AMERICAN JOURNAL OF FORENSIC PSYCHIATRY, VOLUME 32, ISSUE 1, 2011 / 1
CAPITAL PUNISHMENT AND THE BRUTALIZATION EFFECT
Margaret-Ann Keaton, Psy.D. and Alyssa Lee
This study sought to determine if a brutalization effect existed in the
capital punishment data. A literature review uncovered limited research regarding capital punishment, both in terms of the brutalization effect and the
theory of deterrence. The literature exhibited conflicting results on what effect capital punishment has on society, with most research reporting a lack of
evidence for both the brutalization effect and the theory of deterrence (1).
This study looked at multiple variables in an attempt to establish what effect
is produced from the use of capital punishment, with special focus on the existence, or lack thereof, of the brutalization effect. The collection of data
from various reliable websites was used to determine whether the brutalization effect could be found. Results showed a lack of evidence for either the
brutalization effect or the theory of deterrence, which was consistent with the
main findings of the current research.
The use of capital punishment has been an intensely debated topic for
quite some time. At the time of this study, the majority of states, 35 to be
exact, were retentionist states, while the remaining 15 states were abolitionist
states. Retentionist states cite the deterrent effect as the primary reason for
retaining capital punishment. The deterrent effect assumes that capital punishment is a threat to criminals, who in turn, are deterred from committing
violent crime, thus lowering the crime rate. The theory of deterrence has long
been researched and a great deal of literature examining this theory exists.
Individuals who argue against capital punishment typically believe that deterrence has no effect on the crime rate. Although a limited amount of research has found evidence that the deterrent effect exists (2-7), the majority
of capital punishment research has failed to find such evidence (1). More
recently, a new argument against capital punishment has surfaced. This new
argument involves a concept called the brutalization effect. This concept involves the probability of a direct increase in violent crime immediately following an act of capital punishment, essentially the opposite of the theory of
deterrence. As with the theory of deterrence, only a limited number of stuCopyright 2011 American Journal of Forensic Psychiatry, Volume 32, Issue 1. The Journal is a
publication of the American College of Forensic Psychiatry, PO Box 130458, Carlsbad, California 92013.
2 / KEATON AND LEE: CAPITAL PUNISHMENT AND THE BRUTALIZATION EFFECT
dies have found evidence of a brutalization effect in association with the
death penalty (8-12). However, due to the recency of this concept, the existing literature on the brutalization effect is somewhat limited, and the research
that does exist often has conflicting outcomes. The purpose of this study was
to add new findings to the existing literature regarding capital punishment
and the brutalization effect. After examining the most recent execution of
each retentionist state, the authors expected to find evidence of the brutalization effect.
METHOD
The data were collected from various online websites. These data were
then compiled into four separate tables. Table 1 represents a compilation of
data found from several websites. The first column of data is a list of states
that currently have the death penalty. For each state that has the death penalty, the most recent execution was found. This information is listed in the
third column. The second and fourth columns show the violent crime rate,
defined as rates per 100,000 inhabitants, six months before and six months
after the most recent execution for each state. Data were not available for all
of the states due to the fact that some states’ most recent execution was too
recent and some states’ most recent execution occurred before the violent
crime rate was recorded. The fifth column is reserved for the calculated difference between the violent crime rate (VCR) six months before and the
VCR six months after the most recent execution occurred for each state. This
difference was found by subtracting the VCR six months before from the
VCR six months after. The overall difference was found by adding each difference from the fifth column. The overall difference showed that the VCR
had a slight decrease six months after the most recent execution.
The states that currently have the death penalty were then researched to
determine the total number of executions for each state. These executions
were broken into two categories: number of executions before 1976, which
included 1608-1976, and the number of executions since 1976. The variable
of race was also examined. The percentage of Caucasians executed versus
non-Caucasians was found. Due to limitations in the records, only information from 1977-present could be found. These findings make up Table 2.
The first column lists each state that currently has the death penalty. The
AMERICAN JOURNAL OF FORENSIC PSYCHIATRY, VOLUME 32, ISSUE 1, 2011 / 3
next
Table 1.
States
with Death
Penalty
VCR 6 Months
Prior
Most Recent Execution
Alabama
452.8
10/8/2009
Too Recent
NA
Arizona
512
11/28/2005
501.4
-10.6
Arkansas
551.6
5/22/2007
529.4
-22.2
California
526
1/17/2006
532.5
6.5
Colorado
363.2
10/13/1997
377.9
14.7
Connecticut
289
5/13/2005
273
-16
Delaware
633
11/4/2005
681.6
48.6
Florida
688.9
2/16/2010
Too Recent
NA
Georgia
478.9
10/21/2009
Too Recent
NA
Idaho
281.8
1/6/1994
285.8
4
Illinois
807.7
3/17/1999
689.5
-118.2
Indiana
333.8
12/11/2009
Too Recent
NA
Kansas
115.6
6/22/1965
107.1
-8.5
Kentucky
295
11/21/2008
296.2
1.2
Louisiana
656.2
1/7/2010
Too Recent
NA
Maryland
704
12/6/2005
618.6
-85.4
Mississippi
291.3
7/23/2008
284.9
-6.4
Missouri
504.4
5/20/2009
Too Recent
NA
Montana
235.7
8/11/2006
287.5
51.8
Nebraska
438.4
12/2/1997
451.4
13
608
4/26/2006
741.6
133.6
New Hampshire
Too Early
7/14/1939
Too Early
NA
North Carolina
475.6
8/18/2006
466.4
-9.2
Ohio
348.2
2/4/2010
Too Recent
NA
Oklahoma
526.7
1/14/2010
Too Recent
NA
Oregon
463.1
5/16/1997
444.4
-18.7
Pennsylvania
420.5
7/6/1999
420
-0.5
Nevada
VCR 6 Months
After
Difference
4 / KEATON AND LEE: CAPITAL PUNISHMENT AND THE BRUTALIZATION EFFECT
South Carolina
729.7
5/8/2009
Too Recent
NA
South Dakota
169.2
7/11/2007
201.4
32.2
Tennessee
722.4
12/2/2009
Too Recent
NA
Texas
169.2
1/12/2010
Too Recent
NA
Utah
275.5
10/15/1999
255.7
-19.8
Virginia
255.9
11/17/2009
Too Recent
NA
355
8/28/2001
345.5
-9.5
310.2
1/22/1992
319.5
9.3
Overall:
-10.1
Washington
Wyoming
three columns show the number of executions in that state. The second column shows the total number of executions in that state before 1976 (16081976). The third column shows the total number of executions in that state
since 1976. These two numbers were then added to create the fourth column,
which show the overall total number of executions for that state (1608present). The next two columns present the percentage of Caucasians executed and the percentage of non-Caucasians executed from 1977 to the
present. It was found that when the total number of executions for a state was
below average, the percentage of Caucasians executed was above average.
When the total number of executions was above average, the percentage of
non-Caucasians was also above average. On average, when a state had a
larger number of executions, a larger percentage of those executions were
non-Caucasians, whereas states that had a lower number of executions had a
higher percentage of Caucasians executed.
The population of the retentionist states at the time of each state’s most
recent execution was found. Keeping race as a variable, the percentage of
Caucasians and non-Caucasians was found from the total population. This
information was used to create Table 3. The first column lists each state that
currently has the death penalty. The second column presents the most recent
execution for each state. The third column lists the state’s population at the
time of its most recent execution. The final two columns present the percentage of Caucasians and the percentage of non-Caucasians of the state’s total
population. This information was difficult to obtain. Due to limitations, ethnic demographics for 2008 were used for states’ most recent executions that
AMERICAN JOURNAL OF FORENSIC PSYCHIATRY, VOLUME 32, ISSUE 1, 2011 / 5
took place between 2005 and 2010. Data concerning ethnic demographics
could not be found for states where the most recent execution date was prior
to 2005.
Table 2.
States
with
Death
Penalty
Executions
before
1976 (16081976)
Executions
after 1976
Total
# of
Execu
ecutions
% Caucasian*
Executed 1977Present
% Non-Caucasian* Executed
1977-Present
Alabama
708
44
752
52.3%
47.7%
Arizona
104
23
127
78.3%
21.7%
Arkansas
478
27
505
70.4%
29.6%
California
709
13
722
61.5%
38.5%
Colorado
101
1
102
100%
00.0%
Connecticut
126
1
127
100%
00.0%
Delaware
62
14
76
50.0%
50.0%
Florida
314
69
383
62.3%
37.7%
Georgia
950
46
996
67.4%
32.6%
Idaho
26
1
27
100%
00.0%
Illinois
348
12
360
58.3%
41.7%
Indiana
131
20
151
85.0%
15.0%
Kansas
57
0
57
NA
NA
Kentucky
424
3
427
100%
00.0%
Louisiana
632
28
660
53.6%
46.4%
Maryland
309
5
314
40.0%
60.0%
Mississippi
351
10
361
70.0%
30.0%
6 / KEATON AND LEE: CAPITAL PUNISHMENT AND THE BRUTALIZATION EFFECT
Missouri
285
67
352
59.7%
40.3%
Montana
71
3
Nebraska
34
3
74
100%
00.0%
37
33.3%
66.7%
Nevada
61
12
73
75.0%
25.0%
New
Hampshire
North
Carolina
Ohio
24
0
24
NA
NA
784
43
827
65.1%
34.9%
438
35
473
62.9%
37.1%
Oklahoma
Oregon
132
91
223
61.5%
38.5%
122
2
124
100%
00.0%
Pennsylvania
South
Carolina
1040
3
1043
100%
00.0%
641
42
683
61.9%
38.1%
South
Dakota
Tennessee
Texas
15
1
16
100%
00.0%
335
6
341
83.3%
16.7%
755
451
1206
45.9%
54.1%
Utah
43
6
49
66.7%
33.3%
Virginia
1277
105
1382
50.5%
49.5%
Washington
Wyoming
105
4
109
100%
00.0%
22
1
23
100%
00.0%
Average
377.3
14286
73.20%
26.80%
Information from the three tables was combined to create Table 4. This
table depicts the violent crime rate six months before and six months after
the most recent execution for each state that currently has the death penalty.
The second column lists states without the death penalty that are closest to
states with the death penalty. The violent crime rate for these states was
found six months before and six months after the nearest state’s execution.
The average violent crime rate, six months before and six months after the
most recent execution, was also found for states that do not have the death
penalty but are close in proximity to states with the death penalty. It is im-
AMERICAN JOURNAL OF FORENSIC PSYCHIATRY, VOLUME 32, ISSUE 1, 2011 / 7
portant to note that the average was found by dividing the sum of the violent
crime rates by the number of states included. Although there were 22 states
with the death penalty included, there were only eight states without the
death penalty included. This is due to the fact that the closest state which did
Table 3.
States with
Death Penalty
Most Recent
Execution
State's Population at Time
of Most Recent Execution
% Caucasian*
(Total Population) as of 2008
% NonCaucasian*
(Total Population) as of 2008
Alabama
10/8/2009
4708708
71.0%
29.0%
Arizona
11/28/2005
5974834
86.5%
13.5%
Arkansas
5/22/2007
2842194
80.8%
19.2%
California
1/17/2006
35979208
76.6%
23.4%
Colorado
10/13/1997
3892644
Connecticut
5/13/2005
3477416
89.7%
10.3%
Delaware
11/4/2005
839906
74.3%
25.7%
Florida
2/16/2010
18773356
79.8%
20.2%
Georgia
10/21/2009
9829211
65.4%
34.6%
Idaho
1/6/1994
1333000
Illinois
3/17/1999
12128000
Indiana
12/11/2009
6423113
88.0%
12.0%
Kansas
6/22/1965
2197815
Kentucky
11/21/2008
4287931
89.9%
10.1%
Louisiana
1/7/2010
4400000
64.8%
35.2%
Maryland
12/6/2005
5582520
63.4%
36.6%
Mississippi
7/23/2008
2940212
60.6%
39.4%
Missouri
5/20/2009
5987580
85.0%
15.0%
Montana
8/11/2006
946230
90.5%
9.5%
Nebraska
12/2/1997
1656042
Nevada
4/26/2006
2493405
80.9%
19.1%
New Hampshire
7/14/1939
491524
North Carolina
8/18/2006
8866977
73.9%
26.1%
Ohio
2/4/2010
11500000
84.8%
15.2%
Oklahoma
1/14/2010
3642361
78.1%
21.9%
Oregon
5/16/1997
3217000
8 / KEATON AND LEE: CAPITAL PUNISHMENT AND THE BRUTALIZATION EFFECT
Pennsylvania
7/6/1999
11994016
South Carolina
5/8/2009
4561242
68.7%
31.3%
South Dakota
7/11/2007
797035
88.2%
11.8%
Tennessee
12/2/2009
6296254
80.4%
19.6%
Texas
1/12/2010
23904380
82.4%
17.6%
Utah
10/15/1999
2121000
Virginia
11/17/2009
7882590
73.0%
27.0%
Washington
8/28/2001
5987785
Wyoming
1/22/1992
458000
Average
6526099.69
78.20%
29.20%
not have the death penalty was often listed more than once. Finally, the
change in percentage was found for each category.
RESULTS
Tables 1 through 3 were created to simply present the data that were
found. Table 4 and Table 5 were created to present data found as well as
present the main findings of the data. The eighth column of Table 4
represents the difference between violent crime rates six months before and
six months after each state’s most recent execution. The ninth column of Table 4 represents the difference between the violent crime rates for the abolitionist states closest to the retentionist states. The overall difference in the
violent crime rate six months before and six months after the most recent
execution for retentionist states was a 10.1 decrease in the violent crime rate.
The overall difference in the violent crime rate for the abolitionist states
closely located to retentionist states was a 60.5 increase in the violent crime
rate. In order to gain a better understanding of these numbers, the average
violent crime rate six months before and six months after the state’s most
recent execution was found for both the retentionist and abolitionist states.
The average violent crime rate six months before the most recent execution
for retentionist states was 456.12 and the average violent crime rate six
months after was 455.57. The average violent crime rate for the abolitionist
states was 370.87 six months before and 373.89 six months after the most
recent execution.
AMERICAN JOURNAL OF FORENSIC PSYCHIATRY, VOLUME 32, ISSUE 1, 2011 / 9
Table 5 depicts the percentage of decrease in the violent crime rate for
retentionist states and the percentage of increase in the violent crime rate for
abolitionist states. For retentionist states and abolitionist states, the percentage change in violent crime rate was minimal—less than one percent. After
taking population size, race, and geographic location as variables into ac
Table 5.
Column1
States with
Death Penalty
Closest State
without Death
Penalty
VCR 6 Months Prior
(Average for 22 States)
VCR 6 Months After
(Average for 22 States)
Percentage
Change
414.61
414.15
-0.11
337.15
339.9
0.82
count, a significant difference was not found between the violent crime rates
before and after each state’s most recent execution. The findings did not
show a brutalization or deterrent effect, which conflicts with the hypothesis
that a brutalization effect would be found. The violent crime rates for states
with the death penalty appear to be higher in general than that of states without the death penalty.
CONCLUSION
Overall, a significant change in the violent crime rate for abolitionist or
retentionist states was not found. The original hypothesis stated that there
would be a brutalization effect found when comparing violent crime rates
before and after each state’s most recent execution. The results showed neither a brutalization effect nor a deterrent effect. Therefore, the hypothesis
was not supported. These findings were consistent with the findings in the
existing literature that show a lack of a brutalization effect as well as a deterrent effect.
A few states could not be included in the final analysis because the
state’s latest execution was too recent to obtain any information regarding
the violent crime rate after the execution. Only 22 of the 35 retentionist states
were included in the final analysis. This was a limitation of the study because
the data found were not complete. Also, not all of the abolitionist states were
10 / KEATON AND LEE: CAPITAL PUNISHMENT AND THE BRUTALIZATION EFFECT
used as a comparison since the geographic variable included abolitionist
states that were closest in geographic proximity to the retentionist states.
For future research, it should be noted that the violent crime rate before
and after an execution was lower for abolitionist states than it was for retentionist states. More extensive research should be done in this area to determine if this difference could be related to a brutalization or deterrent effect.
Also, while conducting this study, an important issue came up regarding race
as a variable. There appeared to be higher execution rates, as well as a higher
percentage of minority executions, in Southern states. Further research in this
area would be useful in order to better understand the implications of capital
punishment.
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