New Look at Death Sentence and Race

I. New Look at Death Sentence and Race
http://www.nytimes.com/2008/04/29/us/29bar.html?partner=rssnyt&emc=rss
4/29/08

I. According to the Harris Country (Texas) death penalty study, defendants who kill African-Americans are less likely to receive the death penalty than those who kill Caucasians. Twenty other studies as well have found a relationship between race and the event of being sentenced to death. Scott Phillips, a professor of sociology, found that in Harris Country, five black defendants would face the death penalty because of race. According to Phillips, "the bar appears to have been set lower for pursuing death against black defendants." However, many disagree with Phillips’ study and believe it has little evidence of racism.

II.
A) This article relates to the AP World History theme is "Systems of social structure and gender structure." The death penalty studies show discrimination of human race which is a social distinction.
B) In the 1987 McCleskey vs Kemp case, a petitioner alleged that the state capital’s death sentencing process was administrated in a racially discriminating way and violated the Fourteenth Amendment. However, the Supreme Court ruled that even solid evidence of racial discrimination in the death penalty administration does not go against the Constitution. Since then, many people have voiced their opinion that the verdict was not right.
C) Adam Liptak is an American male journalist for the New York Times. Because this is an American issue, he is an insider to this issue. However, this particular article focuses in on the death-penalty in Harris Country, Texas. Therefore, he could be considered either an insider or outsider.
D) The author seems to be favoring Scott Durfee, and Professor Sorensen, gentlemen both against Professor Phillips’ study. Liptak’s choice off wording which includes "Indeed, the raw numbers support Mr. Durfee" and "Professor Phillips wrote about percentages and not particular cases..." reached me to this conclusion.
E) In order to gain a full understanding of the issue, I would like to hear from someone with a significant study that defendants who kill whites are more likely to be sentenced to death than those who kill blacks. In my opinion, Professor Phillip’s study is filled with too many flaws and shows little evidence of racism.
F) If there is in fact a relationship between race and death sentence, I am deeply saddened. Although racial discrimination has greatly depleted since the 1960's, this would not be the first act of modern- day racism. I wish that all people would judge others by their quality as a person and nothing else.