Site icon Ohioans to Stop Executions

New Study Finds Vast Racial and Geographic Disparities in Ohio Executions

Homicides of White Females Six Times More Likely to Result in Execution Than Homicides of Black Males

*** READ THE STUDY HERE. ***

New research released today by Political Science Professor Frank Baumgartner of the University of North Carolina reveals significant and troubling racial, gender, and geographic disparities with regards to who is executed in Ohio. The study, which looks at executions that were carried out between 1976 and 2014, details how the race and gender of the victim, as well as the county in which the crime occurred, improperly influence who is sentenced to death and executed in the state.

Professor Baumgartner noted, “The most concerning finding is that these racial and geographic disparities are quite significant, and they demonstrate that Ohio’s death penalty is plagued by vast inequities which will undermine public confidence in the state’s ability to carry out the death penalty in a fair and impartial manner.”

“This research raises troubling questions about the administration of the death penalty in Ohio,” said Sharon L. Davies, the Executive Director of the Kirwan Institute for the Study of Race and Ethnicity at The Ohio State University. “The race or gender of a victim, and the county of the crime, should not influence who is sentenced to die, but this new study shows that it does. Ohio citizens and lawmakers should review the findings of this important research.”

Major findings include:

READ THE FULL STUDY HERE.

To schedule an interview with Professor Baumgartner or Sharon L. Davies, please call 510-393-4549 or email sfaucher@8thamendment.org. Professor Baumgartner’s full bio is available here.

Exit mobile version