Death Row Population Declines Again

Although 3,254 inmates in the United States were awaiting execution in 2005, only 128 of them were moved to death row during the year, the lowest number of inmates put on death row since 1973. It was the third consecutive year that new death row inmate numbers declined, according to the Bureau of Justice Statistics.

In 2005, there were 60 inmates executed, however, one more than the year before. The 2005 total included 19 in Texas; five each in Indiana, Missouri and North Carolina; four each in Ohio, Alabama and Oklahoma; three each in Georgia and South Carolina; two in California; and one each in Connecticut, Arkansas, Delaware, Florida, Maryland, and Mississippi.

One woman was executed in 2005. Of all who were executed, 41 were white and 19 were black, the BJS report said.

At the end of 2005, there were 66 fewer inmates on death row compared to 2004, a decrease for the fifth straight year. In 2000, there were 3,601 death row inmates, compared to 3,254 at the end of 2005.

See Also:
Bureau of Justice Statistics

More Information:
The Death Penalty

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