Capital punishment in Missouri first used in 1810 is a legal penalty in the U.S. state of Missouri.
Capital punishment is a legal penalty in the U.S. state of Missouri and was first used in 1810 in the form of hanging. From 1810 to 1965, 285 people were executed. From 1976-1988 none were executed, and from 1989-2024 98 persons were executed. [1]
From 1937 until 1987 lethal gas inhalation was used. By 1987, inmates could choose lethal injection as opposed to lethal gas. [1]
When the prosecution seeks the death penalty, the sentence is decided by the jury and must be unanimous. In case of a hung jury during the penalty phase of the trial, the judge decides the sentence. [2] The power of clemency belongs to the Governor of Missouri after receiving a non-binding advice from the Board of Probation and Parole. [3]
Executions are carried out by lethal injection or gas inhalation. [4]
First-degree murder is punishable by death when it involves one of the 17 following aggravating factors: [5]
Missouri law also provides the death penalty for treason, and placing a bomb near a bus terminal. Statute books also provide it for aggravating kidnapping, but capital punishment for this crime is no longer constitutional since the 2008 U.S. Supreme Court case Kennedy v. Louisiana. [6]
Male death row offenders are housed at Potosi Correctional Center (PCC), while Women's Eastern Reception, Diagnostic and Correctional Center (WERDCC) has the female death row. Eastern Reception, Diagnostic and Correctional Center (ERDCC) houses the state's execution chamber. [1]
The first person executed in the modern era was George Mercer who was executed at the Missouri State Penitentiary in Jefferson City, Missouri on January 6, 1989. [7] The next 61 executions starting with Gerald Smith were done at the Potosi Correctional Center in Potosi, Missouri. Since April 2005, executions have been 25 miles east of Potosi at the Eastern Reception, Diagnostic and Correctional Center in Bonne Terre, Missouri. The first execution at Bonne Terre was #63 Donald Jones.
Capital punishment in Missouri first used in 1810 is a legal penalty in the U.S. state of Missouri.
Capital punishment is a legal penalty in the U.S. state of Missouri and was first used in 1810 in the form of hanging. From 1810 to 1965, 285 people were executed. From 1976-1988 none were executed, and from 1989-2024 98 persons were executed. [1]
From 1937 until 1987 lethal gas inhalation was used. By 1987, inmates could choose lethal injection as opposed to lethal gas. [1]
When the prosecution seeks the death penalty, the sentence is decided by the jury and must be unanimous. In case of a hung jury during the penalty phase of the trial, the judge decides the sentence. [2] The power of clemency belongs to the Governor of Missouri after receiving a non-binding advice from the Board of Probation and Parole. [3]
Executions are carried out by lethal injection or gas inhalation. [4]
First-degree murder is punishable by death when it involves one of the 17 following aggravating factors: [5]
Missouri law also provides the death penalty for treason, and placing a bomb near a bus terminal. Statute books also provide it for aggravating kidnapping, but capital punishment for this crime is no longer constitutional since the 2008 U.S. Supreme Court case Kennedy v. Louisiana. [6]
Male death row offenders are housed at Potosi Correctional Center (PCC), while Women's Eastern Reception, Diagnostic and Correctional Center (WERDCC) has the female death row. Eastern Reception, Diagnostic and Correctional Center (ERDCC) houses the state's execution chamber. [1]
The first person executed in the modern era was George Mercer who was executed at the Missouri State Penitentiary in Jefferson City, Missouri on January 6, 1989. [7] The next 61 executions starting with Gerald Smith were done at the Potosi Correctional Center in Potosi, Missouri. Since April 2005, executions have been 25 miles east of Potosi at the Eastern Reception, Diagnostic and Correctional Center in Bonne Terre, Missouri. The first execution at Bonne Terre was #63 Donald Jones.