Is Capital Punishment a Deterrent? Murder Rates Compared with Execution Rates in Texas, and on a National Level

Throughout the United States an argumentative topic is the death penalty - should it be legalized across the 50 states or be declared unconstitutional? Some believe the death penalty is a better option for those who deserve the highest form of punishment available. However, others argue capital punishment is a waste of resources and should be brought to an end. Therefore, while many believe the death penalty should be legalized throughout the United States because it offers a higher form of punishment, others believe the death penalty should be repealed because it causes unnecessary deaths.

Capital Punishment, also known as the Death Penalty, has been a part of the United State’s justice system for the majority of the country’s existence. Today, 31 out of the 50 states still recognize the death penalty as a viable option when dealing with high profile crimes, most notably murder and sexual assault. While many people argue that the death penalty should be made illegal, there is also widespread support in favor of keeping the death penalty, leaving the nation divided on the issue. Both sides of the argument possess valid evidence that supports their claims, but in the end, the arguments in favor of the death penalty are noticeably stronger. The death penalty is an appropriate sentence that should continue to be allowed in the

The death penalty is a controversial topic in the United States today and has been for a number of years. The death penalty was overturned and then reinstated in the United States during the 1970's due to questions concerning its fairness. The death penalty began to be reinstated slowly, but the rate of executions has increased during the 1990's. There are a number of arguments for and against the death penalty. Many death penalty supporters feel that the death penalty reduces crime because it deters people from committing murder if they know that they will receive the death penalty if they are caught. Others in favor of the death penalty feel that even if it doesn't deter others from committing crimes, it will eliminate

Why is the death penalty used as a means of punishment for crime? Is this just a way to solve the nations growing problem of overcrowded prisons, or is justice really being served? Why do some view the taking of a life morally correct? These questions are discussed and debated upon in every state and national legislature throughout the country. Advantages and disadvantages for the death penalty exist, and many members of the United States, and individual State governments, have differing opinions. Yet it seems that the stronger arguments, and evidence such as cost effectiveness, should lead the common citizen to the opposition of Capital Punishment.

The idea of capital punishment deterring crime is difficult to determine; some could rationalize that the death penalty should in theory stop potential murders from committing crimes. However, this rationalization has never been concretely proven. The research into capital punishment’s effect on deterrence is immense; however, the majority of research on this issue has differential findings. Although some research suggests conclusively that capital punishment deters crime, others found that it fails to do this. Understanding deterrence, the death penalty, and the results of

Those who believe that deterrence justifies the execution of certain offenders bear the burden of proving that the death penalty is a deterrent. The overwhelming conclusion from years of deterrence studies is that the death penalty is, at best, no more of a deterrent than a sentence of life in prison. The Ehrlich studies – which took

This criminal code is one of the most sophisticated in the country and has become a model for other states to follow. But research studies conducted to compare effects of the death penalty nationwide have shown some conflicting results. Comparison studies done to show homicide rates of retentionist and abolitionist jurisdictions from 1999 to 2001 (Sorenson & Pilgrim) have shown that death penalty states tend to have a higher murder rate than abolitionist states. This result creates the argument of the overall deterrent effect of execution. Texas is still in the top 20 of states with the highest homicide rate even though it is the highest in death penalty executions. “If the death penalty were a deterrent, the argument goes, then Texas should be located among those states with the lowest homicide rates” (Sorenson & Pilgrim, P. 25).

Having to execute prisoners in Texas is a critical issue in our criminal justice system. The executions are carried out on capital murderers. It all started back in the 1800’s when counties carryed out their own exectution method; prisoners were hung. Than, in the1920’s the state of Texas ordered that all executions were to be carried out to Walls Unit, Huntsville for “The Electric Chair.” Ever since 1982, Texas was the first U.S state to execute with the “Lethal Injection.” The executions in Texas are carried out in various ways, but the primary way of executing inmates now is by lethal injection.

For instance, the cost to execute someone is 5x times more than keeping them in jail. Cases without the death penalty cost roughly about $740,000 depending on the situation, while cases with the death penalty cost roughly $1.26 million, and maintaining each death row prisoners cost taxpayers $90,000 more per year than a prisoner in general population. Additionally, Texas has made 474 executions since 1976, and the next closest state to that number is Virginia with 109 executions. There are still several states that have made 0 executions or very little compared to Texas. Moreover, some argue against the death penalty because of wrongful convictions and innocent killings. In the Larry Griffin case, an investigation by the NAACP Legal Defense and Education Fund has uncovered evidence that Griffin may have been innocent of his crime. Investigators say his case is the strongest demonstration yet on executing an innocent man, due to the fact it violates the Eighth Amendment. There’s also principles at conflict, like popular sovereignty and federalism because opposition to the death penalty has increased dramatically since the 1900s. There are 31 states with the death penalty legalized and 19 that have abolished it; however, there’s 5 states that have a moratorium on executions. To conclude, the states depict if the death penalty is legal or not based on the people’s votes, and the states having the power to vote represents

Despite its firm stance on severe criminal penalties, Texas has the 12th highest crime rate in the nation. There have been debates and arguments about whether the capital punishment is a deterrent for crime, but there are

Since the death penalty was reauthorized in 1976, 1,362 people have been executed, almost exclusively by the states, with most occurring after 1990. Texas has accounted for over one-third of modern executions and over four times as many as Virginia, the state with the second-highest number. The Walls Unit prison in downtown Huntsville, Texas is the nations busiest execution chamber.

Texas Capital Punishment is not as reasonable as one might assume. It is not reasonable since there have been many innocent individuals who have been executed. One might wonder how an innocent individual is given Capital Punishment, and through out the Trial he or she is found guilty and hurl for execution. Many facing Capital Punishment are underprivileged individuals who cannot afford a private lawyer, in which he or she relies on the State of Texas to appoint an attorney for them (Byrd & Price, 2008). Much of the time, the appointed lawyers are overloaded with cases, don’t have time to review the case before trial, and don’t have trial experience required for a capital punishment case (Byrd & Price, 2008). According to the Death penalty

There are many controversial points of view on the death penalty in America’s society. Is the death penalty socially correct? Is it just? The death penalty is an execution sentence that a person convicted of a capital crime must face. A person can only be sentenced to death in 33 states (deathpenatly.org). There have been as of April 1, 2012, 3,170 death row inmates in the Unites States history, with an exception of the two inmates in New Mexico and eleven in Connecticut that remain on the death row due to the law not being made retrospective to these inmates. The controversy whether the death penalty is just or unjust has been a debate in America for many years. There have

Defenders of the death penalty often claim that the execution of criminals will teach others not to do bad, initially decreasing crime rates. This hasty form of generalization statistically proves to be wrong. “When it comes to criminals, Texas has the toughest punishments along with a strict court system. The state of Texas spent four hundred and seventy million dollars in 2001 just for punishing convicts. Despite all that money and stern punishment, the crime rate is still twenty four percent higher than the national average, according to 2003 data” (Gonzales). This supports the fact that tough punishment doesn’t necessarily help crime. Ironically, the harshest state in the U.S continues to house the maximum number of criminal acts. The death penalty, a harsh form of punishment, clearly doesn’t lower crime rate.

The Death Penalty is no longer a deterrent to crime, and that is affecting the citizens of the United States. Former U.S. Attorney General Janet Reno said that she has yet to find any evidence that the death penalty deters crime. "I have inquired for most of my adult life about studies that might show that the death penalty is a deterrent. And I have not seen any research that would substantiate that point," said Reno. The Bureau of Justice Statistics reports that the South repeatedly has the highest murder rate. In 1999, it was the only region with a murder rate above the national rate, and the South accounts for 80% of all executions. The Northeast, which has less than 1% of all executions in the U.S., has the lowest murder rate (DPIC). These facts are undeniable and show that the death penalty does not deter crime. When comparisons are made between states with the death penalty and states without, the majority of death penalty states show murder rates higher than non-death penalty states. The average murder rates per 100,000 populations in 1999 among death penalty states was 5.5, whereas the average of murder