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The Death Of A Criminal Crimes are committed everyday. Many people are caught, while many are not. In the United States Of America, when a person kills another person he / she is considered a murderer. The instant the murder takes place, all rights should automatically be revoked.
Murderers should not be allowed to walk the streets. Once a person has killed, there should be no chance it could happen again. Convicted murders should be given the death penalty and have it carried out at once. The death penalty is a controversial sentence.
Not every one feels the same way, but I believe that, in America, the death penalty for murderers is beneficial to the economy and its a punishment that fits the crime. Anti-death penalty supporters argue the death penalty is unconstitutional and that capital punishment is a barbaric remnant of an uncivilized society. It is immoral in principle, and unfair and discriminatory in practice. It assures the execution of some innocent people. As a remedy for crime, it has no purpose and no effect (American Civil Liberties Union National Office 2 - 16 - 95). In 1972, the supreme court in Furman v.
Georgia ruled that the death penalty for murder was unconstitutional. They also argue that the death penalty costs too much to carry out (Academic American Encyclopedia? Capital Punishment? ). Yet, in 1976, The Supreme Court in Gregg V. Georgia declared the death penalty for murder is constitutional (AAE? Capital Punishment? ).
The death penalty is also fair and serves its justice. Surveyed police chiefs and sheriffs choose the death penalty as a primary method to combat violent crime (Montgomery 2 - 25 - 95). It cost less in the long run as well. It is a lot better to get rid of the scum then to feed, clothe, and shelter them. How does the economy benefit from the death penalty? First of all, the American economy has enough problems as it is.
The government is trying to cut spending left and right. State and Federal Prisons are overcrowded. What do these prisons have to do with American Economy? American tax money is used to support hard core criminals like murderers and rapists that are serving their sentence.
At the end of 1992, State and Federal prisons reached a record high of 883, 593 prisoners. This record means that approximately 1, 143 prison bed spaces are needed per week due to overcrowding. To put this in a economic prospective, on the average each prisoner cost $ 22, 000 per year, and the cost of new construction averages almost $ 54, 000 per bed (AAE? Prison? ).
The 883, 593 prisoners are costing the American taxpayers approximately $ 19. 4 billion plus another $ 61. 7 Million for the construction of the 1, 143 spaces needed. Why should we, the tax payers / the victims, support these criminals? It? s true that not all the prisoners are hard core, but in 1992, 2, 575 prisoners all murderers were sentenced to death (BJS 5 - 93). 31 (one female) of the 2, 575 (36 female) murderers had been executed during 1992.
This is the largest number of people executed for any year since 1976 (BJS 12 - 92). By executing these murderers, the American tax money could be used for something more useful. Thus the economy benefits from the death penalty. In addition, it helps lower the prison population by the number executed. The average time a death row prisoner has to spend in jail until the death sentence is carried out is about nine years and six months (BJS 12 - 92).
It? s more economical to keep them in prison for those nine years and execute them, rather that let them spend their life in jail taking up space and tax money. Those who argue that it? s more expensive to execute a prisoner don? t look at the overall picture. Suppose the Amount A equals the amount of money to support on prisoner per year ($ 22, 000) and Amount B equals the cost of the Execution (negligible).
We are talking about paying Amount A times the nine years spent in jail plus Amount B for the execution plus the cost for new construction during the nine years (total is approx. $ 690, 000). as opposed to paying Amount A times and average of 60 years the prisoner would spend in jail plus the cost of new construction during an average of 60 years (total approx. $ 4, 560, 000). Even if the prisoner spent 20 years in prison, the cost would be approximately $ 1, 520, 000. How is the death penalty a punishment that fits the crime? Well, not every prisoner deserves the death penalty. People who kill someone in self defense should not be treated as one who kills just for the sake of killing.
This is one instance anti-death penalty supporters will bring up. The criteria for evaluating whether or not a person is sentenced to death varies from state to state. The states that have death penalty laws are Alabama, Arizona, Arkansas, California, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, Florida, Georgia, Idaho, Illinois, Indiana, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maryland, Mississippi, Missouri, Montana, Nebraska, Nevada New Hampshire, New jersey, New Mexico, North Carolina, Ohio, Oklahoma, Oregon, Pennsylvania, South Caroling, South Dakota, Tennessee, Texas, Utah, Virginia, Washington, and Wyoming. The choices of execution are hanging, electrocution, gas chamber, firing squad, and lethal injection (BJS 12 - 92). These choices also vary from state to state. There are guidelines that are followed before a prisoner is sentenced to death.
Of those, one of the most important reads, ? Capital punishment may be imposed only when guilt is determined by clear and convincing evidence leaving no room for an alternative explanation of the fact (Crime Prevention and Criminal Justice Branch 5 - 25 - 84). ? We live in a day and age where killing and raping happens everyday, and many get away with it. Those who are caught don?
t deserve for American taxpayers / victims to pay for them to stay in a jail cell for the rest of their life. If the death penalty were to be implemented more maybe would-be murderers and rapists would think twice before committing their crimes. If we could rid our streets of those people, there could be a safer place for everyone. Men and women could feel safer jogging or doing errands at night.
Single women could feel safer in their homes. Children could feel safe playing in their yards. By sentencing murderers to death the economy benefits, and the punishment fits the crime. Thus the death penalty is beneficial in that it saves money and lets us feel secure.
WORK CITED Academic American Encyclopedia. ? Prison? , ? Capital Punishment. ? Danbury: Grolier Electronic Publishing, 1995.
American Civil Liberties Union National Office. ? New York Civil Liberties Union say No to death Penalty. ? February 16, 1995 Bureau of Justice Statistics. ? Capital Punishment 1992. ? May! 993. Bureau of Justice Statistics. ?
Prisoners in 1992. ? May 1993. Crime Prevention and Criminal Justice Branch. ? Safeguards guaranteeing protection of the rights of those facing the death penalty. ? May 25, 1984 Montgomery, Lori. ? Death penalty ineffective, police say. ?
Austin American-Statesman, February 25, 1995: A 20
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