Alabama’s Death Penalty System Faces New Scrutiny
Alabama executed a death row inmate Thursday evening for the first time in more than two years. Christopher Brooks died by lethal injection for the 1992 rape and murder of a Homewood woman. But Alabama’s death penalty system is facing new scrutiny after a U.S. Supreme Court decision this month overturning Florida’s process.
Florida, Alabama and Delaware are the only states that use what’s called “judicial override.”
Here’s how it works.
If a jury convicts a person of a capital offense, the jury then recommends a sentence of life without parole or death. A judge can decide to follow that recommendation or override it. But the key is the judge makes the decision.
Ashley Cleek reported on Alabama’s judicial override system for the podcast Life of the Law. She cites numbers from the non-profit law firm Equal Justice Initiative that show Alabama judges have imposed the death penalty against the recommendation of juries at least 101 times since 1981. About 40 current Alabama death row inmates received sentences this way.
Cleek spoke to a handful of jurors involved in capital murder trials. Some were fine letting the judge make the decision, figuring he or she had more expertise. But not all jurors saw it that way.
“They were pretty upset about it,” Cleek says. “They really felt that their time had been wasted and they didn’t really understand the point of them being there.”
The U.S. Supreme Court ruling in the Florida case determined that jurors do play a critical role, that a “mere recommendation is not enough” for the death penalty, and so Florida’s system is unconstitutional.
“I think every judge that has a capital case in front of her or him right now is focused on this,” says Samford University law professor LaJuana Davis.
She says the ruling’s effect should be felt in Alabama since the state’s statute is very similar to Florida’s. The big question is if the decision applies retroactively. In other words, does it apply to inmates already on death row? At a minimum, Davis thinks it will prompt challenges from Alabama.
“I suspect that everyone who has been sentenced to death here will be filing something,” says Davis.
In a statement, Alabama Attorney General Luther Strange says the Supreme Court ruling doesn’t affect the state. He says the court upheld Alabama’s system in 1995 and declined to hear a challenge last year.
Memory loss: As AI gobbles up chips, prices for devices may rise
Demand for memory chips currently exceeds supply and there's very little chance of that changing any time soon. More chips for AI means less available for other products such as computers and phones and that could drive up those prices too.
Brigitte Bardot, sex goddess of cinema, has died
Legendary screen siren and animal rights activist Brigitte Bardot has died at age 91. The alluring former model starred in numerous movies, often playing the highly sexualized love interest.
For Ukrainians, a nuclear missile museum is a bitter reminder of what the country gave up
The Museum of Strategic Missile Forces tells the story of how Ukraine dismantled its nuclear weapons arsenal after independence in 1991. Today many Ukrainians believe that decision to give up nukes was a mistake.
Jeffrey R. Holland, next in line to lead Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, dies at 85
Jeffrey R. Holland led the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles, a key governing body. He was next in line to become the church's president.
Winter storm brings heavy snow and ice to busy holiday travel weekend
A powerful winter storm is impacting parts of the U.S. with major snowfall, ice, and below zero wind chills. The conditions are disrupting holiday travel and could last through next week.
Disability rights advocate Bob Kafka dead at 79
Bob Kafka was an organizer with ADAPT (American Disabled for Attendant Programs Today), a group which advocates for policy change to support people with disabilities.
