Subject: Capital Punishment, 1992
Capital Punishment 1992
NCJ-145031
Full text with tables available from:
Bureau of Justice Statistics Clearinghouse
800-732-3277
Box 179
Annapolis Junction, MD. 20701-0179
FAX Number (for report orders and mail list signup
only): 410-792-4358
For 63 years the Federal Government has published
annual statistical descriptions of capital punishment.
The capital punishment data series, which covers all
persons sentenced to death since 1973, includes
information about individuals (demographic
characteristics and criminal history) and information
about death sentences (time to execution and population
movements).
With this Bulletin we salute a Bureau of the Census
employee who retires after 20 years of administering
the capital punishment statistical series. We thank
Arlene Rasmussen for her excellent work. We know that
the State officials in corrections departments and
attorneys general offices who have worked with Mrs.
Rasmussen will, as we, miss her unfailing helpfulness
and thoroughness.
Lawrence A. Greenfeld
Acting Director
Capital Punishment 1992
Lawrence A. Greenfeld
and James J. Stephan
BJS Statisticians
Thirteen States executed 31 prisoners during 1992. The
number of persons executed was more than double the 14
executed in 1991, and it was the largest for any year
since the U.S. Supreme Court reinstated capital
punishment in 1976. The prisoners executed during 1992
had been under sentence of death an average of 9 years
and 6 months, about 2 months shorter than the average
for inmates executed the previous year.
During 1992, 265 prisoners under a sentence of death
were received by State prison systems from the courts.
In that year 117 persons had their death sentence
overturned, 2 had their sentences commuted, and 7 died
while under a death sentence.
At yearend 1992, 34 States and the Federal prison
system held a total of 2,575 prisoners under sentence
of death, 4.5% more than at yearend 1991. All
prisoners under sentence of death on December 31, 1992,
had been convicted of murder. The median time since
the death sentence was imposed for the 2,575 prisoners
was 5 years and 7 months.
For those prisoners with a known criminal history,
nearly 7 in 10 under sentence of death had a prior
felony conviction; about 1 in 11 had a prior homicide
conviction. Approximately 2 in 5 prisoners convicted of
a capital crime had a criminal justice status when they
committed the offense. Nearly half of these were on
parole, while the others had charges pending, were on
probation, were prison inmates or escapees, or had some
other criminal justice status. Slightly more than 15%
of persons sentenced to death between 1988 and 1992 had
received 2 or more death sentences.
The majority, 1,508 (58.6%), of those under sentence of
death were white; 1,029 (40.0%) were black; 24 (0.9%)
were American Indian; and 14 (0.5%) were Asian
American. The 196 Hispanic inmates under sentence of
death accounted for 7.6% of those inmates for whom
Hispanic origin was known. Thirty-six (1.4%) of the
persons under a death sentence were women. The median
age of all inmates under a death sentence was 35 years
and the median age at which they had been sentenced to
death was 29 years.
Approximately 56% of those under sentence of death were
held by States in the South. Western States had an
additional 22%; Midwestern States, 16%; and the
Northeastern States of Connecticut, New Jersey, and
Pennsylvania, 6%. Texas held the largest number of
death row inmates (344), followed by California (332),
Florida (312), and Illinois (145). One prisoner was in
Federal custody under a death sentence on December 31,
1992.
Between January 1 and December 31, 1992, 28 State
prison systems received 265 prisoners under sentence of
death. California (37 admissions), Texas (31), Florida
(27); and North Carolina (22) accounted for 44% of the
inmates entering prison under a death sentence during
the year.
A total of 13 States executed 31 persons in 1992: 12
in Texas; 4 in Virginia; 2 each in Alabama, Arkansas,
Florida, and Oklahoma; and 1 each in Arizona,
California, Delaware, Missouri, North Carolina, Utah,
and Wyoming. Fifteen were white non- Hispanic; 10 were
black non-Hispanic; 2 were white Hispanics; 2 were
white with Hispanic origin unknown; 1 was black with
Hispanic origin unknown; and 1 was Native American.
Twenty-one of the executions were carried out by lethal
injection, 8 by electrocution, and 2 by lethal gas.
From January 1, 1977, to December 31, 1992, a total of
188 executions took place in 20 States. Of these 102
(54.3%) were white, 73 (38.8%) were black, 12 (6.4%)
were Hispanic, and 1 (0.5%) was Native American.
During 1977-92, a total of 3,979 persons entered State
prisons under sentences of death, among whom 2,320
(58.3%) were white, 1,598 (40.2%) were black, and 61
(1.5%) were of other races. Also during 1977-92, 1,598
removals from a death sentence occurred as a result of
dispositions other than execution (resentencing,
retrial, commutation, or death while awaiting
execution). Of those removed from under a death
sentence, 827 (51.7%) were white, 673 (42.1%) were
black, 22 (1.4%) were Native American or Asian
American, and 76 (4.8%) were Hispanic.
Capital punishment laws
During 1992, five States revised statutory provisions
relating to the death penalty (table 1). Nearly all of
the changes involved greater specification of
circumstances in which capital punishment may be
applied, some broadening and some narrowing provisions
in the previous law.
Table 1 Capital Offenses, by State, 1992
Alabama. Murder during kidnaping, robbery, rape,
sodomy, burglary, sexual assault, or arson; murder of a
peace officer, correctional officer, or public
official; murder while under a life sentence; murder
for pecuniary gain or contract; aircraft piracy; murder
by a defendant with a previous murder conviction;
murder of a witness to a crime; murder when a victim is
subpoenaed in a criminal proceeding, when the murder is
related to the role of the victim as a witness; murder
when a victim is less than 14 years old; murder in
which a victim is killed while in a dwelling by a
deadly weapon fired from outside the dwelling; murder
in which a victim is killed while in a motor vehicle by
a deadly weapon fired from outside that vehicle; murder
in which a victim is killed by a deadly weapon fired
from a motor vehicle (13A-5-40).
Arizona. First-degree murder.
Arkansas. Capital murder as defined by Arkansas
statute (5-10-101). Felony murder; arson causing
death; intentional murder of a law enforcement officer;
murder of prison, jail, court, or correctional
personnel or of military personnel acting in line of
duty; multiple murders; intentional murder of a public
officeholder or candidate; intentional murder while
under life sentence; contract murder.
California. Treason; homicide by a prisoner serving a
life term; first-degree murder with special
circumstances; train wrecking; perjury causing
execution.
Colorado. First-degree murder; kidnaping with death
of victim; felony murder.
Connecticut. Murder of a public safety or
correctional officer; murder for pecuniary gain; murder
in the course of a felony; murder by a defendant with a
previous conviction for intentional murder; murder
while under a life sentence; murder during a kidnaping;
illegal sale of cocaine, methadone, or heroin to a
person who dies from using these drugs; murder during
first-degree sexual assault; multiple murders.
Delaware. First-degree murder with aggravating
circumstances.
Florida. First-degree murder; capital felonies (FS
921.141); capital drug trafficking felonies (FS
921.142).
Georgia. Murder; kidnaping with bodily injury when
the victim dies; aircraft hijacking; treason; kidnaping
for ransom when the victim dies.
Idaho. First-degree murder; aggravated kidnaping.
Illinois. Murder accompanied by at least 1 of 11
aggravating factors.
Indiana. Murder with 12 aggravating circumstances.
Kentucky. Aggravated murder; kidnaping when victim is
killed.
Louisiana. First-degree murder; treason (La. R.S.
14:30 and 14:113).
Maryland. First-degree murder, either premeditated or
during the commission of a felony.
Mississippi. Capital murder includes murder of a
peace officer or correctional officer, murder while
under a life sentence, murder by bomb or explosive,
contract murder, murder committed during specific
felonies (rape, burglary, kidnaping, arson, robbery,
sexual battery, unnatural intercourse with a child,
nonconsensual unnatural intercourse), and murder of an
elected official. Capital rape is the forcible rape of
a child under 14 years old by a person 18 years or
older. Aircraft piracy.
Missouri. First-degree murder (565.020 RSMO).
Montana. Deliberate homicide; aggravated kidnaping
when victim or rescuer dies; attempted deliberate
homicide, aggravated assault, or aggravated kidnaping
by a State prison inmate who has a prior conviction for
deliberate homicide or who has been previously declared
a persistent felony offender (46-18-303,MCA).
Nebraska. First-degree murder.
Nevada. First-degree murder.
New Hampshire. Contract murder; murder of a law
enforcement officer; murder of a kidnaping victim;
killing another after being sentenced to life
imprisonment without parole.
New Jersey. Purposeful or knowing murder; contract
murder.
New Mexico. First-degree murder; felony murder with
aggravating circumstances.
North Carolina. First-degree murder (N.C.G.S. 14-17).
Ohio. Assassination; contract murder; murder during
escape; murder while in a correctional facility; murder
after conviction for a prior purposeful killing or
prior attempted murder; murder of a peace officer;
murder arising from specified felonies (rape,
kidnaping, arson, robbery, burglary); murder of a
witness to prevent testimony in a criminal proceeding
or in retaliation (O.R.C. secs. 2929.02, 2903.01,
2929.04).
Oklahoma. Murder with malice aforethought; murder
arising from specified felonies (forcible rape, robbery
with a dangerous weapon, kidnaping, escape from lawful
custody, first-degree burglary, arson); murder when the
victim is a child who has been injured, tortured, or
maimed.
Oregon. Aggravated murder.
Pennsylvania. First-degree murder.
South Carolina. Murder with statutory aggravating
circumstances.
South Dakota. First-degree murder; kidnaping with
gross permanent physical injury inflicted on the
victim; felony murder.
Tennessee. First-degree murder.
Texas. Murder of a public safety officer, fireman, or
correctional employee; murder during the commission of
specified felonies (kidnaping, burglary, robbery,
aggravated rape, arson); murder for remuneration;
multiple murders; murder during prison escape; murder
by a State prison inmate.
Utah. Aggravated murder (76-5-202, Utah Code
annotated).
Virginia. Murder during the commission or attempts to
commit specified felonies (abduction, armed robbery,
rape, sodomy); contract murder; murder by a prisoner
while in custody; murder of a law enforcement officer;
multiple murders; murder of a child under 12 years
during an abduction; murder arising from drug
violations (18.2-31, Virginia Code as amended).
Washington. Aggravated first-degree premeditated
murder.
Wyoming. First-degree murder, including felony
murder.
In one State, Tennessee, the State supreme court struck
those parts of the death penalty statute related to the
application of aggravating circumstances for felony
murder. Also, the Tennessee legislature modified the
death penalty statute to specify further a defendant's
right of appeal. By State, the statutory changes were
as follows:
Montana--Amended the statute defining juvenile
offenders and mandating treatment of juvenile offenders
transferred to adult authorities (41-5- 206).
Juveniles under age 16 may not be confined in State
prison. Effective July 1, 1992, with juvenile court
approval, a minor can be tried in adult court. If
death may be imposed for the crime, a judge can
consider such penalty. However, age is a mitigating
factor in such cases.
New Jersey--Amended the State constitution (Article 1,
paragraph 12). Effective December 12, 1992, the
amendment includes inflicting bodily harm causing death
as an interpretation of "knowingly or purposely causing
death"--thereby broadening the constitutional
definition of intent to cause death.
South Carolina--Revised its capital punishment statute
to define mental retardation and to specify it as a
mitigating circumstance in punishment for murder. [16-
3-20(C)b]. The provisions apply only to defendants
mentally retarded at the time of the crime. Mental
retardation is defined as "significantly subaverage
general intellectual functioning existing concurrently
with deficits in adaptive behavior and manifested
during the developmental period." The revision was
effective July 1, 1992.
Tennessee--The Supreme Court [in State v. Middlebrooks,
840 S.W. 2d. 317(1992)] struck in part the application
of the death penalty. An aggravating circumstance of
felony murder was held to be unconstitutionally applied
where the defendant's conviction is based solely on
felony murder theory. The effective date was September
8, 1992.
Tennessee's capital punishment statute was also revised
to specify that whenever the death penalty is imposed
for first degree murder, the defendant has the right of
direct appeal to the court of criminal appeals. Upon
being affirmed by the court of criminal appeals, the
case must be automatically reviewed by the Tennessee
Supreme Court, taking priority over other cases, and
according to the rules of that court (39-13-206),
effective May 1, 1992.
Utah--Amended its capital punishment statute, effective
April 7, 1992, from death or life in prison to death or
life in prison without parole (Utah 76-3-206).
Method of execution
No State changed its method of execution during 1992,
although some jurisdictions considered modifications to
take effect after the end of the year. As of December
31, 1992, lethal injection (22 States) and
electrocution (12 States) remained the principal
methods (table 2). Six States authorized lethal gas;
three States, hanging; and two States, a firing squad.
Ten States authorized more than one method--lethal
injection and an alternative method--generally at the
election of the condemned prisoner; 3 of these 10,
however, stipulated which method must be used,
depending on the date of sentencing, and 1 authorized
hanging only if lethal injection could not be given.
Table 2 Method of execution, by State, 1992
Lethal injection Electrocution Lethal gas
Hanging Firing squad
Arkansas a,b Alabama Arizona
Montana a Idaho a
Colorado a,c Arkansas a,b California
New Hampshire a,d Utah a
Delaware Connecticut Colorado a,
Washington
Idaho a Florida Maryland
Illinois Georgia Mississippi a,e
Louisiana Indiana Missouri a
Mississippi a,e Kentucky North Carolina a
Missouri a Nebraska
Montana a Ohio
Nevada South Carolina
New Hampshire a,b Tennessee
New Jersey Virginia
New Mexico
North Carolina a
Oklahoma
Oregon
Pennsylvania
South Dakota
Texas
Utah a
Washington a
Wyoming
Note: Federal executions are to be carried out
according to the method of the State in which the
inmate was sentenced.
a Authorizes 2 methods of execution.
b Arkansas authorizes lethal injection for those
whose capital offense occurred after 7/4/83;
for those whose offense occurred before that
date, the condemned prisoner may select lethal
injection or electrocution.
c Colorado authorizes lethal gas for those whose
crimes occurred before 7/1/88 and lethal
injection for those whose crimes occurred on or
after 7/1/88.
d New Hampshire authorizes hanging only if lethal
injection cannot be given.
e Mississippi authorizes lethal injection for those
convicted after 7/1/84; execution of those
convicted prior to that date is to be carried out
with lethal gas.
Some States stipulated an alternative to lethal
injection, anticipating that it may be found
unconstitutional. Each of the other four methods,
previously challenged on eighth amendment grounds as
cruel and unusual punishment, has been found to be
constitutional. The method of execution for Federal
offenders is that of the State in which the inmate was
sentenced. If that State makes no provision for the
death penalty, the trial court designates another
State.
Automatic review
Of the 36 States with capital punishment statutes at
yearend 1992, 35 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 do not
provide for automatic review after a sentence of death
is imposed. While most of the 35 States authorized an
automatic review of both the conviction and sentence,
Idaho, Indiana, and Montana require review of the
sentence only. In Idaho, review of the conviction must
be appealed or forfeited. In Indiana a defendant may
waive review of the conviction.
The review is usually conducted by the State's highest
appellate court regardless of the defendant's wishes.
(In Maryland and Wyoming the question of whether a
defendant may waive the right to automatic review of
the sentence has not been addressed.) If either the
conviction or the sentence is vacated, the case may be
remanded to the trial court for additional proceedings
or for retrial. As a result of pretrial or
resentencing, the death sentence may be reimposed.
Minimum age
During 1992 no State changed its laws relating to the
minimum age for capital punishment. Eight
jurisdictions did not specify a minimum age for which
the death penalty may be imposed (table 3). 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. Eleven States and the Federal death penalty
required a minimum age of 18; the remaining
jurisdictions indicated various ages of eligibility
between 14 and 17.
Table 3 Minimum age authorized for capital punishment,
yearend 1992
Age less than 18 Age 18 None
specified
Alabama (16) California Arizona
Arkansas (14) a Colorado Delaware
Georgia (17) Connecticut b Florida
Indiana (16) Illinois Idaho
Kentucky (16) Maryland Montana
Louisiana (16) Nebraska Pennsylvania
Mississippi (16) c New Jersey South
Carolina
Missouri (16) New Mexic Washington
Nevada (16) Ohio
New Hampshire (17) Oregon
North Carolina (17) d Tennessee
Oklahoma (16) Federal system
South Dakota e
Texas (17)
Utah (14)
Virginia (15)
Wyoming (16)
Note: Ages at the time of the capital offense were
indicated by the offices of the State attorneys
general.
a Arkansas Code Ann. 9-27-318(b)(1)(Repl. 1991).
b Conn. Gen. Stat. 53a-46a(g)(1).
c Minimum age defined by statute is 13, but
effective age is 16 based on an interpretation of
U.S. Supreme Court decisions by the State
attorney general's office.
d Age required is 17 unless the murderer was
incarcerated for murder when a subsequent murder
occurred; the age then may be 14.
e Age 10, but only after a transfer hearing to try
a juvenile as an adult.
Prisoners under sentence of death at yearend 1992
Thirty-four States and the Federal prison system held a
total of 2,575 prisoners under sentence of death on
December 31, 1992, a gain of 110, or 4.5% more than at
the end of 1991. Seven States, which had 36% of the
adult resident population reported 58% of the Nation's
capital sentence population: Texas (344), California
(332), Florida (312), Illinois (145), Alabama (124),
Ohio (121), and Oklahoma (120). Of the 35
jurisdictions with statutes authorizing the death
penalty, New Hampshire and Wyoming had no one under a
capital sentence, and South Dakota, New Mexico, and the
Federal prison system had 1 prisoner each.
Fifty-six percent of all inmates under sentence of
death were in Southern States--a region that contained
35% of the Nation's adults. For the West the
percentages of all persons under sentence of death and
of all adults in the residential population were about
the same, whereas for the Northeast and Midwest the
percentages of the population sentenced to execution
were smaller than the percentages of the total adult
population.
U.S. total 100% 100%
Northeast* 20 6
Midwest* 24 16
South 35 56
West 21 22
*Four of the nine States in the Northeast and 6 of the
12 States in the Midwest do not authorize capital
sentences.
In all four regions the number of prisoners under
sentence of death increased during 1992. The number
rose by 21, or 1.5% in the South. In the Northeast it
rose by 14 inmates, or 9.6%. Slightly smaller gains
occurred in the Midwest (8.4% and 32 additional
offenders) and the West (8.3% and 43 additional
offenders).
Seven States had fewer inmates under sentence of death
at yearend 1992 than a year earlier: Mississippi
reported the largest decline (5), followed by Oklahoma
with 4 fewer, Arkansas and Utah each with 2 fewer, and
New Jersey, Georgia, and Wyomong each with 1 fewer.
During 1992 the number of blacks under sentence of
death rose by 50, or 5.1%; the number of whites rose by
59 or 4.1%; and the number of persons of other races
(American Indians and Asians or Pacific Islanders) rose
by 1, or 2.7%.
The number of Hispanics sentenced to death rose from
185 to 196 during 1992. Twenty Hispanics were received
under sentence of death, 7 were removed from that
status, and 2 were executed. More than three-fourths
of the Hispanics were in 4 States: Texas (55),
California (45), Florida (31), and Arizona (21).
During 1992 the number of women sentenced to be
executed decreased by 1. Six women were received under
sentence of death, seven were removed, and none was
executed. Women were incarcerated in 14 States, with
Alabama (5), and Oklahoma (4) holding the most.
Women under sentence
of death 12/31/92
State Total White Black
Total 36 22 14
North Carolina 3 2 1
Alabama 5 5 2
Oklahoma 4 3 1
California 3 3 0
Florida 3 2 1
Illinois 3 1 2
Missouri 3 3 0
Ohio 3 0 3
Texas 3 2 1
Pennsylvania 2 0 2
Arizona 1 1 0
Indiana 1 1 0
Nevada 1 0 1
Tennessee 1 1 0
Men were 98% (2,539 of all prisoners under sentence of
death). Whites predominated (58.6%); blacks comprised
40.0%; and the 1.4% of other races included 24 American
Indians and 14 Asian Americans. Among those for whom
Hispanic origin was known, 7.6% were Hispanic.
The sex, race, and Hispanic origin of those under
sentence of death at yearend 1992 were as follows:
White Black Other
Male 1,486 1,015 38
Hispanic 181 10 2
Female 22 14 0
Hispanic 2 1 0
Among inmates under sentence of death on December 31,
1992, for whom information on education was available,
nearly three-fourths had either completed high school
(36.8%) or finished 9th, 10th, or 11th grade (37.0%).
A slightly higher percentage had attended some college
(10.2%) than had not gone beyond 7th grade (8.0%). The
median level of education was 11th grade. Of inmates
under a capital sentence and with a reported marital
status, nearly half had never married; somewhat more
than a fourth were married when they were sentenced;
and a fourth were divorced, separated, or widowed.
Among all inmates under sentence of death, 45.3% were
age 30 to 39 on December 31, 1992, and 61.7% were age
25 to 39. The median age was 35 years. Less than 1%
were younger than 20, and about 3.3% were age 55 or
older. The youngest inmate under sentence of death was
age 17 (born April 1975); the oldest was 78 (born
December 1914). More than half of all inmates under
sentence of death at yearend 1992 were age 20 to 29 at
the time of their sentencing.
Entries and removals of persons under sentence of death
Between January 1 and December 31, 1992, 28 State
prison systems reported receiving 265 prisoners under
sentence of death. Forty-four percent of the inmates
were received in four States: California (37), Texas
(31), Florida (27) and North Carolina (22). All 265
prisoners who had been received under sentence of death
had been convicted of murder; 143 were white men, 112
were black men, 3 were Native American men, 1 was an
Asian American man, 4 were white women and 2 were black
women. Eighteen of the 265 new admissions were
Hispanic men and 2 were Hispanic women.
Twenty-one States reported a total of 117 persons whose
sentence of death was overturned. Appeals courts
vacated 69 sentences while upholding the convictions
and vacated 45 sentences while over-turning the
convictions. Florida (19 exits) had the largest number
of vacated capital sentences. Indiana reported one
removal by post-conviction relief, and North Carolina
and Virginia each reported one commutation of a death
sentence.
As of December 31, 1992, 51 of the 117 were serving a
reduced sentence (46 to life imprisonment, 4 to a
sentence of more than 20 years, and 1 to 20 years or
less), 33 were awaiting a new trial, 29 were awaiting
resentencing, 2 had further prosecution dropped, 1 was
found not guilty, and 1 was removed by an unspecified
method.
In addition, seven persons died while under sentence of
death in 1992. Five of these deaths resulted from
natural causes--one each in Alabama, California,
Florida, Ohio, and Texas. Two suicides occurred--1 in
California and 1 in Florida.
Following the Supreme Court's reinstatement of the
death penalty, between 1977 and 1992, a total of 3,979
persons entered State prisons under sentences of death;
1,598 persons had their death sentences removed as the
result of appellate court decisions and higher court
reviews, commutations, or death while under sentence;
and 188 persons were executed. (Over time an
individual may have entered and been removed from a
capital sentence more than once.)
Among individuals who received a death sentence between
1977 and 1992, 2,320 (58.3%) were white, 1,598 (40.2%)
were black, and 61 (1.5%) were of other races. Among
those removed from a death sentence other than by
execution, 827 (51.7%) were white, 673 (42.1%) were
black, 22 (1.4%) were Native American or Asian
American, and 76 (4.8%) were Hispanic. Of the 188
executed, 102 (54.3%) were white, 73 (38.8%) were
black, 12 (6.4%) were Hispanic, and 1 (0.5%) was Native
American.
Criminal history of inmates under sentence of death in
1992
Among inmates under death sentences on December 31,
1992, for whom criminal-history information was
available, 68.5% had a history of felony convictions.
Among those for whom information on prior homicide
convictions was available, 9.4% had been sentenced for
murder or manslaughter in the past.
Among those for whom legal status at the time of the
capital offense was reported, 41.9% had an active
criminal justice status. Nearly half of these were on
parole, while the others had charges pending, were on
probation, were prison inmates or escapees, or had some
other criminal justice status.
Excluding those who had charges pending, nearly 1 in 3
(31.2%) were already under sentence for another crime
when their capital offense occurred. In a number of
States, being under sentence for another crime is
considered an aggravating factor in capital sentencing.
Criminal history patterns varied slightly by race and
Hispanic origin. For example, 74.3% of blacks had
prior felony conviction records compared to 65.4% of
whites, and 62.4% of Hispanics. Relatively more
Hispanics (16.5%) than whites (8.6%) or blacks (10.6%)
had prior homicide convictions; and a higher proportion
of whites (6.9%) and blacks (6.2%) than Hispanics
(4.7%) had charges pending at the time of their capital
offense.
As of yearend 1992 the median amount of elapsed time
since sentencing among prisoners under sentence of
death was 64 months, and the mean time was 69 months.
Overall, the average time for women was 4 years, 1
month--about two-thirds as long as for men (5 years and
10 months). Whites and blacks showed relatively little
difference in average time since sentencing, both
groups spending slightly longer than Hispanics.
Number of months
since sentencing
Mean Median
Total 69 64
Male 70 64
Female 49 41
White 69 64
Black 70 64
Hispanic 64 57
Since 1988 data have been collected on the number of
death sentences imposed on each person entering prison
under sentence of death. Among the 1,375 individuals
received under sentence of death, approximately 1 in
every 7 entered with 2 or more death sentences.
Whites, blacks, and Hispanics had similar proportions
of those with single or multiple death sentences.
Executions
According to data collected by the Federal Government
since 1930, during the 63 years ending in 1992, a total
of 4,047 persons were executed under civil authority.
(Military authorities carried out an additional 160
executions between 1930 and 1992.)
Since the Supreme Court reinstated the death penalty in
1976, the States have executed 188 prisoners:
1977 1 1986 18
1979 2 1987 25
1981 1 1988 11
1982 2 1989 16
1983 5 1990 23
1984 21 1991 14
1985 18 1992 31
Between 1977 and 1992, 20 States executed prisoners.
Texas had the largest number (54), followed by Florida
(29), Louisiana (20),Virginia (17), and Georgia (15).
Between 1977 and 1992, 89 white non-Hispanics, 59 black
non-Hispanics, 11 white Hispanics, 1 black Hispanic, 13
whites with Hispanic origin unknown, 14 blacks with
Hispanic origin unknown, and 1 American Indian were
executed.
During 1992 Texas carried out 12 executions; Virginia
executed 4 persons; Alabama, Arkansas, Florida, and
Oklahoma, 2 each; and Arizona, California, Delaware,
Missouri, North Carolina, Utah, and Wyoming, 1 each.
All persons executed in 1992 were male. Fifteen were
white, non-Hispanic; 10 were black, non-Hispanic; 2
were white Hispanic; 2 were white with Hispanic origin
unknown; 1 was black with Hispanic origin unknown; and
1 was Native American.
From 1977 to 1992, 4,361 prisoners were under death
sentences for varying lengths of time. The 188
executions accounted for 4.3% of all exits from
sentences of death during the 15-year period. A total
of 1,598 prisoners, or 36.6% of those at risk, received
other dispositions. There was no significant
difference in the proportions of executed persons by
race or Hispanic origin. However, relatively more
blacks (38.2%) than whites (36.7%) or Hispanics (26.8%)
were removed from under a death sentence by means other
than execution.
Among prisoners executed between 1977 and 1992, the
average time between the imposition of the most recent
sentence received and execution was 7 years and 6
months. White prisoners had an average of 7 years, and
black prisoners, 8 years and 3 months. The 31
prisoners executed in 1992 were under a sentence of
death an average of 9 years and 6 months.
Among the 188 prisoners executed between 1977 and 1992,
the largest number (98) were electrocuted, followed by
those who received lethal injections (82), lethal gas
(7), and a firing squad (1).
Number of executions,
1977-92
Ameri-
Means of His-
can
execution White Black panic
Indian Asian
Total 102 73 12
1 0
Lethal injection 47 23 11
1 0
Electrocution 50 47 1
0 0
Lethal gas 4 3 0
0 0
Firing squad 1 0 0
0 0
Methodological note
The statistics reported in this Bulletin may differ
from data collected by other organizations for a
variety of reasons: (1) inmates are originally added
to the National Prisoner Statistics (NPS) death-row
counts not at sentencing but at the time they are
admitted to a State or Federal correctional facility.
(2) Subsequently, admissions to death row or releases
as a result of a court order are attributed to the year
in which the sentence or court order occurred; prior-
year counts are, therefore, adjusted to reflect the
actual dates of court decisions. (See note, table 4,
for the affected jurisdictions.) (3) NPS death-row
counts are always for the last day of the calendar year
and will differ from counts for more recent periods.
Appendix I. Current status of inmates under sentence
of death, 1973-92
Between 1973 and 1992 a total of 4,704 persons were
sentenced to death. The table shows the status of
those received in each year with respect to their death
sentence, as of December 31, 1992. For example, of the
256 persons who were sentenced to death in 1983, 20 had
been executed, 10 had died while in confinement, 1 had
been relieved of the death sentence because courts
struck down wholly or in part the statutes under which
they were sentenced, 21 had their conviction overturned
on appeal, 45 had their sentence overturned on appeal,
3 had their sentence commuted, and 155 were still under
a death sentence at yearend 1992. Of the 2,575 persons
under sentence of death on December 31, 1992, 118 or
4.6% were sentenced prior to 1980. Florida, Georgia,
Texas, Montana, and Nebraska had the inmates who had
served the longest among all condemned inmates.
By contrast, Oregon had no inmates sentenced prior to
1988, the Federal prison system prior to 1991, and
South Dakota prior to 1992. The average time from
sentence to December 31, 1992, for the 2,575 condemned
inmates was 5 years and 7 months.
Appendix II. Federal laws providing for the death
penalty
Since the Supreme Court's decision in Furman v. Georgia
in 1972, striking down the death penalty as then
applied, four death penalty statutes have been enacted
by the Congress:
*(A) Any person engaging in or working in furtherance
of a continuing criminal enterprise, or any person
engaging in an offense punishable under section
841(b)(1)(A) or section 960(b)(1) who intentionally
kills or counsels, commands, induces, procures, or
causes the intentional killing of an individual and
such killing results, shall be sentenced to any term of
imprisonment, which shall not be less than 20 years,
and which may be up to life imprisonment, or may be
sentenced to death; and (B) any person, during the
commission of, in furtherance of, or while attempting
to avoid apprehension, prosecution or service of a
prison sentence for, a felony violation of this
subchapter or subchapter II of this chapter who
intentionally kills or counsels, commands, induces,
procures, or causes the intentional killing of any
Federal, State, or local law enforcement officer
engaged in, or on account of, the performance of such
officer's official duties and such killing results,
shall be sentenced to any term of imprisonment, which
shall not be less than 20 years, and which may be up to
life imprisonment, or may be sentenced to death (21
U.S.C. 848(e)).
*Espionage by a member of the Armed Forces:
communication of information to a foreign government
relating to nuclear weaponry, military spacecraft or
satellites, early warning systems, war plans,
communications intelligence or cryptographic
information, or any other major weapons or defense
strategy (10 U.S.C. 906(a)).
*Witness tampering where death results (18 U.S.C.
1512).
*Death resulting from aircraft hijacking (49 U.S.C.
1472 and 1473).
The following capital punishment provisions, which were
enacted prior to the Furman decision, remain in the
United States Code:
*Murder while a member of the Armed Forces (10 U.S.C.
918).
*Destruction of aircraft, motor vehicles, or related
facilities resulting in death (18 U.S.C. 32-34).
*Retaliatory murder of a member of the immediate family
of law enforcement officials (18 U.S.C. 115(b)(3) [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. 351 [by
cross-reference to 18 U.S.C. 1111]).
*Espionage (18 U.S.C. 794).
*Destruction of government property resulting in death
(18 U.S.C. 844(f)(d)(i)).
*First-degree murder (18 U.S.C. 1111).
*Mailing of injurious articles with the intent to kill
or resulting in death (18 U.S.C. 1716).
*Assassination or kidnaping resulting in the death of
the President or Vice President (18 U.S.C. 1751 [by
cross-reference to 18 U.S.C. 1111]).
*Willful wrecking of a train resulting in death (18
U.S.C. 1992).
*Bank-robbery-related murder or kidnaping (18 U.S.C.
2113).
*Treason (18 U.S.C. 2381).
*Murder of Federal judges and officers (18 U.S.C.
1114).
This BJS Bulletin was written by Lawrence Greenfeld,
Acting Director, and James Stephan, Statistician.
Arlene Rasmussen, U.S. Bureau of the Census, collected
the data under the supervision of Gertrude Odom. Craig
Perkins provided statistical review. Tom Hester edited
the report. Marilyn Marbrook supervised production,
assisted by Betty Sherman and Jayne Pugh.
December 1992 NCJ-145031
Capital Punishment 1992
NCJ-145031
Full text with tables available from:
Bureau of Justice Statistics Clearinghouse
800-732-3277
Box 179
Annapolis Junction, MD. 20701-0179
FAX Number (for report orders and mail list signup
only): 410-792-4358
For 63 years the Federal Government has published
annual statistical descriptions of capital punishment.
The capital punishment data series, which covers all
persons sentenced to death since 1973, includes
information about individuals (demographic
characteristics and criminal history) and information
about death sentences (time to execution and population
movements).
With this Bulletin we salute a Bureau of the Census
employee who retires after 20 years of administering
the capital punishment statistical series. We thank
Arlene Rasmussen for her excellent work. We know that
the State officials in corrections departments and
attorneys general offices who have worked with Mrs.
Rasmussen will, as we, miss her unfailing helpfulness
and thoroughness.
Lawrence A. Greenfeld
Acting Director
Capital Punishment 1992
Lawrence A. Greenfeld
and James J. Stephan
BJS Statisticians
Thirteen States executed 31 prisoners during 1992. The
number of persons executed was more than double the 14
executed in 1991, and it was the largest for any year
since the U.S. Supreme Court reinstated capital
punishment in 1976. The prisoners executed during 1992
had been under sentence of death an average of 9 years
and 6 months, about 2 months shorter than the average
for inmates executed the previous year.
During 1992, 265 prisoners under a sentence of death
were received by State prison systems from the courts.
In that year 117 persons had their death sentence
overturned, 2 had their sentences commuted, and 7 died
while under a death sentence.
At yearend 1992, 34 States and the Federal prison
system held a total of 2,575 prisoners under sentence
of death, 4.5% more than at yearend 1991. All
prisoners under sentence of death on December 31, 1992,
had been convicted of murder. The median time since
the death sentence was imposed for the 2,575 prisoners
was 5 years and 7 months.
For those prisoners with a known criminal history,
nearly 7 in 10 under sentence of death had a prior
felony conviction; about 1 in 11 had a prior homicide
conviction. Approximately 2 in 5 prisoners convicted of
a capital crime had a criminal justice status when they
committed the offense. Nearly half of these were on
parole, while the others had charges pending, were on
probation, were prison inmates or escapees, or had some
other criminal justice status. Slightly more than 15%
of persons sentenced to death between 1988 and 1992 had
received 2 or more death sentences.
The majority, 1,508 (58.6%), of those under sentence of
death were white; 1,029 (40.0%) were black; 24 (0.9%)
were American Indian; and 14 (0.5%) were Asian
American. The 196 Hispanic inmates under sentence of
death accounted for 7.6% of those inmates for whom
Hispanic origin was known. Thirty-six (1.4%) of the
persons under a death sentence were women. The median
age of all inmates under a death sentence was 35 years
and the median age at which they had been sentenced to
death was 29 years.
Approximately 56% of those under sentence of death were
held by States in the South. Western States had an
additional 22%; Midwestern States, 16%; and the
Northeastern States of Connecticut, New Jersey, and
Pennsylvania, 6%. Texas held the largest number of
death row inmates (344), followed by California (332),
Florida (312), and Illinois (145). One prisoner was in
Federal custody under a death sentence on December 31,
1992.
Between January 1 and December 31, 1992, 28 State
prison systems received 265 prisoners under sentence of
death. California (37 admissions), Texas (31), Florida
(27); and North Carolina (22) accounted for 44% of the
inmates entering prison under a death sentence during
the year.
A total of 13 States executed 31 persons in 1992: 12
in Texas; 4 in Virginia; 2 each in Alabama, Arkansas,
Florida, and Oklahoma; and 1 each in Arizona,
California, Delaware, Missouri, North Carolina, Utah,
and Wyoming. Fifteen were white non- Hispanic; 10 were
black non-Hispanic; 2 were white Hispanics; 2 were
white with Hispanic origin unknown; 1 was black with
Hispanic origin unknown; and 1 was Native American.
Twenty-one of the executions were carried out by lethal
injection, 8 by electrocution, and 2 by lethal gas.
From January 1, 1977, to December 31, 1992, a total of
188 executions took place in 20 States. Of these 102
(54.3%) were white, 73 (38.8%) were black, 12 (6.4%)
were Hispanic, and 1 (0.5%) was Native American.
During 1977-92, a total of 3,979 persons entered State
prisons under sentences of death, among whom 2,320
(58.3%) were white, 1,598 (40.2%) were black, and 61
(1.5%) were of other races. Also during 1977-92, 1,598
removals from a death sentence occurred as a result of
dispositions other than execution (resentencing,
retrial, commutation, or death while awaiting
execution). Of those removed from under a death
sentence, 827 (51.7%) were white, 673 (42.1%) were
black, 22 (1.4%) were Native American or Asian
American, and 76 (4.8%) were Hispanic.
Capital punishment laws
During 1992, five States revised statutory provisions
relating to the death penalty (table 1). Nearly all of
the changes involved greater specification of
circumstances in which capital punishment may be
applied, some broadening and some narrowing provisions
in the previous law.
Table 1 Capital Offenses, by State, 1992
Alabama. Murder during kidnaping, robbery, rape,
sodomy, burglary, sexual assault, or arson; murder of a
peace officer, correctional officer, or public
official; murder while under a life sentence; murder
for pecuniary gain or contract; aircraft piracy; murder
by a defendant with a previous murder conviction;
murder of a witness to a crime; murder when a victim is
subpoenaed in a criminal proceeding, when the murder is
related to the role of the victim as a witness; murder
when a victim is less than 14 years old; murder in
which a victim is killed while in a dwelling by a
deadly weapon fired from outside the dwelling; murder
in which a victim is killed while in a motor vehicle by
a deadly weapon fired from outside that vehicle; murder
in which a victim is killed by a deadly weapon fired
from a motor vehicle (13A-5-40).
Arizona. First-degree murder.
Arkansas. Capital murder as defined by Arkansas
statute (5-10-101). Felony murder; arson causing
death; intentional murder of a law enforcement officer;
murder of prison, jail, court, or correctional
personnel or of military personnel acting in line of
duty; multiple murders; intentional murder of a public
officeholder or candidate; intentional murder while
under life sentence; contract murder.
California. Treason; homicide by a prisoner serving a
life term; first-degree murder with special
circumstances; train wrecking; perjury causing
execution.
Colorado. First-degree murder; kidnaping with death
of victim; felony murder.
Connecticut. Murder of a public safety or
correctional officer; murder for pecuniary gain; murder
in the course of a felony; murder by a defendant with a
previous conviction for intentional murder; murder
while under a life sentence; murder during a kidnaping;
illegal sale of cocaine, methadone, or heroin to a
person who dies from using these drugs; murder during
first-degree sexual assault; multiple murders.
Delaware. First-degree murder with aggravating
circumstances.
Florida. First-degree murder; capital felonies (FS
921.141); capital drug trafficking felonies (FS
921.142).
Georgia. Murder; kidnaping with bodily injury when
the victim dies; aircraft hijacking; treason; kidnaping
for ransom when the victim dies.
Idaho. First-degree murder; aggravated kidnaping.
Illinois. Murder accompanied by at least 1 of 11
aggravating factors.
Indiana. Murder with 12 aggravating circumstances.
Kentucky. Aggravated murder; kidnaping when victim is
killed.
Louisiana. First-degree murder; treason (La. R.S.
14:30 and 14:113).
Maryland. First-degree murder, either premeditated or
during the commission of a felony.
Mississippi. Capital murder includes murder of a
peace officer or correctional officer, murder while
under a life sentence, murder by bomb or explosive,
contract murder, murder committed during specific
felonies (rape, burglary, kidnaping, arson, robbery,
sexual battery, unnatural intercourse with a child,
nonconsensual unnatural intercourse), and murder of an
elected official. Capital rape is the forcible rape of
a child under 14 years old by a person 18 years or
older. Aircraft piracy.
Missouri. First-degree murder (565.020 RSMO).
Montana. Deliberate homicide; aggravated kidnaping
when victim or rescuer dies; attempted deliberate
homicide, aggravated assault, or aggravated kidnaping
by a State prison inmate who has a prior conviction for
deliberate homicide or who has been previously declared
a persistent felony offender (46-18-303,MCA).
Nebraska. First-degree murder.
Nevada. First-degree murder.
New Hampshire. Contract murder; murder of a law
enforcement officer; murder of a kidnaping victim;
killing another after being sentenced to life
imprisonment without parole.
New Jersey. Purposeful or knowing murder; contract
murder.
New Mexico. First-degree murder; felony murder with
aggravating circumstances.
North Carolina. First-degree murder (N.C.G.S. 14-17).
Ohio. Assassination; contract murder; murder during
escape; murder while in a correctional facility; murder
after conviction for a prior purposeful killing or
prior attempted murder; murder of a peace officer;
murder arising from specified felonies (rape,
kidnaping, arson, robbery, burglary); murder of a
witness to prevent testimony in a criminal proceeding
or in retaliation (O.R.C. secs. 2929.02, 2903.01,
2929.04).
Oklahoma. Murder with malice aforethought; murder
arising from specified felonies (forcible rape, robbery
with a dangerous weapon, kidnaping, escape from lawful
custody, first-degree burglary, arson); murder when the
victim is a child who has been injured, tortured, or
maimed.
Oregon. Aggravated murder.
Pennsylvania. First-degree murder.
South Carolina. Murder with statutory aggravating
circumstances.
South Dakota. First-degree murder; kidnaping with
gross permanent physical injury inflicted on the
victim; felony murder.
Tennessee. First-degree murder.
Texas. Murder of a public safety officer, fireman, or
correctional employee; murder during the commission of
specified felonies (kidnaping, burglary, robbery,
aggravated rape, arson); murder for remuneration;
multiple murders; murder during prison escape; murder
by a State prison inmate.
Utah. Aggravated murder (76-5-202, Utah Code
annotated).
Virginia. Murder during the commission or attempts to
commit specified felonies (abduction, armed robbery,
rape, sodomy); contract murder; murder by a prisoner
while in custody; murder of a law enforcement officer;
multiple murders; murder of a child under 12 years
during an abduction; murder arising from drug
violations (18.2-31, Virginia Code as amended).
Washington. Aggravated first-degree premeditated
murder.
Wyoming. First-degree murder, including felony
murder.
In one State, Tennessee, the State supreme court struck
those parts of the death penalty statute related to the
application of aggravating circumstances for felony
murder. Also, the Tennessee legislature modified the
death penalty statute to specify further a defendant's
right of appeal. By State, the statutory changes were
as follows:
Montana--Amended the statute defining juvenile
offenders and mandating treatment of juvenile offenders
transferred to adult authorities (41-5- 206).
Juveniles under age 16 may not be confined in State
prison. Effective July 1, 1992, with juvenile court
approval, a minor can be tried in adult court. If
death may be imposed for the crime, a judge can
consider such penalty. However, age is a mitigating
factor in such cases.
New Jersey--Amended the State constitution (Article 1,
paragraph 12). Effective December 12, 1992, the
amendment includes inflicting bodily harm causing death
as an interpretation of "knowingly or purposely causing
death"--thereby broadening the constitutional
definition of intent to cause death.
South Carolina--Revised its capital punishment statute
to define mental retardation and to specify it as a
mitigating circumstance in punishment for murder. [16-
3-20(C)b]. The provisions apply only to defendants
mentally retarded at the time of the crime. Mental
retardation is defined as "significantly subaverage
general intellectual functioning existing concurrently
with deficits in adaptive behavior and manifested
during the developmental period." The revision was
effective July 1, 1992.
Tennessee--The Supreme Court [in State v. Middlebrooks,
840 S.W. 2d. 317(1992)] struck in part the application
of the death penalty. An aggravating circumstance of
felony murder was held to be unconstitutionally applied
where the defendant's conviction is based solely on
felony murder theory. The effective date was September
8, 1992.
Tennessee's capital punishment statute was also revised
to specify that whenever the death penalty is imposed
for first degree murder, the defendant has the right of
direct appeal to the court of criminal appeals. Upon
being affirmed by the court of criminal appeals, the
case must be automatically reviewed by the Tennessee
Supreme Court, taking priority over other cases, and
according to the rules of that court (39-13-206),
effective May 1, 1992.
Utah--Amended its capital punishment statute, effective
April 7, 1992, from death or life in prison to death or
life in prison without parole (Utah 76-3-206).
Method of execution
No State changed its method of execution during 1992,
although some jurisdictions considered modifications to
take effect after the end of the year. As of December
31, 1992, lethal injection (22 States) and
electrocution (12 States) remained the principal
methods (table 2). Six States authorized lethal gas;
three States, hanging; and two States, a firing squad.
Ten States authorized more than one method--lethal
injection and an alternative method--generally at the
election of the condemned prisoner; 3 of these 10,
however, stipulated which method must be used,
depending on the date of sentencing, and 1 authorized
hanging only if lethal injection could not be given.
Table 2 Method of execution, by State, 1992
Lethal injection Electrocution Lethal gas
Hanging Firing squad
Arkansas a,b Alabama Arizona
Montana a Idaho a
Colorado a,c Arkansas a,b California
New Hampshire a,d Utah a
Delaware Connecticut Colorado a,
Washington
Idaho a Florida Maryland
Illinois Georgia Mississippi a,e
Louisiana Indiana Missouri a
Mississippi a,e Kentucky North Carolina a
Missouri a Nebraska
Montana a Ohio
Nevada South Carolina
New Hampshire a,b Tennessee
New Jersey Virginia
New Mexico
North Carolina a
Oklahoma
Oregon
Pennsylvania
South Dakota
Texas
Utah a
Washington a
Wyoming
Note: Federal executions are to be carried out
according to the method of the State in which the
inmate was sentenced.
a Authorizes 2 methods of execution.
b Arkansas authorizes lethal injection for those
whose capital offense occurred after 7/4/83;
for those whose offense occurred before that
date, the condemned prisoner may select lethal
injection or electrocution.
c Colorado authorizes lethal gas for those whose
crimes occurred before 7/1/88 and lethal
injection for those whose crimes occurred on or
after 7/1/88.
d New Hampshire authorizes hanging only if lethal
injection cannot be given.
e Mississippi authorizes lethal injection for those
convicted after 7/1/84; execution of those
convicted prior to that date is to be carried out
with lethal gas.
Some States stipulated an alternative to lethal
injection, anticipating that it may be found
unconstitutional. Each of the other four methods,
previously challenged on eighth amendment grounds as
cruel and unusual punishment, has been found to be
constitutional. The method of execution for Federal
offenders is that of the State in which the inmate was
sentenced. If that State makes no provision for the
death penalty, the trial court designates another
State.
Automatic review
Of the 36 States with capital punishment statutes at
yearend 1992, 35 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 do not
provide for automatic review after a sentence of death
is imposed. While most of the 35 States authorized an
automatic review of both the conviction and sentence,
Idaho, Indiana, and Montana require review of the
sentence only. In Idaho, review of the conviction must
be appealed or forfeited. In Indiana a defendant may
waive review of the conviction.
The review is usually conducted by the State's highest
appellate court regardless of the defendant's wishes.
(In Maryland and Wyoming the question of whether a
defendant may waive the right to automatic review of
the sentence has not been addressed.) If either the
conviction or the sentence is vacated, the case may be
remanded to the trial court for additional proceedings
or for retrial. As a result of pretrial or
resentencing, the death sentence may be reimposed.
Minimum age
During 1992 no State changed its laws relating to the
minimum age for capital punishment. Eight
jurisdictions did not specify a minimum age for which
the death penalty may be imposed (table 3). 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. Eleven States and the Federal death penalty
required a minimum age of 18; the remaining
jurisdictions indicated various ages of eligibility
between 14 and 17.
Table 3 Minimum age authorized for capital punishment,
yearend 1992
Age less than 18 Age 18 None
specified
Alabama (16) California Arizona
Arkansas (14) a Colorado Delaware
Georgia (17) Connecticut b Florida
Indiana (16) Illinois Idaho
Kentucky (16) Maryland Montana
Louisiana (16) Nebraska Pennsylvania
Mississippi (16) c New Jersey South
Carolina
Missouri (16) New Mexic Washington
Nevada (16) Ohio
New Hampshire (17) Oregon
North Carolina (17) d Tennessee
Oklahoma (16) Federal system
South Dakota e
Texas (17)
Utah (14)
Virginia (15)
Wyoming (16)
Note: Ages at the time of the capital offense were
indicated by the offices of the State attorneys
general.
a Arkansas Code Ann. 9-27-318(b)(1)(Repl. 1991).
b Conn. Gen. Stat. 53a-46a(g)(1).
c Minimum age defined by statute is 13, but
effective age is 16 based on an interpretation of
U.S. Supreme Court decisions by the State
attorney general's office.
d Age required is 17 unless the murderer was
incarcerated for murder when a subsequent murder
occurred; the age then may be 14.
e Age 10, but only after a transfer hearing to try
a juvenile as an adult.
Prisoners under sentence of death at yearend 1992
Thirty-four States and the Federal prison system held a
total of 2,575 prisoners under sentence of death on
December 31, 1992, a gain of 110, or 4.5% more than at
the end of 1991. Seven States, which had 36% of the
adult resident population reported 58% of the Nation's
capital sentence population: Texas (344), California
(332), Florida (312), Illinois (145), Alabama (124),
Ohio (121), and Oklahoma (120). Of the 35
jurisdictions with statutes authorizing the death
penalty, New Hampshire and Wyoming had no one under a
capital sentence, and South Dakota, New Mexico, and the
Federal prison system had 1 prisoner each.
Fifty-six percent of all inmates under sentence of
death were in Southern States--a region that contained
35% of the Nation's adults. For the West the
percentages of all persons under sentence of death and
of all adults in the residential population were about
the same, whereas for the Northeast and Midwest the
percentages of the population sentenced to execution
were smaller than the percentages of the total adult
population.
U.S. total 100% 100%
Northeast* 20 6
Midwest* 24 16
South 35 56
West 21 22
*Four of the nine States in the Northeast and 6 of the
12 States in the Midwest do not authorize capital
sentences.
In all four regions the number of prisoners under
sentence of death increased during 1992. The number
rose by 21, or 1.5% in the South. In the Northeast it
rose by 14 inmates, or 9.6%. Slightly smaller gains
occurred in the Midwest (8.4% and 32 additional
offenders) and the West (8.3% and 43 additional
offenders).
Seven States had fewer inmates under sentence of death
at yearend 1992 than a year earlier: Mississippi
reported the largest decline (5), followed by Oklahoma
with 4 fewer, Arkansas and Utah each with 2 fewer, and
New Jersey, Georgia, and Wyomong each with 1 fewer.
During 1992 the number of blacks under sentence of
death rose by 50, or 5.1%; the number of whites rose by
59 or 4.1%; and the number of persons of other races
(American Indians and Asians or Pacific Islanders) rose
by 1, or 2.7%.
The number of Hispanics sentenced to death rose from
185 to 196 during 1992. Twenty Hispanics were received
under sentence of death, 7 were removed from that
status, and 2 were executed. More than three-fourths
of the Hispanics were in 4 States: Texas (55),
California (45), Florida (31), and Arizona (21).
During 1992 the number of women sentenced to be
executed decreased by 1. Six women were received under
sentence of death, seven were removed, and none was
executed. Women were incarcerated in 14 States, with
Alabama (5), and Oklahoma (4) holding the most.
Women under sentence
of death 12/31/92
State Total White Black
Total 36 22 14
North Carolina 3 2 1
Alabama 5 5 2
Oklahoma 4 3 1
California 3 3 0
Florida 3 2 1
Illinois 3 1 2
Missouri 3 3 0
Ohio 3 0 3
Texas 3 2 1
Pennsylvania 2 0 2
Arizona 1 1 0
Indiana 1 1 0
Nevada 1 0 1
Tennessee 1 1 0
Men were 98% (2,539 of all prisoners under sentence of
death). Whites predominated (58.6%); blacks comprised
40.0%; and the 1.4% of other races included 24 American
Indians and 14 Asian Americans. Among those for whom
Hispanic origin was known, 7.6% were Hispanic.
The sex, race, and Hispanic origin of those under
sentence of death at yearend 1992 were as follows:
White Black Other
Male 1,486 1,015 38
Hispanic 181 10 2
Female 22 14 0
Hispanic 2 1 0
Among inmates under sentence of death on December 31,
1992, for whom information on education was available,
nearly three-fourths had either completed high school
(36.8%) or finished 9th, 10th, or 11th grade (37.0%).
A slightly higher percentage had attended some college
(10.2%) than had not gone beyond 7th grade (8.0%). The
median level of education was 11th grade. Of inmates
under a capital sentence and with a reported marital
status, nearly half had never married; somewhat more
than a fourth were married when they were sentenced;
and a fourth were divorced, separated, or widowed.
Among all inmates under sentence of death, 45.3% were
age 30 to 39 on December 31, 1992, and 61.7% were age
25 to 39. The median age was 35 years. Less than 1%
were younger than 20, and about 3.3% were age 55 or
older. The youngest inmate under sentence of death was
age 17 (born April 1975); the oldest was 78 (born
December 1914). More than half of all inmates under
sentence of death at yearend 1992 were age 20 to 29 at
the time of their sentencing.
Entries and removals of persons under sentence of death
Between January 1 and December 31, 1992, 28 State
prison systems reported receiving 265 prisoners under
sentence of death. Forty-four percent of the inmates
were received in four States: California (37), Texas
(31), Florida (27) and North Carolina (22). All 265
prisoners who had been received under sentence of death
had been convicted of murder; 143 were white men, 112
were black men, 3 were Native American men, 1 was an
Asian American man, 4 were white women and 2 were black
women. Eighteen of the 265 new admissions were
Hispanic men and 2 were Hispanic women.
Twenty-one States reported a total of 117 persons whose
sentence of death was overturned. Appeals courts
vacated 69 sentences while upholding the convictions
and vacated 45 sentences while over-turning the
convictions. Florida (19 exits) had the largest number
of vacated capital sentences. Indiana reported one
removal by post-conviction relief, and North Carolina
and Virginia each reported one commutation of a death
sentence.
As of December 31, 1992, 51 of the 117 were serving a
reduced sentence (46 to life imprisonment, 4 to a
sentence of more than 20 years, and 1 to 20 years or
less), 33 were awaiting a new trial, 29 were awaiting
resentencing, 2 had further prosecution dropped, 1 was
found not guilty, and 1 was removed by an unspecified
method.
In addition, seven persons died while under sentence of
death in 1992. Five of these deaths resulted from
natural causes--one each in Alabama, California,
Florida, Ohio, and Texas. Two suicides occurred--1 in
California and 1 in Florida.
Following the Supreme Court's reinstatement of the
death penalty, between 1977 and 1992, a total of 3,979
persons entered State prisons under sentences of death;
1,598 persons had their death sentences removed as the
result of appellate court decisions and higher court
reviews, commutations, or death while under sentence;
and 188 persons were executed. (Over time an
individual may have entered and been removed from a
capital sentence more than once.)
Among individuals who received a death sentence between
1977 and 1992, 2,320 (58.3%) were white, 1,598 (40.2%)
were black, and 61 (1.5%) were of other races. Among
those removed from a death sentence other than by
execution, 827 (51.7%) were white, 673 (42.1%) were
black, 22 (1.4%) were Native American or Asian
American, and 76 (4.8%) were Hispanic. Of the 188
executed, 102 (54.3%) were white, 73 (38.8%) were
black, 12 (6.4%) were Hispanic, and 1 (0.5%) was Native
American.
Criminal history of inmates under sentence of death in
1992
Among inmates under death sentences on December 31,
1992, for whom criminal-history information was
available, 68.5% had a history of felony convictions.
Among those for whom information on prior homicide
convictions was available, 9.4% had been sentenced for
murder or manslaughter in the past.
Among those for whom legal status at the time of the
capital offense was reported, 41.9% had an active
criminal justice status. Nearly half of these were on
parole, while the others had charges pending, were on
probation, were prison inmates or escapees, or had some
other criminal justice status.
Excluding those who had charges pending, nearly 1 in 3
(31.2%) were already under sentence for another crime
when their capital offense occurred. In a number of
States, being under sentence for another crime is
considered an aggravating factor in capital sentencing.
Criminal history patterns varied slightly by race and
Hispanic origin. For example, 74.3% of blacks had
prior felony conviction records compared to 65.4% of
whites, and 62.4% of Hispanics. Relatively more
Hispanics (16.5%) than whites (8.6%) or blacks (10.6%)
had prior homicide convictions; and a higher proportion
of whites (6.9%) and blacks (6.2%) than Hispanics
(4.7%) had charges pending at the time of their capital
offense.
As of yearend 1992 the median amount of elapsed time
since sentencing among prisoners under sentence of
death was 64 months, and the mean time was 69 months.
Overall, the average time for women was 4 years, 1
month--about two-thirds as long as for men (5 years and
10 months). Whites and blacks showed relatively little
difference in average time since sentencing, both
groups spending slightly longer than Hispanics.
Number of months
since sentencing
Mean Median
Total 69 64
Male 70 64
Female 49 41
White 69 64
Black 70 64
Hispanic 64 57
Since 1988 data have been collected on the number of
death sentences imposed on each person entering prison
under sentence of death. Among the 1,375 individuals
received under sentence of death, approximately 1 in
every 7 entered with 2 or more death sentences.
Whites, blacks, and Hispanics had similar proportions
of those with single or multiple death sentences.
Executions
According to data collected by the Federal Government
since 1930, during the 63 years ending in 1992, a total
of 4,047 persons were executed under civil authority.
(Military authorities carried out an additional 160
executions between 1930 and 1992.)
Since the Supreme Court reinstated the death penalty in
1976, the States have executed 188 prisoners:
1977 1 1986 18
1979 2 1987 25
1981 1 1988 11
1982 2 1989 16
1983 5 1990 23
1984 21 1991 14
1985 18 1992 31
Between 1977 and 1992, 20 States executed prisoners.
Texas had the largest number (54), followed by Florida
(29), Louisiana (20),Virginia (17), and Georgia (15).
Between 1977 and 1992, 89 white non-Hispanics, 59 black
non-Hispanics, 11 white Hispanics, 1 black Hispanic, 13
whites with Hispanic origin unknown, 14 blacks with
Hispanic origin unknown, and 1 American Indian were
executed.
During 1992 Texas carried out 12 executions; Virginia
executed 4 persons; Alabama, Arkansas, Florida, and
Oklahoma, 2 each; and Arizona, California, Delaware,
Missouri, North Carolina, Utah, and Wyoming, 1 each.
All persons executed in 1992 were male. Fifteen were
white, non-Hispanic; 10 were black, non-Hispanic; 2
were white Hispanic; 2 were white with Hispanic origin
unknown; 1 was black with Hispanic origin unknown; and
1 was Native American.
From 1977 to 1992, 4,361 prisoners were under death
sentences for varying lengths of time. The 188
executions accounted for 4.3% of all exits from
sentences of death during the 15-year period. A total
of 1,598 prisoners, or 36.6% of those at risk, received
other dispositions. There was no significant
difference in the proportions of executed persons by
race or Hispanic origin. However, relatively more
blacks (38.2%) than whites (36.7%) or Hispanics (26.8%)
were removed from under a death sentence by means other
than execution.
Among prisoners executed between 1977 and 1992, the
average time between the imposition of the most recent
sentence received and execution was 7 years and 6
months. White prisoners had an average of 7 years, and
black prisoners, 8 years and 3 months. The 31
prisoners executed in 1992 were under a sentence of
death an average of 9 years and 6 months.
Among the 188 prisoners executed between 1977 and 1992,
the largest number (98) were electrocuted, followed by
those who received lethal injections (82), lethal gas
(7), and a firing squad (1).
Number of executions,
1977-92
Ameri-
Means of His-
can
execution White Black panic
Indian Asian
Total 102 73 12
1 0
Lethal injection 47 23 11
1 0
Electrocution 50 47 1
0 0
Lethal gas 4 3 0
0 0
Firing squad 1 0 0
0 0
Methodological note
The statistics reported in this Bulletin may differ
from data collected by other organizations for a
variety of reasons: (1) inmates are originally added
to the National Prisoner Statistics (NPS) death-row
counts not at sentencing but at the time they are
admitted to a State or Federal correctional facility.
(2) Subsequently, admissions to death row or releases
as a result of a court order are attributed to the year
in which the sentence or court order occurred; prior-
year counts are, therefore, adjusted to reflect the
actual dates of court decisions. (See note, table 4,
for the affected jurisdictions.) (3) NPS death-row
counts are always for the last day of the calendar year
and will differ from counts for more recent periods.
Appendix I. Current status of inmates under sentence
of death, 1973-92
Between 1973 and 1992 a total of 4,704 persons were
sentenced to death. The table shows the status of
those received in each year with respect to their death
sentence, as of December 31, 1992. For example, of the
256 persons who were sentenced to death in 1983, 20 had
been executed, 10 had died while in confinement, 1 had
been relieved of the death sentence because courts
struck down wholly or in part the statutes under which
they were sentenced, 21 had their conviction overturned
on appeal, 45 had their sentence overturned on appeal,
3 had their sentence commuted, and 155 were still under
a death sentence at yearend 1992. Of the 2,575 persons
under sentence of death on December 31, 1992, 118 or
4.6% were sentenced prior to 1980. Florida, Georgia,
Texas, Montana, and Nebraska had the inmates who had
served the longest among all condemned inmates.
By contrast, Oregon had no inmates sentenced prior to
1988, the Federal prison system prior to 1991, and
South Dakota prior to 1992. The average time from
sentence to December 31, 1992, for the 2,575 condemned
inmates was 5 years and 7 months.
Appendix II. Federal laws providing for the death
penalty
Since the Supreme Court's decision in Furman v. Georgia
in 1972, striking down the death penalty as then
applied, four death penalty statutes have been enacted
by the Congress:
*(A) Any person engaging in or working in furtherance
of a continuing criminal enterprise, or any person
engaging in an offense punishable under section
841(b)(1)(A) or section 960(b)(1) who intentionally
kills or counsels, commands, induces, procures, or
causes the intentional killing of an individual and
such killing results, shall be sentenced to any term of
imprisonment, which shall not be less than 20 years,
and which may be up to life imprisonment, or may be
sentenced to death; and (B) any person, during the
commission of, in furtherance of, or while attempting
to avoid apprehension, prosecution or service of a
prison sentence for, a felony violation of this
subchapter or subchapter II of this chapter who
intentionally kills or counsels, commands, induces,
procures, or causes the intentional killing of any
Federal, State, or local law enforcement officer
engaged in, or on account of, the performance of such
officer's official duties and such killing results,
shall be sentenced to any term of imprisonment, which
shall not be less than 20 years, and which may be up to
life imprisonment, or may be sentenced to death (21
U.S.C. 848(e)).
*Espionage by a member of the Armed Forces:
communication of information to a foreign government
relating to nuclear weaponry, military spacecraft or
satellites, early warning systems, war plans,
communications intelligence or cryptographic
information, or any other major weapons or defense
strategy (10 U.S.C. 906(a)).
*Witness tampering where death results (18 U.S.C.
1512).
*Death resulting from aircraft hijacking (49 U.S.C.
1472 and 1473).
The following capital punishment provisions, which were
enacted prior to the Furman decision, remain in the
United States Code:
*Murder while a member of the Armed Forces (10 U.S.C.
918).
*Destruction of aircraft, motor vehicles, or related
facilities resulting in death (18 U.S.C. 32-34).
*Retaliatory murder of a member of the immediate family
of law enforcement officials (18 U.S.C. 115(b)(3) [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. 351 [by
cross-reference to 18 U.S.C. 1111]).
*Espionage (18 U.S.C. 794).
*Destruction of government property resulting in death
(18 U.S.C. 844(f)(d)(i)).
*First-degree murder (18 U.S.C. 1111).
*Mailing of injurious articles with the intent to kill
or resulting in death (18 U.S.C. 1716).
*Assassination or kidnaping resulting in the death of
the President or Vice President (18 U.S.C. 1751 [by
cross-reference to 18 U.S.C. 1111]).
*Willful wrecking of a train resulting in death (18
U.S.C. 1992).
*Bank-robbery-related murder or kidnaping (18 U.S.C.
2113).
*Treason (18 U.S.C. 2381).
*Murder of Federal judges and officers (18 U.S.C.
1114).
This BJS Bulletin was written by Lawrence Greenfeld,
Acting Director, and James Stephan, Statistician.
Arlene Rasmussen, U.S. Bureau of the Census, collected
the data under the supervision of Gertrude Odom. Craig
Perkins provided statistical review. Tom Hester edited
the report. Marilyn Marbrook supervised production,
assisted by Betty Sherman and Jayne Pugh.
December 1992 NCJ-145031
Return to The Skeptic Tank's main Index page.
The views and opinions stated within this web page are those of the
author or authors which wrote them and may not reflect the views and
opinions of the ISP or account user which hosts the web page. The
opinions may or may not be those of the Chairman of The Skeptic Tank.