9 States Executed People in 2012, a 20-Year Low

Four states, led by Texas, account for 75% of executions
Posted Dec 18, 2012 2:48 PM CST
9 States Executed People, Lowest in 20 Years
This 2010 file photo shows the lethal injection facility at San Quentin State Prison in California.   (AP Photo/Eric Risberg, File)

US states executed 43 people this year, the same as last year, but a group that opposes the death penalty says 2012 stats show capital punishment is on the wane across the country. Some highlights from AFP and the AP:

  • Nine states executed people this year, the smallest number in 20 years.
  • Four states accounted for more than three-fourths of the executions: Texas (15), Arizona (6), Mississippi (6), and Oklahoma (6).
  • Seventy-eight people have gotten death sentences this year, down from 315 in 1996. The new sentences were concentrated mostly in Texas, California, Florida, and Alabama.
  • Connecticut became the 17th state to abolish the death penalty, bringing to 29 the number of states that either have no capital punishment or haven't executed anyone in five years.
(More death penalty stories.)

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