Elective Course
International Influences on Death Penalty Law,
This course examines U.S. death penalty jurisprudence from an international perspective by comparing international treaties, cases and standards to U.S. practice. The course will cover the death penalty per se; extradition; innocence; inadequate representation; juvenile, mentally retarded, and mentally ill offenders; and discrimination based on race or ethnicity. All students will present a case study to the class and write an appellate brief on international law regarding a hypothetical U.S. death penalty case. Students will choose whether to argue in favor of or in opposition to the incorporation of international law into U.S. capital punishment. This course is graded non-anonymously and will satisfy the upper level writing requirement.
Prerequisite: Legal Writing II.
Recommended: International Law, International Criminal Law, or International Human Rights Law.