Capital_punishment_in_Jamaica

Capital punishment in Jamaica

Capital punishment in Jamaica

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Capital punishment is a legal penalty in Jamaica. Currently, the only crime punishable by death is aggravated murder. The method of execution is hanging. Jamaica was originally a British colony. The last person executed in Jamaica was Nathan Foster, who was convicted of murder and hanged in 1988. The Jamaican Parliament had placed a moratorium on the death penalty until 2009, when it was lifted. Since 2009, capital punishment is legal and executions in Jamaica could resume; however, there have been no executions since.

In 1999, a series of hangings - by some accounts, amounting to 50 - were scheduled by the Jamaican government, following the recent hangings (the first in 20 years) in Trinidad and Tobago. Ultimately, after international protests, the executions were not carried out.[1]

It was estimated in 2012 that there were seven or eight inmates in Jamaica were on death row.[2] However, by 2018 this had been reduced to zero, with no executions having taken place.[3]


References

  1. "Jamaica to hang dozens of convicts". Independent.co.uk. 21 June 1999.
  2. "The Death Penalty in Jamaica". www.deathpenaltyworldwide.org. Archived from the original on 31 May 2018. Retrieved 27 February 2017.
  3. "Death Sentences and Executions 2018" (PDF). www.amnesty.org. Amnesty International. 10 April 2019. Retrieved 5 December 2020.



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