Capital murder convictions have two options: life imprisonment without parole and death.
Capital punishment or death penalty, is known as the state-sanctioned killing of a person as punishment for the most serious crimes. These capital offenses typically include murder but extend to other crimes of
treason,
espionage, or certain drug-related offenses. The process of
capital punishment is carried out through a legal process of conviction in a court of law, being held on death row, then lastly carrying out the execution. Prior to 2005, life with parole and death were the two options, but that year the
Texas Legislature modified the statute. Maurice Chammah , author of
Let the Lord Sort Them: The Rise and Fall of the Death Penalty, stated that governments of smaller counties supported the move as death penalty cases had increasing costs. Although there are no definite numbers of Texas counties taking a stand for or against the
death penalty, it can be accurately said that more than half (136 out of 254) have never sent an offender to
death row since the
death penalty reinstatement of 1976. On a larger scale, less than 20% of the 254 Texas counties account for the current death row population. Similarly, three counties contribute to more than half of the current death row population in Texas:
Harris (64),
Dallas (13), and
Tarrant (13). ==See also==