In 1992, Robert Alton Harris became the first person executed by the state of California in 25 years when he was put to death in the gas chamber for the 1978 murder of two teen-age boys.

CNN: Sunday,

The fear that an innocent person might be executed has long haunted jurors and lawyers and judges.

NEWYORKER: Trial by Fire

In 2005, when a solid majority preferred the death penalty, 59% believed that an innocent person had been executed within the previous five years.

CNN: Executions, death sentences remain steady over past year