Full question:
Is death penalty prohibited under international law?
- Category: Criminal
- Subcategory: Sentences
- Date:
- State: National
Answer:
The International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights requires that the death penalty be only imposed “for the most serious crimes,” and never upon those who are under 18 years of age at the time of their crime. Virtually all the countries of the world have signed or ratified this important treaty, including most recently, China. The United States, however, is the only country with an outstanding reservation to the Article forbidding the execution of juvenile offenders.
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