Pennsylvania Governor Edward Rendell has signed 113 execution warrants during his two terms in office, yet it appears likely that he will leave office in a few months without seeing any of them carried out. Since the state reinstated the death penalty in 1978, only three men have been executed, all of whom had waived their appeals. Inadequate funding for criminal defense may be one of the primary reasons for this de facto moratorium. Since 1978, state and federal courts have overturned 124 death penalty cases on post-conviction review, mostly because of inadequate representation. (Other reasons cited include prosecutorial misconduct, racial discrimination in jury selection, and improper argument and jury instructions). When the cases are retried, almost all result in a life sentence. Robert Dunham, a federal defender, said, “So long as Pennsylvania systematically fails to adequately provide resources at trial, cases will be reversed [in] post-conviction." Marc Bookman, founder of the Atlantic Center for Capital Representation in Philadelphia, said "an ungodly amount of money" has been spent on the death penalty in the state. "[I]t's an incredible waste of money," he added. "We're propping this thing up so that some of our leaders can claim to be tough on law and order." Pennsylvania has the fourth largest death row in the country.
Kentucky Governor Steven Beshear recently held off signing death warrants for two inmates because of a shortage of the drug sodium thiopental, a key component of the state’s lethal injection protocol. Kentucky’s stock of the lethal injection drug expires October 1, and the Department of Corrections does not expect a new supply until early 2011 because the only supplier of this drug in the country, Hospira, is unable to obtain the active ingredient for the drug. Even when a new supplier for the active ingredient is found, FDA approval will be needed. The governor did set a September 16 date for the execution of Gregory Wilson, which could occur before the state's supply of the drug expires. In Oklahoma, the state’s Department of Corrections recently tried to substitute another drug for sodium thiopental for the execution of Jeffrey Matthews because of concerns about the purity of the supply on hand. A federal judge stayed the execution of Matthews in order to provide time to study the situation. Attorneys for Matthews challenged the substitution of a new drug as a form of human experimentation. Almost all states in the country use essentially the same protocol for lethal injections.
Paul Clement (pictured), former Solicitor General under President George W. Bush, along with a group of former Justice Department prosecutors and civil rights officials, is asking the U.S. Supreme Court for time to argue on behalf of a former death row inmate in a case addressing prosecutorial misconduct. Lawyers for John Thompson claimed that the New Orleans district attorney's office systematically withheld important evidence that would have exonerated Thompson of an armed robbery and murder. Thompson was eventually acquitted and freed after 18 years in prison, mostly on death row in Louisiana. In October, the Supreme Court will consider whether cities can be held liable for a single violation of Brady v. Maryland (1963), the decision that requires prosecutors to disclose exculpatory evidence to criminal defendants. J. Gordon Cooney Jr, Thompson’s lawyer, said he welcomes the help from Clement and the group of Justice Department officials. According to Cooney, the range of officials, both Republican and Democratic, “reflects that this is not an issue that divides neatly along lines you would think of in a stereotypical way,” and that the group “understands that there needs to be accountab[ility] for conduct that nearly cost a man his life.”
On August 24, U.S. District Court Judge William T. Moore Jr. rejected Troy Davis’s petition to overturn his conviction for killing a police officer in 1989 in Georgia. Judge Moore chose a high standard of proof that Davis would have to meet to establish his innocence claim: Davis needed to prove by "clear and convincing evidence that no reasonable juror would have convicted him in light of the new evidence." Judge Moore did conclude that it would be unconstitutional to execute "those who can make a truly persuasive demonstration of innocence." This holding has only been assumed for the sake of argument by the U.S. Supreme Court. He also acknowledged that "the State's case may not be ironclad." Davis, who has spent nearly two decades on death row, has attracted support from many human rights groups because a number of key prosecution witnesses recanted their trial testimony, and other witnesses have come forward implicating another suspect. Last year, the Supreme Court issued an historical ruling allowing Davis to present evidence that had been uncovered since his trial. It is possible that Judge Moore's ruling will now return to the Supreme Court for further review. Read Judge Moore's ruling: 
After an audit of the State Bureau of Investigation (SBI) conducted by former FBI agents at the request of North Carolina's attorney general, it was revealed that officials withheld blood evidence affecting 269 defendants. The report listed three death penalty cases that resulted in executions. Although each of the executed defendants confessed to the crimes, such confessions are sometimes suspect and evidence withheld by the state might have at least led to a lesser sentence. Desmond Carter, who was executed in 2002, was represented by attorneys who were inexperienced and unqualified to handle his capital case. The attorneys never evaluated and challenged the SBI evidence, only assuming the evidence was true. Another impacted case was that of John Hardy Rose, who confessed to killing his neighbor. Ken Rose, his attorney (no relation), said there was doubt as to whether his crime was premeditated or impulsive. Rose said he believes previously undisclosed negative results of a test for blood could have been used to secure a life sentence or a second-degree murder conviction for his client, who was executed in 2001. The final executed defendant was Joseph Timothy Keel. His lawyers are still exploring how the withheld evidence might have affected his case. Jay Ferguson, one of the lawyers, lamented, “[T]here are no do-overs with the death penalty. We can’t go back and fix these errors.”
The latest edition of the Death Penalty Information Center's series of podcasts, DPIC on the Issues, is now available for download. This podcast, Victims and the Death Penalty, explores the issues faced by murder victims' families when capital punishment is being considered. Generally, this series of podcasts offers brief, informative discussions of key death penalty issues. Other recent episodes include discussions on 
A government-ordered audit of the North Carolina State Bureau of Investigation found that the agency falsely reported blood evidence in dozens of cases, including three that ended in executions. The inquiry, ordered by Attorney General Roy Cooper, found that SBI agents improperly aided prosecutors for over a 16-year period, calling into question convictions in 230 criminal cases. Duane Deaver, a veteran SBI analyst who performed the work in five particularly troubling cases, has been suspended pending further investigation. According to the audit, SBI lab reports omitted or overstated important information about test results that would have been favorable to the defense. The report blames the flaws on "poorly crafted policy, inattention to reporting methods which permitted too much analyst subjectivity; and ineffective management and oversight.” The state Supreme Court ruled in 1992 that lab notes are evidence that should be made available to the defense. According to the report, however, “that did not happen for several reasons, including a mindset, led by a section chief, that the lab’s main customer was law enforcement.” North Carolina's News & Observer just completed a four-part investigative series into the SBI entitled |
The Death Penalty Information Center is pleased to present the latest episode in a series of podcasts on capital punishment issues. This podcast focuses on victims and their families. 
Explore these, and other questions, in the latest edition of our "DPIC On the Issues" podcast series. Click the player below to hear the victims podcast.
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