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The Whim Of Twelve Is Cloaked In Racial Prejudice: Why Inherent Racial Discrimination In The Capital Punishment System Requires That Maryland's Legislature Enact A Fairness In Death Sentencing Act, Matthew E. Feinberg
Matthew E Feinberg
At sentencing in a capital case, “[p]eople live or die, dependent on the whim of one man or of [twelve,]” and “where responsibility is divided by twelve, it is easy to say: ‘Away with him.’" Although judges, practitioners, and academics hope for a fair and reliable penalty, since the 1970s, the prospect of racial discrimination in capital punishment has had a very real impact on the criminal justice system. Throughout the country, Caucasian and African American criminals are being treated differently in death sentencing simply because of the color of their skin. “[I]n the face of science, in the face …