The death penalty debate: An eye for an eye? - The Washington Post
▻http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-srv/special/outlook/death-penalty
The botched execution of Clayton Lockett in Oklahoma on April 29 has reignited debate over the death penalty and prompted President Obama to request a review of how it is applied. Obama cited “significant problems — racial bias, uneven application ... individuals on death row who later on were discovered to have been innocent because of exculpatory evidence.” Here is a breakdown of the 1,379 people — responsible for killing more than 2,074 — who have been put to death in the United States since the Supreme Court reinstated the death penalty in 1976. Most cases involved torture, rape or another felony; Lockett shot a teenager and ordered an accomplice to bury her alive.