What is the evidence that race is a factor in capital punishment cases?
830316
I haven't made a study of it nor looked up any, but if it were a factor, investigators/statisticians would look for a statistically significant difference in the rates at which people of different races are sentenced to death in capital punishment cases.  I believe such studies do exist that indicate such bias, though I haven't seen them myself - but they do get covered in the papers when they are released.\n\nYou sound skeptical.  I'd be curious to know why.
460218
Normally it's 1)family members of the condemed, 2)family of the victim, 3)a couple of representitaves of the media, 4)the prosecutor, and lawyer of the condemed, 5)Other state officals involved in the case(this can sometimes include jurors).  \n\nNo one is just "picked" from the population to witness an execution, it's specfic people listed in the law of the state where the execution is being done(or federal law if a federal case).
452867
People in positions of power, regardless of race, often receive a lot of leeway in legal matters that would land most of the common people in jail. Consider Ted Kennedy (got away with manslaughter), the head honchos at Enron (getting off pretty light compared to all the people whose retirements have been ruined), O.J. Simpson and Robert Blake (they should team up to catch the "real killers") and the list goes on...
352408
Your best bet is to outline the reasons that Capital Punishment is unjust. I would start with\n- inequities in the criminal justice system that lead to poor representation in the courtroom\n- racial biases that lead to biased juries and sentencing\n- police tactics that result in bad convictions \n- MOST IMPORTANT: the possibility of convicting those who are innocent (in Illinois, 13 people were released from death row when it was proved they were innocent)\n\nLook at Texas -- it is a picture perfect example of everything that is wrong with the Capital Punishment system.
786256
It depends where you live. Here in the UK, a racist murder against a white person goes largely unreported, whereas a racist murder against a person from an ethnic minority gets plastered all over the news.
1113
Yes.  He murdered four people in cold blood.  Volumes of evidence were presented proving his guilt.  Even the 9th Federal Circuit Court of Appeals, proven to be the most liberal, anti-death-penalty court in the nation, could not find sufficient cause to nullify the verdict.  He received his fair trial, his fair appeals process.  He continuously professed his innocence to delay (for nearly 30 years) his sentence, nothing more.  He capitalized on the fact that American society, with it's EXTREMELY short attention span, would forget the horrific crimes he committed.  He gambled on the possibility that we would forget what he did, become desensitized to it, and dismiss the jury's decision overly harsh.  Some arguing in his defense tried to portray the jury as a bunch of racist white rich folks intent on "murdering another innocent black man" (it wasn't all-white, check the record).  Fortunately, all of the right people saw through his charade, and ended his shennanigans, permanently.
623148
Don't know if  that stat is true, but if your questions is strictly a probability study I would say just based on Incarceration rate and the fact that they make up 15% of the population and reflect a much larger percentage than that as to the total # of people incarcerated. I would say that the color of the skin does not make them more likely to be criminals but the environment that some are brought up in. 70% out of wed-lock child birth is a factor..the inner cities which are predominately African American is a factor..\nto solve the problem you need to be honest about it..and the African American community should turn to pro-active leaders like Bill Cosby and Larry Elder who want to empower and throw "leaders like Jessie Jackson to the curb who has no solution just the victim card and blame White American..
481602
The following page on the US Census website contains race data from the 2000 census:\n\nhttp://www.census.gov/population/cen2000/phc-t1/tab01.pdf
82230
It can create bias. Jurors viewing a defendant in prison garb will assume guilt and most people (although they may not confess to it) have difficulty getting past visual cues like that. Imagine if you saw a distinguished looking gentleman dressed in surgical scrubs. You assume he is a doctor and your friend would have a hard time convincing you he's actually a plumber. Our society and nature in general responds to visual cues such as those in order to interact with each other.
680034
Capital Punishment is state murder. There were many innocents executed here as there are still being executed in the USA. Capital Punishment is more expensive in real terms then full term Life imprisonment. It is not a deterrent, the murder rate dropped in England after it was abolished and rose in America after it was reintroduced anyway there are lots of supposed Christians here and...Thou shalt not Kill
1148421
I don't believe in capital punishment.  I think it's a much greater punishment to let a criminal rot in hellish prisons for endless years.  It's in no way a deterent for capital crimes.
89021
Well, if you watch any of the CSI type shows you'll find out that there are tests for ethnicity, but they may not be blood tests.  I think they involve DNA.
714162
Yes!\n\nA 'Google' search.\n\n"Who is battered?  By race and other factors \n   There was not a significant difference between whites and blacks in the rate of violent victimizations that were committed by relatives..."\n\nhttp://www.actabuse.com/dvstats_3.html#3
991285
racism, genocide, and death
773768
1. A greater % of minorities grow up in the innercity, where crime is rampent (sp?). So a great % of minorities turn to crime.\n\n2. On average, white people can afford better lawyers than black people. Again, because of the innercity thing.
910170
No. Capital punishment is revenge not justice.\n\nIf a con doing an armed robbery is shot dead at the scene by coips then that is justice. Murdering them months or years later is not!
456433
I don't think it does, the death penalty shows offenders what may happen to them if they kill.  I don't see why that would cause an increase in crime.