Chapter Twenty

The reasons for the death penalty are:

1. Retribution-An eye for an eye, if you take a life, your
life should be taken.

2. Deterrence-Execution will deter others from killing

3. Incapacitation-Ensuring that the defendant will never
be free to kill again.
Studies that compare murder rates between states
that do and do not have the death penalty find no
deterrent value.

Chapter Twenty
In America, until the 1700s criminal punishment focused on the
body of the offender. Torture and death were common forms of
punishment. The last public execution in the U.S. occurred in
Kentucky in 1936. In 1935, 199 people were put to death, and
the number dropped each year until 1967 when the Supreme
Court ordered a stay of execution pending a hearing on the issue.
The Supreme Court reaffirmed the constitutionality of the practice
in 1976, and since then its use has increased. In the case of
Furman v. Georgia (1972), the Supreme Court ruled that the death
penalty as applied, amounted to cruel and unusual punishment.
The decision invalidated the death penalty of 39 states and
Washington D.C. Over the next few years, 35 states enacted
capital punishment laws that provided for more careful decision
making and more modern methods of execution.

Chapter Twenty
In Gregg v. Georgia (1976) the court upheld laws that require
judges to take aggravating and mitigating circumstances into
account when deciding whether a convicted murderer should
receive the death penalty. In response, states created a bifurcated
system in which the trial and the sentencing stages are separate.
The court also endorsed a proportionality review in which a higher
appellate court reviews each death sentence to see if the death
penalty was also imposed in similar cases.

In Atkins v. Virginia (2002), the court ruled that the execution of a

mentally retarded person was unconstitutional.

In Ring v. Arizona (2002) the court ruled that juries, not judges
must make the factual decision as to whether a convicted
murderer will receive the death penalty.

Chapter Twenty

These are some of the reasons for opposing execution:

1.

Execution of the Insane-If a person is insane at the time the crime is committed, they do not have
the requisite intent to be found guilty of first degree murder. If they become insane after
incarceration, they will not comprehend the punishment and the reason for it.

2.

Effective Counsel-In Strickland v. Washington (1984), the court found that defendants in capital
cases have a right to representation that meets an objective standard of reasonableness. But the
defendant has to show that but for the ineffective counsel, the outcome would have been different.

3.

Death Qualified Juries-In Witherspoon v. Illinois (1968), the court found that the fact that a person
doesnt believe in the death penalty is not cause to remove them from the jury. The court can
remove them during voir dire if their beliefs are so strong it will hinder their ability to perform their
duties.

4.

Appeals-The 60 prisoners executed in 2005 had a death sentence for an average of 12 years and
three months... During that time, their sentences were reviewed by the state courts and through a
writ of habeas corpus, the federal courts. In 1996, Bill Clinton signed the Anti-Terrorism and Effective
Death Penalty Act, which requires death row inmates to file Writs of Habeas Corpus within one year,
and for judges to issue decisions within strict time limits. A major study of death sentence appeals
found that two out of three convictions were overturned on appeal, mostly because of serious errors
by incompetent defense lawyers or overzealous police officers and prosecutors.

Chapter Twenty
Death row inmates tend to be poorly educated, low
income minority males. Only 62 women are on death
row, since 1976 only 11 women have been executed.

African-American males make up 42% of death row

inmates, but only 13% of the population at large.
Defendants are more likely to receive the death penalty
if the victim was white.

In comparing the amount of money spent on a death

row case versus a life in prison sentence, it costs
$55,772 on a non-death penalty capital case, versus
$218,112 to try a death penalty case.