ABSTRACT
This chapter describes the level and trends in support for the death penalty in the United States based on the traditional one-question opinion poll. It illustrates four important areas: support for the juvenile death penalty; how support varies when the respondents can choose an alternative penalty, such as life in prison without parole; the impact of more information about the death penalty on attitudes; and how concerns about innocent people being executed affects death penalty support. In 2005, with a 5–4 decision in Roper v. Simmons, the Supreme Court of the United States ruled the use of the death penalty on juveniles unconstitutional. Prior to this case, however, scholars engaged in research assessing public support for the execution of juveniles. One purpose of this line of inquiry was to demonstrate that global attitudes about capital punishment would not necessarily apply to wayward youths.
