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Cost Of Life In Prison

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Cost: The cost incurred with the death penalty sentence vs. the cost of life in prison Just by looking at the surface, one would assume that it would be less expensive to execute a prisoner versus providing them with “three hots and a cot” for the rest of their life. Surprisingly, some people support the death penalty mainly because they view it as a way of cutting costs and saving taxpayer’s money. “This argument is disturbing since it reduces the moral complexity of state imposed killing to a debate over dollars and cent.” However, it has now been firmly established by research conducted in different states and with different data that a modern death penalty sentence costs several times more than an alternative sentence of life in prison without parole.
The estimated cost between the two reported by The Miami Herald, averages out to be “$3.2 million for every electrocution versus $600,000 for life imprisonment.” The cost associated with the death penalty can include: 1) the actual execution, 2) cases …show more content…

Well not quite, at least not according to James M. Reams and Charles T. Putnam. When comparing data, sentencing an inmate to life in prison without the possibility of parole will have a much higher total cost due to medical cost associate with geriatric care, medical care for chronic health issues and “end of life” care. Referring to well documented data that states “most Americans spend most of their lifetime health care dollars during their “end of life” phase” This “end of life” phase cost will be significantly higher in the end than the average cost of a shorter sentence. Even in the event that the cost of a death penalty case is higher, Reams and Putnam believe it is necessary in maintaining the confidence in the criminal justice system, “ensuring a thorough investigation and prosecution, a vigorous defense, and a careful adjudication of the

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