US Resumes Federal Executions

Why in news?

The Supreme Court of the United States cleared the way for the resumption of federal executions.

What happened later?

After the Supreme Court (SC) ruling, Daniel Lewis Lee became the first federal inmate to be executed in the US in 17 years.
Lee was put to death by lethal injection at a prison in Indiana.
This SC verdict reignited public debate about death penalty in the US.

What are federal executions?

In the US, the criminals can be tried either at a national level in federal courts, or at a regional level in state courts.
As many as 22 US states including New York, Hawaii have abolished the death penalty at a regional level.
But, it can still be awarded at a federal level in all the 50 US states.
However, it is rarely used.
At present, there are 62 inmates on federal death row.

What is the history?

In 1972, the SC struck down capital punishment at both the state and federal level.
However, it was reinstated by Congress over a decade later, in 1988.
With the passing of the Federal Death Penalty Act of 1994, the list of crimes that could lead to federal execution grew substantially.
In 2006, the SC ruled that death row inmates could challenge the use of lethal injection as a method of execution.
In 2014, then-US President ordered an investigation into capital punishment procedures and the use of the lethal injection.
In 2019, the US Attorney General William Barr ordered the government to abandon the use of the three-drug lethal injection.
He wanted to replace it with a single-drug injection.

How are the executions carried out?

In 2019, Trump administration announced its plans to employ a single-drug lethal injection, using a sedative called Pentobarbital.
It is known to gradually slow brain activity and the nervous system.
Several inmates challenged the constitutionality of using Pentobarbital.
They claimed that its use violates their rights under the eighth amendment of the US constitution.
[Eighth amendment protects citizens from cruel and unusual punishment.]
Another issue is that Pentobarbital is not readily available in all states.
There have been instances in the past where the drug has caused pain to the inmates.
Many states have also faced criticism for using other drugs that have been known to have severe effects.

What are the arguments against death penalty?

Many argued that the death penalty violates an individual’s civil liberties and fundamental rights as citizen of a democracy.
The American Civil Liberties Union believes the death penalty violates the constitutional ban against cruel and unusual punishment.
Several lawyers and activists have also raised the issue of race.
Data shows that the American justice system is unfairly skewed against people of colour (POC).

What are the arguments supporting death penalty?

Some have argued that severe punishments will help reduce crimes.
Attorney General Barr had argued that federal executions must be carried out as the government owes it to crime victims and their families.

Which countries still have death penalty?

As of 2020, at least 53 countries around the world impose death penalty as punishment.
Several methods including hanging, shooting, electrocution and beheading are used across the globe.
In 2019, the most number of executions took place in China, Iran, Saudi Arabia, Iraq and Egypt, in that order.
According to a study conducted by Delhi’s National Law University, 755 people have been hanged to death in India since Independence.

Source: The Indian Express