The Supreme Court takes on the death penalty.

Is the Death Penalty Headed for Extinction?

Is the Death Penalty Headed for Extinction?

Law and the Supreme Court justices who interpret it.
Oct. 10 2015 10:03 AM

Amicus: The Machinery of Death

The Supreme Court is taking up capital punishment in a big way this term, against a backdrop of continuing foul-ups with lethal injections by states.

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Photo illustration by Lisa Larson-Walker. Photo by Joe Ravi/Shutterstock. (http://www.shutterstock.com/pic-132568517/stock-photo-the-front-facade-of-the-united-states-supreme-court-in-washington-dc-usa.html)

Listen to Episode 27 of Slate’s Amicus:

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The new Supreme Court term opened this week and included arguments in the first of several death penalty cases already on the docket. At the same time, we’ve witnessed whiplash-inducing action at the state level, with a number of planned executions being halted at the last minute, and other executions going forward despite lingering legal questions about them.

In this episode, Dahlia sits down with Andrew Cohen of the Marshall Project, 60 Minutes, and CBS Radio News to discuss whether death penalty abolitionists could soon be having their day in the nation’s highest court.

Transcripts of Amicus are available to Slate Plus members. Consider signing up today! Members get bonus segments, exclusive member-only podcasts, and more. Sign up for a free trial today here.

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Please let us know what you think of Amicus. Our email is amicus@slate.com.

Podcast production by Tony Field.

Dahlia Lithwick writes about the courts and the law for Slate and hosts the podcast Amicus.