The laws and criminal justice system have a significant influence on the everyday lives of citizens in the United States. The decisions made in the criminal justice system impact all members of society, especially criminals, legal officials, and the general public. The argument of whether or not the death penalty should be abolished is a controversial topic that has been discussed for many years. While some people believe the punishment deters crime and creates a safer society, others disagree. Some find the punishment too harsh and believe there are other forms of punishment that are more effective and less permanent than the death penalty. While the issue has been discussed for several years, different cases occur each day in which judges and criminal justice officials must face decisions about the death penalty. Different cases and the way they are handled may cause others to consider their own view about the death penalty and the positions that might be held. This issue affects all members of the United States, as crime and the effect it has on society is something that will always be a part of life. In this paper, I will describe the effects the death penalty has on the United States, and why this punishment should be abolished in the United States. 

The use of capital punishment often costs many innocent people their lives in the United States. As mentioned by Phillip Holloway in Death Penalty: Why America Needs a Rethink, "there have been 154 verified cases of death row exonerations since 1973" (Holloway). Also, several other studies have shown that more than four percent of people sentenced to the death penalty were actually innocent. Another study shows that "approximately 120 of the roughly 3,000 inmates currently on death row in America might not be guilty" (Lavender). This is significant because it shows that it can be difficult to find proper evidence for a case, and unless it is known for certain that the person committed the crime, they should not be put to death. There have even been several cases in which there was DNA evidence involved, however the detectives did not determine the person was innocent until it was too late. An example of wrongful execution can be seen in the case involving Claude Jones, who was executed in Texas in 2000. In this case, the only admissible form of evidence was a strand of hair found at the crime scene. This piece of hair was examined by a forensic expert, who determined that the hair must have come from Jones. However, upon later investigation of the case, it was proven that the hair was from the victim, and not Jones. This case shows a significant problem and disadvantage of the death penalty. Once someone is killed, there is nothing that can be done if evidence is later determined to be inadmissible. Another example of wrongful conviction can be seen in the case regarding Henry McCollum and Leon Brown, which occurred in North Carolina. These two brothers were arrested and sentenced to the death penalty, however new DNA evidence determined that another man was the murderer. The brothers were released in September 2014, after being kept in prison for nearly three decades. While these brothers were lucky enough to be released from prison after being sentenced to the death penalty, often times the evidence is found too late, and the person has already been executed. Also, while the brothers have been able to reenter society, they have faced several problems reintegrating into society, and becoming members of the community after being held in prison for so long. These cases prove that there are other forms of punishment that could be instilled that could still cause the criminal to be held accountable for their actions, but are far less permanent than sentencing someone to death. Innocent people should not face punishment for crimes they have not committed. 

In addition to people being wrongfully committed due to DNA evidence, people are also unfairly sentenced "based on race, class, or what county they happen to be in" (Rust-Tierney). Several studies have shown that minorities are also frequently wrongly convicted, and sentenced to the death penalty. For example, the article Geographies of Capital Punishment in the United States: The Execution of Troy Davis by Joshua Inwood describes how minorities have been wrongly sentenced to capital punishment, and discusses the relationship between the use of the death penalty and the location. For example, in Tennessee, reports have shown that "over a third of all of Tennessee's death row inmates are from Shelby County." This county is located in Memphis, which the article mentions has had a history of racial discrimination to minorities from police officers in the area. As a result of this discrimination, many people have not received sufficient legal counsel, which affects the use of the death penalty in the area. This form of racial discrimination frequently seen in the death penalty show that "the death penalty is applied in a geographically uneven way and is far from fair and clearly not just" (Inwood 1061). The uncertainty that is often characterized by the use of the death penalty is also significant in several other types of wrongfully convicted cases. This is important because it is not beneficial to have a system that is full of errors, such as the death penalty. When a system with such uncertainty is used, problems are bound to arise. This punishment is also not effective because there are many differences in the way the punishment is used throughout the different states in the US. For example, Texas is the state that most frequently uses the death penalty, and sentences people to death row much more often than it should. 

The death penalty is a very expensive process that costs much more than housing someone in prison. One of the most expensive states that uses the death penalty is California. According to research done by the Death Penalty Information Center, "death row costs taxpayers $114 million dollars a year beyond the cost of imprisoning convicts for life." The article also discusses the cost of the death penalty in other states, such as Maryland, Florida, and North Carolina. In Florida, the use of the death penalty "costs taxpayers $51 million a year more than holding them for life without parole." In the state of Maryland, the cost for five executions between the years 1978 and 1999 was about $186 million. Finally, in North Carolina, the state has executed 13 people since 1976, which led to a total cost of about $250 million. These numbers show the startling expenses of the death penalty, which are often overlooked by many states. In an article published by Forbes, the findings are also very similar. According to judge Donald McCartin, it is "10 times more expensive to kill them than keep them alive." Also, a study by the Kansas Judicial Council determined that "defending a death penalty case costs about four times as much as defending a case where the death penalty is not considered." In addition to the amount of money that is spent on capital punishment cases, a considerable amount of time is given to theses cases as well. The death penalty cases require much more time from prosecutors, defense attorneys, as well as the judges. In Idaho, the State Appellate Public Defenders spent about 8,000 hours for cases not involving the death penalty. This is compared to the amount of time spent on cases that did not use the death penalty, in which about 180 hours were spent. These results are significant because they show how much money goes to the use of the capital punishment in states. This large amount of money could be put towards other, more beneficial, aspects of our criminal justice system. For example, in Colorado a bill is under consideration that would abolish the death penalty, and put the money towards solving cold cases. The money could also be spent on improving several aspects of the legal system, such as reforming prison cells, developing better treatment plans for those in prisons, and new technology for police officers. Also, if the death penalty sentence was replaced with a life without parole sentence, "millions of dollars could be spent on violence-prevention efforts, solving difficult cases, and increasing victim services" (Death Penalty Focus). There could be better ways to utilize the funds in order to benefit society. It is illogical to continue to spend massive amounts of money on a punishment that contains as many flaws as the death penalty, and does not have a positive impact on the community. 

Several states and countries have recognized the cruelty and ineffectiveness of the death penalty, and have reformed their policies, or abolished the punishment completely. There are currently nineteen states that have completely abolished the death penalty, including Alaska, Connecticut, Hawaii, Illinois, Iowa, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Nebraska, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, North Dakota, Rhode Island, Vermont, West Virginia, Wisconsin, and District of Columbia. While capital punishment can be compared between states, it can also be compared to several different countries. Today, there are about fifty-eight countries that continue to use the death penalty, one country being the United States. A significant amount of the executions (eighty percent) occur in countries such as Pakistan, China, Iran, Saudi Arabia, and the U.S. (Leighton). While the use of the death penalty has similarities in these countries, the United States has very different results when compared with countries such as Japan. For example, research has shown that from a twenty-seven-year period, Houston, Texas "accounted for more executions than the entire country of Japan even though Japan has thirty times more people" (Johnson 1052). The United States can also be compared to Canada. In 1967, Canada revised the death penalty to "apply only to the murder of on-duty law enforcement personnel" (Donahue). As a result of these revisions, "no executions have occurred in Canada since 1962" (Donahue). These findings are significant because they show how overused the death penalty is in the United States. People are often sentenced with insufficient evidence, or may be profiled based on where they live in the United States. Being one of the top countries to use the death penalty is something our country needs to reconsider. Several organizations, such as The United Nations and Amnesty International "oppose the death penalty on the grounds that it violates human rights" (Leighton). The findings comparing the death penalty in the United States to Canada's policies are interesting, because if the death penalty punishment was revised, it could be possible to have similar results, such as less murders. Each execution that occurs as a result of the death penalty often has a negative effect on families, judges, and those involved with administering the punishment. The death penalty is the most permanent form of punishment, and once someone is executed, there is no way to bring them back to life. The death penalty has a very negative effect on those who have been through the process the entire way, such as family members of both the victim and the criminal. It often "requires them to relive the pain and suffering of the death of their loved one for many years" (Death Penalty Focus). The death penalty also has a negative effect on families because of the goals portrayed by this type of punishment. The goal of the death penalty is aimed more towards achieving justice, rather than punishing the offender. For example, "attention is directed on the crime and the accused, instead of where it belongs-on the family and loved ones of the victim and on the community" (Death Penalty Focus). This is significant because often times, certain cases receive a lot of press from the media, sometimes because of how harsh the crime is. An example of this can be seen in the trial with O.J. Simpson. The media can have an effect on how the family is able to handle the crime, and this corresponds with the death penalty as well. When someone is sentenced to life without parole, instead of capital punishment, the criminal is punished "without putting him or her in the headlines" (Death Penalty Focus). While the death penalty has a significant impact on the families, it also has an influence on administrative officials in jails and prisons. For example, Ron McAndrew, a former prison warden at Florida State Prison in Starke, Florida spoke out about his experience with the death penalty and how the executions he has had to watch have changed his view on the death penalty. He has seen someone executed who he believed was innocent, and he discussed how difficult it was to watch. He also described the execution of Pedro Medina, whose execution marked the end of the electric chair in Florida, as the execution did not go as planned. McAndrew mentioned how he supported the death penalty before he got to the prison, however after viewing three executions, he began to see the punishment as very harsh and unjust. 

While there are several disadvantages of the death penalty, some people believe that the punishment serves as a deterrent effect, which they believe makes the community a safer place.  Research has shown that the death penalty does in fact, have a deterrent effect. This can be seen in several studies. For example, according to the Federal Communications Commission, each state execution deters about fourteen fewer murders annually. Also a study done by Kenneth Land, associated with Duke University, shows that each execution in Texas deterred about two and a half murders. A final example can be seen in a 2003 study conducted by Emory University, which shows that each execution deters about eighteen murders. The death penalty may be effective in reducing crime, however there will always be crime and violence in society. There are other forms of punishment that are more effective, and that are less permanent than the death penalty. Even though the death penalty may save lives, someone else is still losing theirs.

While some believe the death penalty is a useful punishment in that it deters crime, others see the disadvantages of this form of punishment, and do not find it valuable in society today. While deterring crime is important in society, there are several other methods that could be used instead. The death penalty is uncertain, kills innocent people every year, and is expensive. Many people who are sentenced to the death penalty are sentenced based on invalid evidence, which is sometimes not discovered until the person is already executed. The issues that occur in our criminal justice system are significant because as citizens of the United States, we must follow laws and regulations on an everyday basis. Without these laws put into place, our society would be unorganized and chaotic. On the other hand, when policies are unnecessary and unjust, it is our job as citizens to make changes to this type of punishment. 

