A service of Salisbury University and University of Maryland Eastern Shore
Play Live Radio
Next Up:
0:00
0:00
0:00 0:00
Available On Air Stations

Number of Death Sentences Declines in Virginia

amnestyusa.org

RICHMOND, Va. (AP) - A law professor says a decline in death sentences in Virginia is at least partly due to more vigorous legal representation during the sentencing phase of capital murder trials.

Brandon Garrett of the University of Virginia released results of his study of Virginia's death penalty Monday.

Garrett compared the 21 capital murder trials since 2005 to a group of 20 such trials from 1996 to 2004. He found that the sentencing phase for the older group of trials averaged less than two days while the average for the more recent trials was four days. That's because defense lawyers are calling more witnesses than before to present evidence that could help their client.

More than half the recent trials resulted in life sentences - double the previous rate.

Don Rush is the News Director at Delmarva Public Media. An award-winning journalist, Don reports major local issues of the day, from sea level rise, to urban development, to the changing demographics of Delmarva.