If you ask around your friends and family whether they agree or disagree with the death penalty, chances are they are for it. I think the majority of Americans today would want to see the man or woman that killed their family member be put to death. The conventional view is that the punishment fits the crime and the death penalty is the best way to stop a person from killing a human being. As of today there are only 15 states that do not use the death penalty including the District of Columbia. I believe that the death penalty is not a reasonable punishment for a person who is convicted of murder.
The reason I disagree with the death penalty is not only because it is cruel and unusual, but also because it sends the wrong message. Why would you use murder to show that murder is wrong? Of course you want to make sure there is accountability for the crime but the death penalty sends the wrong message, it is more an act of revenge than a form of punishment. This kind of philosophy just leads to an endless cycle of violence that does not give any sense of closure to the victims family in my opinion. Would you rather see a murderer have to suffer for the rest of his or her life behind bars or take the easy way out?
Another reason that backs up my opinion is the total cost of the death penalty versus keeping that inmate behind bars. Most people do not realize that it costs almost double to carry out a death sentence rather than keeping that individual in jail for the rest of their life. This is because the process for the death penalty is allot greater especially with the appeal process. It is not unheard of for an inmate to be on death row for 10-20 years, and in that time the case can be re-examined and new evidence can be brought up. This means that the tax payers in that state have to pay for judges, attorneys, representatives, clerks and of course a court room to look at all of the facts. By law an inmate has the right to appeal the sentence which can also take up time that could be used to look at a new case, with courtrooms being backed up today this only adds to the problem.
People in America can argue back and forth on their beliefs on the subject all day but there is only one deciding factor to be looked at, does the death penalty work? If you were to look at the murder rate by state for the last decade, the top 10 states on that list all use the death penalty. States like Louisiana, Mississippi, Alabama and Maryland are all on the top of the list and surprisingly enough, all are in favor of the death penalty but the numbers are getting larger each year. This is evidence that the death penalty is certainly not working like people thought it would, it seems to be the complete opposite. Instead of scaring a person into not committing a crime like murder the best option seems to be life in jail.
If you take a look at the facts it is obvious that the death penalty is not the right way to go about punishing a murderer. Instead, states like Texas are trying to pass laws to speed up the process. The number one reason for states like Texas who use the death penalty is that it creates a crime deterrent better than life without parole which judging by the numbers out there is not working as they had planned. For those who say that justice is better served take into account that jail is a very hostile and violent environment and no one wants to be kept in a cage for 23 hours a day like an animal. Wouldn't it make more sense to make a convicted murderer serve life in jail without the possibility of getting out rather than having them serve a few years and eventually get "put to sleep" by the state? I agree with the fact that jails today are overflowing with inmates and more are being built just to keep up with the increasing number of people in those jails, but most of inmates are not in there for murder. The majority of people in jail are there for non violent crimes and drug related charges, which is causing an over population in prisons. All of this adds up in my opinion to the fact that the death penalty should be abolished in every state and instead force a person convicted of murder to serve a life sentence without the possibility of parole.
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