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below you will see a map color coded to show the states that have the death penalty. (this hasn't been updated, so there has been change since but for the most part, this is accurate to today)

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there are many different ways people are killed that are on death row, including the background image. What you are seeing is the electric chair. Victims are strapped into the chair, and the name speaks for itself. The other most used way is lethal injection. This is a quick process, being that what is injected instantly kills whoever has the solution in their system.

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to be on the death penalty, you had to have done something pretty horrible. some of which includes:
-murder/attempted murder
-espionage
-drug trafficking (large scale)

there are also pardons (in this case rarely) and government involvement in every court case, so the process to be officially on the death row is very complicated, considering it is life or death.

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my op-ed talks about how bad the death penalty is. I chose to do this topic because it is something that I am very interested in, being that most of the books I read are murder mysteries. I am most proud of my ending. I think I wrapped up my writing really well.

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Ever heard of Dustin Higgs? You know, the innocent guy on the death row. He was killed at the beginning of 2021 even though there was evidence of his innocence. Now, this should make you mad. It sure doesn’t make me too happy. This isn’t the first time it's happened either. There has been way too many innocent people on death row for it to continue to run as it is. If the death penalty continues to be a law, it must be amended.

The death penalty is a law that is also known as capital punishment. People get put on ‘death row’ when they have committed a horrible crime that instead(or additionally) to prison, they get killed. But, the death penalty has killed many innocent people with the knowledge of their innocence. Overall it’s pretty horrible, this is just an example.

Studies from 2017 on ProCon.org have shown that the year before (2016), there were about 14,000 murders and only 35 executions. (ProCon.org) While the death penalty works very differently in every state, this statistic is a perfect example of how the death penalty just doesn’t work. Where are the other murderers? Why didn’t they get executed as well? This clearly shows how many flaws the system has.

If you don’t believe me, take it from the previous supreme court judge Thurgood Marshall. He said, “[Capital punishment] violates the Eighth Amendment because it is morally unacceptable to the people of the United States at this time in their history. In judging whether or not a given penalty is morally acceptable, most courts have said that the punishment is valid unless ‘it shocks the conscience and sense of justice of the people” (Thurgood Marshall, ProCon.org) This quote talks about how the killing of another person violates the constitution, which our country is made of. If the constitution says it's wrong, it probably is.

And if you still need more convincing, here's a quote from former New York governor, Mario Cuomo. “What makes the risk of wrongful execution all the more unacceptable is that there is an effective alternative to burning the life out of human beings in the name of public safety.” (Mario Cuomo, ProCon.org) This quote brings up the idea of an “effective alternative.” This could mean something such as a mental institution or a lifetime of prison. Most people that have murderous tendencies or that have done a crime worse enough to get on death row usually have something very messed up in the head. Putting a criminal in a mental institution is a much better solution than just killing someone who very obviously needs serious help.

Another option is prison reform. When asked in a survey, 40% of 8th grade CMS students don’t know what this is. Prison reform is all about improving the conditions in prison to make the environment better for the prisoners. If the conditions were better in prison, there is a chance we would have less criminals to deal with, as they would have been dealt with in prison. This option isn’t as well known, and it needs to be more popularized. Prison reform has the potential to be very beneficial for criminals. Building off of positive reform, 8th grader Jack Stoler says, “The death penalty is wrong because it's inhumane, and doesn’t give the prisoners the opportunity to develop into good people. The death penalty is morally unethical.” I agree completely with this statement. Allowing prisoners to change will better society and hopefully deter the crime rate.

Some people think that whether they are innocent or not, the death penalty eliminates too many threats for it to be changed. A quote to support this side is from former president Donald Trump. He thinks, “The death penalty. It should be brought back and it should be brought back strong… They say it’s not a deterrent. Well, you know what, maybe it’s not a deterrent but these two [men convicted of killing two police officers in Hattiesburg, MS] will not do any more killing. That’s for sure.”(Donald Trump, ProCon.org) This statement is absolutely bogus. Putting them in isolated prison cells or in mental institutions will do the same thing. That's literally what lifetime sentences are for. I can refute this quote by saying that there are always other options than killing.

As you can see, the death penalty is pretty horrible. But, it has eliminated threats, so taking that into consideration, we need to at least amend this law. Whatever happens, there needs to be fewer innocent lives taken. There are so many other options than killing people. I’ll leave you with this; if murder is so wrong, how is the death penalty different?