Some statistics on the application of the death penalty in Texas: In the last 30 years, the state has executed 464 people, far more than in any other state.
The Lone Star state has also exonerated a dozen death-row inmates during that time period.
The question, then: At what point do the false-positives (so-to-speak) reach an unacceptable level? If 100 death-row inmates were exonerated, many would likely say without equivocation that something was seriously wrong. If only one had been exonerated, many would call it an aberration, the exception that proves the rule.
via blogs.wsj.com