Profile of Women Executed

The average woman on death row is actually very similar to the average man on death row. She is often a minority, poor, and uneducated. There are some differences, however. Many of these women have suffered a history of sexual abuse and physical abuse as a child. Several either have low intelligence or have mental problems that might be associated with their childhood history. While some have a history of drug and alcohol abuse, it should be noted that almost three-fourths of women who have substance abuse problems have a history of being abused.

When a comparison of male and female death row inmates was made, there appears to be some differences. These differences suggest that men must commit a more heinous crime in order to receive the death penalty. Men are more likely to have killed more than one person and more likely to have a past history of violence. Men are also more likely to kill a stranger, which suggests that males might be more dangerous and deserving of a more intense punishment. Given this information, it becomes clearer why women might be less likely to receive capital punishment for murder.

A review of women that have been executed within the United States can perhaps yield some valuable information regarding the women who have received the death penalty.

In this section describe the crime committed and state it happened in, how long on death row, family background, race, socio-economic status, any substance abuse, or family abuse, and when she was executed and by what means - please note this should be written for all the women listed below).

Velma Barfield - was a serial poisoner in North Carolina. She was sexually abused by her father and begin committing crimes at an early age. The family was poor. In her later life, she had a history of drug abuse and was on death row for six years for killing her live-in husband and mother-in-law. She died by lethal injection.

Karla Fay Tucker - killed a man who had dripped oil on her and tore up some of her pictures of her mother, died by lethal injection, had a history of substance abuse, and was a daughter of a prostitute. She also worked as a prostitute. Tucker was on death row for 14 years.

Judias Buenoano was sentenced to die in the electric chair in Florida after 14 years on death row for killing her husband. She had a history of being physically abused as a child. It is believed that she killed two of her other husbands.

Betty Lou Beets convicted in Texas of killing her abusive husband was put to death by lethal injection after 17 years on death row. She also is believed to have kill two of her other husbands.