" (the Sentencing Project, 2000; p.51) in the sentencing phase of a case, it may be necessary for defense attorneys to "utilize sentencing advocates who can develop sentencing proposals for the court in felony cases and jointly challenge unwarranted disparities at sentencing." (the Sentencing Project, 2000; p.52) Also listed as issues that the Bar and Criminal Defense Attorney Associations could focus upon are: (1) the development and implementation of standards

4%, among whites, it was 7.2%, and was 6.4% among Hispanics, yet African-Americans represent more than 57% of those incarcerated for drug offenses in state prisons (Coker pp). Police officers are more likely to stop African-Americans for traffic stops and once stopped, officers are more likely to search the vehicles of African-Americans. According to the 2001 traffic stop data in San Diego, African-American drivers had a sixty percent greater chance and

Detroit has also joined Los Angeles and Chicago in having such a regulation. A similar bill was attempted unsuccessfully thus far in Texas (2001). Responding to the concerns of organizations that represent Hispanics, Muslims and individuals of Arab descent, the Detroit City Council unanimously recently approved an ordinance that prohibits city officials from profiling people based on their appearance, race and similar factors. The regulation also bans city officials from

Researchers have recently conducted a study of the racial disparity in the military justice system which seems to mirror the results discovered about the criminal justice system. Since the Supreme Court re-instituted the death penalty in 1976, the U.S. military has executed 16 personnel, 10 of whom were minorities. The researchers found that while the system was not inherently discriminatory, individuals within the system were acting in a discriminatory way.

Racial Discrimination and the Death Penalty The United States Department of Justice Bureau of Justice Statistics reported that at the end of the year 2000 that there was 1,381,892 total number of prisoners under the jurisdiction of federal or state adult correctional authorities (State pp). During 2000, the prison population rose at the lowest rate since 1972 and had the smallest absolute increase since 1980 (State pp). Relative to the number

It is not known if the bias found among males also exists among women. This study will address both the gap in methodology and the lack of studies regarding women. It will contribute to the existing body of evidence by filling in these important gaps. Definitions Valid research is based on consistency and a mutual understanding of the research parameters. Although, many of the terms used in this study will be