Scrutinizing Perry’s Extensive Execution Record

Rick Perry

As Gov. Rick Perry touts his tough-on-crime policies on the national political stage, the case of Cameron Todd Willingham will continue to be scrutinized. Scientists have raised questions about whether Mr. Willingham set the blaze that killed his three daughters and led to his 2004 execution.

But Mr. Willingham’s execution is not the only controversial one the governor has presided over. During nearly 11 years in office, Mr. Perry has overseen more than 230 executions — by far the most of any recent governor in the United States — and has rarely used his power to grant clemency. He has granted 31 death row commutations; most of those (28) were the result of a 2005 United States Supreme Court decision banning capital punishment for minors.

Lucy Nashed, a spokeswoman for the governor, said the governor could grant clemency only when the Texas Board of Pardons and Paroles — whose members Mr. Perry appoints — recommended that action. He has disagreed with the board only three times when it recommended clemency in death penalty cases, she said.

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Source: The New York Times, September 1, 2011

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