Death penalty is wrong

[Father Time]

I don't know the extent of the conversation but self-defense is not the least bit comparable to the death penalty so why bring it up?

 

[N4mddissent]

I have had a lot of internal (read: in my head) debate about the death penalty issue. Currently, as it stands, I have found myself opposed to it. The two main reasons: 1) The lack of recourse in the case of a false conviction. 2) The lack of evidence for a deterrent effect.

I'm sure this will sound a bit right field from me for some of my friends on the left, but I would have to do a cost-benefit analysis if a stronger deterrent effect were demonstrable. And the only way to truly get the benefit as a deterrent, would be to make executions public. If executions were public and this generated a clearly demonstrable deterrent effect, then I may have to reconsider my position. But as it stands now, states with high rates of execution often continue to have higher crime rates than states with no death penalty at all. If it is not a deterrent, then it is not worth the risk of executing an innocent, nor is it worth the hit to our credibility internationally when the criminal can be effectively isolated from society in some other manner.

 

[KittenKoder]

I have had a lot of internal (read: in my head) debate about the death penalty issue. Currently, as it stands, I have found myself opposed to it. The two main reasons: 1) The lack of recourse in the case of a false conviction. 2) The lack of evidence for a deterrent effect.

I'm sure this will sound a bit right field from me for some of my friends on the left, but I would have to do a cost-benefit analysis if a stronger deterrent effect were demonstrable. And the only way to truly get the benefit as a deterrent, would be to make executions public. If executions were public and this generated a clearly demonstrable deterrent effect, then I may have to reconsider my position. But as it stands now, states with high rates of execution often continue to have higher crime rates than states with no death penalty at all. If it is not a deterrent, then it is not worth the risk of executing an innocent, nor is it worth the hit to our credibility internationally when the criminal can be effectively isolated from society in some other manner.

10 years ago I would have agreed with point 1, however thanks to new DNA sciences it is far less likely .... as long as the courts allow it. They have even used that same science to acquit a LOT of people already.

 

[N4mddissent]

I have had a lot of internal (read: in my head) debate about the death penalty issue. Currently, as it stands, I have found myself opposed to it. The two main reasons: 1) The lack of recourse in the case of a false conviction. 2) The lack of evidence for a deterrent effect.

I'm sure this will sound a bit right field from me for some of my friends on the left, but I would have to do a cost-benefit analysis if a stronger deterrent effect were demonstrable. And the only way to truly get the benefit as a deterrent, would be to make executions public. If executions were public and this generated a clearly demonstrable deterrent effect, then I may have to reconsider my position. But as it stands now, states with high rates of execution often continue to have higher crime rates than states with no death penalty at all. If it is not a deterrent, then it is not worth the risk of executing an innocent, nor is it worth the hit to our credibility internationally when the criminal can be effectively isolated from society in some other manner.

10 years ago I would have agreed with point 1, however thanks to new DNA sciences it is far less likely .... as long as the courts allow it. They have even used that same science to acquit a LOT of people already.

Sure, but DNA evidence is not available for every case, and even when used is dependent upon the context. Like you said, a lot of people have been acquitted. If they had been executed, that acquittal would have been meaningless. I am just saying there should be a very high standard of evidence before a death sentence is issued.

 

[Yukon]

N4M,

Please don't try to be rational with these people. They are right-wing, religious zealots and they believe in the Jew law of an "eye-for-an-eye". They cannot be reasoned with.