Academic report

Gender Matters: Women on Death Row in the United States

By Sandra Babcock, Nathalie Greenfield, Kathryn Adamson, Cardozo Law Review , on 24 April 2024

Gender

Women



This article presents a comprehensive study of 48 persons sentenced to death between 1990 and 2023 who presented as women at the time of their trials. This research is the first of its kind to conduct a holistic and intersectional analysis of the factors driving women’s death sentences. It reveals commonalities across women’s cases, delving into their experiences of motherhood, gender-based violence and prior involvement with the criminal legal system. This report also explore the nature of the women’s crimes of conviction, including the role of male co-defendants and the State’s use of aggravating factors. Finally, it reveals for the first time the extent to which capital prosecutions are dominated by men—including judges, elected District Attorneys, defense attorneys, and juror forepersons—and explain why gender matters in determining who lives and who dies

  • Document type Academic report
  • Countries list United States
  • Themes list Gender / Women



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