Ambiguous Language in the 2009 Law Spawns Confusion
Description
In 2009, the Maryland General Assembly passed legislation that created new requirements for the evidence required to seek the death penalty. Specifically, the law restricts death penalty eligibility to those cases where there is: 1) biological evidence linking the defendant to the murder, 2) a voluntary videotaped interrogation and confession of the defendant to the murder, or 3) video that conclusively links the defendant to the murder. It was a well-intentioned effort to limit executions to those cases where the evidence was foolproof. Unfortunately, none of these evidentiary restrictions are, in fact, foolproof.
This paper has been withdrawn.