Could Abolishing the Death Penalty Help States Save Money

[Robbien]

Source: ABC News

<snip>

Kerr's case is one of thousands of unsolved murders, and it's the reason his sister, Judy Kerr, supports her state, California, in abolishing the death penalty and reallocating the millions of dollars it spends on death row inmates each year to solving cold cases.

With so many states facing deficits, legislation on the death penalty has started to address the cost of the policy, while justification for it has traditionally focused on whether it's right or wrong.

. . .

California has a $25 billion deficit and almost 700 inmates on death row. According to a 2008 report issued by the California Commission for the Fair Administration of Justice, maintaining the criminal justice system costs $137 million per year, but the cost would drop to $11.5 million if it weren't for the death penalty. A 2010 study from the Northern California chapter of the American Civil Liberties Union found that California would be forced to spend $1 billion on the death penalty in the next five years if the state does not replace capital punishment with permanent imprisonment.

California is not the only state where cost has become an argument for abolishing the death penalty. Last week a commission report recommended to the New Hampshire legislature that the state not expand its death penalty, citing its higher costs as one of the reasons, and the same week a bill to abolish the death penalty in Illinois passed in the state's House Judiciary Committee.

Read more: http://abcnews.go.com/Politics/abolishing-death-penalty-states-cut-costs/story?id=12324697

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All the private prison investors are probably lining up their lobbyists to fight this trend. There is a lot of money to be made in the killing of prisoners program.

[ladjf]

1. Yes, and a lot more. nt

[cbdo2007]

2. What would really save money is to do an immediate death penalty...

like they do in some countries. The problem is that people are on death row for decades and have nothing better to do than appeal, appeal, appeal on technicalities. Once they are found guilty beyond a shadow of a doubt they should be sent to the next room and killed right then and there. This will save Billions of $$$

[tpsbmam]

3. All of the people found innocent through the process you describe

would surely thank you for killing them right off the bat. Jesus, now I can't believe I'm on DU. You might like living in Saudi Arabia -- your death penalty is their preferred policy. Unbefuckinglievable.

[cbdo2007]

6. I can't believe I'm on DU either...I didn't really even mean what I said in my post, I'm

just trying to fit in and I figured that would be where the new crop of DUers would take it next.

This really is a strange place and can turn on a dime.

[No Elephants]

8. Say what?

[Robbien]

4. China does that. So does Iran.

Off with their heads as soon as any court official rules they did the crime.

Sounds truly barbaric. And with all the corruption in our court system, no one would be safe.

[KamaAina]

5. It gets better. California is spending $$$millions on a brand, shiny new Death Row

$25B deficit and all. :eyes:

[No Elephants]

7. Probably, but Mass doesn't have one and we're $2 billion under water.