Capital punishment

Wrongful execution is a miscarriage of justice occurring when an innocent person is put to death by capital punishment, the "death penalty". The possibility of wrongful executions is one of the arguments presented by the opponents of capital punishment; other arguments include failing to deter crime more than life imprisonment, violating human rights, and discriminating against minorities and the poor.^[1][2][3] It has been suggested that Exoneration be merged into this article or section. ... Capital punishment, or the death penalty, is the execution of a convicted criminal by the state as punishment for crimes known as capital crimes or capital offences. ... Human rights are rights which some hold to be inalienable and belonging to all humans. ...

There are numerous persons who have been heralded as innocent victims of the death penalty[1], persons who, if their cases were able to be reopened, might be declared innocent or at least not guilty due to lack of solid evidence. Of the many cases, one of the most trumpeted is the execution of Jesse Tafero. Tafero was convicted along with an accomplice, Sonia Jacobs, of murdering two people in 1976, both were sentenced to death based primarily on the testimony of a third person, Walter Rhodes, who was an accessory to the crime and testified against the pair in exchange for a lighter sentence. Jacobs got help from a friend who worked to release her and in 1981 her sentence was commuted. In 1982, Rhodes recanted his testimony and claimed full responsibility for the crime. Despite this admission and his own protestations, Tafero was executed in 1990, but in 1992 the conviction against Jacobs was quashed and the state did not have enough evidence to retry her. It has been presumed that the same evidence was used against Tafero, who presumably would have been released as well.[2] This page meets Wikipedias criteria for speedy deletion. ...

Wayne Felker is another individual cited as an innocent victim of execution. Felker was a suspect in the disappearance of a woman in 1981 and was under police surveillance for 2 weeks prior to the body being found. The autopsy was conducted by an unqualified technician, and the results were changed to show the death occurring before the surveillance began. After Felker's conviction, his lawyers presented testimony by forensics experts that that the body couldn't have been dead more than 3 days when found, a stack of evidence was found hidden by the prosecution that wasn't presented in court including DNA evidence that might have exonerated Felker or cast doubt on his guilt, and there was even the signed confession of another suspect in the paperwork, but despite all this, Felker was executed in 1996.[3] In 2000, his case was reopened as the 1st executed person to have DNA testing used to prove innocence after execution. Although the tests were ruled inconclusive as to innocence or guilt, this alone might have been enough to exonerate him, and coupled with the other testimony and mishandling of evidence would have at least surely led to a new trial.[4]

Newly-available DNA evidence has allowed the exoneration of more than one person per year since 1992 [5] in the U.S., but DNA evidence is only available in a fraction of capital cases.

In the UK reviews prompted by the Criminal Cases Review Commission have resulted in one pardon and three exonerations for people executed between 1950 and 1953 (when the execution rate in England and Wales averaged 17 per year), with compensation being paid. Timothy Evans was granted a posthumous free pardon in 1966. Mahmood Hussein Mattan was convicted in 1953, but had his conviction quashed in 1998. George Kelly was hanged at Liverpool in 1950, but had his conviction quashed by the Court of Appeal in June 2003. Derek Bentley had his conviction quashed in 1998 with the appeal trial judge noting the original trial judge had denied the defendant "the fair trial which is the birthright of every British citizen". The Criminal Cases Review Commission is the independent public body set up to investigate possible miscarriages of justice in England, Wales and Northern Ireland. ... Timothy John Evans (November 20, 1924 – March 9, 1950) was a young man, possibly mentally retarded, who was hanged in the United Kingdom in 1950 for the murder of his infant daughter. ... This article does not cite any references or sources. ... The Right Honourable Thomas Henry Bingham, Baron Bingham of Cornhill, KG, PC (born 13 October 1933), is one of the most senior judges in the United Kingdom. ... Rayner Goddard, Baron Goddard, Lord Chief Justice of England and Wales 1946-1958 Rayner Goddard, Baron Goddard (April 10, 1877–May 29, 1971) was Lord Chief Justice of England and Wales from 1946 to 1958 and known for his heavy sentencing and reactionary views. ...

See also: Capital punishment debate#Wrongful convictions

This article does not cite any references or sources. ...

Use In Popular Culture

Wrongful execution is the main plot of the 2003 film The Life of David Gale, directed by Alan Parker and starring Kevin Spacey, Kate Winslet and Laura Linney. This theme is also the backbone the oscar nominated film The Green Mile. Year 2003 (MMIII) was a common year starting on Wednesday of the Gregorian calendar. ... The Life of David Gale is a 2003 motion picture that tells the fictional story of a philosophy professor, David Gale, who was dedicated to the abolition of the death penalty and who was sentenced to death for the rape and murder of a colleague and fellow abolitionist. ... Alan Parker on the set of Pink Floyd The Wall Sir Alan Parker (born February 14, 1944) is a British film director, producer, writer, and actor. ... Kevin Spacey (born July 26, 1959) is a two-time Academy Award-winning American actor (film and stage) and director. ... Kate Elizabeth Winslet (born October 5, 1975) is a five time Academy Award-nominated Emmy Award-nominated BAFTA, Grammy and Screen Actors Guild Award winning English actress. ... Laura Linney (born February 5, 1964) is an Academy Award-nominated and Emmy Award-winning American actress, active in movies, television, and theatre. ... The Green Mile has several different meanings, including: The Green Mile, a 1996 book by Stephen King. ...

References

See Also

• Death Penalty Information Center Statistics and studies of deterrence and economic and racial bias.
• Justice:Denied magazine includes stories of innocent people who have been executed.
• Database of innocent convicted people includes 150 wrongfully executed.