Abolishing the Death Penalty in the Era of Hope

The outcome of the election for President, and for state and local legislators, not only demonstrates how much Americans want change. It confirms Americans' commitment to our fundamental values of equality and fairness. It gives me reason to hope that we will soon see the end of the death penalty.

The American public simply cannot maintain the death penalty and be true to these deeply held values. There are too many instances of innocent men and women being sentenced to death, of people of color, both defendants and victims, being treated more harshly, and dealt with as if they were expendable.

This is why New Jersey abolished the death penalty in 2007, and why we fully expect other states will follow.

Americans can't square our values of what is right and lawful with the operation of the death penalty in practice. As we learn more about it, support for the death penalty has dropped over the years, to 63%. Support declines even further when we learn about alternatives to the death penalty, and are given the opportunity to choose life rather than death.

With the current economic downturn, all government programs -- including the death penalty -- should and will be evaluated on whether they deliver on their promises and whether the "benefits" they confer are worth the cost. Measured against this stricter standard, the death penalty comes up short. Having failed to deliver on the promise of accurately selecting only the guilty to receive the punishment, it also fails miserably at being cost efficient, and worse, it siphons precious resources from helping crime victims heal and move on with their lives, or preventing the tragedy of murder from occurring in the first place.

Americans would be appalled to discover how much of their tax dollars support the flawed, ineffective death penalty system. For example, it costs Florida $51 million a year to enforce the death penalty above what it would cost to sentence first degree murderers to life in prison without parole. Imagine how that money could be spent on better ways to ensure public safety, such as hiring and training more police to protect our neighborhoods, and enabling them to purchase the equipment they need to do so, such as updated patrol cars, and more efficient information technology systems,

As newly elected and incumbent state legislators take their seats in statehouses next year, they should remember that constituents expect them to provide leadership and creative thinking on a range of social problems, including criminal justice reform and the death penalty. To paraphrase one commentator's post-election analysis, Americans want a more pragmatic and concrete approach to our nation's problems, not rhetoric and symbolic nods in that direction.

An honest assessment of the problems associated with the death penalty is long overdue. The National Coalition to Abolish the Death Penalty and its more than 100 affiliates looks forward to engaging state legislators in a reasoned, thoughtful discussion about capital punishment and its alternatives.

Diann Rust-Tierney is the Executive Director of the National Coalition to Abolish the Death Penalty.

Comments

[helix711]

It's interesting to me that conservative Christians overwhelmingly support the death penalty, yet in one of the most famous stories about their supposed savior, the god-man refuses to let people stone a woman who has committed a crime that in those times brought the death penalty, saying that whichever person in the crowd who was completely without sin should throw the first stone.

Are these Christians now completely free of sin, so they feel comfortable passing the ultimate judgment on people they haven't even looked in the face? If their savior does actually exist, he must be pretty disappointed.

[sdskelton03]

I think we should expand the death penalty to include more crimes. I see no reason why we as a society should allow child molesters and rapists to live.

I know that because of legal costs, it is actually less expensive not to execute. But I think we get our money's worth.

It doesn't take a rocket scientist to figure out that sometimes it's best to just take the trash out.

[aceholiday]

our judicial system is not perfect. how can we then have a perfect penalty?

[Chetdude]

Why stop there!?!

I want to see those damn litterers and those horrible folks who spit on the sidewalk TAKEN OUT!

And how about those bastards in front of me on the freeway? I paid good money for my Hummer, paid a ton to fill it up, I want them TAKEN OUT!

And those monsters who keep library books past the due date! When I reserve a book and they don't return it IT MAKES ME SO MAD!!! I want them gassed, or hung, or shot by a firing squad.

Anyone I don't like or that my God myth tells me is "bad" should be taken out -- QUICK!!!

And if we have to take out a bunch of "innocent" ones to get the guitly -- wonderful. They probably would have done something bad anyway.

All humans (except me) who make mistakes are EVIL!!!

Statistically and psychologically, nearly all of these "monsters" are your brothers, sons, wives and cousins and can be salvaged. They are human beings who make mistakes. USAmerica stands nearly alone in the world in the depravity of their criminal-injustice system. They lock up more folks than anyone else and have the worst outcomes. The current system does NOTHING to ameliorate crime - it just increases the seriousness of the crimes that are committed.

Doing the same thing over and over expecting a different result is insane.

[bluesmoke]

Part II
Claiming that managing and administrating the death penalty is an excessive burden on the taxpayers- “it costs Florida $51 million a year to enforce the death penalty above what it would cost to sentence first degree murderers to life in prison without parole”- is fuzzy math, at best. The actual cost of administering a lethal injection is miniscule, the seemingly endless judicial process, post-conviction and sentencing, is enormous. The death penalty is not excessively expensive, the resistance to carrying out the will of the people is.

In truth, the problem with the death penalty is that it isn’t used enough. If would-be murders understood that, if caught, they would be put to death, less murder would occur. Instead, they understand it to be a case of odds; even in states that use the death penalty aggressively, odds are that a convicted murder will not receive the death penalty.

Finally, it is shameful of Ms. Rust-Tierney to put convicts and victims of color on the same level, as if they are both responsible for their plight. Victims of any race or color deserve our sympathy and support, convicted murders of any race or color have earned and deserve the death penalty.

[saltwatertrout]

It doesn't matter if the actual cost of the murder of the person on death row is $0--maybe you want to volunteer to go into the room and do it yourself. The fact remains that as soon as a person is sentenced to death, the legal wheels are set in motion and in the end the murder ends up costing more than life in prison would. If you have any sympathy at all for victims such as myself, you will listen to US when we tell you that we do not wish to further exacerbate an awful situation by becoming responsible for the murder of another human being. Also, the endless legal proceedings that come with a death sentence mean that the victims have to relive the crime over and over and over rather than forgive, heal, and move on. The death penalty has not proven to act as a deterrant: states without the death penalty have much lower murder rates. The South accounts for 80% of U.S. executions and has the highest regional murder rate. I wonder how many people would still support the death penalty if they could be called to administer a lethal injection the same way they could be called to jury duty.

[bluesmoke]

Part I
Diann Rust-Tierney takes many liberties in her call to end the death penalty, the most egregious is the presumption that the election of Obama signals support for abolishing it. Rarely, if ever, did the death penalty come up in the lengthy discourse leading up to the election; therefore, how can the issue be linked to his election?

How foolish to suggest that “Americans can't square our values of what is right and lawful with the operation of the death penalty in practice”, and then to go on to say support for the death penalty stands at 63% (a low ball figure based on virtually every poll conducted). Even taken at face value, 63% is a strong majority. The fact is, support for the death penalty increases when specific, non-generic, facts are presented to those being polled- i.e., “do you support the death penalty for those found guilty of child rape-murder”?

Ms. Rust-Tierney further convolutes the issue by linking the cost of managing death row with the current economic situation, as if the dealing with our worst criminals is a matter of economics. If we are expected to curtail certain criminal justice activities in the interest of reducing the taxpayers burden, how about starting with less violent, more sympathetic guests of the penal system; those incarcerated for non-violent drug related offenses, so-called white collar criminals, etc. Why start with the worst predators?

[RogHol]

A humane society don't kill their criminals becuase that act of revenge is in conflict with their goal: Decreasing criminality.
The simple thuth, hard to explain by simple reasoning is : A vengeful society increases crimes.
This atmosphere of revenge promotes severe criminal behaviour, it doesn't prevent it as it does in lesser severe cases.

[StillIRise]

I agree. Capital Punishment is not justice ... it's an act of vengeance.

[GoVeg]

No to Death Penalty! In a spiritual sense, the karma of killing will not end it's cycle. Only love and forgiveness can end the cycle.

[MargaretS]

It's heartening to see the discussion regarding the death penalty which Diann Rust-Tierney's article has generated. For more facts about the death penalty and why it should be abolished which further support Ms. Rust-Tierney's article, and to find out how you can help abolish the death penalty, visit the National Coalition to Abolish the Death Penalty's web site at http://www.ncadp.org.

[Emmory]

The death penalty is only good for one thing...
Revenge.

[Rep/Dem both suck]

As a propnent of the death penalty, I agree with you. It still does not mean it is not justice. Most of justice is based on revenge. You hurt others so get hurt. That's justice.

[Rep/Dem both suck]

I meant to say that if one hurts others they get hurt.

[Emmory]

I'm not against revenge. I think it's fine.

[Mort]

How many girls has Ted Bundy killed since he received the death penalty? Maybe that sounds silly, but it can be a very effective way to protect the community from the worst offenders.

[kbella]

And how many would he have killed from spending the rest of his life in prison?

[booksnmore4you]

Many people on the left believe that death is the appropriate penalty for particularly heinous crimes.

Let's be realistic and concentrate on making it such that a higher standard of proof and reasonable defense is required in death penalty cases.

[Rep/Dem both suck]

As one of those people on the left, I agree 100% with what you said.

[2PartyDictatorship]

The death penalty is about punishment. It does not to fulfill any higher purpose. Of course it has its flaws such as it being implemented against the poor and minorities more often than others. The chances of innocents being executed these days is nearly impossible because of DNA evidence. We should also carry out these sentences faster instead of letting murderers appeal their cases for decades while they live off tax dollars. If it is the money that concerns you, consider the billions we spend on enforcing our ridiculous marijuana laws.

[xxnounxx]

where i am from once the criminal is found 100% guilty with proof,he is hanged within a couple of days.no appeal no tax money wasted on their sorry lives.end off

[marina65]

There are quite a few innocents still in the prisons, and even if you said it was NEARLY impossible that still does not meant that it is not possible. Many people have been having poor defense attorneys and so even though they have this rights to appeal, what good does it do them if their lawyers aren't working properly on their behalf?

[Mort]

The reason the death penalty isn't working and costs so much is that after we sentence a convict to death we house them and pay for endless appeals and maneuvers. Many years down the road we may or may not actually get to the event. In the process we've spent millions and contributed to jail crowding.

If you really want cost effectiveness, as you say, then those that merit capital punishment (yes there are some) should meet their maker quickly. For the rest, prison should be a place of penance rather than a gang infested breeding ground for antisocial behavior with cable tv. We worry about whether they have enough rights and perks, and life is so much easier than on the street they keep coming back. Harsh sentences and discipline will save us a fortune and make our communities safer.

[Figural]

America has Observer status at the European Union's Council of Europe, and is in breach of the treaty giving it that status - see http://assembly.coe.int/documents/AdoptedText/ta01/ERES1253.htm, which deals with the death penalty issue.
For myself, I believe we should send a message and revoke America's Observer status until it abolishes the death penalty completely.
Personally, I believe killing people is always wrong (it's not a religious objection, I'm atheist). Alongside that, I don't believe it's right for a group (society, state) to do what is wrong for the individual to do. Sometimes it's NECESSARY for a state to do what's it's wrong for an individual to do, but I don't believe killing criminals comes into that category. There are people who commit crimes that disgust me so much that I think they're not worth space on this planet, but if I believe what I said earlier, then the death penalty isn't an option. A conflict? Oh yes, no doubt about that, but there's no getting away from the consequences of what I truly believe. It's a belief that's been tested by real life, up close and personal, and I still believe it.
My 2p worth.

[LMPE]

It would be hard to support the death penalty after you've seen the movie "10 Rillington Place".

[xxnounxx]

10 rillington place'' would not change my mind..i am 100% for death penalty to murderers,serial killers,rapists,
and castration and life for peadophiles

[xxnounxx]

If some criminal harmed or killed abeloved of mine i would want the death panalty,i could not live,knowing that the criminal is in alive and in jail sarrounded by comfort,and having his human rights respected,when he did not respect human life to begin with.

[StillIRise]

My best friend's son was murdered at the age of 17, three months before his high school graduation. It was a horrible, senseless loss. He was like my own son, and I grieved his loss as deeply as my friend and her family did, although no one can feel the grief of a parent who loses his/her child. After the perpetrator was found guilty, we were asked to give statements before the sentencing. All of us wrote our statements separately and independent of each other. Yet, when we began to speak in the courtroom, facing the young man who had committed this horrible crime, none of us asked the judge to condemn this young man to death. We wanted him to be punished as severely as possible, but each of us had come to our own understanding that killing him was not the answer. This was almost twenty years ago, and the perpetrator, who was sentenced to 80 years, is still in jail. And our conscience is free from the burden that would have been placed on our hearts if we had consorted to take another human being's life.

[xxnounxx]

Well i respect your decision to spare the life of this evil man.and pray to god to reward and give patience and ease the lives of this innocent victims family.
as for me,i could not live one day knowing he is alive secure in prison ,with his books,dvd'­d,tv,sport­s,and we know what happens in prison nowadays..­its not like he was in prison in some middle-eastern country,were a prison means prison..fo­ur walls,little window,hole on the ground metal bed..terri­ble food....un­til they either becomne insane or die of loneliness.
but european prisons is no punishment for killers,they are 3 star hotels,with friend and rights,wages. so what kind of punishment do you think your friends sons killers is geting.

[FearlessFreep]

Unfortunately, the death penalty doesn't HAVE to work. Its knee-jerk "get tough" appeal usually trumps every other factor in popular opinion. Just like the War on Drugs.

Democrats like Obama who endorse capital punishment to show they're "tough" enough for high office are cynical cowards.