Reduction in Death Sentences
According to Innocence and the Crisis in the American Death Penalty, death sentences in the United States have dropped by 50 percent over the past five years, while the pace of exonerations has sharply increased, accelerated by the development of DNA technology and the re-investigation of many cases. Nearly every state has experienced a significant reduction in the number of death sentences, with many recording their lowest rates in thirty years. In addition, public support for the death penalty in opinion polls is down from its high point in the 1990s. The report was published by the Death Penalty Information Center and written by its executive director, Richard E. Dieter.
