Tinkering with the Machinery of Death: Resuming Federal Executions

On July 8, 2020, ACS held a discussion of the federal death penalty, the reasons for the nearly 20-year moratorium on federal executions, and the concerns over this quick succession of executions planned for this summer in the face of continued criticism that the death penalty is arbitrary, racially biased, and plagued by poor, under-resourced lawyering.

The first federal execution since 2003 is scheduled for July 13, 2020, with three additional executions following just days later. U.S. Attorney General William Barr has scheduled these executions despite pending litigation in these cases and serious concerns about the legality, constitutionality, and humaneness of federal execution protocols.

Remarks By:
Gary Tyler, Former Death Row Inmate, Outreach and Engagement Support Worker, Safe Place for Youth

Featured Speakers:
Miriam Gohara, Clinical Associate Professor of Law, Yale Law School
Megan McCracken, Eighth Amendment Resource Counsel
Russ Feingold, ACS President, Moderator