Debate1

Resolved:Thedeathpenaltyisjustified.
Position:Negative.
Affirmativespoints:
1.Thedeathpenaltydetersothersfromcommittingsimilarcrimes
2.Deathpenaltytrialstakelongerinordertoeliminateerrors
3.Thedeathpenaltyisanecessaryformofretribution
4.Prisonoverpopulationnecessitatestheremovalofviolentoffenders.
DeathPenaltydeterrence:
2016UniversityofMichiganJournalofLawReform,MichaelL.RadeletProfessorof
SociologyandFacultyAssociate,InstituteofBehavioralScience,UniversityofColorado,
Boulder.
Finally,dozensofempiricalresearchstudiesoverthepastthirtyyearsfocusongeneral
deterrence:whetherthehomicideratedeclineswithincreasesindeathsentencesand/or
executions.n25Most,althoughnotall,ofthesestudieshavefoundthatthedeathpenalty
andhomicideratesarebasicallyuncorrelated.n26Unfortunately,thedataandstatistical
manipulationsrequiredtoaddressthequestionareexceedinglycomplex,n27leavingwell
intentionedadvocatesonbothsidesoftheissuefreetofindstudiesthatsupporttheir
pointsofviewregardlessofwhethertheyhaveanyunderstandingofthestatistical
methodsorlimitationsofthedatausedbytheresearcher.

Theopinionsofcriminologyexpertscanresolvethisdebate.Surveysconductedinthe
mid1990sandadozenyearslaterfoundthatmorethanninetypercentofthenation's
leadingcriminologistshaveconcludedthat,basedontheirreadingoftheextantresearch,
thedeathpenaltyfailstodeterhomicidesanymorethan[*801]longimprisonment
does.n28Thelatest(andperhapslast)wordontheissuecamein2012,whenaseminal
comprehensivereportonthedeterrenteffectofthedeathpenaltywasreleasedbythe
NationalResearchCouncil.n29TheStudyPanel,composedofsomeofthemostrespected
criminologistsintheUnitedStates,foundthattheresearch"isnotinformativeabout
whethercapitalpunishmentdecreases,increases,orhasnoeffectonhomiciderates."n30
Thisisnottoclaimthatnoonetodayarguesthatweneedmoreexecutionsinorderto
reducethehomiciderate,butitdoesindicatethatthosewhomakesuchargumentsbase
theiropinionsondiscreditedstudies.

Deathpenaltyerrors:
PennyJ.WhiteisanAssociateProfessorattheUniversityofTennesseeCollegeofLawanda
formertrial,appellate,andsupremecourtjusticefortheStateofTennessee. 2001HofstraLaw
Review.

In1964,anessaywaspublishedidentifyingseventyfourcapitalcasesoccurringbetween
theyearsof1893and1962thatweresaidtobe"errorsofjustice."n13Amorethorough
studydescribing350casesofwrongfulconvictionsbetweentheyearsof1900and1985
waspublishedin1987.n14

Duringthissametimeperiod,criticsvoicedconcernsaboutdisparityintheuseofthe
deathpenalty.ThreeprofessorsconductedastudyofcapitalpunishmentinGeorgia
duringthe1970sandconcludedthatthedeathpenaltywasdisparatelyimposedbasedon
theraceofthevictim,andtoalesserextent,theraceoftheaccused.n15Whenthestudy
wasofferedasevidenceoftheunconstitutionalapplicationofthedeathpenaltyin
Georgia,itwasrejectedbecause,amongotherreasons,"apparentdisparitiesinsentencing
areaninevitablepartofourcriminaljusticesystem"andbecause""therecanbeno
perfectprocedurefordecidinginwhichcasesgovernmentalauthorityshouldbeusedto
imposedeath.'"n16

GovernorRyan,aRepublicansupporterofthedeathpenalty,becamealarmedafteran
investigationbytheChicagoTribuneexposedcatastrophicproblemswiththecapital
punishmentsysteminIllinois.n30Onmorethanoneoccasion,individualshadcome
withindays,andsometimeshours,ofexecutiononlytobecompletelyexoneratedby
DNAorotherevidenceuncoveredbystudentsinvestigatingthecase.n31GovernorRyan
declaredamoratoriumonexecutionsinIllinoisonFebruary1,2000,inlightofevidence
thatappellatecourtshadfounderrorsinhalfofthecapitalcasesthathadcompletedat
leastthefirstlevelofappealn32andbecausethenumberofexoneratedindividualswho
hadbeenpreviouslycondemnedtodieexceededthenumberofinmatesexecutedsince
thestate'sreinstatementofthedeathpenalty.n33

InSeptember2000,theUnitedStatesDepartmentofJustice("Department")releaseda
statisticalsurveyregardingthefederaldeathpenaltysystem.n38Thesurveyshowedthat
seventythreepercentofthecasesapprovedn39forfederaldeathpenaltyprosecution
between1995and2000involvedminoritydefendants.n40Theintenttoseekthedeath
penaltywaswithdrawnalmosttwiceasoftenincasesinvolvingwhitedefendantsthanin
thoseinvolvingminoritydefendants.n41Minoritiesconstitutedseventyninepercentof
federaldeathrowinmates.n42

Inthemidstofthisactivity,theLiebmanstudy,atwentythreeyearstudyonerrorrates
incapitalcaseswasreleased.n44Describedas"thefirststatistical[deathpenalty]study,"
n45
thefindingsofthestudywerestaggering.Ofthetwentyeightstateswhosedeath
penaltycaseswereincludedinthestudy,n46onlytwostatesdidnoterratleastfifty
percentofthetimeduringthethreestagesofjudicialreviewinacapitalcase.n47
Nationally,"courtsfoundserious,reversibleerrorinnearly7ofevery10"capitalcases
thatwerefullyreviewedduringthetwentythreeyearstudyperiod.n48Putincontext,
then,forthetwentythreeyearperiodstudied,seriouserrorunderminingthereliabilityof
afindingofguilt,orsentenceofdeath,occurredinmorethantwooutofeverythree

deathpenaltycases.n49Whilethatsignificantofanerrorrateisindeeddisturbing,even
moretroublingisthestudy'sfindingthateightytwopercentofthecapitalcasesthatwere
retriedresultedineitherasentenceoflessthandeathornosentenceatall.n50
PrisonOverpopulation
2000FordhamLawReview,SusannaY.Chung

Attheendof1998,thetotalnumberofinmatesbehindbarsintheUnitedStatesreached
over1.8million,comprisingtheworld'slargestoverallprisonpopulation.n2This
statisticreflectsanimprisonmentrateofapproximately668per100,000residents.n3
Thenation'sinmatepopulationgrewby60,000fromthepreviousyear,andsince1990,
thesentencedprisonerpopulationhasgrownby106%infederalprisonsand65%instate
prisons.n4Asaresult,in1998,federalprisonsoperatedat27%abovecapacityand
stateprisonsat13%22%abovecapacity.n5Thirtythreestatesoperatedat100%
capacityorhigher.
PrisonoverpopulationintheUnitedStateshasdirectlyaffectedinmates'living
conditions.n7Risinginmatepopulationshaveproduced[*2352]overcrowdedprisons,
ascellsoriginallydesignedforoneinmatenowaccommodatetwoorthreeprisoners
each.n8Prisonovercrowdinghasalsoresultedinalackofprivacy,deleteriousphysical
conditions,inadequatesanitation,anddecreasedavailabilityofbasicnecessitiessuchas
staffsupervisionandmedicalservices.n9Becauseofthesedecliningconditions,
inmateshaveincreasinglybroughtsuitsagainstprisons,claimingthatprison
overcrowdingviolatestheEighthAmendment'sprohibitionagainstcruelandunusual
punishment.n10Theseclaimshavefocusedonovercrowdingitself,aswellasthe
effectsstemmingfromprisonoverpopulation,suchaslackofsanitationandappropriate
foodandrecreation.n11Courtshavereachedconflictingconclusionsaboutthemerits
andworthinessoftheseinmates'claims.n12

8thAmendment

Excessivebailshallnotberequired,norexcessivefinesimposed,norcruelandunusual
punishmentsinflicted.

CruelandUnusualPunishment
NPRJanuary6,2015.WadeGoodwyn.
http://www.npr.org/2015/01/06/375399560/botchedlethalinjectionexecutionsreignitedeath
penaltydebate

MichaelKiefer,aveteranreporterfortheArizonaRepublic,hasovertheyearsbeen
witnesstofiveArizonaexecutions.LastJuly,Kieferwasobservingtheexecutionof
doublemurdererJosephWood.ForWood'sexecution,theArizonaDepartmentof
Correctionswasusingadifferentdrugformulaforthefirsttime.

"Wewereescortedin,"Kiefersays."Everythingseemedtogosmoothly.Youwatchthe
cathetersbeinginserted.JosephWoodclosedhiseyes,hisheadwentback.Itlookedlike
executionsI'dseenbeforeusingthiopentalandpentobarbital."

ArizonaDepartmentofCorrectionsinmateJosephWoodwasexecutedbylethalinjection
inJuly.Ittook15dosesandnearlytwohoursforhimtodie.

Withthosedrugs,Kiefersaysitnormallytookfiveto10minutesforacondemnedman
todie.Butatthesixminutemarksomethingunusualhappened.

"Suddenlyheopenedhismouth,"Kiefersays."Hismouthsortofmadethisfunnyround
shape,andyoucouldseethisexpulsionofair,andwealljumped.Thiswassomething
different."

Woodhadbegunfightingforhislife,takinglargeintermittentbreaths.

"Andthentherewasanotherandthenanother,andthenitjustkeptgoing,"Kiefersays."I
startedputtinglittlehashmarksonmypad,mynotepad,toseehowmanytimeshedid
this640times."

"Welookedateachother;youcouldseethealarmonthefacesoftheprisonpersonnel,"
Kiefersays."Nobodysaidanything.Iturnedtothereporternexttomeandsaid,'Idon't
thinkhe'sgoingtodie.'IwaswonderingifWoodwasgoingtoopenhiseyesagain."

Arizona'snewdrugformula50milligramsofmidazolam,asedative,and50
milligramsofhydromorphone,anarcoticwassupposedtobealethaldose.Obviously
itwasn't,sotheexecutionergaveWoodaseconddose.Andthenathird,afourth,afifth
andsoon,andthen,mercifully,onthe15thdose,Wooddied.Ithadtakennearlytwo
hours.

BBC,DebbieSiegelbaum,August1,2014
http://www.bbc.com/news/magazine28555978
USexecutions18902010
Method Numberofexecutions
Firingsquad
34
Electrocution
4,374
Hanging
2,721
Gaschamber
593
Lethalinjection 1,054
Costofthedeathpenalty:

Botchrate
0%
1.9%
3.1%
5.4%
7.1%

MauriceChammah,TheMarshallProject,December172014.
https://www.themarshallproject.org/2014/12/17/sixreasonsthedeathpenaltyisbecoming
moreexpensive#.YR32eoW2Q

Expertsmayalsobeneededtoexplainwhymistakeneyewitnessidentification
commonlyoccurs,ortoexplainwhysomeonemightfalselyconfess,saidNatasha
Minsker,AssociateDirectoroftheAmericanCivilLibertiesUnionofNorthern
California,ina2008report.Modernsciencehasgreatlyenhancedourabilityto
distinguishtheinnocentfromtheguiltyandtoidentifythementallyill,butallofthis
costsmoney.

Whenanappealscourtreversesadeathsentencewhetherduetoafaultintheworkof
adefenselawyerorprosecutor,anincorrectinstructiongiventothejurybythejudge,a
pieceofevidencethatshouldhavebeenshowntoajuryandwasnot,oranynumberof
otherreasonsthecountyfacesthecostofanentiresecondtrialandanotherroundof
appeals.DavidPowellwasexecutedin2010forshootinganAustinpoliceofficerin
1978.Hisdeathsentencewasreversedtwice,meaningthecountyhadtopaynotforone
trialbutforthree.

TheNorthCarolinaOfficeoftheCapitalDefenderpaysmitigationspecialistsbetween
$35and$55perhour.HarrisCounty,Texas,whichincludesHouston,pays$75perhour.
ThatsalsothestatewiderateinFlorida.

Mitigationinvestigationscantakehundredsofhours,asspecialistsgatherschoolrecords,
medicalrecords,andotherdocuments.Theyoftenspeakwithseveralgenerationsof
familymembersaboutthedefendantsupbringing,lookingforinformationthatmight
explainthemurderormakethedefendantmoresympathetictoajury.Ifthosefamily
membersliveinanotherstate,oranothercountry,themitigationspecialiststravelcosts
cangrowquickly.

In2011,U.S.9thCircuitCourtJudgeArthurL.AlarcnandattorneyPaulaMitchell
publishedamassivestudyarguingthatthedeathpenaltyhadcostCalifornians$4billion
since1978.Theyfoundthatjuryselectioncouldtakeasmuchasamonthlongerindeath
penaltytrialsandcostroughly$200,000morethaninothermurdertrials.Assupportfor
thedeathpenaltydeclines,Mitchellsaid,ittakeslongermorepaidhoursonthepartof
attorneys,thejudge,andcourtstafftofindtwelvejurorswhoarewillingtoimposethe
punishment.Youhavemorepeoplewhoareambivalent,shesaid.

Felonssentencedtolifeinprisonmayeventuallybeplacedinthegeneralpopulation,but
deathrowinmatesarevirtuallyalwayshousedinadministrativesegregation,orsolitary
confinement,whichcostsmoreperdayduetoheightenedsecurity.A2014studyoutof
Kansasreportedthatadeathrowprisonercosts$49,380tohouseperyear,whereasa
generalpopulationprisonercosts$24,690.

Asappealscometotakelongerandchallengestolethalinjectionprotocolsslowdownthe
executionprocess,thesehousingcostsaddup.Theproblemisperhapsmoststarkin
California,whichhasthecountryslargestdeathrowbutrarelycarriesoutexecutions.
Mitchell,theattorney,foundthattheyearlycostofhousingandmedicalcareforthe
statesdeathrowinmatescomesto$184million.Shesaidthatdeathpenaltyproponents
havelongarguedthatreplacingthepunishmentwithlifewithoutparolewouldforcethe
statetopaythemedicalcostsofelderlyinmates,butthisisnowhappeninganyway.