What Is a Capital Case?
A capital case is generally the term used to refer to a trial for a capital crime, or a crime that could potentially result in the death penalty. This is usually homicide, or the willful and deliberate killing of another person. If a state does not have a death penalty, they do not have capital crimes.
Capital crimes do exist at the federal level and include both murder and crimes that do not involve homicide.
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Capital Offenses
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In states with the death penalty, the majority of them consider murder a capital offense only if and when the murder has a minimum number of aggravating circumstances, such as murder with a deadly weapon. The weapon, in that case, would be the aggravating circumstance. Other states specifically delineate "capital murder."
At the federal level, homicide is a capital crime but other crimes that do not involve homicide, such as large drug ring operations or kidnapping, are also subject to capital punishment.
Features of a Capital Case
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Since the burden of proof to convict a person of a capital offense is so high, capital cases have distinct requirements that may differ from trials for lesser offenses.
Firstly, capital cases can only be tried in a court that has the jurisdiction to do so.
Secondly, a defendant in a capital case is entitled to a jury of up to 12 of their peers. In addition, the jury's determination of guilt must be unanimous to submit a guilty verdict.
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State Capital Cases
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As of this writing, 38 states have laws of which the violation is listed as a capital offense. Only 12 states have laws under which a capital offense does not involve homicide. Most state laws involving capital offenses are largely written following guidelines that have been established by the federal Supreme Court due to many laws being overturned or deemed as unconstitutional.
Proving a Capital Offense
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Since the death penalty is such a serious sentence, the burden of proof for the prosecutor is extremely high. Capital cases can become extremely long and complex because the opportunities to appeal a guilty verdict can be found in any procedural mistakes, often no matter how minor, that are made during the trial.
In addition, when a statute specifies that a capital murder has to include a specific number of aggravating circumstances, each and every one of those individual aggravating circumstances must be proven for a capital conviction. Without a capital conviction, the prosecutor cannot ask for capital punishment.
Death Penalty
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Recently, the main argument over the death penalty has shifted from what constitutes a capital crime to the method of execution. The topic of whether the death penalty, and as such capital cases, should be allowed at all remains of a source of heated national debate.
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