[TruthShallSetYouFree]

The death penalty does not deter

It's impossible to prove a negative. Death penalty opponents can parade all the folks on Death Row and claim,"Look! These guys were not deterred from killing by the presence of the death penalty. Therefore, the death penalty does not deter."

But, wait a minute. Can we parade a phalanx of people who did not commit murder because they were afraid of the death penalty? Perhaps the thought of being executed deterred some from ever committing such a crime. Yes, for most rational people, morality and conscience are enough to prevent them from taking another's life. For others, the threat of life in prison is enough of a deterrent. And, for still others, perhaps only the threat of capital punishment will sway them.

Capital punishment is also a very useful bargaining chip for prosecutors. A common scenario is : "We'll take the death penalty off the table if you tell us who ordered the hit." If the threat of being executed is removed, there is much less for a district attorney to bargain with.

Finally, how do you protect corrections officers without the death penalty? If a criminal has a life sentence and then kills a C.O., what punishment would be there for him? And what of the deterrent value to a criminal who has committed a heinous, but not-capital crime--such as the kidnap and rape of a child? If he stands to get life in prison for that, he's more likely to kill the victim if there is no death penalty.

I agree with you. A relatively swift and certain death penalty would, I believe, have a strong deterrent affect.

[AmishDude]

"We'll take the death penalty off the table if you tell us who ordered the hit."

Hence evidence that the death penalty is a deterrant. If they didn't care, they wouldn't make the deal.

[EagleUSA]

I agree with you. A relatively swift and certain death penalty would, I believe, have a strong deterrent affect.
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Texas has the right mentality.

[IronJack]

The death penalty is not INTENDED to be a deterrent. Its purpose is to administer justice, a punishment befitting the crime to which it is applied. The fact that it is an ABSOLUTE deterrent to the particular criminal to whom it is applied is just an ancillary benefit.

If executing Dookie never deters another single human being from committing murder, the sentence still accomplishes its primary goal: it balances the scales as well as justice can.

[Avoiding_Sulla]

This charts implies, even though it cannot prove correlation conclusively, that there could be dire consequences for those society is supposed to protect. "The death penalty doesn't deter murder" is an often mindlessly repeated assertion. And it is extremist because it asserts that NONE WILL BE DETERRED. Pure and utter nonsense. Some will be deterred.

Look at that chart and consider how many would still be alive were only 10 percent of just the additional murders were deterred.

Those who repeat the extremist line "the death penalty doesn't deter" callously risk vast numbers of innocent lives for the sake that they not be deterred from their opinion.

[Melas]

Not to take away from your reasoning, and it's refreshing to see any thought put into this subject, as it's since devolved into a never ending stream of "fry'm" posts, but there is evidence you're ignoring.

One of the most basic tests we could apply would be simple comparisons. Some of the states utilize the death penalty, and some don't. When we compare these states, do we see a marked decline in capital crimes in the states that execute?