Answer:
-In 1846, Michigan became the first state to abolish the death penalty for all crimes except treason. Later, Rhode Island and Wisconsin abolished the death penalty for all crimes. By the end of the century, the world would see the countries of Venezuela, Portugal, Netherlands, Costa Rica, Brazil and Ecuador follow suit.
-Murder (Abolition of Death Penalty) Act 1965.
-The history of the death penalty in the USA may be traced back to colonial times in the 1600's. It is claimed that the first recorded death sentence and execution by firing squad was carried out in the British colony of Jamestown, Virginia in 1608.
-The first established death penalty laws date as far back as the Eighteenth Century B.C. in the Code of King Hammurabi of Babylon, which codified the death penalty for 25 different crimes. Death sentences were carried out by such means as crucifixion, drowning, beating to death, burning alive, and impalement.
-The death penalty was de facto abolished in Canada in Jan 1963 and de jure in Sep 1999. In 1976, Bill C-84 was enacted, abolishing the death penalty for murder, treason, and piracy.
