Should Texas Pay To Kill Prisoners

The death sentence in America has brought financial tolls unto American society and the government. According to Source B, “the death penalty is clearly more expensive than a system handling similar cases with lesser punishment.” Using death as a punishment for wrongful crimes has put America in a tight financial condition the death penalty itself costs more than a combination of smaller punishments. This shows that although incarceration and various types of

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.

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).

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

There was a proposition on the ballot this year that was proposing to replace the death penalty with life imprisonment without the possibility of parole instead. This proposition would have also increased those inmates’ wages. The proposition claimed that doing this would have reduced the costs of around $150 million dollars annually within a few years. When saving money supersedes punishing those who have committed crimes so atrocious that is when we have failed as a state, and as a country. The death penalty is saved for those who have committed crimes that were so unforgivable and heinous that they cannot be allowed to live. The crimes that they committed were so wicked that they were shocking to the public,

-Cost, like previously mentioned above it cost allot, not just financially but physically and emotionally for all those involved. The trials, the appeals and don’t forget the heightened security on death row, commuting all death sentences to life in prison would save hundred of millions of dollars per year Texas.

Texas has a colorful history regarding issues on race, gender, education, and a host of other things. Undoubtedly Texas has found itself on the wrong side of many issues, but with time and persistence has sought to right many of those wrongs. Needless to say Texas once again finds itself on the wrong side of an issue. The private prison system in Texas has one goal: to make money. It is not difficult to understand that when a corporation(s) is given governmental authority (in this case to handle incarceration) and is not accountable to the citizens it’s engaged with, an abuse or over step of power is imminent. Nevertheless this is something that can be fixed. With more people becoming aware of this fraudulent system, the more questions are being asked and the more answers are being demanded. The State and local officials must be called on to cease contracts with all for-profit prison companies in Texas, including contracts with private transportation and medical care providers at Texas prison and jail facilities. Eliminating the for-profit prison model is a first step to ensuring that public safety, not profit, guides Texas’s criminal justice policy. Overtime and with persistence, Texas will find itself on the right side of this issue and will eliminate the prison industrial complex within this

Between 1976, when Supreme Court lifted its preclusion on capital punishment and 2000 Texas has executed 238 individuals (Walpin, 2000). Why do capital punishment cases proceed so quickly compared to other states? Brent Newton, in an article entitled “ The death penalty: Texas could learn a lot from Florida,” argues that one of the reasons to why its reoccurrences is due to Texas not providing public defender system for the underprivileged defendants, and instead relies upon court appointed attorneys who likely do not have any experience in capital punishment defenses or

Some Americans today tend to believe that the death penalty is less cheaper to execute someone who is on death row rather than just keeping someone for life in prison. According to a report of the Northern California ACLU (2008) California taxpayers are paying 117 million dollars a year to execute an inmate who is on death row. Whereas if the prisoner would do life without parole in prison, it would only be less expensive. According to a California Jurist Donald McCartin he explains,”It’s 10 times more expensive to kill them than to keep them alive.” (4) In other words, McCartin believes that the death penalty should be abolished and that it would save taxpayers billions of dollars. I can strongly agree with McCartin because instead of wasting, billions of dollars on executions that money can go to schools and more jobs for the community.

Studies show that prosecute a death penalty case cost the taxpayers $1.5 million dollars more than to prosecute a life in prison without parole. A study done this past August by Dr. Ernest Goss, a Creighton University economics professor who founded the conservative think tank, Goss & Associates, the study is called The Economic Impact of the Death Penalty on the State of Nebraska: A Taxpayer Burden?. This study found that the state of Nebraska spends $14.6 million per year to maintain its capital punishment system. That is $14.6 million that could be spent on public service like more police and perhaps programs to help at risk youth. Nebraska

The financial aspect is one of the more discussed topics surrounding the death penalty. “Each execution can cost between $2.5 million and $5 million.” (Fagan 1). Compared to the millions of dollars it takes to execute a single to person to the more affordable cost of housing a prisoner of a range of $20,000-$40,000 a year; we as a society could punish these people for their crimes without killing and for less money.(Hirby 1). The cost for a non-death penalty trial is in the area of $250,000 whereas a trial concerning the death penalty will be in the area of about $1.7 million (Timberman). According to Sarah Timberman from death penalty.org “California has had to spend more than $4 billion on capital punishment alone since it was reinstated in the year 1978 (this is about $308 million for each of the 13 executions carried out)”. On top of the $308 million per trial, there is an additional cost of $184 million for all of the trials including multiple appeals, legal representation for the accused and extra security during the entire trial.

Texas has the infamous reputation of carrying the death penalty. From 1967-1976 there were no executions at all in America. In 1977 the death penalty was reinstated when Gary Gilmore was convicted of murder. Texas has conducted more executions then any state and has become the mecca, if you will, for the death penalty. “The state of Texas has executed 518 people since 1982. Executions peaked in Texas in 2000, when 40 people were put to death.” (Statistics Bureau) An inmate can be put on death row only if he commits capital murder. Texas law only recognizes capital murder as one of these 9 offenses; “a murder of a peace officer or firefighter acting in the line of duty. Murder during the commission of; kidnapping, burglary, robbery, aggravated sexual assault, arson, obstruction

2. In Texas, a death penalty case costs taxpayers an average of $2.3 million, about three times the cost of imprisoning someone in a single cell at the highest security level for 40 years.

They are increasing the cost because when prisoners are put to death, they are required to pay for all the medications. Taxpayers should not be accountable for paying for someone else’s death. Dieter is showing the readers that the cost of the death penalty over the years and that the policy is still existent when he interrogates, “In Maryland, a comprehensive cost study by the Urban Institute in 2008 estimated the extra costs to taxpayers for death penalty cases prosecuted between 1978 and 1999 to be $186 million. … The complete cost of a death sentence (trial, appeals, incarceration on death row) was estimated to be $3 million. … (The state is on the verge of abolishing the death penalty.)” (Dieter). States are debating on whether or not to abolish the death penalty because the taxpayers are paying too much money for them. The prisoners executions costs about 3 million dollars for what they have done in the past. Since, the death penalty is worth so much money, most states are thinking about abolishing it. If the death penalty was not existent, the taxpayers will have to pay less money and not worry about paying so much. However, the death penalty is still taking the citizens money. The government is also taking place in the executions because they have to legalize the medications that are going into the prisoner’s

This is evident through research and according to the death penalty information center, the “2015 murder rate in death penalty states had a 5.15 rate while non-death penalty states had 4.13 rate; The difference being 25%” . Texas alone executes three times more people than any other state does, however, it still has one of the highest crime rates in the country. This alone is unacceptable and immoral. This shows that the death penalty cannot be used as means of punishing a murderer nor can it be used to protect society. Using death penalty to deter murderers and protect others violates moral ethics anyone stands