Which is why I’m against the death penalty without even stressing over whether it’s moral or not - it’s hard enough to make it up to someone after they’re locked up for years or decades when you find exonerating proof. Even harder when you’re staring at their corpse saying “oops, our bad”
Thank you, because this really can’t be stressed enough: despite what tough-on-crime people claim, the death penalty does not reduce the amount or severity of crimes committed. It isn’t a deterrent. So we’re executing people - and spending tons of our taxpayer money to do it and sometimes murdering innocent people in the process - but it provides no actual benefit to society.
Even worse, it actually can incentivize people to commit worse crimes. If you know there is a chance you will be given the death penalty for a crime, you will do anything in your power to cover it up including murder. Draconian punishment will turn an assault into a murder to avoid witnesses.
While I'm against the death penalty. Since when is it more expensive? That doesn't even make sense when you start adding in the cost of running the jail.
Where I live we keep having people being released multiple times for committing crimes dealing thousands of dollars worth of damage because the jail can't afford to hold them. The only way it's cheaper is if you're completely ignoring the cost of tying up a cell that can't be used for others committing non-violent crimes and the damages that are resulting from it as well.
Literally had a guy do 15k of damage then end up in the jail again the next day for assaulting a nurse at the hospital which wouldn't have happened if the jail wasn't having to catch and release everyone except the violent offenders.
Don't get me wrong, it's not a problem that would be completely solved even if the death penalty was in place. But there's no way it's more expensive than a life sentence before even adding in those extra considerations unless you completely ignore operational costs.
Because it’s the death penalty, we have to make sure we get it right and that they are truly deserving of it, so there’s a whole court process beforehand that typically goes into the millions for costs. It’s fairly cheap in comparison to just keep them in a cell and give necessities, which are mass produced cheaply
You say that like people with life sentences aren't making appeals all over the place as well. And running a jail is more than just the cost of food and daily necessities. So this still doesn't explain it.
The entire legal process is generally much more involved and lengthy for someone facing the death penalty than for someone facing life in prison, which balloons the costs.
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u/Stormfeathery 1d ago
Which is why I’m against the death penalty without even stressing over whether it’s moral or not - it’s hard enough to make it up to someone after they’re locked up for years or decades when you find exonerating proof. Even harder when you’re staring at their corpse saying “oops, our bad”