Hypothetical question:
Dastardly Dan commits murder in the state of Wisconsin in 1970.
Ferocious Fred commits murder in the state of Wisconsin in 1974.
Both are convicted, incurring the maximum penalty allowed.
In 1972, the death penalty is abolished.
In 1976 (I’m making this up), the state of Wisconsin reinstates it.
Does Dan get fried? Does Fred? How do ex post facto laws apply?
not exactly sure… and don’t really have the time to look it up right now (should be in the car on the way to work). but didn’t this happen with manson. i might be wrong, but wasn’t he sentenced to death which turned into life when the death penalty was abolished in california. when it was reinstated his sentence still remained life without parole.
i’d imagine that both fred and dan would remain in prison until they died of natural causes.
Ferocious Fred, does not get the death penalty, as that seems like black letter law example of ex post facto laws.
I’m pretty sure Dan gets spared the needle also. But IANAL.
That sounds reasonable. I’m more specifically wondering about Ted Bundy, a man about whom I know little (and web searches are amazingly unhelpful). From what I understand, his crimes were committed when the DP was banned, and yet he got the DP. But I could be way off in my facts.
I also have a vague recollection of some prisoners being on death row during the banned period, the executed once the ban was lifted.
Of course, it’s possible that this varies from state to state.
In 1972, SCOTUS lifted the death penalties of around 600 condemned inmates, including Manson, in the case of Furman v. Georgia. These were commuted into life sentences. As a result, states had to reform their death penalty laws. SCOTUS upheld these new laws in a series of cases in 1976, beginning with Gregg v. Georgia. Ted Bundy’s trials for the Chi Omega and Leach murders were in 1978-1980.
Read this for a quick overview of death penalty ex post facto issues.
FYI: Wisconsin does not have the death penalty.
i used to be really big into serial killers. best website i ever found was crime library. i think they have a lot on bundy. if you check it out, read the story on albert fish. really creepy man. the x-ray of his pelvic region is interesting too. seems he was in the habit of sticking needles in his pubic area. he lost a few… i think about 28. i may be off on that number though.