Experts to discuss lethal injection and death penalty during upcoming University of Richmond School of Law symposium

America's death penalty is a hot and controversial topic. Botched executions and untested lethal injection protocols have been making headlines.  

The 2014 Allen Chair Symposium,  “Lethal Injection, Politics and the Future of the Death Penalty” brings together a diverse group of individuals – all experts with a unique viewpoint on the death penalty – to share their expertise and spark a thoughtful, engaging conversation with each other and the audience.  

The symposium will be held from 9 a.m. to 4:15 p.m., Oct. 24, at University of Richmond’s School of Law, Moot Court Room. This event is free and open to the public, but registration is required.

The keynote speaker is Stephen Bright, Harvey Karp Visiting Lecturer, Yale Law School. Bright, who serves as president and senior counsel for the Southern Center for Human Rights, will present on, “The Role of Race, Poverty, Intellectual Disability and Mental Illness in the Decline of the Death Penalty.”

The panel of experts also includes former Virginia Attorney General Mark Earley and Richard Dieter, executive director of the Death Penalty Information Center. Other panelists include an anesthesiologist, a reporter, professors and lawyers – all of whom offer unique perspectives on the death penalty. The symposium provides three panel discussions as well as a Q&A with audience members.  

The Allen Chair Symposium is a prized tradition of the University of Richmond Law Review, which it celebrates by dedicating one issue of its volume to a select topic each year and inviting the nation’s leading experts on that topic to discuss it in an accompanying symposium program.

# # #