As of Dec. 31, 2010 at least 17,833 people are sentenced to die. (“Death Penalty”)This sentence comes in the form of the death penalty, a debatable method of punishment, that has been used all over the world. The penalty was first brought to America by European settlers and the first recorded execution in the new colonies was Captain George Kendall in the Jamestown colony of Virginia in 1608. After being brought to a council Kendall and hung for his crimes. (“Wrongful Convictions Overturned”) Today capital punishment is much different. The punishment is now exclusively for the crime of murder. It is meant to provide closure to victims families, justice, and deter people from commiting murder. Theses goals do not rationalise the negatives. The United States should abolish the death penalty because it is cruel and unnecessary, extremely costly, and has not proven as effective deterrent of decreasing crime.
This punishment is a aberant way to handle justice. In the early
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A case involving the death penalty is $1.26 million, while one without costs $740,000. (“Death Penalty”) While one might think it is cheaper to execute someone than to house, feed and take care of them for the rest of their life, it is not. The death sentence costs at least 18 times as much as a sentence of life without parole would cost. (“California Affirms Death”)There are many costs that make a death sentence far more expensive than a sentence of life without parole. Because it is the truly irreversible form of punishment it requires a long and complex judicial process for capital cases, including several levels of mandatory review of the case. In addition to theses appeals and processings can takes decades to complete. This is way too expensive for an unjust punishment and the money could be used for better things. Because of its extreme cost, the death punishment should be abolished and replaced with life in