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Capital punishment in Hawaii

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Capital punishment in Hawaii ended in 1957 when it was still an organized incorporated territory of the United States. About 75 people were executed by the government, all for the crime of murder, and all by hanging. Additionally, during and after World War II, at least seven U.S. servicemen were executed by the United States Armed Forces by order of a general court martial.

History

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Under post-contact common law criminal justice, the penal laws of the Kingdom, Provisional Government, Republic, and U.S. incorporated Territory of Hawaii allowed for the execution of persons convicted of capital crimes. The Espy file[1] and historian Joseph Theroux[2] account for about 75 individuals executed between the national and territorial governments, all for murder and all by hanging.

During and a few years after World War II, at least seven U.S. servicemen were executed by the United States Armed Forces by order of a general court martial between 1942 and 1947 at Schofield Barracks, all the cases involving either murder or rape. The executions were mostly by hanging, although at least one of the executed servicemen was shot by a firing squad.

In 1957, Hawaii, then still an organized incorporated territory of the United States, abolished the death penalty. Hawaii became a state in 1959. Aside from Alaska, it is the only U.S. state that has never had the death penalty while a state.

Analysis

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Hawaii's death penalty has received criticism for almost exclusively targeting racial minorities within the country. Very few executions in Hawaii were of white Americans or Native Hawaiians, to the point where some Hawaiians speculated that the abolition of the death penalty occurred "because there were too many haole (Caucasians) who risked hanging."[2] Statistics show that only one white man, an Irish man named Frank Johnson (alias John O'Connell), was ever executed in the Territory of Hawaii. The rest of the people confirmed to have been executed during that period were of various Asian nationalities, including Filipinos, Chinese people, Japanese people, and Koreans.[2]

Modern use

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Naeem Williams, a discharged soldier, was taken to federal civilian court in 2014 for beating his 5-year-old daughter to death; this crime took place on US government property in 2005 while Williams was on active duty. Prosecutors sought the death penalty in a federal court.[3] However, he was sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole instead.[4]

List of people executed by the Hawaiian Kingdom, 1795–1894

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All 29 of the executions confirmed to have occurred in the Hawaiian Kingdom between its formation in 1795, and its transition to the Territory of Hawaii in 1894. All executions were carried out by hanging. Sources include the ESPY Files and Joseph Theroux's "A Short History of Hawaiian Executions, 1826-1947,"[1][2] as well as, for the first 13, Charles Wilkes's Narrative of the United States Exploring Expedition During the Years 1838, 1839, 1840, 1841, which did not go into specifics about each of the 13 executions but only broke down the number of executions on each Hawaiian island (3 on Kauai, 7 on Oahu, 2 on Maui, and 1 on the island of Hawaii).[5] Sources for some of the executions between 1846 and 1889 include the Annual Report of the Chief Justice, 1858, and the Biennial Report of the Chief Justice, 1882.[2]

Executions by the Kingdom of Hawaii, 1795–1894
# Name Nationality Crime Execution Date
1 Unknown Unknown Murder Between 1826–1841
2 Unknown Unknown Murder Between 1826–1841
3 Unknown Unknown Murder Between 1826–1841
4 Unknown Unknown Murder Between 1826–1841
5 Unknown Unknown Murder Between 1826–1841
6 Unknown Unknown Murder Between 1826–1841
7 Unknown Unknown Murder Between 1826–1841
8 Unknown Unknown Murder Between 1826–1841
9 Unknown Unknown Murder Between 1826–1841
10 Unknown Unknown Murder Between 1826–1841
11 Unknown Unknown Murder Between 1826–1841
12 Unknown Unknown Murder Between 1826–1841
13 Unknown Unknown Murder Between 1826–1841
14 Ahulika Native Hawaiian Murder 1846-08-14
15 Kaomali Native Hawaiian Murder 1846-08-14
16 Unknown Unknown Murder 1857 (unknown month and day)
17 Pa'akaula Native Hawaiian Murder 1867-04-03
18 Kahauliko Native Hawaiian Murder 1867-04-03
19 Ho'oleawa'awa Native Hawaiian Murder 1867-08-22
20 Agnee Chinese Murder 1869-04-09
21 Tin Ah Chin Chinese Murder 1869-04-09
22 Kuheleaumoku Native Hawaiian Murder 1873-03-21
23 Kaaukai Native Hawaiian Murder 1875-03-12
24 Unknown Unknown Murder 1880 (unknown month and day)
25 Po'olua (Poloa) Native Hawaiian Murder 1881-05-20
26 Unknown Unknown Murder 1881 (unknown month and day)
27 Ah Hop (Ahapa) Chinese Murder 1889-03-05
28 Akana Chinese Murder 1889-03-05
29 Woo Sau Chinese Murder 1889-08-05

List of people executed by the Territory of Hawaii, 1894–1959

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All 49 of the men confirmed to have been executed by the Territory of Hawaii prior to the pre-statehood abolition of the death penalty in 1957. Only civilian executions; not including military executions. All executions were carried out by hanging. Sources include the ESPY Files and Joseph Theroux's "A Short History of Hawaiian Executions, 1826-1947."[1][2]

Executions by the Territory of Hawaii, 1894–1959
# Name Nationality Crime Execution Date
1 Noa Native Hawaiian Murder 1897-12-13
2 Sagata Tsunikichi Japanese Murder 1898-03-25
3 Yoshida Japanese Murder 1898-03-25
4 Kapea Native Hawaiian Murder 1898-04-11
5 Tanbara Gisaburo Japanese Murder 1902-08-14
6 Jose Miranda Puerto Rican Murder 1904-10-26
7 Kang Yong Bok Korean Murder 1906-05-23
8 Shim Miung Ok Korean Murder 1906-05-23
9 Woo Miung Sook Korean Murder 1906-05-23
10 John O'Connell Irish Murder 1906-05-31
11 Okamoto Japanese Murder 1906-05-31
12 Lorenzo Colon Puerto Rican Murder 1906-06-28
13 Yi Hi Dam Korean Murder 1909-06-21
14 Jozo Higashi Japanese Murder 1909-10-28
15 Kanagawa Japanese Murder 1910-02-03
16 Espridon Lahom Filipino Murder 1911-02-14
17 Eigira Nakamura Japanese Murder 1912-01-16
18 Miguel Manigbas Filipino Murder 1913-07-08
19 Domingo Rodrigues Filipino Murder 1913-07-08
20 Hilao Bautista Filipino Murder 1913-07-08
21 Simplicio Javellana Filipino Murder 1914-04-07
22 Pak Sur Chi Korean Murder 1915-06-25
23 Juan Coronel Filipino Murder 1915-10-15
24 Ponciano Golaste Filipino Murder 1915-10-15
25 Feliciano Hirano Filipino Murder 1915-10-15
26 Yee Kelik Yo Korean Murder 1917-01-26
27 Gabriel Verver Filipino Murder 1917-10-26
28 Florencia Bonelia Filipino Murder 1917-10-26
29 C. Dojoylongsol Filipino Murder 1917-11-16
30 Antonio Garcia Filipino Murder 1917-11-30
31 Senkichi Ichioka Japanese Murder 1921-06-02
32 Cleofe Ruiz Puerto Rican Murder 1923-10-26
33 Narciso Reyes Filipino Murder 1927-05-27
34 Marcelo Rivera Filipino Murder 1927-05-27
35 Pilipi Austero Filipino Murder 1927-08-12
36 Lacambra Santiago Filipino Murder 1927-08-12
37 Vicente Kagal Filipino Murder 1929-03-02
38 Myles Fukunaga Japanese Murder of George Gill Jamieson 1929-11-19
39 Lazaro Calibo Filipino Murder 1932-07-28
40 Leoncio Encino Filipino Murder 1933-07-15
41 Risalino Tabiolo Filipino Murder 1933-11-01
42 Solomon Mahoe Native Hawaiian Murder 1937-08-05
43 Mateo Quinones Filipino Murder 1940-05-27
44 Mariano Flores Filipino Murder 1941-09-19
45 Anaclito Gagarin Filipino Murder 1941-10-24
46 Adriano Domingo Filipino Murder of Helen R. Sakamoto 1944-01-07

References

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  1. ^ a b c Executions is the U.S. 1608-2002: The ESPY File Executions by State https://deathpenaltyinfo.org/documents/ESPYstate.pdf
  2. ^ a b c d e f Theroux, Joseph (1991). "A Short History of Hawaiian Executions, 1826-1947". Hawaiian Journal of History. 25: 147–159. hdl:10524/517. Archived (PDF) from the original on 31 May 2022 – via eVols.
  3. ^ Kelleher, Jennifer Sinco (8 March 2014). "Hawaii Set To Have Death Penalty Trial — Despite Abolishing Capital Punishment In 1957". Business Insider. Retrieved 8 January 2020.
  4. ^ Austin, Henry (27 May 2015). "Mother of girl brutally murdered by her ex-soldier father successfully sues US government for $2m". Independent. Retrieved 8 January 2020.
  5. ^ Wilkes, Charles (1844). Narrative of the United States Exploring Expedition During the Years 1838, 1839, 1840, 1841, 1842. Philadelphia: C. Sherman.

Additional reading

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