-
First recorded execution in the American colonies
The first documented execution in the new colonies was for treason. In the Jamestown colony of Virginia in 1608, Captain George Kendall was hanged. Other capital crimes at the time included murder, rape, heresy - and witchcraft. -
US congress establishes federal death penalty
The Punishment of Crimes Act passed by congress listed all the federal crimes and their punishment. Those crimes consisted of treason, counterfeiting of federal records, murder, disfigurement, and robbery committed in federal jurisdictions or on the high seas. States still have their own laws about death penalty and how it applies to state law. -
Michigan becomes the first US state to abolish capital punishment
Michigan abolished the death penalty for all crimes, except treason. They replaced the death penalty with life imprisonment. Michigan was considered the first English speaking place in the world to abolish capital punishment. -
New York performs the first execution by electrocution
On August 6, 1890, New York used an electric chair to carry out the first execution through electricity. People thought it would be more humane but the process was not quick or painless. The condemned murderer William Kemmler was basically burned to death. -
Weems v. United States
Weems, the defendant, had been sentenced to fifteen years of hard labor and a heavy fine for the minor crime of falsifying official records. The Court overturned the sentence, ruling that the penalty was too harsh. This defined cruel and unusual punishment by the changing norms/standards of society and courts can decide if a punishment is cruel physically and psychologically. -
First US execution by gas chamber
The use of cyanide gas is introduced as an execution method and first used in Nevada. Gee Jon, a member of a Chinese gang, was the first person in America to die in the chamber. It was considered a more humane method of carrying out death sentences, as opposed to hanging, firing squad, or electrocution." -
US supreme court rules death penalty unconstitutional
In Furman v. Georgia, the Supreme Court ruled that the death penalty as administered violated the Eighth and Fourteenth Amendments. They claiming the death penalty was unconstitutional for any crime and any person, using any method. Over 600 death sentences were overturned for life sentences. -
Death penalty reinstated
Gregg vs. Georgia reinstated capital punishment four years after the court declared all death penalty statutes unconstitutional. Georgia revised their death penalty statute to provide bifurcated trials and extensive review for capital crimes. This proved to the court that the new laws provided sufficient clarity and objectivity in defining which defendants could be eligible for capital punishment. -
Texas performs first lethal injection
Charles Brooks was executed for committing murder and was the first person to have a lethal injection. It was considered cheaper and more humane than electrocution or lethal gas. Jay Chapman proposed this way of execution first in Oklahoma and was later adapted my other states. -
US Supreme Court rules people with intellectual disabilities can not be sentenced to the death penalty
The US Supreme Court reviewed and reversed the Virginia Supreme Court's judgment on Daryl Atkins case. They stated that because his IQ was so low violates 8th amendment and concluded that death is not a suitable punishment for a mentally disabled criminal. The 8th amendment must be applied to our evolving standards of decency, -
Death sentences for offenders under the age of 18 is ruled unconstitutional
This ruling overturned a 1989 Supreme Court decision in Stanford v. Kentucky, which allowed the execution of people who were age 16 or 17 at the time they committed their crimes. The court said that the execution of a person under the age of 18 is disproportionate punishment. Under the 8th amendment it is cruel and unusual. -
Last execution by firing squad
Utah executed convicted killer Ronnie Lee Gardner by firing squad. Utah has eliminated the firing squad since and it only remains legal as a means of execution in Oklahoma (but never been used). Gardner’s attorney said he chose the method of execution himself because it was more humane.