Remember when Time Magazine ran the darkened up image of OJ Simpson?

[NNN0LHI]

Why would they do that I wonder?

Don



http://www.swissinfo.org/eng/international/ticker/detail/Execution_likelier_for_blacker_US_murderers_study.html?siteSect=143&sid=6702731&cKey=1147217875000


Execution likelier for blacker US murderers-study


SAN FRANCISCO (Reuters) - The more "black looking" an African-American man charged with murdering a white victim, the more likely he is to be sentenced to death, a Stanford University researcher said on Tuesday.

Using scores given by white and Asian-American Stanford undergraduates to rate facial features of 44 black men tried for murder in Philadelphia over 20 years, researchers found that 57.5 percent rated to have "stereotypically" black features such as dark skin were sentenced to death.

By contrast, 24.4 percent of black men in similar murder cases and rated by the students as less stereotypically black were sentenced to death, said Jennifer Eberhardt, a Stanford psychologist involved in the research.

Despite the use of ratings from only white and Asian-American students, the findings suggest jurors use stereotypes of black features as a proxy for criminality and punish murder defendants with those features more severely, Eberhardt said.

[NewJeffCT]

1. Back when I was in college in the 80s

I did an extensive study on the death penalty back then, and found similar results by race... even taking out other factors like economic status, blacks were still far more likely to be executed.

[napi21]

2. I haven't done any research like you have, but I have to disagree

with your results. I think money is the prime factor! Not only talking about the D, but any conviction! Look at Limpballs. Go to rehab for 18 months and we'll wipe the slate clea for you???? What are the odds ANYONE else would have achieved THAT?

[NewJeffCT]

5. I agree that money is the primary factor

However, race still plays a major role. At the time - maybe around 1987 or so - the NY Times did a very extensive study of the death penalty and it was found that if you were black, you were 11 times more likely to be sentenced to death than if you were white & committed a similar crime. However, even after you took out all other factors like wealth, you were still 4 times more likely to be sentenced to death if you were black. (It's been almost 20 years, so I may not be 100% perfect in my recall on 11x and 4x)

[H2O Man]

6. A few years ago

one of my nephews did a study on the death penalty. He was at SUNY-Albany at the time, and his study has been used by my friend Rubin Carter in his work to end the death penalty. Money is certainly an issue. It is not totally separate from race. However, "race" is a factor in other significant ways, including the "race" of the person on trial, as well as the "race" of the victim(s).

[NewJeffCT]

7. Yes, I forgot that piece of it

If you kill a white person, you are much more likely to get the death penalty than if you kill a black person.

[aikoaiko]

4. related to money, I thought having a your own lawyer was better than

a public defender?

[napi21]

8. Of course. That's where the $$ come into the picture.

Not only is having your own lawyer much better than a PD, but the more expensive the lawyer, the better your chances!

[aikoaiko]

3. Interesting study that backs up many years of research, but its stunning

that they didn't include blacks as participants.

[NNN0LHI]

9. So what do you think? Did Time think the darker OJ would sell more copies?

Crazy.

Don

[AspenRose]

10. Assuming one believes in God....

"But suppose God is black? What if we go to Heaven and we, all our lives, have treated the Negro as an inferior, and God is there, and we look up and He is not white? What then is our response?" --Robert F. Kennedy