Virginia 138 46 Arkansas 134 16 Kentucky 104 1 Illinois 100 10 Tennessee 93 Missouri 91 29 New Jersey 74 Maryland 70 2 Oklahoma 69 9 Washington 49 2 Colorado 48 1 Arizona 46 8 Indiana 46 5 District of Col 40 West Virginia 40 Nevada 35 6 Federal system 33 Massachusetts 27 Oregon 21 2 Connecticut 21 Delaware 20 8 Utah 18 5 Iowa 18 Kansas 15 Wyoming 8 1 New Mexico 8 Nebraska 7 3 Montana 7 1 Idaho 4 1 Vermont 4 New Hampshire 1 South Dakota 1 -------------------------------------------------- After the Supreme Court reinstated the death penalty in 1976, 29 States executed 432 prisoners: 1977 1 1979 2 1981 1 1982 2 1983 5 1984 21 1985 18 1986 18 1987 25 1988 11 1989 16 1990 23 1991 14 1992 31 1993 38 1994 31 1995 56 1996 45 1997 74 During this 21-year period, 6 States executed 304 prisoners: Texas (144), Virginia, (46), Florida (39), Missouri (29), Louisiana (24), and Georgia (22). These States accounted for more than two-thirds of all executions. Between 1977 and 1997, 240 white non-Hispanic men, 160 black non-Hispanic men, 26 Hispanic men, 3 American Indian men, 2 Asian men, and 1 white non-Hispanic woman were executed. ------------------------------------------------ Figure 3. Persons executed, 1930-97 1930 155 1931 153 1932 140 1933 160 1934 168 1935 199 1936 195 1937 147 1938 190 1939 160 1940 124 1941 123 1942 147 1943 131 1944 120 1945 117 1946 131 1947 153 1948 119 1949 119 1950 82 1951 105 1952 83 1953 62 1954 81 1955 76 1956 65 1957 65 1958 49 1959 49 1960 56 1961 42 1962 47 1963 21 1964 15 1965 7 1966 1 1967 2 1968 0 1969 0 1970 0 1971 0 1972 0 1973 0 1974 0 1975 0 1976 0 1977 1 1978 0 1979 2 1980 0 1981 1 1982 2 1983 5 1984 21 1985 18 1986 18 1987 25 1988 11 1989 16 1990 23 1991 14 1992 31 1993 37 1994 31 1995 56 1996 45 1997 74 ------------------------------------------------- During 1997 Texas carried out 37 executions; Virginia executed 9 persons; Missouri, 6; Arkansas, 4; Arizona, Illinois, and South Carolina, 2 each; and Colorado, Florida, Indiana, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maryland, Nebraska, Oklahoma, and Oregon, 1 each. Colorado had their first execution since 1967, and Kentucky had their first execution since 1962. All persons executed in 1997 were male. Forty-one were white; 26 were black; 5 were Hispanic; 1 was American Indian; and 1 was Asian. From 1977 to 1997, 5,796 prisoners were under death sentences for varying lengths of time (table 11). The 432 executions accounted for nearly 8% of those at risk. A total of 2,029 prisoners (35% of those at risk) received other dispositions. About the same percentage of whites (8%), blacks (7%), and Hispanics (6%) were executed. Somewhat larger percentages of whites (36%) and blacks (35%) than Hispanics (26%) were removed from under a death sentence by means other than execution. -------------------------------------------------- Table 11. Prisoners under sentence to death who were executed or received other dispositions, by race and Hispanic origin, 1977-97 Prisoners who received Total under Prisoners executed other dispositions/a Race/Hispanic sentence of Percent Percent origin/b death, 1977-97/c Number of total Number of total Total 5,796 432 7.5% 2,029 35.0% White 2,911 241 8.3% 1,057 36.3% Black 2,388 160 6.7 835 35.0 Hispanic 416 26 6.3 107 25.7 Other 81 5 6.2 30 37.0 a/Includes persons removed from a sentence of death because of statutes struck down on appeal, sentences or convictions vacated, commutations, or death other than by execution. b/White, black, and other categories exclude Hispanics. c/Includes persons sentenced to death prior to 1977 who were still under sentence of death 12/31/97 (12), persons sentenced to death prior to 1977 whose death sentence was removed between 1977 and 12/31/97 (368), and persons sentenced to death between 1977 and 12/31/97 (5,416). -------------------------------------------------- Among prisoners executed from 1977 to 1997 the average time spent between the imposition of the most recent sentence received and execution was more than 9 years (table 12). White prisoners had spent an average of 8 years and 9 months, and black prisoners, 10 years and 2 months. The 74 prisoners executed in 1997 were under sentence of death an average of 11 years and 1 month. -------------------------------------------------- Table 12. Time under sentence of death sentence and execution, by race, 1977-97 Average elapsed time from Year of Number executed sentence to execution for: execution All races* White Black All races* White Black Total 432 265 162 111 mos 105 mos. 122 mos. 1977-83 11 9 2 51 mos. 49 mos. 58 mos. 1984 21 13 8 74 76 71 1985 18 11 7 71 65 80 1986 18 11 7 87 78 102 1987 25 13 12 86 78 96 1888 11 6 5 80 72 89 1989 16 8 8 95 78 112 1990 23 16 7 95 97 91 1991 14 7 7 116 124 107 1992 31 19 11 114 104 135 1993 38 23 14 113 112 121 1994 31 20 11 122 117 132 1995 56 33 22 134 128 144 1996 45 31 14 125 112 153 1997 74 45 27 133 126 147 Note: Average time was calculated from the most recent sentencing date. *Includes American Indians and Asians. -------------------------------------------------- For the 432 prisoners executed between 1977 and 1997, the most common method of execution was lethal injection (284). Other methods were electrocution (134), lethal gas (9), hanging (3), and firing squad (2). Executions, 1977-97 Amer- Method of His- ican execution White Black panic Indian Asian Total 241 160 26 3 2 Lethal injection 161 94 24 3 2 Electrocution 69 63 2 0 0 Lethal gas 6 3 0 0 0 Hanging 3 0 0 0 0 Firing squad 2 0 0 0 0 Among prisoners under sentence of death at yearend 1997 the average time spent in prison was 7 years and 1 month, down 8 months from that of 1996. Elapsed time Inmates under since sentencing sentence of death Mean Median Total 85 mos 73 mos Male 86 73 Female 78 68 White 88 79 Black 83 69 Hispanic 82 71 The median time between the imposition of a death sentence and yearend 1997 was 73 months. Overall, the average time for women was 6.5 years, slightly less than that for men (7.2 years). On average, whites, blacks, and Hispanics had spent from 82 to 88 months under a sentence of death. -------------------------------------------------- ***************************** Advance count of executions: January 1, 1998 - December 31, 1998 ***************************** To provide the latest data on capital punishment, BJS initiated an ongoing collection effort in 1997 that gathers information following each execution. The data include the date of execution, the jurisdiction, the method used, and the name, race, and sex of each person executed. During 1998, 18 States had executed 68 prisoners. This is an 8% decrease from the 74 executed in 1997. Texas carried out 20, nearly 30% of all executions in 1998. Virginia executed 13 inmates, the most in that State since the Federal Government began tracking executions on an annual basis. Lethal injection accounted for 60 of the executions; 7 were carried out by electrocution; and 1, by lethal gas. Forty-eight of those executed were white, 18 black, 1 American Indian, and 1 Asian. Two women were executed (1 each in Texas and Florida). This was the first year since 1984 that any women have been executed. Number of State executions Method used Texas 20 Lethal injection Virginia 13 Lethal injection/a South Carolina 7 Lethal injection Arizona 4 Lethal injection Florida 4 Electrocution Oklahoma 4 Lethal injection Missouri 3 Lethal injection North Carolina 3 Lethal injection/b Alabama 1 Electrocution Arkansas 1 Lethal injection California 1 Lethal injection Georgia 1 Lethal injection Illinois 1 Lethal injection Indiana 1 Lethal injection Maryland 1 Lethal injection Montana 1 Lethal injection Nevada 1 Lethal injection Washington 1 Lethal injection Total 68 a/Virginia executed 1 person by electrocution. b/North Carolina executed 1 person by lethal gas. Final counts for all of 1998 will appear in Capital Punishment 1998, a BJS Bulletin, released in late 1999. This annual report will comprise data collected from State and Federal departments of correction. It will also include demographic characteristics, criminal history, time under sentence of death, method of removal including executions, and trends since 1973. The report will cover all persons under sentence of death on December 31, 1998, as well as those received from court and removed from under sentence of death. --------------------------------------------- ***************************** Methodology ***************************** Capital punishment information is collected annually as part of the National Prisoner Statistics program (NPS-8). This data series is collected in two parts: data on persons under sentence of death are obtained from the department of correction in each jurisdiction currently authorizing capital punishment and are updated annually; information on the status of death penalty statutes is obtained from the Office of the Attorney General in each of the 50 States, the District of Columbia, and the Federal government. Data collection forms and more detailed tables are available in Correctional Populations in the United States, published annually. NPS-8 covers all persons under sentence of death at any time during the year who were held in a State or Federal nonmilitary correctional facility. Included are capital offenders transferred from prison to mental hospitals and those who may have escaped from custody. Excluded are persons whose death sentences have been overturned by the court, regardless of their current incarceration status. The statistics reported in this Bulletin may differ from data collected by other organizations for a variety of reasons: (1) NPS-8 adds inmates to the number under sentence of death not at sentencing but at the time they are admitted to a State or Federal correctional facility. (2) If in one year inmates entered prison under a death sentence or were reported as being relieved of a death sentence but the court had acted in the previous year, the counts are adjusted to reflect the dates of court decisions. (See the note on table 5 for the affected jurisdictions.) (3) NPS counts are always for the last day of the calendar year and will differ from counts for more recent periods. All data in this report have been reviewed for accuracy by the data providers in each jurisdiction prior to publication. -------------------------------------------------- Appendix table 1. Prisoners sentenced to death and the outcome sentence, by year of sentencing, 1973-97 Number of prisoners removed from under sentence of death Under Number Appeal or higher courts overturned Other or sentence sentenced Other Death pen- Con- Sentence unknown of death, Year of sentence of death Execution death alty statute viction Sentence commuted reasons 12/31/97 1973 42 2 0 14 9 8 9 0 0 1974 149 9 4 65 15 30 22 1 3 1975 298 6 4 171 24 67 21 2 3 1976 234 12 5 137 17 42 15 0 6 1977 138 17 3 40 26 33 7 0 12 1978 186 32 4 21 34 60 8 0 27 1979 152 21 9 2 28 58 5 1 28 1980 175 33 11 3 27 48 7 0 46 1981 230 42 12 0 39 74 4 1 58 1982 269 45 13 0 35 64 7 0 105 1983 253 43 12 1 22 57 6 2 110 1984 284 33 10 2 36 57 6 8 132 1985 270 22 3 1 42 64 4 3 131 1986 304 30 15 0 41 49 6 5 158 1987 287 19 11 4 34 54 2 6 157 1988 292 21 10 0 32 49 3 0 177 1989 261 10 8 0 27 48 3 0 165 1990 251 7 5 0 29 29 1 0 180 1991 269 6 6 0 27 25 3 0 202 1992 289 7 2 0 17 30 3 0 230 1993 291 7 6 0 13 13 3 0 249 1994 317 3 4 0 16 10 1 0 283 1995 325 3 6 0 6 5 0 0 305 1996 317 2 0 0 2 0 0 0 313 1997 256 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 255 Total, 1973-97 6,139 432 164 461 598 974 146 29 3,335 Note: For those persons sentenced to death more than once, the numbers are based upon most recent death sentence. -------------------------------------------------- -------------------------------------------------- Appendix table 2. Prisoners under sentence of death, on December 31, 1997, by State and year of sentencing Average number of Under years und sentence sentence Year of sentence for prisoners sentenced to and remaining on death row, 12/31/97 of death, death as State 1973-79 1980-81 1982-83 1984-85 1986-87 1988-89 1990-91 1992-93 1994 1995 1996 1997 12/31/97 12/31/97 Florida 25 12 20 33 33 41 52 50 29 31 26 18 370 8.1 Texas 15 16 16 26 43 52 46 68 45 43 36 32 438 7.0 California 9 18 47 38 47 64 55 73 23 36 40 36 486 7.7 Georgia 9 4 6 6 16 11 16 13 8 7 6 13 115 8.2 Tennessee 6 7 9 12 15 9 14 6 4 4 5 7 98 10.2 Arizona 4 7 11 11 7 14 19 20 9 5 5 8 120 8.2 Nebraska 2 2 1 1 1 1 2 1 11 10.3 Nevada 2 4 9 8 4 12 11 3 8 10 12 4 87 7.5 South Carolina 2 3 3 4 5 5 8 9 7 10 8 4 68 6.7 Alabama 1 3 14 11 16 17 11 14 22 15 20 15 159 6.6 Arkansas 1 1 2 2 3 9 6 4 5 5 38 4.8 Illinois 1 12 15 13 17 16 21 22 8 13 15 6 159 8.1 Kentucky 1 1 8 2 4 1 2 4 3 2 2 30 9.5 North Carolina 1 3 5 4 1 15 47 25 28 25 22 176 4.1 Pennsylvania 4 15 18 25 33 22 29 22 22 14 10 214 7.2 Mississippi 3 5 3 3 11 13 5 5 9 7 64 5.8 Indiana 2 5 8 6 3 5 5 2 3 4 1 44 8.8 Idaho 1 2 4 1 4 2 2 1 1 1 19 9.3 Oklahoma 1 6 15 23 16 16 9 9 13 18 11 137 6.9 Maryland 1 3 3 1 1 1 7 17 6.4 Ohio 10 30 21 18 21 22 13 17 17 8 177 7.3 Louisiana 3 7 7 1 3 11 6 11 9 12 70 5.1 Missouri 2 7 12 9 11 11 8 10 8 10 88 6.1 Utah 1 2 3 1 1 1 1 10 7.9 Delaware 1 1 9 4 15 4.7 Montana 1 1 1 2 2 7 * Virginia 3 2 7 10 10 6 1 4 43 4.6 Colorado 1 1 1 1 4 * New Jersey 1 2 1 2 2 3 3 14 3.5 Connecticut 2 1 1 4 * Washington 2 2 2 1 2 3 12 3.2 Oregon 1 6 5 2 3 3 20 3.2 Federal 1 5 2 4 3 15 2.6 South Dakota 1 1 2 * New Mexico 2 2 4 * Total 79 104 215 263 315 342 382 479 283 305 313 255 3,335 7.1 Note: For those persons sentenced to death more than once, the numbers are based upon most recent death sentence. *Averages not calculated for fewer than 10 inmates. -------------------------------------------------- -------------------------------------------------- Appendix table 3. Number sentenced to death and number of removals, by jurisdiction and reason for removal, 1973-97 Total Number of removals, 1973-97 Under sentenced Sentence or sentence to death, conviction Sentence Other of death, State 1973-97 Executed Died overturned commuted removals 12/31/97 U.S. Total 6,139 432 164 2,033 146 29 3,335 Federal 16 0 0 1 0 0 15 Alabama 276 16 9 91 1 0 159 Arizona 210 8 8 68 5 1 120 Arkansas 85 16 1 29 1 0 38 California 648 4 27 115 15 1 486 Colorado 16 1 1 9 1 0 4 Connecticut 6 0 0 2 0 0 4 Delaware 36 8 0 13 0 0 15 Florida 777 39 22 326 18 2 370 Georgia 270 22 8 118 6 1 115 Idaho 35 1 1 12 2 0 19 Illinois 255 10 7 71 1 7 159 Indiana 87 5 1 33 2 2 44 Kentucky 61 1 2 27 1 0 30 Louisiana 174 24 3 70 6 1 70 Maryland 45 2 1 23 2 0 17 Massachusetts 4 0 0 2 2 0 0 Mississippi 152 4 1 80 0 3 64 Missouri 145 29 6 21 1 0 88 Montana 15 1 0 6 1 0 7 Nebraska 24 3 2 6 2 0 11 Nevada 119 6 4 19 3 0 87 New Jersey 46 0 2 22 0 8 14 New Mexico 26 0 1 16 5 0 4 New York 3 0 0 3 0 0 0 North Carolina 431 8 6 237 4 0 176 Ohio 324 0 6 131 10 0 177 Oklahoma 278 9 7 124 1 0 137 Oregon 41 2 1 18 0 0 20 Pennsylvania 290 2 8 66 0 0 214 Rhode Island 2 0 0 2 0 0 0 South Carolina 151 13 4 63 3 0 68 South Dakota 2 0 0 0 0 0 2 Tennessee 179 0 5 74 0 2 98 Texas 738 144 15 97 44 0 438 Utah 25 5 0 9 1 0 10 Virginia 107 46 3 6 8 1 43 Washington 31 2 1 16 0 0 12 Wyoming 9 1 1 7 0 0 0 Percent 100% 7.0% 2.7% 33.1% 2.4% 0.5% 54.3% Note: For those persons sentenced to death more than once, the numbers are based on the most recent death sentence. -------------------------------------------------- -------------------------------------------------- Appendix table 4. Executions, by State and method, 1977-97 Number Number Electro- Lethal Firing State executed injection cution gas squad Hanging Total 432 284 134 9 2 3 Alabama 16 0 16 0 0 0 Arizona 8 7 0 1 0 0 Arkansas 16 15 1 0 0 0 California 4 2 0 2 0 0 Colorado 1 1 0 0 0 0 Delaware 8 7 0 0 0 1 Florida 39 0 39 0 0 0 Georgia 22 0 22 0 0 0 Idaho 1 1 0 0 0 0 Illinois 10 10 0 0 0 0 Indiana 5 2 3 0 0 0 Kentucky 1 0 1 0 0 0 Louisiana 24 4 20 0 0 0 Maryland 2 2 0 0 0 0 Mississippi 4 0 0 4 0 0 Missouri 29 29 0 0 0 0 Montana 1 1 0 0 0 0 Nebraska 3 0 3 0 0 0 Nevada 6 5 0 1 0 0 North Carolina 8 7 0 1 0 0 Oklahoma 9 9 0 0 0 0 Oregon 2 2 0 0 0 0 Pennsylvania 2 2 0 0 0 0 South Carolina 13 8 5 0 0 0 Texas 144 144 0 0 0 0 Utah 5 3 0 0 2 0 Virginia 46 22 24 0 0 0 Washington 2 0 0 0 0 2 Wyoming 1 1 0 0 0 0 Note: These tables show the distributions of execution methods used since 1977. Lethal injection was used in 66% of the executions carried out. Eleven States Arizona, Arkansas, California, Delaware, Indiana, Louisiana, Nevada, North Carolina, South Carolina, Utah, and Virginia have employed two methods. -------------------------------------------------- The Bureau of Justice Statistics is the statistical agency of the U.S. Department of Justice. Jan M. Chaiken, Ph.D., is director. BJS Bulletins present the first release of findings from permanent data collection programs. This Bulletin was written by Tracy L. Snell under the supervision of Allen J. Beck. Paula M. Ditton and Lauren E. Glaze provided statistical review. Tina Dorsey and Tom Hester edited the report. Marilyn Marbrook administered production. Yvonne Boston prepared the printer's package. At the Bureau of the Census, Patricia A. Clark collected the data under the supervision of Gertrude Odom and Kathleen Creighton. December 1998, NCJ 172881 -------------------------------------------------- Data may be obtained from the National Archive of Criminal Justice Data at the University of Michigan, 1-800-999-0960. The data sets are archived as Capital Punishment, 1973-97. The data and the report, as well as others from the Bureau of Justice Statistics, are also available through the Internet: hhtp://www.ojp.usdoj.gov/bjs/ ----------------------------------------------------- END OF FILE th/td, 12/11/98