According to a new report from The Death Penalty Information Center, there were just 39 inmates executed in the United States in 2013. It’s only the second time in nearly two decades that less than 40 people have received capital punishment. Texas led all states, executing 16 individuals in 2013, but compared to 1999, when the state put 48 prisoners to death, that number represents the significant falling national trend. The executive director of the anti-death penalty organization told the AP that the drop is most likely because of stories of wrongful convictions that were overturned shortly before executions were to be carried out. “I think the decline begins with the revelations about mistakes in capital cases—that innocent people could get the penalty and almost be executed has shocked the public to the point where death sentences are harder to obtain” …
