Capital punishment in Massachusetts

Capital punishment, more commonly known as the death penalty, was a legal form of punishment from 1620 to 1984 in Massachusetts, United States. This practice dates back to the state's earliest European settlers. Those sentenced to death were hanged. Common crimes punishable by death included religious affiliations and murder.[1]

Federal crimes committed in Massachusetts may still be subject to the death penalty; for example, Dzhokhar Tsarnaev was originally sentenced to death by a federal court on May 15, 2015, for his role in the Boston Marathon bombing.[2]

  1. ^ "Massachusetts". Death Penalty Information Center. Archived from the original on June 5, 2023. Retrieved November 6, 2020.
  2. ^ Seelye, Katharine Q. (May 15, 2015). "Dzhokhar Tsarnaev Given Death Penalty in Boston Marathon Bombing". The New York Times. Archived from the original on December 12, 2015. Retrieved January 13, 2019.