The Orlando Sentinel reports that Florida is executing fewer death row inmates, according to a year-end report by the Death Penalty Information Center.
Florida had one execution this year and two last year. Nationwide, executions dropped 12 percent this year compared to the year before. Texas led the nation with 17 executions this year, compared to 24 in 2009.
According to the report, there were 114 new death sentences this year. In 2009, there were 112, the lowest figure since the reinstatement of capital punishment in 1976.
The Sentinel reports:
“Whether it’s concerns about the high costs of the death penalty at a time when budgets are being slashed, the risks of executing the innocent, unfairness, or other reasons, the nation continued to move away from the death penalty in 2010,” said Richard Dieter, DPIC’s executive director.
William Cervone, president of the Florida Prosecuting Attorneys Association, told the Sentinel that the numbers are merely trends and do not clearly indicate less support for the death penalty.
