The Death Penalty

Since 1976 more than 1,200 people have been put to death. The death penalty started back in colonial times with hanging and firing squads; by the 1950s most states were using a gas chamber or electrocution. Now the more popular choice is lethal injection. I think the U.S. should abolish the death penalty because it cost too much, it can be inaccurate, and it violates the 8th amendment.

First, the government is wasting money because of death penalty. It costs $2 million dollars more to put someone to death than to keep them in prison for life. The government could be using that money for bigger, better issues. If the crime is bad enough that the death penalty is an option then I believe that person should be imprisoned for life causing the government to save money. Because of the death penalty it cost too much for the government to kill someone.

Secondly, an unfair, inaccurate system is a result of the death penalty. Murderers who killed whites were three times more likely to be sentenced to death penalty than those who killed blacks. This shows that thee death penalty is and has been unfair to certain people. Exonerations of death row inmates, based on DNA testing and other evidence, have led to charges that the death penalty is simply too irreversible. Someone can only make a very educated guess, no one knows who did the crime for sure. A result of the death penalty is an unfair, inaccurate system.

Lastly, the 8th amendment is violated as a result of the death penalty. Just because the government gives out one option that may or may not violate the 8th amendment doesn't mean that it shouldn't be abolished. Death penalty as a whole violates and has violated people's 8th amendment rights for centuries. If all of the people on death row choose not to use lethal injection then the government or anyone else would have no argument. Also, this is about the death penalty as a whole and it should be abolished as one. As a result of the death penalty the 8th amendment is violated.

In conclusion, the death penalty should be abolished. The costs are extremely high, sometimes the government is inaccurate and unfair, and the death penalty violates your 8th amendment rights that were given to all U.S. citizens by the constitution. If the death penalty were to be abolished it would have positive effects on the economy, the people, and the country. The death penalty as a whole should be abolished.