When the State No Longer Kills: International Human Rights Norms and Abolition of Capital Punishment

Why some countries comply with international norms against the death penalty while others do not.

Despite public support for the death penalty, a remarkable number of countries in different parts of the world have banned capital punishment in all its forms, regardless of the nature of the crime or the criminal. Arguing that international norms are often a critical source of ideas for change in state policy, but that impact varies greatly, Sangmin Bae offers a systemic explanation of how, whe...