DETERRENT EFFECT OF THE DEATH PENALTY FOR MURDER IN CALIFORNIA

• NCJ Number: 60550
• Journal: Southern California Law Review Volume: 52 Issue: 3 Dated: (MARCH 1979) Pages: 743-764
• Author(s): W C BAILEY
• Date Published: 1979
• Length: 22 pages
• Corporate Author: University of Southern California
• Publication Format: Article
• Publication Type: Statistics
• Language: English
• Country: United States of America

Annotation

FOR THE PERIOD 1910 TO 1962, AN EMPIRICAL ANALYSIS WAS CONDUCTED ON THE DETERRENT EFFECT OF THE DEATH PENALTY FOR MURDER IN CALIFORNIA. THE DETERRENCE HYPOTHESIS WAS EXAMINED BY FITTING EXECUTION, HOMICIDE, AND

Abstract

SOCIODEMOGRAPHIC VARIABLES INTO A SERIES OF MULTIPLE REGRESSION ANALYSES WITH THREE MODELS OF THE CERTAINTY OF EXECUTION-HOMICIDE RATE RELATIONSHIP BEING COMPARED. CONSISTENT WITH THE RESULTS OF MOST PREVIOUS INVESTIGATIONS BUT CONTRARY TO THE DETERRENCE ARGUMENT, THE ANALYSES SHOWED THAT THE CERTAINTY OF EXECUTION DOES NOT PROVIDE AN EFFECTIVE DETERRENT TO MURDER. REGARDLESS OF THE EXECUTION AND HOMICIDE MEASURES UTILIZED AND THE PRESUMED FORM (LINEAR AND NONLINEAR) OF THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN EXECUTIONS AND HOMICIDE RATES, CHANGES IN THE CERTAINTY OF THE DEATH PENALTY AND OFFENSE RATES WERE NOT SIGNIFICANTLY RELATED. SOCIODEMOGRAPHIC VARIABLES CONSISTENTLY PROVED TO BE A BETTER PREDICTOR OF HOMICIDES THAN THE CERTAINTY OF THE DEATH PENALTY. THESE FINDINGS ARE CONSISTENT WITH THOSE OBTAINED FROM OVER FIVE DECADES OF DEATH PENALTY RESEARCH; CAPITAL PUNISHMENT IS NOT AN EFFECTIVE DETERRENT TO MURDER IN CALIFORNIA. TABULAR STATISTICAL DATA AND FOOTNOTES ARE PROVIDED. (LWM)