The Death Penalty is more costly than imprisoning someone for life

I need some help with a research paper... it's just a rough draft, and I know it stinks... I don't really know how to open it up, so some feedback would be nice... also, my grammer check tool on Microsoft word is not working, so there may be some grammatical issues.

Our final copies are due on April 27th, so I've got a week to get it done.

Instructions :: Must be 3-5 pages in length, minimum of 3 in-text citations, and you must write it on a contemporary issue. You may only use books or online databases; NO WEBSITES.

Some people would agree that the death penalty is a cruel punishment for crimes, even finding a simple injection to be inhumane. Other more effective manners to deal with criminal offenders should replace it. Although some citizens feel that the death penalty is a good way to deter crime, it should be banned in the United States because it is more costly than imprisoning someone for life and public support for it has decreased in recent years.

The death penalty should be banned in the United States because crime rates have been unaffected. "We are not getting what I think we should be wanting and that is to deter crime... in fact, the result is the opposite. We're having more violence, more crime," (Love 8). There is little affect on crime rates in the United States with the death penalty. The results of using the death penalty are not what was expected. "Among the experts, there is overwhelming consensus that the death penalty never has been, is not and never could be a deterrent to homicide over and above long imprisonment" (Radelet 2). There is no point to use the death penalty as a means of preventing crime, as there is no change in crime rates. Long imprisonment has been shown to be a more effective way of dealing with criminals. "Deterrence means that we execute people to send a message to others. After a while, increases in the severity of punishment have decreasing incremental deterrent effect" (Radelet 2). The death penalty has not caused people to stop committing crimes. Increased punishment is becoming less and less effective and causing the United States to spend more and more money each year.

It is more costly than imprisoning someone for life. A single execution costs more than two million dollars - $800,000 more than incarcerating a person for life (Notis 2). It is extremely expensive to utilize the death penalty. Incarcerating someone costs much less and saves the state money. The death penalty is dangerous and takes away funds from more effective misdemeanor treatments. Randomly choosing not the most unfavorable felons, but rather a group selected by race; impoverished, mentally ill and hapless people - some that are not guilty - creates suspicion about the criminal justice system (Freedman 8). Money that could be spent on other methods of crime deterrent is being wasted on executions. Criminal offenders are being killed by race instead of the severity of their crimes. The true cost of the death penalty also includes all the added expenses of the trials in which the death penalty is sought, but not achieved (Ross 1). Someone may be tried over and over again and not convicted, thus meaning money has been wasted for each time the offender is found innocent. Even though so much money is put into it, that does not guarantee the offender will be executed in the outcome; people are beginning to realize this fact and agree that there are more efficient ways of dealing with an offender.

Public support for the death penalty has decreased in recent years. Support for life without parole sentences has increased, and the number of death sentences in the U.S. has plummeted by 50 percent in recent years (Dieter 4). More Americans favor life imprisonment because it is a more humane way of dealing with criminals. It has decreased by half because people are beginning to realize it has no effect on crime rates. In general, there is decreasing use of the death penalty, declining promotion and issues at the state level about how it should be followed through ("Public Support for the death Penalty is Shifting" 2). There are no strong arguments to keep the death penalty. There are many inconsistencies when it comes to how to execute someone. There are no strong arguments to keep the death penalty. There are many inconsistencies when it comes to how to execute someone. "There are still some contradictions with people who consider themselves pro-life, but not when it comes to the death penalty" (Matschek 16). Pro-life supporters want to see the death penalty banned. Although some people may support harsh punishments for crimes, they do not want to cruelly execute convicts.

It is clear for any to see that the death penalty is gradually becoming less effective
and no longer the proper way to prevent crime. America must find new alternatives for the death penalty if they wish to lower crime rates and homicide. The death penalty has only created trouble for many legal systems. It has wasted money and time, and has done nothing to prevent people from committing offenses. The United States would be better off by getting rid of the death penalty for good.

Nicely done :). But I'm not a expert. Remember to watch out though, because sometimes your stating opinions like you would do in essay to persuade someone to think a certain way. Rather, with a research paper your giving information covering both the bad and the good of the death penalty.

I don't know if that is good feedback but I tried lol. It said that i needed to to do this to two papers in order to post a new thread? (I'm a new member)

Hope your research paper went great, as I have to do the same thing, even on the same subject!! My research paper has to be 10-15 pages. And my rought draft is due on May 5th!! yikes.

Melanie

The opening paragraph should be cut. I know what you mean about having difficulty opening up into the essay; it's tough! But that first para does not get to the real issue. The issue in your essay is not about whether it is inhumane.

Now, here is your thesis: The death penalty should be banned in the United States because crime rates have been unaffected. How do you know it has been unaffected? Maybe there would be more crime if capital punishment had not been used? I don't think that, necessarily, but it is a question that arises when I read your statement. Read an article in a scholarly journal... like.. nodeathpenaltywi.org/PDF/Deterrence%20Fact%20Sheet%209%2020% 2006.pdf

Now, instead of saying it "does not affect crime rates," say what these people say. Say, "Experts argue that it does not even deter crime."

Writing will be easy when you are comfortable with your thesis. When you wrote that this essay "stinks," I think you really were saying that it doesn't express your opinion quite right.

In the first paragraph, catch the reader's attention and give your thesis. In the second paragraph, give strong evidence to support what you say. All you have to do is say the same thing other people say, but in your own words. Then, put their name in parentheses! Repeat that process for every source you use, and in the conclusion para, expand on the thesis by considering the implications.

Also, if you are going to make the case that the death penalty does not deter crime, you are going to have to look at how it has been implemented in other countries, not just the States. I read somewhere that the death penalty works very well as a deterrent, if two conditions are met.

1. The death penalty has to be unavoidable
2. The death penalty has to be carried out in timely fashion

Neither of these conditions obtains in the U.S. People can generally plea-bargain their way out of a death penalty, or show enough signs of remorse that the jury won't go for a capital sentence. Even if a person lands on death row, he has plenty of appeals, and can often delay his execution by years, if not decades. In countries where the death penalty is the standard sentence for a crime, and is carried out after only a single appeal, crime rates tend to be dramatically lower.

The same is true for costs, btw. The death penalty is way cheaper than life imprisonment in countries that truly embrace it. Only in the U.S., where the death penalty is implemented only after years of appeals, is it more expensive that life imprisonment.

A last point to consider: In Going Postal by Terry Pratchett, the hangman tells the protagonist that, while he has no proof that the death penalty lowers crime rates, he believes it probably is an effective deterrent, because, as he puts it: "I've never seen anyone come through here twice."

All of this is not to say that you can't argue against the death penalty. I don't agree with it myself, as a matter of fact. But, you need to address these arguments if you want your essay to be convincing.