20th Annual Wiley A. Branton Symposium

Please register for the event

About this event

Each year, Howard University School of Law and the Howard Law Journal pay tribute to the life and legacy of our former Dean and civil rights activist, the late Wiley A. Branton. We are excited to announce the topic for our 20th Annual Wiley A. Branton Symposium: “Capital Punishment.”

Through three panels and a keynote address, the Symposium will explore how capital punishment reinforces racialized hierarchies that abridge the civil rights of people of color. We hope to instigate a thought-provoking dialogue where legal scholars can discuss the effect of current capital punishment policies and the future of capital punishment reform in legislation and litigation.

This year’s Symposium is sponsored by Sidley Austin LLP and Simpson Thacher & Bartlett LLP.  Learn more about Mr. Wiley A. Branton.


Date and time
Thursday, October 5 · 9am - 4pm EDT

Capital Punishment: The Future of Legislation and Litigation
By Howard Law Journal

Location
Howard University School of Law • 2900 Van Ness Street NW Damon J. Keith Moot Court Room Washington, DC 20008

Agenda

9:30 AM - 10:00 AM
Welcome Remarks

10:00 AM - 11:00 AM
Panel 1: Moving the Needle: State and Federal Courts Then and Now

Akin Adepoju
Amir H. Ali
Robin Maher
Ruth Friedman

Akin Adepoju | Branch Chief, Federal Defender Services Office; Amir H. Ali | President & Executive Director, MacArthur Justice Center; Robin Maher | Executive Director, Death Penalty Information Cent...
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11:00 AM - 12:00 PM
Panel 2: Beyond Binary Oppositions: The Academic Debates in Capital Punishment
Peggy Cooper Davis
Michael Meltsner
Diann Rust-Tierney
Peggy Cooper Davis | Shad Professor of Law, NYU School of Law; Michael Meltsner | Matthews Distinguished University Professor of Law Emeritus, Northeastern University School of Law; Diann Rust-Tierne...

12:00 PM - 12:20 PM
Branton Award Presentation

12:30 PM - 1:30 PM
Lunch Break

1:40 PM - 2:40 PM
Keynote Address

The Honorable Carlton W. Reeves
United States District Judge of the United States District Court for the Southern District of Mississippi and Chair of the United States Sentencing Commission

2:40 PM - 3:40 PM
Panel 3: State Legislatures, Criminal Justice Reform, and Tools for the Future

Stephen B. Bright
Joel Castón
Vincent M. Southerland
Ngozi Ndulue
Stephen B. Bright | Visiting Lecturer, Yale Law School; Visiting Professor Georgetown Law; Joel Castón | Ward 7 Advisory Neighborhood Commissioner, Fellow Justice Policy; Vincent M. Southerland | Ass...

3:40 PM - 4:00 PM
Closing Remarks

Please direct any questions to: HLJExecutiveSolicitations@gmail.com