New study shows race significant factor in death penalty cases

New research by Scott Phillips, associate professor of sociology and criminology at the University of Denver, finds that in Harris County, TX the District Attorney (DA) was more likely to pursue the death penalty when the defendant was African American and less likely to pursue the death penalty when the victim was African American. The study, “Racial Disparities in the Capital of Capital Punishment,” will be published in the Houston Law Review this fall.