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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 be available.
To view a list of all in the series go to
http://www.ojp.usdoj.gov/bjs/pubalp2.htm#Capital Punishment
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
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