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Federal, state, and local officials need to recognize that the death penalty saves lives. 1968 study of the economics of crime assumed that individuals respond to the costs and benefits of committing crime.Individuals make their decisions based on the net costs and benefits of each alternative.Numerous studies published over the past few years, using panel data sets and sophisticated social science techniques, are demonstrating that the death penalty saves lives. The longitudinal nature of the panel data allows researchers to analyze the impact of the death penalty over time that cross-sectional data sets cannot address.

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The Death Penalty Should Not Be Abolished

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Criminal Justice, edited by Noël Merino, Greenhaven Press, 2013. Opposing Viewpoints. Opposing Viewpoints in Context, http%3A%2F%2Flink.galegroup.com%2Fapps%2Fdoc%2FEJ3010120283%2FOVIC%3Fu%3Dpl2683%26sid%3DOVIC%26xid%3D33df4001. Accessed 27 Feb. 2019. Originally published as "The Death Penalty Deters Crime and Saves Lives," vol. 271, 2007.

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The death penalty dose not help victims families.

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inmates are usually on death row for roughly 15 years.

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The death penalty should be illegal in the U.S

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Between 1980 and 2012, California spent $4 billion administering death penalty cases while actually executing just 13 individuals. Given the legitimate need to hear appeals in death penalty cases, there will never be a way to make killing people less expensive that paying for them to serve out life sentences.the death penalty does not add any significant deterrent effect above that of long-term imprisonment.Fully 88 percent of criminal-justice experts responding to a poll saying the death penalty does not act as a deterrent of murder.the murder rate per 100,000 residents in non-death-penalty states has been consistently lower than the rate in states with executions. No matter how despicable murderers can be, the state can make sure we’re safe by locking them up behind bars for the rest of their and our lives.

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There are at least 10 executions scheduled to take place in the United States before the end of the year. Since the Supreme Court re-allowed executions in 1976, about 1,400 people have been executed.

Whether it's because of botched attempts like the recent "macabre screw-ups" in Oklahoma and Ohio or the increasing number of cases in which death row inmates are exonerated, the case for capital punishment seems to get weaker with every new execution.

Here are three reasons to get rid of the death penalty.
1. The death penalty is too expensive.
Between 1980 and 2012, California spent $4 billion administering death penalty cases while actually executing just 13 individuals, according to a study produced by Loyola Marymount Law Professor Paula Mitchell. When the death penalty is in play, she says, "the legal costs [per case] skyrocket to an extra $134 million per year, well above the cost to implement life without possibility of parole."

Given the legitimate need to hear appeals in death penalty cases, there will never be a way to make killing people less expensive that paying for them to serve out life sentences.
2. The death penalty doesn't deter crime.
A 2009 study by University of Colorado scholars published in the Journal of Criminal Law & Criminology concludes flatly "the consensus among criminologists is that the death penalty does not add any significant deterrent effect above that of long-term imprisonment." Fully 88 percent of criminal-justice experts responding to a poll saying the death penalty does not act as a deterrent of murder.

What's more, the murder rate per 100,000 residents in non-death-penalty states has been consistently lower than the rate in states with executions.
3. The government shouldn't kill people.
The state's first role-and arguably its only one-is protecting the lives and property of its citizens. In everything it does-from collecting taxes to seizing property for public works to incentivizing "good" behaviors and habits-it should use the least violence or coercion possible.

No matter how despicable murderers can be, the state can make sure we're safe by locking them up behind bars for the rest of their-and our-lives. That's not only a cheaper answer than state-sanctioned murder, it's a more moral one, too.

Written and narrated by Nick Gillespie. Produced by Meredith Bragg and Joshua Swain.

About 2 minutes. Scroll down for downloadable versions and subscribe to Reason TV's YouTube channel to get automatic notifications when new videos go live.

This video is based on a longer, link-rich article Gillespie wrote for The Daily Beast. Go here to read the original.

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3 Reasons to Get Rid of the Death Penalty

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There are at least 10 executions scheduled to take place in the United States before the end of the year. Since the Supreme Court re-allowed executions in 1976, about 1,400 people have been executed.

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The death penalty is now largely isolated to only a small handful of states which actively use it, but despite this diminished use, the flaws and failures of capital punishment are more apparent than ever. Stats from the Death Penalty Information Center indicate that in the past forty years,here have been 1,184 executions in the South compared to just four in the Northeast, and yet homicide figures in 2015 were nearly 70 percent higher in the Southern states. We need to take a closer look at what works and what doesn’t, and use a common-sense approach to improve public safety.  Survivors of homicide who oppose the death penalty report being treated like second-class victims by some prosecutors.We need to take the focus, attention and resources that the death penalty steals to focus our hearts and hands on creating a culture of healing and support for victims of homicide and violence.

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Despite the shocking spectacle of assembly-line executions in Arkansas earlier this year, the use of the death penalty is in decline. Arkansas's willingness to execute four men in eight days, including two in a single night, demonstrates the extreme lengths to which proponents of capital punishment will go to retain this brutal practice-and why it must be abolished.

The death penalty is now largely isolated to only a small handful of states which actively use it, but despite this diminished use, the flaws and failures of capital punishment are more apparent than ever.

The death penalty does not improve public safety

We all want a criminal justice system that's sensible, effective, and creates a safe society with less crime-and evidence shows that the death penalty has no impact on public safety. Stats from the Death Penalty Information Center indicate that in the past forty years, there have been 1,184 executions in the South compared to just four in the Northeast, and yet homicide figures in 2015 were nearly 70 percent higher in the Southern states.

We need to take a closer look at what works and what doesn't, and use a common-sense approach to improve public safety. By abolishing the death penalty, we could focus our time, energy and resources on supporting victims and families harmed by violence. We must ensure that all victims are treated fairly and with respect. If you listen to victims speak about their experience with the death penalty, you find that virtually all are frustrated with the current system. There's no such thing as quick and easy in a system that's supposed to be deliberative to ensure that the innocent aren't punished along with the guilty-and even then the system gets it wrong too often.

Moreover, all victims are not treated fairly. Survivors of homicide who oppose the death penalty report being treated like second-class victims by some prosecutors. Questions about the death penalty divide families needlessly. Further, there are stark disparities in how victims are treated based on race. A study by the Vera Institute in 2014 found that victim assistance services including treatment for trauma are routinely unavailable to young African American men. Despite their ordeal, the system is more likely to treat African American men as perpetrators or even complicit in their victimization. We need to take the focus, attention and resources that the death penalty steals to focus our hearts and hands on creating a culture of healing and support for victims of homicide and violence.

The death penalty does not address the root causes of crime

Our focus needs to be on preventing crime and violence. We know that to reduce crime and violence we must focus on the root causes of crime. Crime happens when other issues are neglected such as mental health, housing, access to education and sustainable employment options. When these issues are addressed, communities become safe and vibrant, and when you look at those on death row in the United States, you see the costly evidence of neglecting children, families and communities at risk. We can help move communities and our nation forward by addressing the root causes of crime to create strong, healthy families and our communities.

Most law enforcement officials agree that the death penalty is not a deterrent to crime. Perpetrators rarely consider the consequences when they engage in violence-if they did they wouldn't commit crimes in the first place. The few people who might think about the consequences also think they won't get caught, so the death penalty isn't a factor.

These same people rank the death penalty last among their priorities for crime reduction. We already know that executions have no impact in reducing crime, so shouldn't we get ahead of the problem? Shouldn't we provide positive interventions for people and communities at risk? A brutal execution in the middle of the night won't prevent the next tragedy.

The death penalty is not applied fairly across the country

In 2016, 30 death sentences were imposed across the United States, making it the lowest number in 40 years. In fact, the death penalty is in decline by every measure; only 20 executions took place last year and just four states, Georgia, Texas, Florida and Missouri, were responsible for 90 percent of them. The death penalty has also been eliminated in six states and four more states have put a moratorium on executions. Overall, only a handful of counties (just two percent) impose death sentences in the U.S.

As use of the death penalty declines, we must pay attention to those who are selected for this severe punishment. Being sentenced to death doesn't depend on whether you've committed the worst crime, but where the crime is committed. People who live in the South are more likely to receive death sentences than people in other parts of the country-even when they commit the same crime. One of the reasons that the death penalty is used more in the South is because these states are notorious for failing to provide public defenders to those who can't afford one, even though the Constitution requires them to do so. And, often, whether you're sentenced to death or not depends on whether you had a good lawyer.

Issues of racial inequality also continue to plague our criminal justice system. Activists challenging police shootings of unarmed African American men and the disparate treatment of victims based on race provide modern day examples of the way in which racial bias continues to infect our justice system, including the death penalty. While we strive to address these problems, the best way to make sure that there's fairness is to abolish the death penalty in all states.

We can change

We're all more than the worst thing we've ever done, because all human beings are capable of change. If our criminal justice system is to change, it should be designed not just to punish, but to also rehabilitate those who've committed crimes. There should always be the opportunity for rehabilitation, redemption and grace. We have the capacity to hold people accountable and separate dangerous people from society without foreclosing that opportunity.

So, do we continue down a path that has failed repeatedly to produce results? Do we continue with an institution that inflicts harm? The death penalty traumatizes everyone it touches: victim survivors, prosecutors, defense lawyers, prison workers and families. Former wardens, guards and execution team members report severe damage to their mental and physical health because of the stress and trauma of participating in executions and killing prisoners. It doesn't have to be this way. The death penalty is an old-fashioned, outdated, harmful practice, and it must be abolished.

or pick up the limited edition and join our efforts to put the focus on healing. We don't need to kill people to teach people that killing is wrong.

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national coalition to abolish the death penalty

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Despite the shocking spectacle of assembly-line executions in Arkansas earlier this year, the use of the death penalty is in decline. Arkansas's willingness to execute four men in eight days, including two in a single night, demonstrates the extreme lengths to which proponents of capital punishment will go to retain this brutal practice-and why it must be abolished.

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In 1976, 138 innocent men and women have been released from death row, including some who came within minutes of execution.  In 2000 a fiscal impact summary from the Oregon Department of Administrative Services stated that the Oregon Judicial Department alone would save $2.3 million annually if the death penalty were eliminated. One of the most frequent causes of reversals in death penalty cases is ineffective assistance of counsel. Families of murder victims undergo severe trauma and loss which no one should minimize. There is no reason to place the mental health of our corrections workers at risk simply to pursue vengeance.

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There is a better alternative: life without parole.
In Oregon, we have the option of sentencing convicted murderers to life in prison without the possibility of parole. There are currently over 121 people in Oregon who have received this sentence.

The death penalty puts innocent lives at risk.
Since the reinstatement of the death penalty in the United States in 1976, 138 innocent men and women have been released from death row, including some who came within minutes of execution. In Missouri, Texas and Virginia investigations have been opened to determine if those states executed innocent men. To execute an innocent person is morally reprehensible; this is a risk we cannot take.

Race and place determine who lives and who dies.
Those who kill whites are more likely to be sentenced to die than those who kill African-Americans. In Oregon, prosecutors from some counties are more likely to pursue the death penalty than others are.

We pay many millions for the death penalty system.
According to the Oregonian, in 1995 the trials for three Washington County murder cases cost more than $1.5 million. One was sentenced to death. The two others, one of whom was found guilty of four murders, are not on death row. In 2000 a fiscal impact summary from the Oregon Department of Administrative Services stated that the Oregon Judicial Department alone would save $2.3 million annually if the death penalty were eliminated. It is estimated that total prosecution and defense costs to the state and counties equal $9 million per year.

Poor quality defense leaves many sentenced to death.
One of the most frequent causes of reversals in death penalty cases is ineffective assistance of counsel. A study at Columbia University found that 68% of all death penalty cases were reversed on appeal, with inadequate defense as one of the main reasons requiring reversal.

Capital punishment does not deter crime.
Scientific studies have consistently failed to demonstrate that executions deter people from committing crime. Around our country, states without the death penalty have a lower murder rate than neighboring states with the death penalty.

There is a better way to help the families of murder victims.
Families of murder victims undergo severe trauma and loss which no one should minimize. However, executions do not help these people heal nor do they end their pain; the extended process prior to executions prolongs the agony of the family. Families of murder victims would benefit far more if the funds now being used for the costly process of executions were diverted to counseling and other assistance.

The death penalty is applied at random.
The death penalty is a lethal lottery: of the 15,000 to 17,000 homicides committed every year in the United States, approximately 120 people are sentenced to death, less than 1%.

Capital punishment goes against almost every religion.
Although isolated passages of the Bible have been quoted in support of the death penalty, almost all religious groups in the United States regard executions as immoral.

Mentally ill people are executed.
One out of every ten who has been executed in the United States since 1977 is mentally ill, according to Amnesty International and the National Association on Mental Illness. Many mentally ill defendants are unable to participate in their trials in any meaningful way and appear unengaged, cold, and unfeeling before the jury. Some have been forcibly medicated in order to make them competent to be executed. Although the U.S. Supreme Court has decreed that people with "mental retardation" may not be executed, Oregon has not yet passed a law banning the execution of the mentally ill.

The USA is keeping company with notorious human rights abusers.
The vast majority of countries in Western Europe, North America and South America - more than 117 nations worldwide - have abandoned capital punishment in law or in practice. The United States remains in the same company as Iraq, Iran and China as one of the major advocates and users of capital punishment.

We are the "State." When the "State" kills, we are participants.
Would you choose to be the person that pulls the switch that snuffs out a human life?

No civilian's job description should include killing another person.
Corrections personnel involved in executions, like our military, frequently suffer PTSD from having to kill. Perhaps there is a reason to have a defensive military, but prisoners pose no threat to the well-being of our citizens. There is no reason to place the mental health of our corrections workers at risk simply to pursue vengeance.

Sources:
Death Penalty Information Center ( www.deathpenaltyinfo.org)
FBI Uniform Crime Reports ( www.fbi.gov/about-us/cjis/ucr/ucr)
Death Penalty Focus ( www.deathpenalty.org)
The American Civil Liberties Union ( www.aclu.org)
The National Association on Mental Illness ( www.nami.org)
Oregonians for Alternatives to the Death Penalty ( www.oadp.org)

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The Facts: 13 Reasons to Oppose the Death Penalty

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There is a better alternative: life without parole. In Oregon, we have the option of sentencing convicted murderers to life in prison without the possibility of parole. There are currently over 121 people in Oregon who have received this sentence. The death penalty puts innocent lives at risk.

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The death penalty is a hot topic in politics.

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Bernie Sanders Wants to End Death Penalty, Hillary Clinton Wants to Keep It

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this video shows 2 sides of 2 stories.

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Capital punishment is, unjust.

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An electric chair is one form of how they execute the death penalty.

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Americans on both sides of the capital punishment debate drow support for their arguments from the U.S constitution. Also, the government has the authority to execute someone provide certain legal producers, such as formal arrest, Indictment, and a trial. Another interesting fact is that, Lawmakers of the newly country granted federal judges the authority to sentence criminals to death. Americans law had not only accepted capital punishment but required it in class involving certain forms of murder.

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Justice is not served with the death penalty. 130 human beings on death rows throughout the united states have been released from jail for being wrongfully convicted. South has the highest murder rate, the Northeast has the lowest murder rate in the nation. Thirty-six states and the federal government of the United States still impose the death penalty. The people of state New Jersey elected political leaders who ended this random act of brutality.

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Justice Is Not Served with the Death Penalty

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The Death Penalty, edited by Jenny Cromie and Lynn M. Zott, Greenhaven Press, 2013. Opposing Viewpoints. Opposing Viewpoints in Context, http%3A%2F%2Flink.galegroup.com%2Fapps%2Fdoc%2FEJ3010124275%2FOVIC%3Fu%3Dpl2683%26sid%3DOVIC%26xid%3Dad1e72ce. Accessed 6 Mar. 2019. Originally published as "The Road to Justice and Peace," blog.nj.com, 2 Feb. 2009.