AFRICAN-AMERICAN MALES AND CAPITAL MURDER - A DEATH-PENALTY MITIGATION STRATEGY

This paper outlines an alternative, contextual framework for analyzing capital murder cases involving young Black males. To illustrate the u tility of the framework, we draw upon the findings of recent social sc ience research, which document the effects of forces operating in both the societal and local environmental contexts, and on information fro m court case materials that illustrate how the critical life course ev ents of a single African American male defendant, when appropriately a nchored in the two broader contexts, offer a unique perspective on the lethal violence problems that currently plague the African American c ommunity. The framework is assessed in terms of its ability to ''level the criminal justice playing field'' for young Black males.