Why the Death Penalty Isn't the Problem
- Andrew Hanson
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In 1991, Troy Davis was convicted of murdering an off-duty police officer and sentenced to death by the state of Georgia. In the years following, many of the witnesses whose testimony led to the conviction of Mr. Davis recanted their version of events. Davis' case moved through the appellate court system throughout the past 20 years until he was executed by the state of Georgia Wednesday evening.
A public outcry, based on the recantations, arose over the execution of Davis by those who seek to abolish the death penalty. PolicyMic pundit Evan Mascagni recently highlighted a few of their arguments, including: (1) capital punishment costs more than life imprisonment; (2) our enemies use capital punishment, while our allies have abolished it; (3) capital punishment disproportionately affects black convicts. Other abolitionists argue that many innocent people have been killed as a result of it. Mascagni concludes: "I have a hard time understanding why the majority of Americans still support the death penalty. Maybe they are simply uneducated about the real effects of this cruel and barbaric form of punishment (or maybe they have a fetish for vengeance)."
I don't think Mascagni is doing its proponents’ arguments justice, nor do I find his arguments against the death penalty convincing. To see why, consider this: on the same day, white supremacist Lawrence Russell Brewer was executed by Texas. Brewer was convicted in the infamous dragging case, in which James Byrd, a black man from East Texas, was tied to the bumper of a truck by Brewer and two friends, and dragged for 3 miles. At the end, what was left of Byrd's shredded remains was dumped between a black church and a nearby cemetery. As far as I know, there was no public outcry by death penalty abolitionists over Brewer’s execution. That may be because many of the criticisms that abolitionists levy against the death penalty are not about the death penalty itself, but the moral difficulties involved in punishment and the justice system in general, which can be further examined during a masters of social work.
But let us consider Mascagni’s arguments anyway. First, the death penalty is more expensive than life imprisonment without parole, not because of the cost of lethal injection, but because their appeals are prioritized in the appellate system. In my view, this counts in favor of capital punishment — the justice system works harder in capital punishment cases than elsewhere. But even if it did not, we should not decide what constitutes a just punishment based on how expensive the punishment is alone.
Second, while many other nations have banned capital punishment, it does not mean we should do the same. Morality is about more than going along with the crowd.
Third, it is true that death row inmates are disproportionately black and that many convicts, in the past, have been proven innocent. But is this a problem with the form of punishment, or the justice system’s effectiveness at convicting guilty parties? Black Americans are not just overrepresented as death row inmates. They are overrepresented in the entire criminal justice system. Is not it also grossly unjust for innocent convicts to be sentenced to be confined to a cell for life and, in many cases, beaten and raped on a regular basis? Is this not just as cruel and unusual as a lethal injection?
The imperfections in the criminal justice system raise serious questions about the permissibility of punishment, but most abolitionists are not arguing for eliminating the justice system altogether. Instead, we should take these criticisms seriously and work to improve the system as best we can. When new evidence arises, we should reexamine it along with the other facts of the case and avoid making hasty decisions. Other reforms should be on the table as well. However, we should recognize that the likelihood that the justice system will be perfect is quite small. This means that the injustice of an innocent person being convicted won’t go away any time soon.
At least until Minority Report becomes reality.
Photo Credit: World Coalition Against the Death Penalty
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Andrew Hanson
Economic researcher/blogger with an interest in issues related to education and inequality. Teach For America alum. Studied philosophy as an unde...
Most Mic'd Responses
I believe poverty is the principal cause of disproportionate convictions and death penalties in minority communities, much less so discriminatory judges and juries . Until we find a way to fight poverty more effectively, crime will continue to cause out-sized representation from these groups.
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The Discussion
Close All ThreadsLegal and ethical issues and costs are among the chief reasons for the decline in the capital punishment. It is not as likely that people will face the death penalty now. (See http://www.newsytype.com/13999-executions-death-sentences/ for more info)
Your article makes a good point in that much of the problem lies in the justice system, but this does not make advocating for an end to the death penalty any less important to upholding the rights of the accused, particularly when there is a high risk, as in Troy Davis, where the accused was innocent. And I think its hard because you get caught on two sides of such a morally driven issue...what do you think of sentencing guidelines that prohibit imposing the death penalty if there is no physical evidence linking the defendant to the crime scene? Or any higher standard than a mere jury's determination of guilt of a defendant, a lot of times, which is a result of witness testimony or witness identification, which can be very unreliable?
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While I appreciate this whole article you sold me with: "Morality is about more than going along with the crowd." So true, I'm glad someone is seeing this about the Troy Davis and not jumping on the band wagon.
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I agree with pretty much every thing in this article. I made a comment in one of the other articles that I support the death penalty, but think that there should be a moratorium while we clean up the justice system. One of the big issues that you point out is that Black Americans are over-represented in the whole criminal system. There is a racial dynamic to our justice system that needs to be addressed, but that is not a fault of the death penalty. It also frustrates me when the hardcore advocates against the death penalty don't raise hell for every execution. The fight should not just be about the ones who may be innocent, but also the ones who are guilty but still facing execution. If you are against it, be against it for everyone.
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Allow me to be idealistic for a second:
Andrew, you mentioned the execution of James Byrd. I don't know what he felt when he was executed; I don't know if he was remorseful, but assuming he wasn't, then what has his death accomplished? Assuming that religion's got it all wrong and "Allahu [isn't so] Akbar" (I pray, no pun intended, you're cultured enough to understand my joke), then our world's most unabashedly unashamed sinners go lights out for a painless eternity -- no heaven, but logically no hell either. In short, they get away with whatever. Instead of killing these people, shouldn't we work to make the PENAL system live up to its name and give an honest attempt at rehabilitating these people -- non-violently inspiring remorse...?
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...Andrew, you're smart...and I'm happy you mentioned Minority Report (such a beautiful movie that maybe needed just a LIIIttle more action)...but I have to say that your second point mid-piece, that "Morality is about more than going along with the crowd" is akin to saying ", is incredibly weak.
43 Replies
I don't remember the name but a British author says that how many will you punish for death? How many will you slaughter? How many will you take into the bars?
Till there is the difference between rich and poor we won't have a second to breath peacefully. We should be having equality, peace, social justice and progress.
Then me and you both will be living in a peaceful World. So we should say no to death penalty.
I don't remember the name but a British author says that how many will you punish for death? How many will you slaughter? How many will you take into the bars?
Till there is the difference between rich and poor we won't have a second to breath peacefully. We should be having equality, peace, social justice and progress.
Then me and you both will be living in a peaceful World. So we should say no to death penalty.
Deterrence is everything, and the fact that there are infinite criminological studies that suggest that the DP does little for murder rates and is arbitrarily administered tells us something. I also have an issue when people claim that the sole purpose of the CJS is to protect law abiding citizens. They are called correctional facilities for a reason that everyone continues to dismiss. When the State kills a man, no one is being corrected, restored or reintegrated. In essence, everyone loses: the family of the original victim, the family of the new victim, the men who are hired by the state who suffer psychological and emotional trauma from conducting the procedure, and our culture.
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Humans, being human, are fallible. As such it behooves us to insure that we can un-make our mistakes. This would argue against application of the death penalty.
At the same time, the concept of being held without possibility of parole for the rest of my life in an 8x10 cell would encourage me to make my life a short one. Arguing in favor of the death penalty because of cruel punishment.
Looking for an easy and straightforward answer? Not happenin'
This one has more twists and turns than a wild mouse ride at the carnival, and as many right answers as there are people thinking about it.
I'm always confused by what people truly mean when they talk about "The Justice System." Nowhere in your article do you attempt to explain or highlight what particular aspect of this justice system necessitates repair. Is it the appellate process? The Voir Dire process? The rules of evidence on admission of prejudicial evidence?
I have faith in the judicial process' administration of justice and guarantee of procedural and substantive due process. But judges are also human and do make mistakes. What is important is to have a system of checks and balances to prevent those mistakes from recurring.
Also, your second point closely resembles Justice Scalia dissent in Roper V. Simmons. Check it out, I think you'd find it very interesting.
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Andrew, Good post, and we ARE going at this the wrong way.
The core question is who we are. I'm not a killer and I don't want to become one. I've done nothing to deserve to have an execution on my conscience, even of a 100% guilty person, even if it costs more to keep them locked up.
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Nice piece Andrew, i'll have to agree with you. You make very interesting points about the close similarities between the death penality and life imprisonment. I'm not sure which is more humane, a lot of convicted murderers serving life end up being killed in jail anyway. What happened in the Troy Davis case was unjust and unfair but that does not mean the death penalty has to be completely eliminated. There are soul-less people out there who commit some downright, gruesome and unremorseful murders that deserve the death penalty. However, The problem is the disproportionatility in death sentencing. As Sal already mentioned, those who come from impoverished areas are more likely to get the needle due to lack of funds, etc.
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Andrew, what of the moral aspect of using the death penalty? I know you were responding to a recent article, but this is an important aspect--what say you?
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I believe poverty is the principal cause of disproportionate convictions and death penalties in minority communities, much less so discriminatory judges and juries . Until we find a way to fight poverty more effectively, crime will continue to cause out-sized representation from these groups.
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"The imperfections in the criminal justice system raise serious questions about the permissibility of punishment, but most abolitionists are not arguing for eliminating the justice system altogether."
You can release a wrongly convicted person from prison, but you can't un-execute somone, such as Cameron Willingham. Each year people on death row are exonerated. This fact alone should be enough for abolishment, or at least a moratorium.
7 Replies