Accessing information on criminal punishment, and more specifically the death penalty, is a common topic for students. This pathfinder is a resource for locating statistics and legal materials on the death penalty.
INTRODUCTION
Texas procedure generally
In Texas, the district courts have original jurisdiction for all criminal felony cases. If an individual is convicted of a capital felony, he or she may be subject to punishment by death, if the State sought such punishment. A capital felony is one in which an individual "intentionally or knowingly causes the death of an individual," under special circumstances. In particular, the:
In Texas, a person must be of at least 17 years of age at the time of the crime to have the death penalty imposed upon him or her2.
Clemency
When the entire appeals process has been exhausted, the Governor of the State of Texas still may have a limited power to grant clemency to the prisoner. In capital cases, the Governor has the constitutional authority to grant an offender one 30-day reprieve of a scheduled execution without a recommendation from the Texas Board of Pardons and Paroles. Upon recommendation from the Board, the Governor may grant one or more reprieves in a capital case for any period of time that does not exceed the period recommended by the Board members4. If the prisoner submits a timely request for a reprieve of execution, the Board must determine, by majority vote, whether to recommend to the Governor that a reprieve be granted. Similarly, if a death row inmate files a timely petition to the Board from for a commutation of sentence to a lesser punishment, such as life imprisonment, the Board will vote on whether to recommend the commutation to the Governor5.
Method of execution
Between 1819 and 1923, Texas executed its death row prisoners by hanging. Then, from 1924 to 1977, the electric chair became the legal means of execution. In 1977, execution by lethal injection became the legal method of enacting the death penalty in Texas. The first prisoner executed by lethal injection in the United States took place in Texas in 19826.
Lethal injection uses a solution consisting of sodium thiopental (a lethal dose to sedate the person), pancuronium bromide (a muscle relaxant which collapses the diaphragm and lungs), and potassium chloride (which stops the heartbeat). Other states utilize lethal gas, electrocution, hanging or a firing squad7.
GENERAL SECONDARY RESOURCES
Many resources about the death penalty are available to the user. There are several excellent web sites devoted to this topic. The Web and library resources presented here contain a general introduction to the subject.
Web sites
The Clark County (Indiana) Prosecuting Attorney's 1000+ Death Penalty Links
Cornell Law School Death Penalty Project
Court TV Library: Death Penalty
Death Penalty Information Center
Tarlton's current capital punishment legal literature.
Texas Coalition to Abolish the Death Penalty
ACLU Death Penalty Page
Texas Department of Criminal Justice Statistics
Bureau of Justice Statistics
Bureau of Justice Statistics - Sourcebook of Criminal Justice statistics online
Federal Death Penalty System
Supplementary Data, Analysis and Revised Protocols for Capital Case Review
Print materials
The Tarlton Law Library has a very extensive collection relating to capital punishment. To find print and video materials about the death penalty, you will want to do a subject search in TALLONS using the term "capital punishment." http://www.law.utexas.edu/
Selected Print Resources:
After the Death Sentence: Appeals, Clemency and Representation (5th floor, KFT 1765 C2 D86 1994)
Against Capital Punishment: The Anti-Death Penalty Movement in America, 1972-1994 (2nd floor, HV 8699 U5 H35 1996)
America's Experiment with Capital Punishment: Reflections on the Past, Present, and Future of the Ultimate Penal Sanction (2nd floor, HV 8699 U5 A746 1998)
Beyond Repair?: America’s Death Penalty (4th floor, KF 9227 C2 B49 2003)
Capital Punishment (CQ’s Vital Issues series)(2nd floor, HV 8699 U5 G66 2002)
Capital Punishment: a Reference Handbook (2nd floor, HV 8699 U5 K76 2001)
The Death Penalty: An American Citizen’s Guide to Understanding Federal and State Laws (4th floor, KF 9725 P35 1998)
The Death Penalty: An American History (2nd floor, HV 8699 U5 B367 2002)
The Death Penalty: For and Against (2nd floor, HV 8694 P57 1998)
The Death Penalty: An Historical and Theological Survey (6th floor, K 5104 M44 1997)
Death Penalty in a Nutshell (4th floor, KF 9227 C2 S771 2003)
Death Row U.S.A. Reporter (4th floor, KF 9725 D42)
From Nose to Needle: Capital Punishment and the Late Liberal State (HV 8699 U5 K38 2002)
The International Sourcebook on Capital Punishment by the Center for Capital Punishment Studies (2nd floor, HV 8694 I58 1997)
The Journal of Criminal Law & Criminology (4th floor, K 10 O85923)
Lethal Indifference: the Fatal Combination of Incompetent Attorneys and Unaccountable Courts in Texas Death Penalty Appeals (5th floor, KFT 1765 C2 L47 2002)
Carol S. Steiker and Jordan M. Steiker, Sober Second Thoughts: Reflections on Two Decades of Constitutional Regulation of Capitol Punishment, 109 Harvard Law Review 355 (1995). Harvard Law Review at K 8 A787 (4th floor).
When the State Kills: Capital Punishment and the American Condition (2nd floor, HV 8699 U5 S27 2001)
Texas general resources
Texas Sentencing (5th floor, KFT 1783.2 A95 1998)
The Rope, the Chair, and the Needle: Capital Punishment in Texas, 1923-1990 (2nd floor, HV 8699 U5 M35 1994)
Texas and the Death Penalty: A Documentary (Gavel Room & Media Center, Videocassette KFT 1765 C2 R53 1997)
A Study of Representation in Capital Cases in Texas (5th floor, KFT 1765 C2 A87 1993)
TEXAS PRIMARY AUTHORITIES
Texas constitution
Article 5, section 5 of the Texas Constitution specifically discusses death penalty cases. Copies of the constitution are available on the Web at http://www.capitol.state.tx.us/txconst/toc.html. Print copies are also available in Vernon’s Annotated Constitution of the State of Texas (Stacks, Reference, and Microfiche: KFT 1230.5 V4 A1)
Texas legislation
Texas laws on capital punishment and the death penalty are covered in both the
You may also find the Code of Criminal Procedure on the Web at http://www.capitol.state.tx.us/statutes/cptoc.html. The Penal Code can be found online as well at http://www.capitol.state.tx.us/statutes/petoc.html.
Texas case law
West's South Western Reporter contains most of the Texas case law on capital punishment decisions (Stack 209). To find death penalty cases in the reporters, use secondary resources to help you find the citations. One good place to start is the West’s Texas Digest, under the Key Number Homicide 355 (Death Penalty). The digest is found in Stack 210.
The Texas Court of Criminal Appeals’ web site (http://www.cca.courts.state.tx.us/) includes the capability to search the appellate court index of capital punishment decisions.
Texas regulations
The Texas Department of Criminal Justice (TDCJ) is the agency responsible for incarcerating individuals who have been convicted of a capital felony and sentenced with the death penalty. You may find more information about the TDCJ at its web site, http://www.tdcj.state.tx.us/index.htm. In addition, Tarlton maintains copies of the TDCJ’s Annual Report at HV 8363 A2 (2nd floor stacks).
The Texas Board of Pardons and Paroles is responsible for recommending and supervising the parole of eligible inmates. In cases involving the death penalty, this board is the one to recommend to the Governor that a 30-day reprieve should be granted. The Texas Board of Pardons and Paroles publishes its rules on the agency web site at http://link.tsl.state.tx.us/tx/BPP/boardrules.html.
Rules of both agencies are also published in the Official Texas Administrative Code, which is located in the Stacks (KFT 1234.5 O43). Title 37 Chapter 5 relates to the Board of Pardons and Paroles, and Chapter 6 contains rules from the Texas Department of Criminal Justice. You may also access a copy through the Internet at http://www.sos.state.tx.us/tac/index.shtml.
FEDERAL PRIMARY AUTHORITIES
United States constitution
The Eighth and Fourteenth Amendments to the U.S. Constitution are often used in discussing the death penalty. A copy of the Constitution may be found in Black’s Law Dictionary (KF 156 B53 1999 in the Reference Office). You may also review a copy at the U.S. Senate’s web site at http://www.access.gpo.gov/congress/senate/constitution/toc.html or at the website of the National Constitution Center, http://www.constitutioncenter.org.
Federal legislation
Title 18, Crimes and Criminal Procedure, of the United States Code will be useful for researching information on the death penalty. The code is available in United States Code (USC), United States Code Annotated (USCA), and United States Code Service (USCS), all located in Stack 211 on the 2nd floor. (An additional copy of the USCA is in Stack 539). In addition, a copy of the Title 18 is available online at http://www4.law.cornell.edu/uscode/18 .
Federal case law
Copies of decisions made by the United States Supreme Court, the Courts of Appeals or the District Courts regarding death penalty cases are available in many locations. To find death penalty cases, you will want to look in secondary sources. One good place to start is in the West’s Federal Practice Digest, under the Key Number Homicide 355 (Death Penalty). In paper, the digest is found on the 2nd floor stacks.
Capital Cases Outline: United States Supreme Court (KF 9227 C2 M32 1997) summarizes national cases which involve the death penalty. Death Penalty Cases: Leading U.S. Supreme Court Cases on Capital Punishment (KF 9227 C2 L38 1998) identifies those most prominent cases that have been decided by the United States Supreme Court.
The Criminal Law Reporter (KF 9615 C7) is a weekly publication that provides a survey and analysis, and court decisions.
The full texts of federal cases are available in the following locations:
Supreme Court Decisions
Historic - Available at http://www.fedworld.gov/supcourt/index.htm
U.S. Court of Appeals Decisions
U.S. District Courts from 1789
Federal regulations
The United States Sentencing Commission is an independent federal agency whose mission is to recommend effective guidelines for the federal criminal justice system. These recommendations are published in the Federal Sentencing Guidelines Manual, which is located in the stacks at KF 9685 A875 or online at http://www.ussc.gov/guidelin.htm.
If you need any additional assistance, please contact the reference librarian on staff.
Last update: September 22, 20051 See Penal Code Sec. 19.03, available at: http://www.capitol.state.tx.us/statutes/statutes.html, and for more information see the Texas Department of Criminal Justice Death Row website at: http://www.tdcj.state.tx.us/stat/deathrow.htm.
2See the Texas Penal Code, Sec. 8.07(c).
3See the Texas Code of Criminal Procedure, Sec. 37.071(h).
4See Code of Criminal Procedure, Art. 48.01.
5See the Texas Board of Pardons and Parole's website at: http://link.tsl.state.tx.us/tx/BPP/eclem.html.
6For a more detailed history of the capital punishment in Texas, see the Texas Department of Criminal Justice's webpage, "History" http://www.tdcj.state.tx.us/stat/drowfacts.htm.
7For more facts about the Death Penalty in Texas and in the United States see the Death Penalty Information Center website, http://www.deathpenaltyinfo.org and The Texas Department of Criminal Justice's website, http://www.tdcj.state.tx.us/stat/drowfacts.htm.