International Views: Use of the Death Penalty Could...

International Views: Use of the Death Penalty Could Result in Withdrawal of U.S.'s Observer Status with the Council of Europe Renate Wohlwend, the Council of Europe's special rapporteur on the abolition of the death penalty, recently visited the United States in an effort to gather information for a report she will give to the Council's legal affairs committee in May. Due to the United States' continued use of capital punishment, Wohlwend could recommend that the U.S. be expelled from its observer status with the Council of Europe, a status it has enjoyed since 1996. The Committee will make a final decision on Wohlwend's recommendation this summer.Wohlwend also visited Japan, the only other nation with observer status that applies the death penalty, a practice that is effectively outlawed by all 43 member states of the Council of Europe.