The two landmark Supreme Court decisions related to race and the death penalty are Lockett v Ohio and Kennedy v Louisiana. In Lockett v Ohio: 21 years old Sandra Lockett, was the getaway driver for a robbery in which resulted in the murder of a pawnshop owner. She was convicted under the statue of Ohio and was found guilty because she initiated the robbery. An Ohio law required that individuals found guilty of aggravated murder be given the death penalty (LOCKETT v OHIO, 2015). She was sentenced to death in April of 1975. Ohio statue allowed judges in the capital cases to consider only three mitigating factors (Death Penalty Information Center, 2015). The death penalty was mandatory unless the victim provoked the offense, the offense was committed under duress or coercion or the offense was a product of mental deficiencies (LOCKETT v OHIO, 2015). If none of these facts were found then
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Jury nullification is important to the study of race, class, gender, crime and the administration of justice because it can determine if there 's truly unfair treatment within the judicial system. It can also determine if the judgment of our peers is racially motivated or just. Jury nullification has roots in the English common law and it occurs when a jury believes that the evidence presented at the trial establishes the defendant’s guilt but nonetheless votes to acquit (Walker, Spohn, & DeLone, 2011). An example of jury nullification is the George Zimmerman 's case, in which he was acquitted of murdering an African American teenager. The decision cannot be reversed and he cannot be tried again for the same convictions in the same case. The jury 's decision to acquit, even in the face of overwhelming evidence of guilt, is final they cannot be reversed by the trial judge or buy a pellet court (Walker, Spohn, & DeLone, 2011). In this case jesses was not served and a motor was live free. Now George Zimmerman is out free in the community getting into more trouble than
Jury nullification is important to the study of race, class, gender, crime and the administration of justice because it can determine if there 's truly unfair treatment within the judicial system. It can also determine if the judgment of our peers is racially motivated or just. Jury nullification has roots in the English common law and it occurs when a jury believes that the evidence presented at the trial establishes the defendant’s guilt but nonetheless votes to acquit (Walker, Spohn, & DeLone, 2011). An example of jury nullification is the George Zimmerman 's case, in which he was acquitted of murdering an African American teenager. The decision cannot be reversed and he cannot be tried again for the same convictions in the same case. The jury 's decision to acquit, even in the face of overwhelming evidence of guilt, is final they cannot be reversed by the trial judge or buy a pellet court (Walker, Spohn, & DeLone, 2011). In this case jesses was not served and a motor was live free. Now George Zimmerman is out free in the community getting into more trouble than