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More on the July 18 Scheduled Execution of Yokamon Hearn

A new article by Andrew Cohen that appears in The Atlantic (“A Day in the Life of the Death Penalty: July 18, 2012,” July 12, 2012) draws parallels between two executions […]

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40th Anniversary of Furman v. Georgia; Death Penalty Still “Arbitrary, Capricious, and Discriminatory”

Today, June 29, 2012, marks 40 years since the United States Supreme Court overturned all existing death penalty laws, ruling in the case of Furman vs. Georgia (1972) that the […]

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Court of Criminal Appeals Grants Stay to Steven Staley

Update as of 5:00 PM on May 14: We just learned that the Texas Court of Criminal Appeals has granted a stay of execution to Steven Staley. The court did not provide a reason for the reprieve, saying only that “it had determined the execution should be halted “‘pending further order by this court.'”

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Anthony Bartee Receives Stay of Execution; May be Temporary

The Associated Press is reporting that Anthony Bartee has received a stay of execution from a federal judge in San Antonio. Prosecutors have appealed the decision, however, so the stay may only be temporary. The U.S. Supreme Court turned down Bartee’s appeal late this afternoon.

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State of Texas Executes Beunka Adams

Last night, April 26, 2012, the State of Texas carried out its fifth execution of the  year.  Beunka Adams was executed for the murder of Kenneth Vandever, 37, outside Rusk in […]

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Texas Carries Out First Execution in 2012; Newbury, Member of “Texas Seven,” Receives Stay

Last night, January 26, the State of Texas carried out its first execution of 2012. Rodrigo Hernandez, 38, originally on parole in Michigan, had his DNA linked to the crime […]

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Bexar County Cameron Todd Willingham capital punishment Dallas death penalty death sentences DNA testing Duane Buck executions Governor Rick Perry Hank Skinner Harris County Houston Humberto Leal jury rejection Larry Swearingen lethal injection Mexican National Stay of execution TCADP Annual Report Texas Department of Criminal Justice Texas. Court of Criminal Appeals Travis County U.S. Supreme Court

TCADP 2011 Annual Report: Texas Carries Out Fewest Executions Since 1996

Today, December 15, 2011, the Texas Coalition to Abolish the Death Penalty (TCADP) released its annual report, Texas Death Penalty Developments in 2011: The Year in Review. According to the report, executions in Texas dropped to the lowest number since 1996 and death sentences remained at a historic low level this year.

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Black Defendants Received 12 of Last 13 Death Sentences in Harris County

According to an investigation by the Houston Chronicle, 12 of the last 13 defendants sentenced to death in Harris County have been African American.  The 13th death sentence was handed […]