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Robert Dunham

@rdunhamdp.bsky.social

190 followers 30 following 570 posts

Director, Death Penalty Policy Project; Special Counsel, Phillips Black, Inc.; Adjunct, Temple Univ. Beasley School of Law. Former Exec. Dir., Death Penalty Info. Center, PA Capital Case Resource Center. B.A., Univ. of Pennsylvania; J.D., Georgetown Law

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Robert Dunham @rdunhamdp.bsky.social · May 8

SC firing squad misses the target. FL sets a prisoner on fire in its electric chair. OK orders the wrong execution drug. TX forgets to let the media in to observe an execution. What aren't states capable of getting wrong in carrying out the death penalty? @apnews.com @8thamendment.org

Robert Dunham @rdunhamdp.bsky.social · May 8

Lawyers for man executed by firing squad in South Carolina say bullets mostly missed his heart. apnews.com/article/firi...
@apnews.com @scadeathpenalty.bsky.social @assoecpm.bsky.social #deathpenalty

Lawyers for man executed by firing squad in South Carolina say bullets mostly missed his heart

A pathologist hired by attorneys for death row inmates says a South Carolina man executed by firing squad was conscious and likely in extreme pain for as long as a minute.

apnews.com

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Robert Dunham @rdunhamdp.bsky.social · Aug 4

My latest DP3 analysis — Executions are Up but the Sky is Not Falling. dppolicy.substack.com/p/executions... @8thamendment.org @assoecpm.bsky.social @deathpenaltyaction.bsky.social

Executions are Up but the Sky is Not Falling

The Execution Frenzy by Death Penalty Zealots has not Translated to Increased Public Support for the Punishment

dppolicy.substack.com

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Robert Dunham @rdunhamdp.bsky.social · Jul 19

Judge orders Tennessee to turn off death-row prisoner Byron Black’s heart-regulating implanted device at execution. apnews.com/article/exec...
@apnews.com @tndeathpenalty.bsky.social @kelleyjhenry.bsky.social @stacyrector.bsky.social #deathpenalty

Judge orders Tennessee to turn off inmate's heart-regulating implanted device at execution

A judge is ordering state officials to turn off a death-row inmate's heart-regulating implanted device to avert the risk that it might try to shock him during his execution by lethal injection schedul...

apnews.com

Robert Dunham @rdunhamdp.bsky.social · Jul 18

A heart implant could make Tennessee’s next execution painful and prolonged. Prison officials argue they don’t have to disable the device. wpln.org/post/a-heart... @wpln.bsky.social @tndeathpenalty.bsky.social @kelleyjhenry.bsky.social @stacyrector.bsky.social #ByronBlack #deathpenalty

A heart implant could make Tennessee's next execution painful and prolonged. Prison officials argue they don't have to disable the device.

Tennessee's next execution is scheduled for Aug. 5, and this time, there are even stronger fears about the death becoming torturous.

wpln.org

Robert Dunham @rdunhamdp.bsky.social · Jul 18

The Abortion Capital Murder Prosecution No One Is Talking About. contrarian.substack.com/p/the-aborti... contrarian.substack.com @pregnancyjust.bsky.social #Texas #deathpenalty

The Abortion Prosecution No One Is Talking About

A test case in Texas shows the next frontier for "abortion abolitionists": homicide charges

contrarian.substack.com

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Robert Dunham @rdunhamdp.bsky.social · Jul 18

This is another case of the death penalty as the canary in the coal mine of the assault on democratic institutions. The first Trump administration initially tested out this strategy during its 2020-2021 execution spree. @8thamendment.org @amnesty.org @hrw.org

Robert Dunham @rdunhamdp.bsky.social · Jul 18

Trump reshaped the Supreme Court. Now emergency appeals are helping him reshape the government. apnews.com/article/dona... @apnews.com @shermancourt.bsky.social

Trump reshaped the Supreme Court. Now emergency appeals are helping him reshape the government

President Donald Trump has achieved significant victories in the Supreme Court during the first six months of his second term.

apnews.com

Robert Dunham @rdunhamdp.bsky.social · Jul 18

No shackles, no cuffs: Texas death row loosens solitary confinement for first time in years. houstonchronicle.com/news/investi...
@houstonchronicle.com @keribla.bsky.social @texasdefender.bsky.social #deathpenalty

No cuffs: Texas death row loosens solitary confinement for first time in years

A new program in the Polunsky Unit in Livingston, Texas, allows death row prisoners to mingle outside of solitary confinement.

houstonchronicle.com

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Robert Dunham @rdunhamdp.bsky.social · Jul 18

“Texans should be outraged that the court has scheduled an execution date for a demonstrably innocent man. Everyone who has taken the time to look at the evidence has reached the same conclusion: Nikki’s death was a terrible tragedy. Robert did not kill her. There was no crime.”

Robert Dunham @rdunhamdp.bsky.social · Jul 18

Statement from defense counsel — Court Schedules October 16 Execution for Robert Roberson, Innocent Man Convicted in Texas “Shaken Baby” Case. docs.google.com/document/d/1... @texasdefender.bsky.social @wtiusa.bsky.social @innocenceproject.bsky.social @cifsjustice.org #deathpenalty

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Robert Dunham @rdunhamdp.bsky.social · Jul 18

Emails Reveal Oklahoma Attorney General Agreed to Release Richard Glossip. theintercept.com/2025/07/16/g... @theintercept.com @lilianasegura.bsky.social @jordansmith.bsky.social @wtiusa.bsky.social @innocenceproject.bsky.social #deathpenalty

Emails Reveal Oklahoma Attorney General Agreed to Release Richard Glossip

In an explosive new court filing, Glossip’s attorneys accuse Gentner Drummond of reneging on a plan negotiated in 2023.

theintercept.com

Robert Dunham @rdunhamdp.bsky.social · Jul 18

Tennessee death row prisoner Byron Black to ask court Monday to disable defibrillator before execution. fox17.com/news/local/h... @tndeathpenalty.bsky.social @kelleyjhenry.bsky.social @stacyrector.bsky.social #deathpenalty

Tennessee death row inmate asks court to disable defibrillator before execution

A Davidson County judge held what is believed to be a first-of-its-kind hearing over how the state will handle the scheduled execution of Byron Black.

fox17.com

Robert Dunham @rdunhamdp.bsky.social · Jul 18

Utah death row prisoner Ralph Menzies, set for execution, asks for clemency. ksl.com/article/5134... @kslcom.bsky.social #deathpenalty

Death row inmate set for execution asks for clemency

Attorneys for Ralph Menzies, who is set to be executed Sept. 5, are seeking clemency from the state parole board, citing his mental health and comments from an initial judge.

ksl.com

Robert Dunham @rdunhamdp.bsky.social · Jul 18

Attorneys for Ralph Menzies seek clemency, ask death penalty to be commuted to life sentence. abc4.com/news/local-n... @abc4utah.bsky.social #Utah #deathpenalty

abc4.com

Robert Dunham @rdunhamdp.bsky.social · Jul 18

Alabama lawmaker seeks to broaden already expansive death penalty statute by adding a 22nd basis to seek death. wdhn.com/news/alabama... @eji.org @alabamaarise.bsky.social

wdhn.com

Robert Dunham @rdunhamdp.bsky.social · Jul 18

Robert Roberson Faces New Execution Date in Controversial ‘Shaken Baby Syndrome’ Case. texasobserver.org/robert-rober... @texasobserver.org @michellepitcher.bsky.social @texasdefender.bsky.social @wtiusa.bsky.social @innocenceproject.bsky.social @cifsjustice.org #Texas #deathpenalty

Robert Roberson Faces New Execution Date in Controversial ‘Shaken Baby Syndrome’ Case

The new date comes after Ken Paxton took over the case that could lead to the nation's first execution based on the contested diagnosis.

texasobserver.org

Robert Dunham @rdunhamdp.bsky.social · Jul 18

'Texans should be outraged': Execution back on for death-row prisoner who has strong innocence claims. usatoday.com/story/news/n... @usatoday.com @texasdefender.bsky.social @wtiusa.bsky.social @innocenceproject.bsky.social @cifsjustice.org #RobertRoberson #deathpenalty

usatoday.com

Robert Dunham @rdunhamdp.bsky.social · Jul 18

The Court also denied relief to Toney Davis in a successive post-conviction proceeding that had raised issues based upon newly obtained microscopic slides from the autopsy that challenged the listed cause of death. supremecourt.flcourts.gov/content/down... @fadp.bsky.social #Florida #deathpenalty

Robert Dunham @rdunhamdp.bsky.social · Jul 18

Donald Williams was resentenced to death after an initial nonunanimous 9-3 death sentence. At resentencing, he waived both a jury and the presentation of mitigating evidence. The court upheld his sentence. supremecourt.flcourts.gov/content/down... @fadp.bsky.social #Florida #deathpenalty

Robert Dunham @rdunhamdp.bsky.social · Jul 18

Timothy Fletcher was originally sentenced to death despite a nonunanimous 8-4 jury vote. In his resentencing, the new jury found no mitigating circumstances and the judge imposed death. The court affirmed. supremecourt.flcourts.gov/content/down... @fadp.bsky.social #Florida #deathpenalty

Robert Dunham @rdunhamdp.bsky.social · Jul 18

The Florida Supreme Court has issued opinions affirming the convictions and sentences of three death-row prisoners. supremecourt.flcourts.gov/Opinions/Mos... @fadp.bsky.social #TimothyFletcher #DonaldWilliams #ToneyDavis #deathpenalty

Robert Dunham @rdunhamdp.bsky.social · Jul 15

Florida has executed Michael Bell. Death was pronounced at 6:25 p.m. Eastern. He was the 26th execution in 2025. 25 of those executions have been in jurisdictions that, as states or territories, practiced slavery. @fadp.bsky.social #deathpenalty

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Robert Dunham @rdunhamdp.bsky.social · Jul 15

Justice Sotomayor and Justice Kagan dissented from the denial of a stay and would have granted the petition for writ of certiorari to review what procedural rules govern the timeliness of claims arising out of the prosecution's suppression of exculpatory evidence. #MichaelBell #SCOTUS #Florida

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Robert Dunham @rdunhamdp.bsky.social · Jul 15

The U.S. Supreme Court has denied Michael Bell's petitions for review and applications to stay tonight's execution in Florida.
supremecourt.gov/orders/court...
supremecourt.gov/orders/court... @fadp.bsky.social @deathpenaltyaction.bsky.social @8thamendment.org #deathpenalty

Robert Dunham @rdunhamdp.bsky.social · Jul 15

Mr. Bell’s lawyers filed this application for stay of execution in connection with their petition to review his case. supremecourt.gov/DocketPDF/25... @fadp.bsky.social #Florida #MichaelBell #deathpenalty

Robert Dunham @rdunhamdp.bsky.social · Jul 15

His petition for writ of certiorari asks SCOTUS to review the Florida federal court’s refusal to consider new evidence that prosecutors had wrongfully withheld in his case. Here’s a link to the petition. supremecourt.gov/DocketPDF/25...
@fadp.bsky.social #MichaelBell #deathpenalty