Why do people oppose the death sentence?

Good question. I live in Texas, and I supported capital punishment for a long time, but the more I learned about it, the more I came to oppose it. In the end, several factors changed my mind:

1. By far the most compelling is this: Sometimes the legal system gets it wrong. In the last 35 years in the U.S., over 130 people have been released from death row because they were exonerated by DNA and other evidence. These are ALL people who were found guilty “beyond a reasonable doubt.” Unfortunately, DNA evidence is not available in most homicide cases. So, as long as the death penalty is in place, you are pretty much GUARANTEED to occasionally execute an innocent person.

Really, that should be reason enough for most people to oppose it, but there are many others:

2. Cost: Because of higher pre-trial expenses, longer trials, jury sequestration, extra expenses associated with prosecuting & defending a DP case, and the appeals process (which is necessary - see reason #1), it costs taxpayers MUCH more to execute prisoners than to imprison them for life. This disparity becomes even greater when you consider the time value of money – most of the costs of capital punishment are up-front, occurring before and during the trial itself, whereas most of the costs of life imprisonment are spread over the term of incarceration (usually 30-40 years).

3. It is not a deterrent. In fact, violent crime rates are consistently HIGHER in death penalty jurisdictions. This may seem counterintuitive, and there are many theories about why this is (Ted Bundy saw it as a challenge, so he chose Florida – the most active execution state at the time – to carry out his final murder spree). It is probably due, at least in part, to the high cost (see #2) - every extra dollar spent on capital punishment is one that's NOT going to police departments, drug treatment programs, education, and other government services that help prevent crime. Personally, I think it also has to do with the hypocrisy of the state taking a stand against murder…by killing people. The government fosters a culture of violence by saying, ‘do as I say, not as I do.’

4. It is inconsistently and arbitrarily applied. Factors that should be irrelevant (geography, race of the victim, poor representation, etc.) are all too often the determining factors in whether someone gets death versus life in prison.

5. There’s also an argument to be made that death is too good for the worst criminals. Let them wake up and go to bed every day of their lives in a prison cell, and think about the freedom they DON’T have, until they rot of old age. When Ted Bundy was finally arrested in 1978, he told the police officer, “I wish you had killed me.” Khalid Shaikh Mohammed (the architect of the 9/11 attacks) would love nothing better than to be put to death. In his words, "I have been looking to be a martyr [for a] long time."

6. Most governments are supposed to be secular, but for those who invoke Christian law in this debate, you can find arguments both for AND against the death penalty in the Bible. The New Testament (starring Jesus) is primarily ANTI-death penalty. For example, in the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus praises mercy (Matthew 5:7) and rejects “an eye for an eye” (Matthew 5:38-39). James 4:12 says that GOD is the only one who can take a life in the name of justice. In John 8:7, Jesus himself says, "let he who is without sin cast the first stone."

7. Life without parole (LWOP) is on the books in most states now (all except Alaska), and it means what it says. People who get this sentence are taken off the streets. For good.

I can see both sides of this issue clearly so I can answer your question without too much bias:

* There is a always a possibility of condemning a person to death, even if they are innocent. While our justice system is among the best in the world, it is imperfect and wrongly convicted people are released all the time

* Some people believe (though I do not) that killing the person who committed the crime is just as bad as what they did, as in how Jesus condemns an eye for an eye justice as being wrong

* It costs more to put a person to death by death penalty than it does to keep them alive in jail for life, because of the drugs, flying out the families, and most importantly, the very lengthy appeals process that is required by courts of law

Hope this helps you see both sides of the issue. Its fine to have an opinion, but be open to what others believe too.

Knowing that one innocent person has died from the death sentence is enough to convince me that could happen again.

Plus the death sentence is an easy way out for some criminals. Some of them are already suicidal so they might think "hey if Im gonna get the death sentance anyways I may as well make it worth it" and then go onto murder and rape 100 people.

Also I believe that life in prison without the possibility of ever leaving, especially solitary confinement is a far more harsh sentence then death anyways. If it were me I would rather get a lethal injection then spend the next 60 years rotting away in a horrible prison cell all alone or being surrounded by other criminals watching my back everyday of my life.

Actually there are many Liberals who oppose it no matter who the victim or killer were,which is amazing since those same people most often also support the wholesale slaughter of 1 MILLION HUMAN INFANTS PER YEAR IN THE US.Yet they have the sheer audacity to call Execution of murderers "barbaric" I'm glad they think like that,it shows the whole world how deluded and clueless they truly are.You have to wonder about the sanity of people who place the rights of murderers and puppies at a higher level than the rights of crime victims and human infants. As much as I support the Death Penalty,I have to say that as expensive as it's become thanks to Liberals,I would be satisfied with Life In Prison for ALL 1st Degree Murderers,in the worst prisons imaginable.Too often these people actually end up walking our streets again,which is utterly unacceptable. RWE

So you don't have a problem with innocent people getting the death penalty?

I don't really consider that one of the main issues arguing against the death penalty, but it's interesting that you accept the possibility that it could happen, yet are okay with it.

That's an interesting moral position, to say the least.

Some people oppose state sanctioned killings. Some are pro-life and their views extend to ALL life.

Not me - I am totally in favor of the death penalty in the most heinous of cases. I have no problem with it. The world is better off without people like Timothy McVeigh and John Allen Mohammad.

Well, first of all, legal or not, it's still murder.

Also, many times, the easy way out of suffering is death. If someone is dead, their conscience can not haunt them. Even those that are remorseless then have to find a way to survive a brutal prison life, which is its own punishment as well.

I just see the death penalty as man attempting to play God.

Because there's a possibility of a miscarriage of justice? If one innocent person was killed, some would argue that would be one too many.

Because what gives us the right to play god? Some may argue that nobody has the right to take another life.

because it isnt given out fairly-poor people are much more likely to be put to death than wealthy

and as we have seen with DNA, innocent people are condemned to death- it needs to be 100% accurate before we kill someone, cause if a mistake is made there is no going back

Because the judicial system is imperfect and innocent people get convicted of capital murder.