As of January 1, 2010, 3,261 people live on death row (“Death”). Fewer than 3,261 people live in my small town of Belle Plaine, so to me this number is outrageous. Inmates that wait on the death penalty jail create a problem for everyone in the country. If we would put these inmates through the death penalty quickly, we could take the problem away from the country. Why do we keep murderers and criminals on death row around? People argue the controversial topic of the death penalty very thoroughly, and address all sides. On one side people argue that we would save money and the death penalty sets an example for other criminals, while on the opposition people argue that life without parole is cheaper, capital punishment is morally …show more content…
The money spent on prisoners each year adds up, and with the economy being at a low these last few years, why would we want the government to have to pay that kind of money for these criminals? Along with the costs of prison, the cost of court for the government is added in on top for each inmate’s court case. Some people think that just because the government is going to court that they do not have to pay any money, which in fact a false statement. For a life without parole case, it will cost the government $1.2 to $3.6 million dollars more than a death penalty court case (Sharp). Court costs are so much because life without parole cases can be lengthy and last for years. People who like the thought of life without parole would rather see criminals put in jail for life instead of killed. Also, people argue that the death penalty is more expensive because of the court cost which is in fact not true. As I have shown, the life without parole cases cost millions more than a death penalty case. When addressing the death penalty, the morality of the death penalty is a big part of the argument. I agree that killing a person is wrong and should not be done, but is that not why the death row inmates are on death row? The people who do not want the death penalty say that killing a person is morally wrong. Their argument is very understandable; likewise I argue that death row inmates made the choice for themselves. The majority of death row inmates went out and
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
First, Nebraska has had a big debate over this issue recently. Nebraska still has the death penalty, but cost is really a huge problem and if anybody wants to keep capital punishment they need to fix the cost issue. As of now Nebraska spends more that 14 million dollars a year to maintain the death penalty. Also about 1.5 million dollars from taxes go to the trials of these people on the death penalty. Over the last 40 years only about 30 out of 100 people being trialed have been on death row, and only a few were actually executed, but there are still millions of dollars being poured into keeping these people there on death row. For the United States over a ten year period death penalty trial costed over one billion dollars. Now let’s say that a man has been caught for several murders and the prosecutors are seeking that he goes on death row. His trial is going to cost over 500,000 dollars, and then keeping him in prison and still look through his case after he is found guilty (Center).
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
Money talks. In the pro capital punishment argument, supporters speak about the cost related to incarceration. In 1996, Martin Kasten published An Economic Analysis of the Death Penalty in which he stated, “Assuming annual incarceration costs are $17,957 and the average life expectancy for a death row inmate is 40 years in prison, the marginal benefit of executing one inmate is $415,071 when discounted at 3 percent over 40 years. When multiplying the benefit by 30, the approximate number of inmates executed every year, the death penalty saves $12,452,130 in reduced incarceration costs” (Kasten). These numbers were over twenty years ago, so imagine with all the inflation, that number is closer to three or four times that amount. This is the cost per inmate, now multiply this number by the thousands of prisoners in all fifty states. While the use of capital punishment is meant to be discretionary, just a few inmates sentenced to capital punishment have the potential to save the taxpayers millions. Those for capital punishment don’t want the money they pay in taxes to go towards supporting the life of someone who has committed a crime; to them it is just providing the criminal with free room and board, access to health care and education programs in jail. To the people for capital punishment this isn’t really a punishment, sure the
One-hundred thirty million dollars are wasted each year on the death penalty, while it costs eleven million dollars for the same number of inmates per year to be put in prison for life without parole. The death penalty is when a person is executed by the state as a punishment which consists of lethal injection, electrocution, lethal gas, firing squad, and hanging. The death penalty has been proven to consume a lot of time. For many cases, they will be denied, therefore wasting time and money that could be used for other problems that the country is facing. All this money that is wasted on the death penalty can be used for something useful like using the money for schools, hospitals, or other sections of the law enforcement like paying more
According to Death Penalty Information Center, (DPIC) As of July 1,2016, there were 2,905 death row inmates being held in prisons. Roughly each one of those inmates are still currently be held for their execution date, on average each criminal that is waiting death row is being held for 14 years. Each prisoner cost 43,352 dollars (roughly) each year. For one inmate to be put on death row for 14 years it would cost 606,928 dollars. Some say that Capital Punishment would put our country into more debt than it already is in. I agree with this theory, but if we would stop holding death row inmates for multiple years, it wouldn't be as much of a punishment to our taxpayers who fund the operations. Also fellow criminals would be detoured from the
There are many reasons why I presume this. The debates against the death penalty are mainly moral in their character that it is wrong to kill and when the state kills it sends out the wrong message to the rest of the country. The death penalty should not be legal in the United States because putting the criminal in prison would keep people safe and cost
it cost million to execute people when the money can be used for therapy. Most people don't realize that carrying out one death sentence costs 2-5 times more than keeping that same criminal in prison for the rest of his life. (Balncedpolitics) It's not unusual for a prisoner to be on death row for 15-20 years. (Balanced poltics) Judges, attorneys, court reporters, clerks, and court facilities all require a substantial investment by the taxpayers. (Balanced politics) all of the studies conclude that the
There are many reasons to both support and oppose the death penalty. Many people can feel very strongly about whether or not they approve of this method of punishment. I feel that the death penalty is wrong, and I believe that there is much support to back this up. I believe that the death penalty is wrong because it is not an effective deterrent, racially and economically bias, unreliable, expensive, and morally wrong of society.
In California there are seven hundred and fourteen inmates sentenced to death row. The death penalty is much more expensive than a life sentence with no parole. In Kansas housing the death row prisoners cost twice as much per year ($49,380) as for the general prisoner is half of that according to forbes.com. In a tough economy the money being spent for the death penalty can add up quickly. Though state and local government’s budget for this it is paid through our tax dollar. It is estimated that the state of California could save ninety million dollars each year by ending the death penalty. The annual cost in California is $137 million for the death penalty, lifetime in jail would be $11.5 million. In our own state it costed us nearly $14.6 million (Omaha.com). Not only is death row expensive but it is unjust and taking a beautiful thing away from so many
The controversy that surrounds the use of capital punishment argues issues that surround the death penalty, but not the death penalty itself. I believe that those who sit on death row are reserved for criminals who commit the worst acts and deserve to have their life taken. These criminals should not be given a second chance, because the life that was taken did not get a second chance. Those who are given the death penalty show the result that they are a danger to society, and they shouldn’t have the possibility of hurting any more people. One could argue that justice would be served while the criminal stays behind bars, two wrongs don’t make a right, and by committing the same offense that the criminal had done while saying it’s okay to do the same only because the state says it’s acceptable. I believe that keeping the death penalty is a morally justified action and is supported by Utilitarianism and the greatest happiness principle. The death penalty is something that should only be used for brutal and premeditated crimes, because of its effectiveness to deter crime, receive retribution, and give closure for victim’s families.
A common argument for the allowance of the death penalty is the fact that it saves money, which many people believe it’s cheaper to sentence them to death row than caring for an individual for the rest of their life. However, this is wrong. This would only be true if we measured how much it costs for the actual penalty of death to be carried it, but it’s not that short of a process. Prosecutors and attorneys have to be hired and they have to go through long investigations and pre-trial hearings in order to ensure that the suspect is, in fact, guilty. This process takes years and the money adds up. With all that has to happen, in the end, the death penalty is much more expensive than having a maximum sentence of life in prison.
Is it ethical? Are they truly guilty? The multitude of society asks the same questions when debating the death penalty process as a form of punishment. The death penalty can be debated on both sides, for or against, and the debate brings controversial since this is a long standing debatable issue. Both sides have researched statistics and produced evidence with certain factors in favor of or against, in result the death penalty stands in most states but the execution process now has strict guidelines. The guidelines were established for the protection of an innocent inmate wrongly accused being sentenced to death. In response to the guidelines, the financial amount to support a death row inmate expanded greatly due to judicial process and imprisonment requirements for solidarity. Evidence of reduced deterrent value has been inconclusive as the death penalty possesses no value to crime control. Executions of death row inmates have declined drastically while the death penalty is still being sentenced as punishment. Evidently through evidence and statistics, defeasance of the death penalty is preponderant and, ultimately irrefutable.
Taxpayers on average pay about $90,000 more per year for each prisoner on death row (Death Penalty Information Center). Kansas legislators found that death penalty cases cost citizens about $1.26 million per case (Amnesty International). In Maryland, the average cost of a case is $3 million (Death Penalty Information Center). However some people argue that it is alright for us to pay taxes on murderers, they are clearly wrong; I protest that we should not pay taxes on killers, because our money could go to better things such as, schools. highways, and medicine (Feingold).
First of all death penalty is morally wrong. David Kennedy, director of the center for Crime Prevention and Control at John Jay college of Criminal Justice said,”...the application of power without justice is brutal. And there is nothing democratic about brutality”(Johnson2). This is statement is true. Killing someone is brutal and is not the most humane way of handling the situation. There is movement on mandatory minimums (sentencing), there is movement on solitary confinement, there is movement on the death penalty (Johnson2). Societies belief that all life is sacred would be violated by death penalty. Solitary confinement would be the most democratic way to deal with felons or offenders. That is my reasoning on why I believe death penalty is morally wrong. Secondly, Death penalty is difficult for state correction officials. The sole question is whether state correction officials are required to publicly reveal the drugs and methods to be used to carry out the execution (Richey1). If felons were put in prison there would be no need for state correction officials to reveal all of that information because the drugs and methods would not be used to begin with. Lawyers of death row inmates say they must know this information so that they can adequately protect their clients form unnecessary pain and suffering during state authorized lethal injections (Richey1). This makes a lot more work for state correction officials. On top of that it makes the whole process longer. Last