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Capital punishment in Arizona

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Capital punishment is a legal penalty in the U.S. state of Arizona. After the execution of Joseph Wood in 2014, executions were temporarily suspended but resumed in 2022.[1][2] On January 23, 2023, newly inaugurated governor Katie Hobbs ordered a review of death penalty protocols and in light of that, newly inaugurated attorney general Kris Mayes issued a hold on any executions in the state.[3]

When the prosecution seeks the death penalty, the sentence is decided by the jury and must be unanimous.

In case of a hung jury during the penalty phase of the trial, a retrial happens before another jury. If the second jury is also deadlocked, a life sentence is issued.[4]

The Governor of Arizona can grant clemency only with advice and consent of the five-member Arizona Board of Executive Clemency.[5]

Capital crimes

Certain aggravating circumstances constitute capital murder in the State of Arizona:[6]

  1. prior conviction for which a sentence of life imprisonment or death was imposable;
  2. prior serious offense involving the use of threat or violence;
  3. grave risk of death to others;
  4. procurement of murder by payment or promise of payment;
  5. commission of murder for pecuniary gain;
  6. murder committed in an especially heinous, cruel, or depraved manner;
  7. murder committed while in custody;
  8. multiple homicides;
  9. murder of a victim under 15 years of age or of a victim 70 years of age or older; and
  10. murder of a law enforcement officer.

Executions and death row

Arizona's death row for males is located at the Arizona State Prison Complex – Florence in Florence. Female death row prisoners are housed at the Arizona State Prison Complex – Perryville in Goodyear.

Since capital punishment was resumed in 1976, 40 people in Arizona were convicted of murder and have been executed at Florence State Prison in Florence, Arizona.[7]

Since 1992, Arizona has employed lethal injection for its executions.[8] It previously executed prisoners with inhalation of cyanide gas, but passed a statue changing to lethal injection after the controversial and much-publicized execution of Donald Eugene Harding, who took 10 and 1/2 minutes to die.[9] However, inmates convicted for capital crimes committed prior to November 23, 1992 may choose gas inhalation instead.[10][11]

In 2011, the state was found to be lawfully buying execution drugs from Dream Pharma, a pharmaceutical company operating out of a driving school in west London, UK.[12]

The 2014 execution of Joseph Wood was similarly controversial, taking nearly two hours and leading to a moratorium of executions until July 2019, when Attorney General Mark Brnovich urged the governor to "act without delay" in helping the state obtain execution drugs.[11] In October of that year, Arizona's department of corrections paid $1.5m to a confidential source for 1,000 1g vials of pentobarbital sodium salt, a sedative used in the state's executions. U.S. doctors are not permitted to prescribe the drug for executions, as taking a life does not serve a therapeutic purpose, so Arizona has to find suppliers willing to sell drugs without prescription.[13]

Arizona would next execute Clarence Wayne Dixon, on May 11, 2022.[14]

See also

References

  1. ^ "Arizona halts executions after Joseph Wood case". BBC News. 25 July 2014.
  2. ^ Davenport, Paul; Billeaud, Jacques (May 11, 2022). "Clarence Dixon dies in Arizona's 1st execution since 2014". Associated Press. Retrieved May 11, 2022.
  3. ^ "Arizona executions are on hold until a review ordered by the governor is completed". NPR. 21 January 2023.
  4. ^ "§ 13-752 Sentences of death, life imprisonment or natural life; imposition; sentencing proceedings; definitions". Law.justia.com. Retrieved June 7, 2016.
  5. ^ "Title 31 - Prisons and Prisoners". Azleg.gov. Retrieved June 7, 2016.
  6. ^ "Capital Punishment in Arizona" (PDF). Azag.gov. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2016-08-15. Retrieved 2016-07-21.
  7. ^ "Last Meals Request". 10 June 2014.
  8. ^ "Arizona - Capital Punishment - Death Penalty". Deathpenalty.uslegal.com. 1992-11-23. Retrieved 2016-07-21.
  9. ^ The Associated Press (1992-04-25). "Gruesome Death in Gas Chamber Pushes Arizona Toward Injections". The New York Times. Retrieved 2023-03-23.
  10. ^ "Methods of Execution". Clarkprosecutor.org. Retrieved 2016-07-21.
  11. ^ a b Resnik, Brahm (2021-06-14) [2021-06-07]. "Arizona plans to use poisonous gas similar to Nazis' in executions. Here are 6 things to know". 12News. KPNX-TV. Retrieved 2023-03-23.
  12. ^ "London firm supplied drugs for US executions". the Guardian. 2011-01-06. Retrieved 2021-04-13.
  13. ^ "Revealed: Republican-led states secretly spending huge sums on execution drugs". the Guardian. 2021-04-09. Retrieved 2021-04-13.
  14. ^ Ortiz, Erik (May 11, 2022). "Arizona puts inmate Clarence Dixon to death in state's first execution in 8 years". NBC News. Retrieved May 11, 2022.
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