United States
2026
- GOVERNMENT
- federal republic with a strong federal tradition
- CONSTITUTION
- September 17, 1787, in effect from March 4, 1789
- LEGAL SYSTEM
- federal court system based on English common law. Each state has its own legal system
- LEGISLATIVE SYSTEM
- bicameral, Congress (Senate and House of Representatives)
- JUDICIAL SYSTEM
- Supreme Court, U.S. Court of Appeals, U.S. District Courts; state and county courts
RELIGIONS
51.3% Protestants; 23.9% Catholics; 1.7% Mormons; 1.6% other Christians; 1.7% Jews; 0.7% Muslims; other unspecified or no religion
From the country
- NOVEMBER 14, 2002United StatesDEATH PENALTY
Pakistani protesters burned the US flag and called...
Pakistani protesters burned the US flag and called for a strike in the home town of a Muslim militant due to be executed later in the day in the United States
- NOVEMBER 11, 2002United StatesDEATH PENALTY
Miss United States Rebekah Rebels said: "I decided...
Miss United States Rebekah Rebels said: "I decided that the best thing for us to do was to take a stance, a positive stance and come over to Africa and support her (Amina Lawal), instead of staying at home
- NOVEMBER 7, 2002United StatesDEATH PENALTY
In blocking the execution of a Texas killer, the Supreme...
In blocking the execution of a Texas killer, the Supreme Court revealed interest in a new area of capital punishment: the mentally ill
- OCTOBER 21, 2002United StatesDEATH PENALTY
The Supreme Court, which recently abolished executions...
The Supreme Court, which recently abolished executions for the mentally retarded, was bitterly divided in refusing to consider also ending the execution of killers who were under 18 when they committed their crimes
- SEPTEMBER 25, 2002United StatesDEATH PENALTY
The United States executes two thirds of all child...
The United States executes two thirds of all child offenders killed by the death penalty around the world, according to a report by Amnesty International
- SEPTEMBER 14, 2002United StatesDEATH PENALTY
European and US teams are trying to reach a deal on...
European and US teams are trying to reach a deal on extraditing terror suspects who may face the death penalty if convicted in a US court
- AUGUST 29, 2002United StatesDEATH PENALTY
In an unusual public statement about the death penalty,...
In an unusual public statement about the death penalty, 3 Supreme Court justices said the time is right to consider abolishing capital punishment for killers who committed their crimes as minors
- AUGUST 18, 2002United StatesDEATH PENALTY
Nurse Wendy Alsford spent her working life confronting...
Nurse Wendy Alsford spent her working life confronting illness, frailty and death as she cared for society's sick in hospitals across Britain
- AUGUST 10, 2002United StatesDEATH PENALTY
A trend that sees women drawn to marry killers waiting...
A trend that sees women drawn to marry killers waiting to die on death row is increasing
- JULY 19, 2002United StatesDEATH PENALTY
America is ready to drop its demand for Pakistan to...
America is ready to drop its demand for Pakistan to extradite Ahmed Omar Saeed Sheikh, the British-born Muslim extremist sentenced to death for masterminding the kidnap and murder of the American journalist Daniel Pearl
- JULY 18, 2002United StatesDEATH PENALTY
The Senate Judiciary Committee took the 1st step toward...
The Senate Judiciary Committee took the 1st step toward reforming the nation's death penalty system Thursday, approving a measure aimed at giving inmates greater access to DNA testing to prove their innocence and ensuring they have competent counsel at tr
- JUNE 20, 2002United StatesDEATH PENALTY
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