Recapping the capital year

The Death Penalty Information Center has now released its 12th annual year-end report, available at this link.  As DPIC explains here:

[The report] reveals a broad decline in the use of the death penalty in the U.S. based on a number of factors: the public now favors life without parole over the death penalty; the number of executions has dropped to the fewest in a decade, in part because of challenges to the lethal injection process; and the annual number of death sentences is now at a 30-year low. The report notes that various states have put a hold on all executions, while others are reviewing problems in the capital punishment system. The report cites a number of new developments, including the challenges posed by the severe mental illness of many on death row, and quotes a series of law enforcement personnel, editorials, and public officials voicing serious concerns about the death penalty.

Articles today in the New York Times and Los Angeles Times discuss DPIC's findings and get reactions from the usual suspects.