Should crimes receive alternative punishments rather than jail/prison time due to overcrowding of prison population?

Prison population has evolved overtime. It has become a serious problem in America. Prisoners who are convicted do not fully serve their sentencing. This leads to an early release of prisoners who may not be ready to go out into the community. This problem started to evolve during the early 1990’s when tough-on-crime legislation was passed through state and local governments. “California passed the “three strikes and you’re out” law which called for mandatory sentencing of repeat offenders, and New York adopted the “Broken Windows” strategy that called for the arrest and prosecution of all crimes large and small.”(Prison Overcrowding -ALEC) This has led to the increase of inmate population.

“Prison Overcrowding – American Legislative Exchange Council.” ALEC American Legislative Exchange Council. N.p., n.d. Web. 26 Apr. 2014

 

In the article Prison Without Walls Wood talks about an experiment he did with a tracking device on his ankle. He wanted to see the reaction of the community while he goes out to public places. Criminals such as sex offenders, killers, thieves and drug users are ones who can possibly where these. They could use this for months or even possibly years. “The device would enable the monitoring company to follow his every move, from home to work to the store, and, in consultation with a parole or probation officer, to keep him away from kindergartens, playgrounds, Jonas Brothers concerts and other places where kids congregate.”(Wood). Wood also mentions how most offenders is generally a “he” and when stating that he was referring to a sex offender. So, is this device affective rather than prison or jail time? In the article Home Confinement Proves Effective in Dollars and Sense, agrees that the tracking device proves effectiveness and is also cost efficient. “If home confinement is meant to minimize risk to the public and to re-integrate the offender into a law-abiding lifestyle, or in the instance of pretrial defendants, to assure appearance, the program is effective” “..the Administrative Office show that only about 9 percent of home confinement participants violate their confinement.” (Home Confinement Proves Effective in Dollars and Sense).

Wood, Graeme. “Prison Without Walls.” The Atlantic. Atlantic Media Company, 11 Aug. 2010. Web. 28 Apr. 2014.

“Home Confinement Proves Effective in Dollars and Sense.” The Third Branch. N.p., Mar. 1997. Web. 28 Apr. 2014.

 

The death penalty cost more then sending someone to life in prison without parole. In the state of Florida, they have spent millions extra per year on the death penalty. They have carried out forty-four executions since 1976, the approximate cost is twenty-four million for each execution. “This finding takes into account the relatively few inmates who are actually executed, as well as the time and effort expended on capital defendants who are tried but convicted of a lesser murder charge, and those whose death sentences are overturned on appeal.” It is said that they would have saved fifty-one million dollars each year by punishing the criminals with life in prison without parole. Florida has spent over fifty million on the death penalty to achieve just eighteen executions. Most don’t understand the cost of execution. “Alabama pays lawyers just $20 an hour–up to a cap of $1000– to prepare for a capital trial, and $40 an hour to argue it.[ McCormick] Most feel it is quick, easy and less stressful to just rid the criminal of the crime he or she has committed. Is life in prison is not good enough? That just raises a whole new chapter of questions that most cannot find a real answer to.

There are a total of five different ways of execution. The most commonly known and used is lethal injection but there is also electrocution, gas chamber, hanging and fire squad. First, Lethal injection is a process of being numb to pain and it slowly slows down all function inside the body. Second, is electrocution; Head mentions in 1888, the State of New York established electrocution as the state’s official execution method. In the year 1889 William Kemmler was sentenced to death and it took eight minutes agonizing minutes to kill him. Third, lethal gas execution. The prisoner is sealed in an airtight chamber and potassium cyanide or sodium cyanide is mixed with an acid that destroys the human body’s ability to process blood hemoglobin. Fourth, would be method of hanging. Until the year 1890, hanging was the primary method of execution. The inmate would be weighed the day before execution to ensure it is done correctly. If the rope is to long the inmate could be decapitated and if to short, the process of strangulation could take as long as forty-five minutes. Lastly, Firing squad is the last of the execution method. June 18, 2010 convicted murderer Ronnie Lee Gardner was the third and likely last to be executed by firing squad. He also writes Utah is of only two states that still allow the firing squad- Oklahoma is the other. The prisoner is tied down to some kind of pole and blindfolded, and then shot by a marksman. If done correctly, it is an extremely fast process.

Is the decision of execution okay if no physical evidence or confession is found or heard of? Stodghill talks about multiple men and one woman who were found not guilty after execution. Stodghill also mentions that one in twenty death row inmates is later found not guilty of their crime. In one in particular Larry Griffin. Griffin was executed by lethal injection in 1995 for the murder of a drug dealer in 1980. Griffin was convicted based mainly on the testimony given by Robert Fitzgerald, career criminal, who later admitted to committing the crime. “Fitzgerald also stated that the police pressured him into accusing Griffin.” [Stodghill] Griffin maintained his innocence until the end.  “Racial discrimination –among cops, prosecutors, and jurors–can be a factor. [McCormick] In reality it does no seem fair to the defendant but it sometimes may take a while to correct a mistake.

U.S is on the decline of capital punishment. “The death penalty was carried out 39 times in 2013, about a 10 percent drop from the 43 government-sanctioned executions last year, according to an annual report from the Death Penalty Information Center (DPIC).”[Subramanian] The decline in the death penalty is reflecting on Americans in ending capital punishment. Since 2007 other states  have repealed capital punishment, and a poll showed 60% approve of the death penalty, lowest in forty years. Among the 39 executions, Texas carried out sixteen, Florida seven, Oklahoma six, Ohio three, Arizona and Missouri twice, and one each in Alabama, Georgia and Virginia. “While most death-penalty executions still happen in the South, several Southern states including South Carolina, Tennessee and Louisiana, recorded no executions at all in 2013.”[Subramanian]. The opinions and choices of death penalty among people are slowly and surely showing the decrease of their approval. It may not be in the hands of all citizens, but it does impact life or death among that person in death row.

Qualification for capital punishment is a semi-prolonged process. First, of elimination is simple, courts eliminate potential jurors who do not vote for death penalty. Jurors before hand are questioned on their views of capital punishment in order to discover if they will be able to abide by the law in deciding the sentencing. “If the judge believes that a juror’s feelings about the death penalty would impair his or her ability to judge the case and choose the punishment fairly, that juror will be “dismissed” “for cause.” (“Death Qualification”). In order to really be involved with a capital punishment you must be “death-qualified” meaning jurors must consider the death penalty or life imprisonment without parole. Prosecutors have a right to strike a juror if they see any sign of doubt. Being apart of a jury for capital punishment is serious. It can be a stressful and life altering experiences. You may learn many things from the experience but also may hold negative events during the trials. Decisions like this are not made for everyone to choose, but that is ok.

Works Cited

“Costs of the Death Penalty.” Deathpenaltyinfo.org. Death Penalty Information Center. n.d. Web. 13 Apr. 2014.

“Death Qualification.” Capital Punishment in Context. N.p., n.d Web. 15 Apr. 2014.

“Forms of Execution in the United States, 1977 – 2009 – Death Penalty.”  ProConorg Headlines. N.p., n.d. Web. 14 Apr. 2014.

McCormick, John. “The Wrongly Condemned” Newsweek 9 Nov. 1998. Web. 15 Apr. 2014

Stodghill, Alexis. “Exonerated after Execution: 12 Men (And One Woman) Found Innocent after Being Put to Death”. Madamenoire. Web. 27 Sept. 2011.

Subramanian, Courtney. “39 Death Row Executions in 2013, a 10% Drop from Last Year.” Time 19 Dec. 2013. Web. 15 Apr. 2014.

– Can boot camp be an effective alternative then prison for adults?

– Should terrorist be incarcerated in the U.S jails? [Overcrowding] *

– Should white-collar crimes be given a lesser sentencing? [Not as equal as life, committing a heinous crime] *

– Do the use of grades increase or decrease achievement?

– Perception of people with tattoos going for professional job

The topic of death penalty raises a lot of questions. There are a lot that come in to mind when speaking of this. Does it do the crime justice? How is that person executed? What is the cost of death penalty vs. life imprisonment? And many more questions that may not satisfy or justify our community and or crime.

• The cost of death penalty vs. life imprisonment?

The death penalty cost more then sending someone to life in prison without parole. In the state of Florida, they have spent millions extra per year on the death penalty. They have carried out forty-four executions since 1976, the approximate cost is twenty-four million for each execution. “This finding takes into account the relatively few inmates who are actually executed, as well as the time and effort expended on capital defendants who are tried but convicted of a lesser murder charge, and those whose death sentences are overturned on appeal.” It is said that they would have saved fifty-one million dollars each year by punishing the criminals with life in prison without parole. Florida has spent over fifty million on the death penalty to achieve just eighteen executions. Most don’t understand the cost of execution. Most feel it is just the quicker and easier way to rid the criminal of the crime he or she has committed.  Do you feel life in prison is not good enough? That just raises a whole new chapter of questions that most cannot find a real answer to.

http://www.deathpenaltyinfo.org/costs-death-penalty

• What are the different ways of execution?

There are a total of five different ways of execution. The most commonly known and used is lethal injection but there is also electrocution, gas chamber, hanging and fire squad.

With lethal injection there are three drugs used in a process so you don’t feel pain and slowly slows down all function in your body. First drug used is sodium thiopental, and this is a fast acting sedative that puts you in a come like state. The second drug is pancuronium bromide and it inhibits muscular-skeletal movements and stops respiration. Potassium chloride is the third and final drug used. This interferes with the electrical signals and induces cardiac arrest.

In the article “History of the Electric Chair” Tom Head mentions in 1888, the State of New York established electrocution as the state’s official execution method. In the year 1889 William Kemmler was sentenced to death and it took eight minutes agonizing minutes to kill him. Head also mentioned between 1890 and 1983, over 4,000 people were executed in the electric chair.

In the article “First Execution by Lethal Gas” mentioned the first execution by lethal gas was carried out in Carson City, Nevada where a member of a Chinese gang was convicted of murdering a rival gang member. During lethal gas execution, the prisoner is sealed in an airtight chamber and potassium cyanide or sodium cyanide is mixed with an acid that destroys the human body’s ability to process blood hemoglobin.

Until the year 1890, hanging was the primary method of execution. The inmate would be weighed the day before execution to ensure it is done correctly. If the rope is to long the inmate could be decapitated and if to short, the process of strangulation could take as long as forty-five minutes. The inmate would be blindfolded and the hands and feet are secured and the rope is placed around the neck and the trap door is released from below the prisoner.

Lastly, fire squad is the last of an execution method. In the article “Making a Killing: A History of Execution Methods in the United States” Kevin Robillard states that On June 18, 2010 Convicted murder Ronnie Lee Gardner was the third and likely last to be executed by firing squad. He also write Utah is on of only two states that still allow the firing squad- Oklahoma is the other.  The prisoner is tied down to some kind of pole and blindfolded, and then shot by a marksman. If done correctly, it is an extremely fast process.

http://deathpenalty.procon.org/view.resource.php?resourceID=001623

• Wrongful execution of the innocent

Is the decision of execution okay if no physical evidence or confession is found or heard of?

In the Article “Exonerated after Execution: 12 Men (And one woman) found innocent after being put to death” Alexis Stodghill talks about multiple men and one woman who were found not guilty after execution. Stodghill mentions that one in twenty death row inmates is later found not guilty of their crime. In one in particular Larry Griffin. Griffin was executed by lethal injection in 1995 for the murder of a drug dealer in 1980. Griffin was convicted based mainly on testimony given by Robert Fitzgerald, career criminal, who later admitted to committing the crime. Fitzgerald also stated that the police pressured him into accusing Griffin. [Stodghill] Griffin maintained his innocence until the end.

http://madamenoire.com/73840/exonerated-after-execution-12-men-and-one-woman-found-innocent-after-being-put-to-death/

Works Cited

[Stodghill, Alexis] “Exonerated After Execution: 12 Men (And One Woman) found innocent after being put to death” Web. 27 Sept. 2011