The Death Penalty’s Inefficiency Saanvi Kunisetty

 The Death Penalty’s Inefficiency

Saanvi Kunisetty

Throughout its existence, the death penalty has proven to be futile. For starters, once it is administered, it becomes irrevocable. In America, over 20 cases involved an executed inmate whose case showed strong signs of innocence. Larry Swearingen, for instance, was executed for killing a woman, though the tested DNA did not match Swearingen’s. The time the woman was murdered was later unearthed through medical examinations, and during this time, Swearingen had been in jail for traffic violations (Executed). The world lost an innocent life the day he died. In addition to irreversibility, capital punishment is not cost-efficient. States must pay for numerous additions such as pre-trial detention, greater security, attorney compensation, and more (Costs). During the time of New Jersey’s death penalty revocation, it was found that the annual cost per person in prison was $33,000 lower than the annual cost per person in the death row (Johnson). This money could instead be used to improve prison facilities. Lastly, while the death penalty is supported in hopes of suppressing future crime, it has not been doing so. When Canada abolished the death penalty in 1975, its homicide rate was 3.09 per 100,000 people, but by 1980, in the absence of the death penalty, the rate decreased to 2.41. By 2000, America was at a high rate of 5.5, while Canada dropped down to 1.8 (Death Penalty In). As Nelson Mandela once proclaimed, “great anger and violence [even in the face of violence itself] can never build a nation,” but only further weaken it. 

In order to maximize the punishment system’s equitability and success, certain guidelines should be inculcated. First, the death penalty should be abolished so that innocent lives are not lost and the thought of treating violence with violence is eliminated. With this should also come the eradication of the death row. Instead, people convicted of murder can be sentenced to life imprisonment, which will conserve money for other necessities, such as providing inmates with proper living conditions.

Works Cited

“Costs.” Death Penalty Information Center, 12 Oct. 2017, deathpenaltyinfo.org/policy-issues/costs. Accessed 8 Mar. 2021.

“Death Penalty in Uzbekistan.” Tbinternet.ohchr.org, tbinternet.ohchr.org/Treaties/CAT/Shared%20Documents/UZB/INT_CAT_NGO_UZB_39_10271_E.pdf. Accessed 8 Mar. 2021.

“Executed but Possibly Innocent.” Death Penalty Information Center, May 2019, deathpenaltyinfo.org/policy-issues/innocence/executed-but-possibly-innocent#nathaniel_woods. Accessed 8 Mar. 2021.