The Dog that Stopped Barking: Mass Legal Executions in 21st Century America
During the first two centuries of European colonization of what is now the United States, executions for a variety of offenses relatively frequently involved mass executions, that is, the execution for the same criminal incident of four or more persons. By the time of American independence, some of...
| Main Authors: | , |
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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MDPI AG
2014-02-01
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| Series: | Laws |
| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | http://www.mdpi.com/2075-471X/3/1/153 |
| _version_ | 1798005016592646144 |
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| author | Paul H. Blackman Vance McLaughlin |
| author_facet | Paul H. Blackman Vance McLaughlin |
| author_sort | Paul H. Blackman |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | During the first two centuries of European colonization of what is now the United States, executions for a variety of offenses relatively frequently involved mass executions, that is, the execution for the same criminal incident of four or more persons. By the time of American independence, some of those crimes had largely ceased to exist or to elicit such punishment, like witchcraft and piracy. However, the punishment of slaves and Indians kept the percentage of executed persons involved in mass executions significant, if not large. During the last quarter of the 19th and first six decades of the 20th century, mass legal executions diminished as a percentage and were largely limited to punishing robbery-related homicides, including felony-homicides of conspirators. Throughout that period, the end of mass executions for a particular crime presaged the end of all executions for that offense, and the last mass legal execution occurred in 1960. |
| first_indexed | 2024-04-11T12:32:26Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-963652ff595e450897fca675b6da9c7a |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 2075-471X |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-04-11T12:32:26Z |
| publishDate | 2014-02-01 |
| publisher | MDPI AG |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Laws |
| spelling | doaj.art-963652ff595e450897fca675b6da9c7a2022-12-22T04:23:43ZengMDPI AGLaws2075-471X2014-02-013115316210.3390/laws3010153laws3010153The Dog that Stopped Barking: Mass Legal Executions in 21st Century AmericaPaul H. Blackman0Vance McLaughlin1Independence Institute, 727 E. 16th Avenue, Denver, CO 80203, USADepartment of Criminal Justice, Jacksonville State University, Jacksonville, AL 36265, USADuring the first two centuries of European colonization of what is now the United States, executions for a variety of offenses relatively frequently involved mass executions, that is, the execution for the same criminal incident of four or more persons. By the time of American independence, some of those crimes had largely ceased to exist or to elicit such punishment, like witchcraft and piracy. However, the punishment of slaves and Indians kept the percentage of executed persons involved in mass executions significant, if not large. During the last quarter of the 19th and first six decades of the 20th century, mass legal executions diminished as a percentage and were largely limited to punishing robbery-related homicides, including felony-homicides of conspirators. Throughout that period, the end of mass executions for a particular crime presaged the end of all executions for that offense, and the last mass legal execution occurred in 1960.http://www.mdpi.com/2075-471X/3/1/153Colonial AmericaUnited Statescapital crimesmass executionsaggravated homicidefelony-murder |
| spellingShingle | Paul H. Blackman Vance McLaughlin The Dog that Stopped Barking: Mass Legal Executions in 21st Century America Laws Colonial America United States capital crimes mass executions aggravated homicide felony-murder |
| title | The Dog that Stopped Barking: Mass Legal Executions in 21st Century America |
| title_full | The Dog that Stopped Barking: Mass Legal Executions in 21st Century America |
| title_fullStr | The Dog that Stopped Barking: Mass Legal Executions in 21st Century America |
| title_full_unstemmed | The Dog that Stopped Barking: Mass Legal Executions in 21st Century America |
| title_short | The Dog that Stopped Barking: Mass Legal Executions in 21st Century America |
| title_sort | dog that stopped barking mass legal executions in 21st century america |
| topic | Colonial America United States capital crimes mass executions aggravated homicide felony-murder |
| url | http://www.mdpi.com/2075-471X/3/1/153 |
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