It's Time to Kill the Death Penalty

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Death penalty, also known as capital punishment, is the punishment of execution that is administered to someone who committed a capital crime. Capital crimes include murder, treason, genocide and many other serious crimes (Did 1 of 3). Over 1,000 people were executed in the United States between 1977 and 2009. 32 states allow the death penalty, and 17 do not; the latest state to outlaw the death penalty was Maryland. The death penalty involves many debatable issues such as cost, religion, deterrence, possibility of executing an innocent and the cruelty of the punishment. The death penalty is cruel and the need for retribution is unjust, so it is unacceptable and shouldn’t be performed. Many say that the cost is not a reason to end the death penalty, and that regardless of the high price, it is necessary. Some say without question that over time life without parole cases cost more than death penalty cases (Top 2 of 4). This is because these prisoners have to be paid to be taken care of for many years whereas the death penalty inmates spend less time in prison. A multitude of studies have stated that death penalty cases cost more than life without parole cases, however “Justice for All estimates that LWOP cases will cost $1.2 million-$3.6 million more than equivalent death penalty cases.” The way the person is executed is one of the biggest factors that accounts for the considerable cost of the death penalty. Other methods of execution exist that are cheaper such as hanging and then re-using the rope or having a firing squad using volunteered guns (Does 2 of 5). It has also been said that if the steps of the execution are handled properly and effectively, that the cost of execution is less than caring for a murderer for life. In th... ... middle of paper ... ...n Post, 11 June 2007. Web. 04 Dec. 2013. . "The Case Against Death Penalty." Aclu.org. American Civil Liberties Union, 11 Dec. 2012. Web. 09 Dec. 2013. . "The Innocent and the Death Penalty." Innocenceproject.org/. Innocence Project, n.d. Web. 07 Dec. 2013. . "Top 10 Pros and Cons." ProCon.org. N.p., 13 Apr. 2009. Web. 03 Dec. 2013. . Williams, Carol J. "Death Penalty Costs California $184 Million a Year, Study Says." Latimes.com. Los Angeles Times, 20 June 2011. Web. 18 Nov. 2013. .

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