Document ID: ./input/supremecourt_opinions/opinions/14pdf/14-7955_aplc.pdf
Page Number: 85

Cite as:  576 U. S. ____ (2015) 

35 

BREYER, J., dissenting 

deathpenaltyinfo.org/node/5741.

Accordingly,  30  States  have  either  formally  abolished
the  death  penalty  or  have  not  conducted  an  execution  in
more  than  eight  years.  Of  the  20  States  that  have  con­
ducted  at  least  one  execution  in  the  past  eight  years,  9 
have  conducted  fewer  than  five  in  that  time,  making  an
execution in those States a fairly rare event.  BJS Prisoner 
Statistics (Delaware, Idaho, Indiana, Kentucky, Louisiana,
South  Dakota,  Tennessee,  Utah,  Washington).    That 
leaves  11  States  in  which  it  is  fair  to  say  that  capital
punishment  is  not  “unusual.”    And  just  three  of  those
States (Texas, Missouri, and Florida) accounted for 80% of 
the  executions  nationwide  (28  of  the  35)  in  2014.    See 
DPIC,  Number  of  Executions  by  State  and  Region  Since 
1976,  online  at  http://www.deathpenaltyinfo.org/number
executions-state-and-region-1976.    Indeed,  last  year,  only 
seven  States  conducted  an  execution.    DPIC,  Executions 
by  State  and  Year,  supra;  DPIC,  Death  Sentences  in  the 
United States From 1977 by State and by Year, online at
http://www.deathpenaltyinfo.org/death-sentences-united­
states-1977-2008.  In other words, in 43 States, no one was 
executed. 

In  terms  of  population,  if  we  ask  how  many  Americans
live  in  a  State  that  at  least  occasionally  carries  out  an
execution  (at  least  one  within  the  prior  three  years),  the 
answer  two  decades  ago  was  60%  or  70%.    Today,  that 
number is 33%.  See Appendix C, infra. 

At  the  same  time,  use  of  the  death  penalty  has  become 

County-by­

increasingly  concentrated  geographically. 
county  figures  are  relevant,  for  decisions  to  impose  the 
death  penalty  typically  take  place  at  a  county  level.    See 
supra,  at  12–13.    County-level  sentencing  figures  show
that, between 1973 and 1997, 66 of America’s 3,143 coun­
ties accounted for approximately 50% of all death sentences
imposed.  Liebman  &  Clarke  264–265;  cf.  id.,  at  266. 
(counties  with  10%  of  the  Nation’s  population  imposed 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
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