According to deathpenatlyinfo.org, currently there are 32 states with the death penalty and 18 states without the death penalty. Society has always punished people that do unlawful actions. Being that murder is the most is in highest interest of preventing, the strongest punishment available, the death penalty, is used. People may think when states sentence murderers to death that it would prevent future murderers from doing the same actions seeing that they will receive the same punishment. Deathpenaltycurriculum.org reports, “Moreover, even if some studies regarding deterrence are inconclusive, that is only because the death penalty is rarely used and takes years before an execution is actually carried out”. Not only that but some states that don’t have the death penalty have lower crimes rates than those that do. In my opinion the death penalty should be abolished due to many purposeful reasons including: financial costs, the process slowing down the court system, life in prison being far more effective, possibility of convicting and killing an innocent person, and violating “cruel and unusual” punishment clause.
According to balancepolitics.org, it cost two to five times more than keeping that same criminal in prison for life. The reasons for such high financial costs are the endless appeals, additional procedures, legal processes, paying people, lawyer costs, and even the execution itself based on which type. Not only do the financial costs affect the state but it affects the taxpayers. Most criminals who are convicted to penalty are on death row for up to 20 years which slows down the court system and makes the death penalty useless in some way. Deathpenalty.procon.org notes that, “Everything that is needed for an ordinary...
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...ations but in fact it’s a irrational response. Deathpenalty.procon.org states, “Expressing one’s violence simply reinforces the desire to express it. Just as expressing anger simply makes us more angry”.
In conclusion, our justice system is full of flaws and proves to show why the death penalty should be abolished. The reasons for it to be abolished include: financials cost, long drawn out process, more effective sentencing styles, the conviction and execution of an innocent person and the violation of the “cruel and unusual” punishment clause in the Bill of Rights. While the death penalty may seem like the right thing to do under the philosophy of “Eye for Eye”, it only encourages the ongoing process of criminal behavior. Our criminal justice system is blurred and sometimes ineffective when it comes to certain cases. Moreover, justice can be bought rather served.
Additionally, capital punishment is absurdly expensive. In the article, “ Capital Punishment: Deterrent Effects & Capital costs” Jeffery A. Fagan discusses how expensive death penalty cases can be. He
Even the worst crimes should not be paid with the simple escape of death. The death penalty costs far more than a life sentence, though it seems like the opposite would be true. With the multiple appeals and trials and relocations, it’s millions down the drain. According to deathpenalty.org it costs taxpayers $90,000 more a year to maintain a death row prisoner versus maintaining a prisoner in general population. Add in the cost of execution depending on the method, $24 million for each electrocution in Florida, at least $86 per lethal injection, around $25,000 for a fire squad execution,(deathpenaltyinfo.org) and it’s even more for a quick end.
While one person lays with their wrists circumscribed to the worn leather of the gurney, another person holds two skin-piercing needles. The individual holding the needles is an inexperienced technician who obtains permission from the United States federal government to murder people. One needle is held as a precaution in case the pain is too visible to the viewers. Another dagger filled with a lethal dosage of chemicals is inserted into the vein that causes the person to stop breathing. When the cry of the heart rate monitor becomes monotone, the corrupt procedure is complete. Lying in the chair is a corpse when moments ago it was an individual who made one fatal mistake that will never get the chance to redeem (Ecenbarger). Although some people believe that the death
Many people, including some higher educated people, tend to believe that executing someone is a lot cheaper than the alternative, which is life in prison without the possibility of parole. Indeed, this thought seems like common sense. However, extensive research has been conducted that contradicts that belief. For instance, a study conducted in Maryland, in 2008, found that the state spends roughly 1.9 million dollars more per capital case, compared to non-capital cases (Warden, 2009). But how can this be some may ask. Well, the reason capital punishment costs more than life without the possibility of parole, is because death penalty cases are longer and more expensive. Because the capital punishment is an irreversible sentence, the state, or government, is required to heighten the defendant’s due process in order to decrease the chance of the defendant being innocent (DPIC). Furthermore, not only is it more expensive for the trial phase, it is also a higher price for a state to imprison death row inmates compared to other
The cost of the Death Penalty is highly expensive. A case to put someone in jail costs on average two million three hundred thousand dollars on average while to put an inmate in jail for forty years cost on average seven hundred and sixty thousand dollars (Friedman 11). In Texas the death penalty cost three times more money than putting an inmate in the highest security level in a jail for forty years (4). It also takes time for a death penalty case to be processed and a convict to be sentenced to the death penalty. Then it takes more time for the state to act and to administer the death penalty to people on death row. On average it takes ten to twenty years to execute a convicted criminal on death row (Friedman 11). Costs could be lowered by shortening the appeal process but this would only increase the risk of executing an innocent person.
A common misconception with the death penalty is that people think it costs less than to keep the convicted in prison for life. This is not true. The sentence of a death penalty is much more expensive due to the long and complex judicial process required by the Constitution. Giving the sentence of “life without parole” or “life in prison” saves millions of dollars that could be used on other programs and eliminates the risk of wrongful execution. A large example of just how expensive the death penalty is found in the state of California, who could save $1 billion over the course of 5 years by simply replacing the death penalty with life imprisonment. California, since reinstating the sentence of capital punishment, has spent over $4 billion on prisoners on death row; over $338 million on each prisoner (Death Penalty: The High Cost of the Death Penalty). Eliminating the death penalty means saving money, which is something our country needs right now.
Hundreds of people each year are punished for crimes they didn’t even commit. Some have spent at least 14 years in prison, while others have spent time on death row. In 2015, up to 149 people were cleared for crimes they didn’t commit. (Ferner) This was because of DNA exonerations, eye witness identification reforms, criminal justice reform commissions, petitions, protests, news stories, preservation of evidence, and access to post-conviction DNA testing. Some causes that triggered wrongful convictions are: a younger defendant, a criminal history, a weak prosecution case, prosecution withheld evidence, and a weak defense (Predicting and Preventing Wrongful Convictions). Kirstin Lobato fits the shoe! She has been in jail for the past 15 years
Gandhi said, “An eye for an eye makes the whole world blind.” Losing one life is enough, the government should not take another. The death penalty is the sentence of execution for murder or other capital crimes. In the United States, thirty-one states currently have the death penalty. The only crime that is punishable by death at the state level is murder. In October of 2015, Gallup reported that 61% of people were in favor of the death penalty, 37% of people opposed the death penalty, and 2% had no opinion (Gallup). The death penalty in America should be abolished in all 50 states because it is immoral and economically ineffective.
A system without the death penalty will save the USA a lot more money rather than having the death penalty because there is a lot more process that takes place in death penalty. According to California Commission on the Fair Administration of Justice, “In California the current system costs $137 million per year; it would cost $11.5 million for a system without the death penalty.”
If someone brutally beat and killed one of your family members, would you want them sentenced to death? In the United States, the death penalty is legal in 31 states, while illegal in 19. This topic is universally controversial and generally debated upon. Different forms of execution are performed throughout all including Electrocution, Lethal injection, Gas inhalation, and hanging in Washington. As of 2018, the death penalty continues to be enforced and should stay that way as long as the crime can be proven as a form of purposeful homicide!
Capital punishment has been a controversial topic in association to any person condemned to a serious committed crime. Capital punishment has been a historical punishment for any cruel crime. Issues associated to things such as the different methods used for execution in most states, waste of taxpayers’ money by performing execution, and how it does not serve as any form of justice have been a big argument that raise many eyebrows. Capital punishment is still an active form of deterrence in the United States. The history of the death penalty explains the different statistics about capital punishment and provides credible information as to why the form of punishment should be abolished by every state. It is believed
Have you ever thought about if the person next to you is a killer or a rapist? If he is, what would you want from the government if he had killed someone you know? He should receive the death penalty! Murderers and rapists should be punished for the crimes they have committed and should pay the price for their wrongdoing. Having the death penalty in our society is humane; it helps the overcrowding problem and gives relief to the families of the victims, who had to go through an event such as murder. Without the death penalty, criminals would be more inclined to commit additional violent crimes. Fear of death discourages people from committing crimes. If capital punishment were carried out more it would prove to be the crime preventative it was partly intended to be. Most criminals would think twice before committing murder if they knew their own lives were at stake. Use of the death penalty as intended by law could actually reduce the number of violent murders by eliminating some of the repeat offenders. The death penalty has always been and continues to be a very controversial issue. People on both sides of the issue argue endlessly to gain further support for their movements. While opponents of capital punishment are quick to point out that the United States remains one of the few Western countries that continue to support the death penalty. The deterrent effect of any punishment depends on how quickly the punishment is applied.
“An eye for an eye, a tooth for a tooth” is how the saying goes. Coined by the infamous Hammurabi’s Code around 1700 BC, this ancient expression has become the basis of a great political debate over the past several decades – the death penalty. While the conflict can be whittled down to a matter of morals, a more pragmatic approach shows defendable points that are far more evidence backed. Supporters of the death penalty advocate that it deters crime, provides closure, and is a just punishment for those who choose to take a human life. Those against the death penalty argue that execution is a betrayal of basic human rights, an ineffective crime deterrent, an economically wasteful option, and an outdated method. The debate has experienced varying levels of attention over the years, but has always kept in the eye of the public. While many still advocate for the continued use of capital punishment, the process is not the most cost effective, efficient, consistent, or up-to-date means of punishment that America could be using today.
Statistics show that in areas where the death penalty is enforced there are fewer serious crimes being committed. According to Fein (2008), “As of two thousand and ten there are over seventeen thousand under sentence to be put to death...
In order to keep inmates on death row, it costs America’s taxpayers more of their hard earned money. According to the Death Penalty Information Center, “Cases without the death penalty cost $740,000, while cases where the death penalty is sought cost