RD1 - The Capital Laws of Virginia: An Historical Sketch
Executive Summary: The information presented in this paper on the subject of the capital laws of Virginia is based upon what the author hopes will be regarded as sound, objective historical research. For that part of the paper covering the first two hundred years of Virginia's history, the author has relied entirely upon his own extensive research in the primary and secondary sources relating to the subject. For that part of the paper dealing with the period since 1800, the author wishes to acknowledge his considerable debt to Kenneth M. Murchison and Arthur J. Schwab, whose article "Capital Punishment in Virginia" appears in Volume 58 (January-May 1972) of the "Virginia Law Review," pages 97-142, which is highly recommended to the members of this committee. It is not an easy task to deal objectively with an issue which has historically been as important and as controversial as that of capital punishment. A great deal has been written on the subject of the death penalty over the years. Some of what has been written could best be classified as propaganda, or polemical literature designed to sway legislatures and public opinion to either one side or the other of the issue; for it is just that, a pro or con issue. There is no in-between when the question involves the issue of life or death. Much of what has been written has also been written in legalistic language which many people could not appreciate, or in moralistic language about which men of conviction could conscientiously disagree. However, comparatively little has been written which could be classified as comprehensive, objective historical literature. In its own way, this presentation hopes to help fill that void insofar as the subject of the death penalty in Virginia is concerned. What follows, therefore, is a survey of the crimes which Virginians have thought serious enough to warrant the death penalty, at one time or another, over the past 366 years down to the present. In the limited time available to me, of course, it will only be possible to deal with the subject in a very broad fashion. For the most part, I have been able to do little more than discuss the numerous capital laws which have been enacted. I have not been able to write a complete history of the death penalty explaining how effectively or rigidly the law was actually enforced throughout Virginia over the entire period under consideration. In any event, it is hoped that this all too brief re-examination of our past will help us to understand better how we came to be where we are, and that it may help us to understand better where it is that we want to go from here. In the interest of expediency, I have eliminated the approximately 200 footnotes which accompany the text material. I have, however, appended at the end of the paper a bibliography of the various sources utilized in preparing this paper for presentation. Richard A. Rutyna Assistant Professor of History Old Dominion University |
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