Death Penalty – The Details
Only used in 38 of the 50 states, the death penalty is one of the forms of capital punishment. Texas has the death penalty available as a capital sentence, but there are a number of requirements you must meet before you can be assigned a capital sentence. Anyone willing to receive capital punishment must be at least 17 years of age or older.
Only people who have committed a capital offense can receive the death penalty. A capital offense is a crime that is committed to the highest degree possible. This includes the murder of a police officer, multiple murders, murder of a child under the age of 6, or murder during a prison break. This is just a small list of the many people who can and are sentenced to the death penalty on a daily basis. The death penalty can be a very serious sentence and many people just need the right criminal lawyer to handle it.
Normally, each case is analyzed on a case-by-case basis. The judge will usually give you a trial that will either be a bench trial or a jury trial. With a bench trial, the judge will make the decision as to whether or not the person is guilty. The judge will also make a decision about what punishment the person will receive. A jury trial means that the jury will decide if he is guilty or not and the judge will decide on the punishment. He always has the option to talk to his lawyer and decide what type of trial he wants. Each one has its positive and negative aspects that you could understand if you were in a capital trial.
Appeals normally go through the Court of Appeals, the Texas Supreme Court, the US Circuit Court of Appeals, and finally to the US Supreme Court. Each of these courts will decide whether the person is guilty or not. Once the US Supreme Court has ruled, the trial is over. The person will then be put on death row and wait for their sentence to be carried out.
The judicial system requires that the person have exhausted all types of appeals before carrying out the death sentence. The person will need to have a lawyer before anything can happen. The court also requires that you have someone represent you before you go to trial.
