The DOI matches its Crossref record; 56 of the 56 references it cites were found in a registry or an index.
White female victims and death penalty disparity research
Open accessAbstract
Empirical studies of the death penalty continue to find that the race and gender of homicide victims are associated with the severity of legal responses in homicide cases even after controlling for legally relevant factors. A limitation of this research, however, is that victim race and gender are examined as distinct and independent factors in statistical models. In this study, we explore whether the independent examination of victim race and gender masks important differences in legal responses to homicides. In particular, we empirically test the hypothesis that defendants convicted of killing white females are significantly more likely to receive death sentences than killers of victims with other race-gender characteristics. Findings indicate that homicides with white female victims were more likely to result in death sentences than other victim race-gender dyads. We posit that this response may be unique and result in differential sentencing outcomes.
Overview
The claims and statistics of this paper haven’t been checked yet.
Run the check — free, no account needed. It reads the open-access text and checks the sources it cites.
Integrity signals
Registry
Cites
Statistics
Verification
Claims the paper makes
The claims and statistics of this paper haven’t been checked yet.
Run the check — free, no account needed. It reads the open-access text and checks the sources it cites.
Claims other papers make about this one
Each is checked against this paper’s own text: does it say what the citing paper says it does?
The source backs part of the claim, not all of it — or backs it for a different population, condition or comparison.
In the citing paper
“Research on the criminal justice system shows that offenders are punished more severely when their victims are women than when their victims are men”
From Rape or Homicide: Which Is Worse? (2024) · cites this paper as Holcomb et al., 2004
Experimental — accuracy not yet measured
Self-check
Percentages, sums and reported differences re-computed from the paper’s own numbers.
The self-check needs the paper’s full text.
Citations
Cites
STEFFENSMEIER, D., ULMER, J., & KRAMER, J. (1998) · Criminology · doi:10.1111/j.1745-9125.1998.tb01265.x · Cited by 1,592
The Invisible Woman: Gender, Crime, and Justice
Belknap, J. (1995) · Medical Entomology and Zoology · Cited by 1,056
Ethnicity and Sentencing Outcomes in U.S. Federal Courts: Who is Punished More Harshly?
Steffensmeier, D. J., & Demuth, S. (2000) · American Sociological Review · doi:10.2307/2657543 · Cited by 650
Self-citationKalven, H., & Zeisel, H. (1971) · Medical Entomology and Zoology · Cited by 543
GENDER AND IMPRISONMENT DECISIONS
Steffensmeier, D. J., Kramer, J. H., & Streifel, C. M. (1993) · Criminology · doi:10.1111/j.1745-9125.1993.tb01136.x · Cited by 539
Albonetti, C. A., & Daly, K. (1995) · Contemporary Sociology A Journal of Reviews · doi:10.2307/2077387 · Cited by 508
Racial and Ethnic Disparities in Crime and Criminal Justice in the United States
Sampson, R. J., & Lauritsen, J. L. (1997) · Crime and Justice · doi:10.1086/449253 · Cited by 502
Hare, A. P., Kalven, H., & Zeisel, H. (1967) · American Sociological Review · doi:10.2307/2091057 · Cited by 469
Kleck, G. (1981) · American Sociological Review · doi:10.2307/2095079 · Cited by 380
Crime and punishment in American history
(1994) · Choice Reviews Online · doi:10.5860/choice.31-3497 · Cited by 352
Prosecutorial Discretion: The Effects of Uncertainty
Albonetti, C. A. (1987) · Law & Society Review · doi:10.2307/3053523 · Cited by 337
Changing Conceptions of Race: Towards an Account of Anomalous Findings of Sentencing Research
Peterson, R. D., & Hagan, J. (1984) · American Sociological Review · doi:10.2307/2095557 · Cited by 330
Equal justice and the death penalty: a legal and empirical analysis
(1991) · Choice Reviews Online · doi:10.5860/choice.28-3538 · Cited by 305
Beyond Anomalies: Rethinking the Conflict Perspective on Race and Criminal Punishment
Hawkins, D. F. (1987) · Social Forces · doi:10.1093/sf/65.3.719 · Cited by 255
The Social Contexts of Criminal Sentencing
Myers, M. A., & Talarico, S. M. (1987) · Research in Criminology · doi:10.1007/978-1-4612-4732-6 · Cited by 245
Worrall, A., & Carlen, P. (1987) · Medical Entomology and Zoology · Cited by 208
Sex effects and sentencing: An analysis of the statistical literature
Daly, K., & Bordt, R. L. (1995) · Justice Quarterly · doi:10.1080/07418829500092601 · Cited by 201
Race and disparities in sentencing: A test of the liberation hypothesis
Spohn, C., & Cederblom, J. (1991) · Justice Quarterly · doi:10.1080/07418829100091071 · Cited by 197
Baldus, D. C., Woodworth, G. G., Zuckerman, D., & Weiner, N. A. (1998) · Scholarship @ Cornell Law (Cornell University) · Cited by 193
Gender and Crime: Offense Patterns and Criminal Court Sanctions
Nagel, I. H., & Hagan, J. L. (1983) · Crime and Justice · doi:10.1086/449087 · Cited by 186
Daly, K., & Tonry, M. (1997) · Crime and Justice · doi:10.1086/449263 · Cited by 172
Paternoster, R. (1984) · Law & Society Review · doi:10.2307/3053431 · Cited by 171
The effect of offender and victim characteristics on sexual assault case processing decisions
Spohn, C., & Spears, J. W. (1996) · Justice Quarterly · doi:10.1080/07418829600093141 · Cited by 166
CIRCUMSTANCES IN SUPPLEMENTARY HOMICIDE REPORTS: VARIETY AND VALIDITY*
Maxfield, M. G. (1989) · Criminology · doi:10.1111/j.1745-9125.1989.tb01050.x · Cited by 163
Structure and Practice of Familial-Based Justice in a Criminal Court
Daly, K. (1987) · Law & Society Review · doi:10.2307/3053522 · Cited by 158
Criminal justice and the victim
McDonald, W. F. (1976) · Cited by 155
Race, Ethnicity, and Determinate Sentencing
Zatz, M. S. (1984) · Criminology · doi:10.1111/j.1745-9125.1984.tb00294.x · Cited by 153
The role of victim characteristics in the disposition of murder cases
Baumer, E. P., Messner, S. F., & Felson, R. B. (2000) · Justice Quarterly · doi:10.1080/07418820000096331 · Cited by 148
Daly, K. (1989) · Crime & Delinquency · doi:10.1177/0011128789035001007 · Cited by 147
(1995) · Choice Reviews Online · doi:10.5860/choice.33-0607 · Cited by 144
Beyond Anomalies: Rethinking the Conflict Perspective on Race and Criminal Punishment
Hawkins, D. F. (1987) · Social Forces · doi:10.2307/2578525 · Cited by 139
Death and discrimination: Racial disparities in capital sentencing
Munster, A. (1990) · Journal of Criminal Justice · doi:10.1016/0047-2352(90)90009-z · Cited by 106
Crime and Punishment in American History
Brown, R. M., & Friedman, L. M. (1994) · The New England Quarterly · doi:10.2307/366154 · Cited by 99
Crossing over the line: legislating morality and the Mann Act
(1995) · Choice Reviews Online · doi:10.5860/choice.32-5855 · Cited by 99
Offended Parties and Official Reactions: Victims and the Sentencing of Criminal Defendants
Myers, M. A. (1979) · Sociological Quarterly · doi:10.1111/j.1533-8525.1979.tb01233.x · Cited by 96
Death and Discrimination: Racial Disparities in Capital Sentencing
Gross, S. R., & Mauro, R. (1989) · Medical Entomology and Zoology · Cited by 89
Crossing Over the Line: Legislating Morality and the Mann Act.
Feinman, C., & Langum, D. J. (1996) · The American Historical Review · doi:10.2307/2170346 · Cited by 89
Albonetti, C. A., & Hepburn, J. R. (1996) · Journal of Quantitative Criminology · doi:10.1007/bf02354471 · Cited by 88
Stanko, E. A. (1982) · Law & Society Review · doi:10.2307/3053358 · Cited by 85
FELONY MURDER AND CAPITAL PUNISHMENT: AN EXAMINATION OF THE DETERRENCE QUESTION
Peterson, R. D., & Bailey, W. C. (1991) · Criminology · doi:10.1111/j.1745-9125.1991.tb01071.x · Cited by 77
THE SEXUAL STRATIFICATION HYPOTHESIS AND SEXUAL ASSAULT IN LIGHT OF THE CHANGING CONCEPTIONS OF RACE
Walsh, A. (1987) · Criminology · doi:10.1111/j.1745-9125.1987.tb00793.x · Cited by 67
Death Penalty Sentencing: Research Indicates Pattern of Racial Disparities
(1990) · PsycEXTRA Dataset · doi:10.1037/e543292006-001 · Cited by 61
Racial disparity and death sentences in Ohio
Williams, M. R., & Holcomb, J. E. (2001) · Journal of Criminal Justice · doi:10.1016/s0047-2352(01)00085-x · Cited by 59
Self-citationExecutions of Whites for Crimes Against Blacks: Exceptions to the Rule?
Radelet, M. L. (1989) · Sociological Quarterly · doi:10.1111/j.1533-8525.1989.tb01533.x · Cited by 56
The Capital Jury and Empathy: The Problem of Worthy and Unworthy VictimsPreprint
Sundby, S. E. (2002) · SSRN Electronic Journal · doi:10.2139/ssrn.358521 · Cited by 47
Inequality, Crime, and Social Control.
Costello, B. J., Bridges, G. S., & Myers, M. A. (1995) · Social Forces · doi:10.2307/2580647 · Cited by 46
Race, Gender, and Class in Criminology
Milovanovic, D. R., & Schwartz, M. D. (2015) · Routledge eBooks · doi:10.4324/9781315647630 · Cited by 46
The Legislation of Drug Law: Economic Crisis and Social Control
Morgan, P. (1978) · Journal of Drug Issues · doi:10.1177/002204267800800104 · Cited by 45
Farrell, R. A., & Swigert, V. L. (1986) · Journal of Research in Crime and Delinquency · doi:10.1177/0022427886023004003 · Cited by 44
Capital punishment in Missouri: Examining the issue of racial disparity
Sorensen, J. R., & Wallace, D. H. (1995) · Behavioral Sciences & the Law · doi:10.1002/bsl.2370130105 · Cited by 34
Grosso, C. M. (2003) · bepress Legal Repository · doi:10.17613/tbk5-vf60 · Cited by 33
Victim Characteristics and Victim Impact Evidence in South Carolina Capital Cases
Eisenberg, T. A., Garvey, S. P., & Wells, M. T. (2003) · Scholarship @ Cornell Law (Cornell University) · Cited by 29
Zack, N. (1997) · Cited by 27
Discrimination and the Death Penalty in Arizona
Thomson, E. (1997) · Criminal Justice Review · doi:10.1177/073401689702200106 · Cited by 27
Women and the Criminal Justice System
(2018) · Springer eBooks · doi:10.1007/978-3-319-76774-1 · Cited by 25
Weisberger, B. A. (1996) · Reviews in American History · doi:10.1353/rah.1996.0083 · Cited by 1
Research works printed but not linked: 12
- Baldus D.C., 1998, America's experiment with capital punishment, 385
- Baldus D.C., 2002, Nebraska Law Review, 88, 486
- Baldus D.C., 1998, Cornell Law Review, 83, 1638
- Eisenberg T., 2003, Cornell Law Review, 88, 306
- Grana S.J., 2002, Women and (in)justice
- LaFree G.D., 1989, Rape and criminal justice
- Nagel I., 1983, Crime and justice: A review of research, 91
- Pierce G.L., 2002, Oregon Law Review, 81, 39
- Radelet M., 1991, Florida Law Review, 43, 1
- Sampson R., 1997, Ethnicity, crime, and immigration: omparative and cross-national perspectives, 311
- Schwartz M.D., 1996, Race, gender, and class in criminology
- Sundby S.E., 2003, Cornell Law Review, 88, 343
Cited by
Sorted by citations
Ambivalent Sexism in the Twenty-First Century
Connor, R. A., Glick, P., & Fiske, S. T. (2016) · Cambridge University Press eBooks · doi:10.1017/9781316161579.013 · Cited by 205
Hassell, K. D., & Brandl, S. G. (2009) · Police Quarterly · doi:10.1177/1098611109348473 · Cited by 125
Franklin, C. A., & Fearn, N. E. (2008) · Journal of Criminal Justice · doi:10.1016/j.jcrimjus.2008.04.009 · Cited by 133
Williams, M. R., Demuth, S., & Holcomb, J. E. (2007) · Criminology · doi:10.1111/j.1745-9125.2007.00095.x · Cited by 99
Self-citationSlakoff, D. C., & Brennan, P. K. (2017) · Feminist Criminology · doi:10.1177/1557085117747031 · Cited by 65
Metadata
- Authors
- Holcomb, J. E., Williams, M. R., & Demuth, S.
- Affiliations
- Bowling Green State University (US)
- Corresponding author
- Holcomb, Jefferson E.
- Venue
- Justice Quarterly
- Publisher
- Informa UK Limited
- Published
- 2004-12-01
- Volume
- 21
- Issue
- 4
- Pages
- 877-902
- ISSN
- 0741-8825 (ISSN-L)
- 1745-9109
- OpenAlex
- W2088647294
- Cited by
- 113
- References
- 55
- Citations by year
- 2026: 6 · 2025: 6 · 2024: 4 · 2023: 3 · 2022: 7 · 2021: 8 · 2020: 6 · 2019: 10 · 2018: 1 · 2017: 6 · 2016: 10 · 2015: 7 · 2014: 12 · 2013: 2 · 2012: 3
- FWCI
- 11.35
- Type
- journal article
- Language
- en
- Open access
- green
- libres.uncg.edu
- Locations
- Justice Quarterly (publishedVersion)
- NC Digital Online Collection of Knowledge and Scholarship (The University of North Carolina at Greensboro) (submittedVersion)
- Topics
- Social Sciences › Sociology and Political Science › Criminal Justice and Corrections Analysis
- Social Sciences › Sociology and Political Science › Torture, Ethics, and Law
- Social Sciences › Law › Criminal Law and Policy
- Keywords
- death penalty, homicide, victim race, victim gender, racial disparities, gender disparities, sentencing, gender and race intersection
About these checks
Registry, retraction, Cites and statistics results are computed, not judged, with one exception: a printed reference that no index lists is read once by a model before it counts as a citation error. Claims are extracted by a model and kept only when their quote appears verbatim in the text; each cited source is then checked, with a model’s help, for whether it says what the claim relies on. Those verdicts can be wrong — read the claim’s quote and the cited source before relying on one.
Statistics and arithmetic are recomputed, not judged.
Confidence bands are shown only for fields calibrated on our annotated test set. None is calibrated yet, so no band is shown.
What counts as a claim ›How we measure confidence ›How we check this ›
Are you an author, or do you see a problem with this page? Request a review