USA: Killing with prejudice: Race and the Death Penalty in the USA

This report highlights AI’s concerns about the application of the death penalty in the USA and how it is intrinsically linked to racial discrimination within the US legal system. The report looks at the historical perspective in the application of the DP; the evidence of racial bias at different levels of the US justice system; prejudices of jurors, of prosecutors and even judges; the role of the federal authorities and the general failure of racial justice legislation. It concludes that the only way to eradicate racial and ethnic bias from DP procedures in the USA is by eradicating the DP itself.

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