Should the U.S. continue to use capital punishment?

Answer 1

I think the urge to see the perpetrator of a horrendous crime killed is a normal and understandable human reaction. I was in favor of capital punishment for a long time, but I have changed my stance over the years, for several reasons:

1. By far the most compelling is this: Sometimes the legal system gets it wrong. Look at all the people who have been released after years of imprisonment because they were exonerated by DNA evidence. Unfortunately, DNA evidence is not available in most cases. No matter how rare it is, the government should not risk executing one single innocent person.

Really, that should be reason enough for most people. If you need more, read on:

2. Because of the extra expense of prosecuting a DP case and the appeals process (which is necessary - see reason #1), it costs taxpayers MUCH more to execute prisoners than to imprison them for life.

3. The deterrent effect is questionable at best. Violent crime rates are actually higher in death penalty states. This may seem counterintuitive, and there are many theories about why this is (Ted Bundy saw it as a challenge, so he chose Florida – the most active execution state at the time – to carry out his final murder spree). Personally, I think it has to do with the hypocrisy of taking a stand against murder…by killing people. The government becomes the bad parent who says, ‘do as I say, not as I do.’

4. There’s also an argument to be made that death is too good for the worst of our criminals. Let them wake up and go to bed every day of their lives in a prison cell, and think about the freedom they DON’T have, until they rot of old age. When Ted Bundy was finally arrested in 1978, he told the police officer, “I wish you had killed me.”

5. The U.S. government is supposed to be secular, but for those who invoke Christian law in this debate, you can find arguments both for AND against the death penalty in the Bible. For example, Matthew 5:38-39 insists that violence shall not beget violence. James 4:12 says that God is the only one who can take a life in the name of justice. Leviticus 19:18 warns against vengeance (which, really, is what the death penalty amounts to). In John 8:7, Jesus himself says, "let he who is without sin cast the first stone."

Answer 2

Your question is much too important for a simple yes or no without the facts. Here are answers to questions about the capital punishment system and alternative, with sources listed below.

What about the risk of executing innocent people?
124 people on death rows have been released with evidence of their innocence.

Doesn't DNA keep new cases like these from happening?
DNA is available in less than 10% of all homicides. It is not a guarantee against the execution of innocent people.

Doesn't the death penalty prevent others from committing murder?
No reputable study shows the death penalty to be a deterrent. To be a deterrent a punishment must be sure and swift. The death penalty is neither. Homicide rates are higher in states and regions that have it than in states that do not.

So, what are the alternatives?
Life without parole is now on the books in 48 states. It means what it says. It is sure and swift and rarely appealed. Life without parole is less expensive than the death penalty.

But isn't the death penalty cheaper than keeping criminals in prison?
The death penalty costs much more than life in prison, mostly because of the legal process. Anytime the death penalty is a possible sentence, extra costs start to mount up even before a trial, continuing through the uniquely complicated trial (actually 2 separate stages, mandated by the Supreme Court) in death penalty cases, and appeals.

What about the very worst crimes?
The death penalty isn’t reserved for the “worst of the worst,” but rather for defendants with the worst lawyers. When is the last time a wealthy person was sentenced to death, let alone executed??

Doesn't the death penalty help families of murder victims?
Not necessarily. Murder victim family members across the country argue that the drawn-out death penalty process is painful for them and that life without parole is an appropriate alternative.

So, why don't we speed up the process?
Over 50 of the innocent people released from death row had already served over a decade. If the process is speeded up we are sure to execute an innocent person.

Answer 3

Some of the crimes committed are so horrendous what would be a proper or sufficient punishment.
.....Susan S.................Made some excellent points.
Here are a few points as well.......
Why was the AMBER ALERT started?
Remember
The Lindberg baby
Amber Hagerman aka AMBER ALERT

Adam Walsh Loved and missed so much by his parents they began the Walsh Foundation for Missing and Exploited Children

Megan Kanka aka MEGANS LAW
Polly Klass
Etan Patz
Jessica Lunsford
Danielle Van Dam
Samantha Runnion
These children also were INNOCENT until killed.
Here are 2 that survived and have to deal with survival everyday for the rest of their lives.
Shasta Groene
Elizabeth Smart
This is only the tip of the iceberg.How many of our innocent must be harmed before the judges quit feeling sorry for them.
I personally believe EVERY sexual predator should get the death penalty. Let their families deal with it!!!!!!!!!!

For those of you not named on this list
God Rest Your Little Souls.

Answer 4

No. But this is my personal opinion. I am an opponent of the death penalty. It violates the basic fundamental right to live guaranteed under any Country's constitution.

What people don't realize is that the death penalty creates many more victims - the family of the condemned. The entire concept of capital punishment is so morbid. Who are these judges (mere mortals like us) to decide whether a person lives or dies? One can't play God in this.

"An eye for an eye makes the whole world around us blind"

-- Mahatma Gandhi

Answer 5

yes, but they really don't use that power anyways. They let people appeal and we pay for them until they either a run out of appeals and get whats coming to them, or they die of natural causes.

Answer 6

That's a matter for the USA and its people.

Answer 7

YES.