The death penalty seems to be losing popularity, specifically in Texas where the number of death penalties dealt out has reached record lows. There are several explanations for this. Hollywood may have influenced the modern jury by giving an expectation of proof on the level of a CSI show. This makes the jury harder to convince than in the past (this last year 9 death penalties were dealt out as compared to about 48 per year in the late 1990’s).
Another possible explanation is that the cost of prosecuting a death penalty case, which could require a large amount of resources given the increasing expertise of lawyers and a more exhaustive review of such cases by judges, is an effort which is difficult for some communities to sustain. The possibility of a life sentence without parole may also have made a difference because in the past the two options for serious offenses were life in prison with the possibility of parole in 40 years or death row.
Furthermore, it is suggested that perchance the demographics in Texas and regions of the South are changing, causing a shift in the prevalent ideologies. I did a little research and found what Gallup has to say on the issue; I was astounded by my findings. There seems to be overwhelming support for the death penalty across all lines (party, gender, religion, etc.). So much for gradual enlightenment... Go to Gallup to see more.
4 comments:
I think that the the slump in death penalty popularity is good. I feel that a criminal will suffer more while staying in jail for life than to instantly being killed by the death penalty.
I'm surprised that the death penalty is losing popularity. People who have committed horrendous crimes should be severely punished. Also, we should not be paying for their expenses. I researched the costs of the death penalty in california and I found this website.
http://www.deathpenaltyinfo.org/costs-death-penalty
I'm not as surprised that death penalty is losing its popularity. Maybe people are actually becoming sick of wars and people dying. To be honest, I support death penalty only on extreme cases where all proof points to only direction.
Why is it that, according to the polls, Democrats are more lenient on handing out death penaltys? Is it because more lower income people are in prison and part of the Democrat party?
I would definitely like to see polls about how many people change their opinions after something major happens in their life. ;/
the system needs to be reformed, its ridiculous to have to pay so much to hand out a sentence to someone who deserves it. if the guy shot up a day care center and ran -he would've been shot in the back and killed right there, for the price of a few rounds....however, we insist on paying sums like 37.2 million for one inmate, this is ridiculous. looking at the figures, it reminds me of the exchange of money with a parking ticket. pay the meter and you dont get a ticket. many people forget to pay though. this is like a criminal who surrenders on the scene and therefore must be arrested and prosecuted. many people then continue to throw money down the drain by not paying the ticket on time, and suddenly they see a 25$ ticket balloon into 373$. such are the costs associated with marylands 37.2$ million dollar death sentences......it's sad how much human incompetence costs us. File the forms, get the trial over with on time, and give out the sentence. minumal cost. minimal wait. minimal money thrown down the drain. otherwise, we can just abolish the penalty and feed and house the criminals with our tax money for the rest of their lives....another brilliant cost friendly idea
Post a Comment