Georgia: third most executions and no death sentences in '15
Executions were up in Georgia this year, even though not a single murder defendant received a death sentence.
A new report by the Death Penalty Information Center in
Washington found that Georgia ranked third in the country with five executions in 2015, trailing only Texas and Missouri. Georgia had just two executions the previous year.
At the same time, almost 30 murder cases where prosecutors intended to seek death or said they were willing to do so were resolved by plea agreements under which most defendants were sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole.
To read The Atlanta Journal-Constitution's story on what happened in Georgia and across the nation with regard to the death penalty in 2015, please go to myajc.com.
About the Author
Bill Rankin has been an AJC reporter for more than 30 years. His father, Jim Rankin, worked as an editor for the newspaper for 26 years, retiring in 1986. Bill has primarily covered the state’s court system, doing all he can do to keep the scales of justice on an even keel. Since 2015, he has been the host of the newspaper’s Breakdown podcast.
