Abstract
Problem statement: Previous studies on attitudes toward capital punishment are heavily focused on comparisons between blacks and whites with little attention to the Latino population. This is problematic given the rapid growth of Latino population who is now the largest and fastest-growing ethnic minority in the United States. Approach: Empirical studies devoted exclusively to studying Latinos’ attitude toward capital punishment are few and thus, I focus on exclusively examining the Latino population utilizing 2007 Hispanic Religion Survey, which is the most recent survey that includes questions on Latinos’ attitude toward capital punishment. Results: I found that Latinos’ attitude toward capital punishment is driven by various demographic, religious and cultural factors. The most influential factors were gender, religion and the country of origin. Conclusion: Very few studies have examined Latinos’ attitude toward criminal justice policies in general and this study should be extended to study other criminal justice policies as well.
Highlights
IntroductionWhat seemed like a typical capital case received international attention when Medellin’s attorneys appealed his conviction on the ground that he had not been advised of his Vienna Convention right to notify his consulate (Harry, 2000)
Bush signed a memorandum in 2005 affirming that the United States would comply with the binding decision of the ICJ and announced that state courts would be required to review the convictions of those Mexican nationals who had not been advised of their Vienna Convention rights
Catholic Latinos were more supportive of death penalty but I believe this is largely due to the fact that the majority of Latinos identify themselves as Catholics and two-thirds of respondents in this survey identified themselves as Catholics
Summary
What seemed like a typical capital case received international attention when Medellin’s attorneys appealed his conviction on the ground that he had not been advised of his Vienna Convention right to notify his consulate (Harry, 2000). His conviction was upheld by the appellate courts in Texas but in 2003, Mexico brought a lawsuit against the United States in the International Court of Justice (hereafter, ICJ) on behalf of its nationals, including Jose Medellin, who were convicted and sentenced to death in the United States. Medellin’s appeal was rejected and he was executed in Texas in August 2008
Sign-in/Register to view highlights & summary Sign-in/Register to access full text options 
Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a callDisclaimer: All third-party content on this website/platform is and will remain the property of their respective owners and is provided on "as is" basis without any warranties, express or implied. Use of third-party content does not indicate any affiliation, sponsorship with or endorsement by them. Any references to third-party content is to identify the corresponding services and shall be considered fair use under The CopyrightLaw.
