Capital Punishment

JULIANA MARTINEZ

C A P I TA L P U N I S H M E N T

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:

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murder of a public safety officer or firefighter in the line of duty murder during the commission of specified felonies (kidnapping, burglary, robbery, aggravated rape, arson) murder for remuneration multiple murders murder during prison escape murder of a correctional officer murder of a judge murder by a state prison inmate who is serving a life sentence for any of five offenses; [or] murder of an individual under six years of age

In Texas, a person must be of at least 17 years of age at the time of the crime to have the death penalty
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imposed upon him or her
After the verdict is rendered, if the defendant is found guilty, the case is automatically appealed to the Court of Criminal Appeals
If the prisoner loses in the Court of Criminal Appeals, he/she may then appeal the case to the U.S. Circuit
Court of Appeals, and then finally to the United States
Supreme Court.

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Classification: Homicide
Characteristics: Juvenile (17) Rape - Robberies
Number of victims: 2
Date of murders: October 26,
1979 / April 9, 1980
Date of birth: February 14,
1962
Victims profile: Sarah Donn
Lawrence, 30 / Sherry Welch,
25
Method of murder: Stabbing with knife
Location: Nueces and Potter
Counties, Texas, USA
Status: Executed by lethal injection in Texas on May 15,
1986

Classification: Homicide
Characteristics: Juvenile (17) Robbery
Number of victims: 3
Date of murder: June 6, 1995
Date of arrest: Same day
Date of birth: October 17,
1977
Victims profile: Kimberly
Brewer, 25, and her two daughters, 3 year old Ollie, and 6 year old Jennifer
Method of murder: Shooting (.
38-revolver)
Location: Dallas County,
Texas, USA
Status: Executed by lethal injection in Texas on August
28, 2002

George Junius Stinney, Jr. (October 21, 1929
– June 16, 1944) was, at age 14, the youngest person executed in the United
States in the 20th century.!
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Stinney, an African-American youth from
South Carolina, was convicted of the firstdegree murder of two pre-teen white girls: 11year-old Betty June Binnicker, and 8-year-old
Mary Emma Thames. However, no physical evidence existed in the case, and the sole evidence against Stinney was the circumstantial fact the girls had spoken with
Stinney and his sister shortly before their murder and the testimony of three police officers, presented at a trial which lasted barely two hours, that Stinney had confessed to the murders. He was executed by electric chair. !
Gary Graham Texas Convicted: 1981,
Executed: 2000 !
On June 23, 2000, Gary Graham was executed in Texas, despite claims that he was innocent. Graham was 17 when he was charged with the 1981 robbery and shooting of Bobby Lambert outside a
Houston supermarket. He was convicted primarily on the testimony of one witness,
Bernadine Skillern, who said she saw the killer's face for a few seconds through her car windshield, from a distance of
30-40 feet away. Two other witnesses, both who worked at the grocery store and said they got a good look at the assailant, said Graham was not the killer but were never interviewed by Graham's court appointed attorney, Ronald Mock, and were not called to testify at trial.
Three of the jurors who voted to convict
Graham signed affidavits saying they would have voted differently had all of the evidence been available.