Capital punishment by the United States federal government

This is a list of individuals executed by the United States. The United States federal government (in comparison to the separate states) applies the death penalty for certain crimes: treason, espionage, federal murder, large scale drug trafficking and attempting to kill a witness, juror, or court officer in certain cases. Military law allows execution of soldiers for several crimes. Executions by the federal government have been rare compared to those by state governments. Twenty-six federal (including military) executions have been carried out since 1950. Three of those (none of them military) have occurred in the modern post-Gregg era. This list only includes those executed under federal jurisdiction. The Federal Bureau of Prisons manages the housing and execution of federal death row prisoners. As of May 14, 2010 (2010 -05-14)^[update], fifty-two people are on the federal death row for men at the Federal Correctional Complex in Terre Haute, Indiana; two women located at Federal Medical Center, Carswell in Fort Worth, Texas, are on the federal death row.

History

The Anti-Drug Abuse Act of 1988 restored the death penalty under federal law for drug offenses and some types of murder. President of the United States Bill Clinton signed the Violent Crime Control and Law Enforcement Act, expanding the federal death penalty in 1994. In response to the Oklahoma City bombing, the Antiterrorism and Effective Death Penalty Act of 1996 was passed in 1996. Federal Correctional Complex, Terre Haute became the only federal prison to execute people and one of only two prisons to hold federally condemned people.

Pre-Furman executions by the federal government were normally carried out within the prison system of the state where the crime was committed. Only in cases where the crime was committed in a territory, in the District of Columbia or in a state without the death penalty was it the norm for the court to designate the state in which the death penalty would be carried out, as the federal prison system lacked an execution facility.

Timothy McVeigh was executed on June 11, 2001, for his involvement in the Oklahoma City bombing. It was the first federal execution since 1963. Other executions by the United States include Juan Raul Garza on June 19, 2001, and Louis Jones Jr. on March 18, 2003. Sentences of death are now handed down by the jury, and the jury's decision is read and approved or disapproved by the judge. No recommendation for the death penalty from a jury has yet been refused by the judge at sentencing.

As of May 14, 2010, 52 male federal death row prisoners were housed at United States Penitentiary, Terre Haute.^[1] As of 2010, the two women on federal death row, Angela Johnson and Lisa M. Montgomery, are held at Federal Medical Center, Carswell.^[2][3][4] Two people have been re-sentenced since 1976 to life in prison and one was commuted to life in prison by President Bill Clinton in 2001.

Capital offenses

These are the offenses punishable by death or another punishment in the United States Code:

• Causing death by using a chemical weapon
• Killing a member of the Congress, the Cabinet or United States Supreme Court
• Kidnapping a member of the Congress, the Cabinet or Supreme Court resulting in death
• Conspiracy to kill a member of the Congress, the Cabinet or Supreme Court resulting in death
• Causing death by using an explosive
• Causing death by using an illegal firearm
• Genocide
• First degree murder
  • Murder perpetrated by poison or lying in wait
  • Murder that is willful, deliberate, malicious, and premeditated
  • Murder in the perpetration of or in the attempt to perpetrate any arson, escape, kidnapping, treason, espionage, sabotage, aggravated sexual abuse or sexual abuse, child abuse, burglary, or robbery
  • Murder perpetrated as part of a pattern or practice of assault or torture against a child or children
• Murder committed by a federal prisoner or an escaped federal prisoner sentenced to 15 years to life or a more severe penalty
• Assassinating the President or a member of his staff
• Kidnapping the President or a member of his staff resulting in death
• Killing persons aiding Federal investigations or State correctional officers
• Sexual abuse resulting in death
• Sexual exploitation of children resulting in death
• Torture resulting in death
• War crimes resulting in death
• Crimes Against Humanity
• Large-scale drug trafficking
• Attempting, authorizing or advising the killing of any officer, juror, or witness in cases involving a Continuing Criminal Enterprise, even if such killing does not occur.
• Espionage
• Treason

Method

Federal law requires that the method of execution be by lethal injection.

The federal prison system never operated its own gas chamber or electric chair for pre-Furman executions. Pre-Furman executions carried out within the federal prison system were by hanging. All federally-mandated executions by lethal gas or electrocution were carried out in state prisons.

People who are under 18 at the time of commission of the capital crime ^[5] or mentally retarded^[6] are legally precluded from being executed.

Recent civilian executions

Twenty-six federal (including military) executions have been carried since 1950.^[7][8] Three of those (none of them military) have occurred in the modern post-Gregg era. This list only includes those executed under federal jurisdiction. Since 1963, three people have been executed by the federal government of the United States. All were executed by lethal injection.

Earlier civilian executions

From 1790 to 1950, there were 327 Federal, 271 Territorial and 40 Indian Tribunal executions according to the most complete records.^[9] One of those was the execution of James Arcene on June 18, 1885, when he was 23 years old, for his role in a robbery and murder committed when he was 10 years old.

Between 1950 and 1963, 13 people were executed (not counting those executed under military law):^[7][8]

Presidential assassins

The assassinations of Lincoln and Garfield were prosecuted by the federal government because they took place in the District of Columbia. The assassin of William McKinley, Leon Czolgosz was tried and executed for murder by New York state authorities. The accused assassin of John F. Kennedy, Lee Harvey Oswald, would presumably have been tried for murder by Texas state authorities had he not been killed by Jack Ruby. Only after Kennedy's death was it made a federal crime to murder the President of the United States.

Military executions

The United States military has executed 135 people since 1916. The last execution was in 1961.

• U.S. Army Private John A. Bennett on April 13, 1961 for rape and attempted murder.

Since 1865 (American Civil War) only one person has been executed for a purely military offense.

• Private Eddie Slovik, January 31, 1945, convicted of desertion

See also

• Capital punishment in the United States

References

Further reading

Texts of relevant laws

• Using a chemical weapon where the use causes death
• Killing a member of the congress, the cabinet or Supreme Court, Kidnapping a member of the congress, the cabinet or Supreme Court resulting in death and Conspiracy to kill a member of the congress, the cabinet or Supreme Court resulting in death
• Espionage
• Using an explosive device to knowingly kill a person
• Causing death using an illegal firearm
• Genocide where death results
• First Degree Murder
• Murder by a federal prisoner
• Killing persons aiding Federal investigations or State correctional officers
• Murdering the president or his staff and Kidnapping the president or his staff resulting in death
• Sexual abuse resulting in death
• Sexual exploitation of children resulting in death
• Torture resulting in death
• Treason
• War Crimes Resulting in death