Who is on Death Row?

Blog Post # 2

Capital punishment is a nationwide problem. Many states have tried to get capital punishment abolished by taking their appeals to the Supreme Court. In 2008 the Court ruled that the three-drug lethal injection is not cruel and unusual punishment and is constitutional (1). This is the most common method of execution used by most states.  However, that same year the Court did rule that it is unconstitutional to impose death for child rape or any crime which was committed without the intention to inflict death and where death did not result (1).California seems to be the state with the most hype surrounding their death penalty, seeing how they are the state with the highest number of inmates on death row.The problem seems to be that California does not have enough resources in relation to the number of inmates on death row. California consistently sentences inmates to death, causing a backlog in death penalty cases in the California Supreme Court. At one point, Chief Justice George proposed a constitutional amendment to move some capital cases to the appellate courts (1). This was later withdrawn because of the budget concerns California faces. Studies show that prosecutors are more likely too seek the death penalty when the victim is white and less likely when the victim is black (2). As a result, in cases where the victim is white, African Americans are three times more likely to receive the death penalty in cases where the victim is white. It is no secret that the death penalty is not a fair process.

 (1) Colon, Sara. Capital Crime: How California’s Administration of the Death Penalty Violates the Eighth Amendment. California Law Review Inc. 2009. Page 1377-1381

2. “Amnesty International USA - Death Penalty Abolition Campaign.” August 2009. http://www.amnestyusa.org/abolish

  Millions Towards Death

Blog #1

The death penalty is a social problem that affects all of society. California’s death penalty is a social problem because in California, inmates can remain on death row for decades. This can be because of factors that extend the complex judicial process for capital cases.  Regardless if a person knows someone on death row or not, California tax payers pay for the death penalty. It is cheaper for us to incarcerate inmates for life than it is to execute them. Therefore, as a taxpayer of California, we should consider alternate forms of punishment for these felony offenders.

 According to the Los Angeles Times in 2005, California taxpayers pay more than $114 million each year post-trial seeking execution of the people currently on death row (1). Not only does the Attorney General devote 15% of his budget ($11 million) to death penalty cases annually, but also the Supreme Court spends about $11.8 million on appointed counsel for death row inmates (1). Another issue some of society has with the death penalty is that there is always the possibility that we may wrongfully convict a person. Since 1976, approximately eighty two inmates have been released from death row because they were found to be wrongfully convicted (2).

1. "California Taxpayers Fund Executions." New York Times. 2005.

2. "Reasons to be Against the Death Penalty." September 16, 2010. http//www.antideathpenalty.org/reasons.html