THE DETERMINANTS OF CAPITAL SENTENCING IN LOUISIANA, 1979-1984 (EXTRA-LEGAL, RACE

This study examines the determinants of capital sentencing in the State of Louisiana for the years 1979 through 1984 inclusive. Earlier studies as well as many advocates of the death penalty have claimed that capital sentencing is influenced by extra-legal factors. That is, not only is capital sentencing the result of legal considerations but of extra-legal factors as well. The offender is sentenced then not only on the basis of legal considerations (e.g., prior record of conviction or aggravation level of the homicide) but also extra-legal considerations (e.g., race of the offender and/or victim, geographical location, and victim-offender relationship). This study examines a wide variety of both legal and extra-legal variables to determine the affect such variables have on capital sentencing in Louisiana.;Initial bivariate analysis revealed the impact of extra-legal variables. Of particular significance is the race of victim, the victim-offender relationship, and the geographical location. In Louisiana, one is more likely to receive a sentence of death if one kills a white victim, a stranger or in the southern part of the state. Later, more sophisticated analysis substantiated these early conclusions but in a slightly modified manner. Through the use of discriminant analysis, the importance of legal variables was highlighted. An offender's prior record of conviction as well as the aggravation level of the homicide were as good, if not, better, discriminators of sentence. Given the earlier findings suggesting that extra-legal factors (especially characteristics of the victim) played an important role in sentencing, this was somewhat surprising. By using path analysis, the relationships between the variables (both legal and extra-legal) were clarified. Both legal and extra-legal variables influence sentence. However, the influence of such extra-legal variables as race of the victim and location have an indirect affect. The one most direct influence is exhibited by the aggravation level of the homicide and the offender's prior record of conviction.