DPIC Podcast: Discussions With DPIC
Women and the Death Penalty, with Professor Mary Atwell
Current List of Women on Death Row
As of March 11, 2024, the Cornell Center on the Death Penalty Worldwide reports there are 52 women on death rows across the United States.
State | County | Name | Race |
---|---|---|---|
AL | Franklin | Scott, Christie Michelle | W |
AL | Houston | Blackmon, Patricia | B |
AL | Houston | Gobble, Tierra Capri | W |
AL | Mobile | Keaton, Heather | B |
AL | Russell | Graham, Lisa | W |
AZ | Maricopa | Andriano, Wendi | W |
AZ | Pima | Forde, Shawna | W |
AZ | Maricopa | Allen, Sammantha | W |
CA | Alameda | Michaud, Michelle | W |
CA | Los Angeles | Martin, Valerie | W |
CA | Los Angeles | McDermott, Maureen | W |
CA | Los Angeles | Rodriguez, Angelina | L |
CA | Los Angeles | Thompson, Catherine | B |
CA | Los Angeles | Williams, Manling | A |
CA | Modoc | Rhoades, Cherie | N |
CA | Orange | Alfaro, Maria | L |
CA | Orange | DeLeon, Skylar Sophia^ | W |
CA | Orange | Nelson, Tanya | A |
CA | Riverside | Hann, Jessica Marie^^ | W |
CA | Riverside | Hunter, Lorraine Alison | B |
CA | Riverside | Magaña, Belinda | L |
CA | Riverside | Rottiers, Brooke | W |
CA | Riverside | Sarinana, Cathy | W |
CA | Riverside | Snyder, Janeen | W |
CA | San Bernardino | Coffman, Cynthia | W |
CA | San Diego | Dalton, Kerry | W |
CA | San Diego | Eubanks, Susan | W |
CA | San Diego | Gonzales, Veronica | L |
CA | Ventura | Caro, Socorro | L |
FL | Brevard | Allen, Margaret | B |
FL | Escambia | Brown, Tina | B |
FL | Santa Rosa | Rodgers, Jenna* | W |
GA | Gwinnett | Moss, Tiffany | B |
ID | Ada | Row, Robin | W |
KY | Fayette | Caudill, Virginia | W |
LA | Orleans | Frank, Antoinette | B |
MS | Forrest | Chamberlin, Lisa | W |
NC | Forsyth | Moore, Blanche T. | W |
NC | Wake | Parker, Carlette | B |
OH | Lucas | Vixen, Taci** | W |
OH | Trumbull | Roberts, Donna | W |
OH | Warren | Drain, Victoria*** | W |
OK | Oklahoma | Andrew, Brenda | W |
PA | Washington | Tharp, Michelle Sue | W |
TN | Knox | Pike, Christa | W |
TX | Bowie | Parker, Taylor | W |
TX | Cameron | Lucio, Melissa | L |
TX | Dallas | Routier, Darlie | W |
TX | Harris | Carty, Linda | B |
TX | Harris | Sheppard, Erica | B |
TX | Randall | Holberg, Brittany | W |
TX | Smith | Cargill, Kimberly | W |
To see Professor Streib’s summaries of the cases of the women who were on death row as of December 2012, click here.
^Skylar Sophia DeLeon, a transgender woman, was sentenced under the name Skylar Julius DeLeon and transitioned while on California’s death row.
^^Jessica Marie Hann, a transgender woman, was sentenced under the name Jason Michael Hann and transitioned while on California’s death row.
*Jenna Rodgers, a transgender woman, was sentenced under the name Jeremiah Rodgers and transitioned while on Florida’s death row.
**Taci Vixen, a transgender woman, was sentenced under the name Timothy Hoffner and transitioned while on Ohio’s death row.
***Victoria Drain, a transgender woman, was sentenced under the name Joel Drain and transitioned while on Ohio’s death row.
News & Developments
News
Mar 19, 2015
INNOCENCE: Debra Milke Exonerated from Arizona Death Row
UPDATE: On March 23, 2015, Judge Rosa Mroz officially dismissed the charges against Milke. Milke has been added to DPIC’s exoneration list. See Milke’s statement on her exoneration. PREVIOUSLY: On March 17, the Arizona Supreme Court denied a request by prosecutors that it review a lower court’s order that dismissed the charges against Debra Milke as a result of “egregious” police and prosecutorial misconduct and barring her retrial. The court’s decision effectively ends prosecutorial efforts to reinstate murder charges against Milke.
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Apr 16, 2024
Trial Judge Signs Agreed Findings of Fact and Conclusions of Law, Recommending Melissa Lucio’s Conviction and Death Sentence Be Overturned
On April 12, 2024, Judge Arturo Nelson signed an Agreed Findings of Fact and Conclusions of Law submitted by the prosecution and defense stating that Melissa Lucio (pictured) was not given access to favorable information in the prosecution’s possession at the time of trial. The acknowledgement of this constitutional error resulted in Judge Nelson’s recommendation to the Texas Court of Criminal Appeals (TCCA) that Ms. Lucio’s conviction and death sentence be overturned. The ruling marks the latest chapter in a saga that saw Ms. Lucio narrowly avoid an execution date…
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Apr 11, 2024
Rare Agreement Between District Attorney and Defense Counsel Acknowledge Prosecutorial Misconduct and Need for New Trial for Melissa Lucio
On April 5, 2024, Cameron County District Attorney Luis Saenz and Innocence Project attorney Vanessa Potkin released a joint statement regarding Melissa Lucio’s case, which has been pending additional review for almost two years. On January 11, 2023, the parties submitted an Agreed Findings of Fact and Conclusions of Law stating that the defense was not given access to favorable information in the prosecution’s possession at trial, an error that they agree should entitle Ms. Lucio to a new trial. “Under Texas procedure the trial court must make a recommendation…
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Mar 29, 2024
Women’s History Month Profile Series: Miriam Krinsky, Executive Director of Fair and Just Prosecution
This month, DPIC celebrates Women’s History Month with weekly profiles of notable women whose work has been significant in the modern death penalty era. The fourth and final entry in this series is Miriam Krinsky, a former federal prosecutor and the Executive Director of Fair and Just Prosecution. Fair and Just Prosecution (FJP) is an organization of elected prosecutors “committed to promoting a justice system grounded in fairness, equity, compassion, and fiscal responsibility.”
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Nov 28, 2023
Discussions with DPIC: Gender and the Death Penalty with Sandra Babcock
In this month’s episode of Discussions with DPIC, Managing Director Anne Holsinger speaks with Sandra Babcock (pictured), Clinical Professor at Cornell Law School, Faculty Director, and founder of the Cornell Center on the Death Penalty Worldwide. Ms. Babcock’s clinic currently represents death sentenced women in the United States, Malawi, and Tanzania and is focused on providing defense teams in retentionist countries with training and consultation in order to provide the best possible legal representation for individuals facing sentences of death. The Cornell Center on the Death Penalty Worldwide also produces…
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Sep 05, 2023
Sole Woman on Tennessee Death Row, Age 18 at Time of Crime, Raises New Appeal Based on Youthfulness
Attorneys for Christa Pike, the only woman on Tennessee’s death row, filed a motion on August 30 to re-open her appeals based on a recent decision from the Tennessee Supreme Court. In 2022, the Court ruled in State v. Booker that mandatory life sentences in homicide cases are unconstitutional when imposed on juveniles, drawing on U.S. Supreme Court precedent that held that juveniles are less mature, more vulnerable to peer pressure, and generally less culpable than adults. Ms. Pike’s attorneys argue that Booker’s reasoning applies to all youthful defendants, not…
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Aug 25, 2023
Two Amicus Briefs Argue That Gender Bias Denied Two Death-Sentenced Women Fair Trials
In July 2023, legal scholars, a civil rights group, and various organizations which advocate for victims of domestic and gender-based violence filed amicus briefs in support of two death-sentenced female prisoners, Brenda Andrew and Brittany Holberg. Both amicus briefs allege that gender bias in their cases denied them fair trials.
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Dec 27, 2022
Missouri Set to Execute Amber McLaughlin on January 3 in First U.S. Execution of a Transgender Person
On January 3, 2023, Missouri is set to execute Amber McLaughlin (pictured), the first transgender person scheduled to be put to death in the United States.
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Nov 10, 2022
Death Penalty Information Center Launches Series on Human Rights and the U.S. Death Penalty
The Death Penalty Information Center, supported by the Foreign Office of the Federal Republic of Germany, launched a new project on Human Rights and the U.S. Death Penalty on November 4, 2022, with a live-streamed panel discussion at the German embassy in Washington, D.C. The recorded event, which featured noted experts and was attended by scholars, advocates, and members of the world diplomatic corps, was the first in a series of webinars that will spotlight human rights issues in the use and implementation of the U.S. death penalty.
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Aug 01, 2022
Massachusetts Formally Exonerates Last ‘Witch’ Wrongfully Condemned During Salem Hysteria. Will Connecticut Follow Suit?
As Massachusetts formally exonerated the last person condemned for witchcraft in the colony, efforts are under way to clear the names of the 46 people wrongfully charged with witchcraft in neighboring Connecticut during the 17th century Puritan witch hunts.
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Mar 23, 2022
Report: Fewer Nations Using the Death Penalty for Drug Offenses, But Executions and Secrecy Are Up in Those that Do
Fewer countries are using the death penalty for drug offenses, but according to a new global report, executions increased in those that did and took place in proceedings characterized by authoritarianism and secrecy.
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