Capital Approval Rates of Reno, Ashcroft, and Gonzales ( in PDF Format)

Attorney General Ashcroft decisions in death penalty cases

• Federal capital prosecutions approved by Attorney General Ashcroft
• Federal capital prosecutions where Attorney General Ashcroft required pursuit of the death penalty without a request for permission from the United States Attorney
• Federal capital cases in which Attorney General Ashcroft refused a request to seek the death penalty
• Potential federal capital cases not authorized by Attorney General Aschcroft
• July 17, 2003 Memorandum regarding Aschcroft's Decisions regarding the Death Penalty ( in PDF Format)
• A comparison of Attorney General Reno and Attorney General Ashcroft.

The death penalty authorization process within the Department of Justice

• Withdrawal of Requests for the Death Penalty by the Attorney General, Declaration of Kevin McNally, October 21, 2008
• DOJ responses to questions arising out of congressional 'Oversight of the Federal Death Penalty' hearing, December 27, 2007
• Sections, Task Forces, and division of responsibilities within the Criminal Division
• Organizational chart – Department of Justice
• Protocol for death penalty authorization, Department of Justice Manual 9-10.000
  • Current Protocol, Memorandum from David Bruck concerning new protocols
  • Old Protocols, 1995, 2001
  • Appendix A: Evaluation of Factors in Possible Death Penalty Prosecution
  • Non-Decisional Case Identifying Information

• Articles about the Department of Justice and the death penalty authorization process

  • The Death Squad  

• The Death Penalty Review Committee and the Capital Case Unit 

  • For further information, contact  FDPRC.

• Testimony of Deputy Attorney General Larry Thompson concerning changes to the death penalty protocol, June 13, 2001

Challenges to the authorization process

• Administrative Procedure Act
  • Terry Nichols (2)
• Due process
  • Terry Nichols (2)
  • Peter Caruso

• Recusal of U.S. Attorney

  • Terry Nichols (1)

• Right to Counsel

  • Motion to Strike the Death Penalty, United States v. Pena-Gonzalez

  • Opinion and Order, United States v. Pena-Gonzalez

  • Opinion and Order, United States v. Torres Gomez

DOJ Death Penalty Review Committee

• Sample letter from defense requesting to be heard in person at DOJ

Application of the death penalty

• Infrequent Use of the Death Penalty

  • United States v. Quinones, Motion to Bar Death Because of its Infrequent Use( in PDF or Word Perfect format)

  • Declaration of Kevin McNally regarding the frequency of the imposition of the death penalty( in PDF or Word Perfect format)

• Authorization of death penalty in jurisdictions which do not permit the death penalty

• Declaration of Kevin McNally regarding use of death penalty when defendants accused of killing participants in drug trade

• Declaration of Kevin McNally regarding authorization of case involving one unrelated statutory aggravator