- An increase in the use of DNA testing
- The possibility of moratoriums
- The sniper cases in Virginia and Maryland
- The Supreme Court's ruling against executing juveniles
- State legislatures wrestling with new standards
- Increased international pressures
- Several high-profile political campaigns with capital punishment figuring prominently
Legally and ethically, the death penalty is changing on an almost daily basis.
Let's take a look back and update some of the ongoing stories from past articles:
Although a backlash against anti-death penalty sentiments seemed imminent at the end of 2003, recent developments suggest that the battle for and against capital punishment is still fairly even.
- Massachusetts governor Mitt Romney introduced a bill to reinstate capital punishment, but the bill will probably remain in committee and never be voted on due to a legislative and ethical tug-of-war.
- In 2004, New York and Kansas declared the death penalty unconstitutional.
- On the other side of the issue, pro-death penalty advocates claimed victory in Maryland, where Governor Robert Ehrlich successfully lifted a moratorium on executions.
- Also, despite a federal appeals court's ruling that suspected terrorist Zacarias Moussaoui is not eligible for capital punishment, the U.S. Department of Justice is pushing ahead with a plan to seek the death penalty against Moussaoui on four capital charges.
- The Court also looked at the rejection of the juvenile death penalty in most states
Understanding The Malvo Sentence
Despite the uproar following convicted sniper Lee Boyd Malvo's life sentence (instead of a death penalty conviction), pro-death penalty supporters held out hope that Malvo would be sentenced to death in Maryland for the murders in that state.
However, following the Supreme Court decision to outlaw the death penalty for juveniles earlier this year, a life sentence is the maximum punishment that Malvo will receive. Many people have argued that the Malvo decision is a perfect example of how the death penalty's application should be scrutinized on a case by case basis, rather than with a blanket application.
Currently, Malvo and his accomplice John Allen Muhammad (who was sentenced to death in Virginia in 2003) are being held in Maryland and are awaiting trial sometime in 2006.
Why The Evolving Standards Of Decency Will Spare Juveniles
In the landmark Simmons v. Roper decision, the Supreme Court did indeed cite the "evolving standards of decency" as a reason for declaring the death penalty for juveniles unconstitutional. Yet, that reason was just one of many:
Go To Page: 1 2
