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| | === United States === | | === United States === |
| − | Capital punishment in the United States is handled on a state-by-state basis; twelve states' laws do not allow for executions at all. Capital punishment is also used by the federal government and the military. | + | Capital punishment in the United States is handled on a state-by-state basis; 17 states and the [[District of Columbia]] prohibit the death penalty.<ref>http://www.time.com/time/nation/article/0,8599,2113102,00.html</ref> But the federal government and the military fully use capital punishment for the most heinous crimes, including treason. |
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| − | [[Pennsylvania]] has hundreds of people on [[death row]], though only three inmates have been executed since the reinstatement of capital punishment laws, and all three essentially "volunteered" by dropping their appeals. In [[Texas]], one man has been on death row for 31 years.<ref>http://www.latimes.com/news/nationworld/nation/la-na-deathrow28jan28,1,1271967.story?coll=la-headlines-nation</ref> | + | [[Pennsylvania]] has hundreds of people on [[death row]], though only three inmates have been executed since the reinstatement of capital punishment laws, and all three essentially "volunteered" by dropping their appeals. But other states, such as [[Texas]], execute convicted persons on death row with regularity.<ref>A rare exception in Texas is a man who has been on death row for 31 years. [http://www.latimes.com/news/nationworld/nation/la-na-deathrow28jan28,1,1271967.story?coll=la-headlines-nation]</ref> Frivolous appeals and overly cautious stays of execution can create a backlog on death rows in many states. |
| − | Appeals and stays of execution can create a backlog on death rows in many states.
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| | Though the United States suspended the death penalty in 1973, it was reinstated in 1977. 65% of Americans believe putting someone to death for a crime is acceptable, according to a recent poll. But respondents were close to evenly split on whether they would prefer the death penalty (50%) to mandatory life in prison (46%). The death penalty is most favored by age 30+ males who are [[Caucasian]] and [[Republican]].<ref>ABC News/Washington Post poll: [http://abcnews.go.com/images/Politics/1015a3DeathPenalty.pdf Death Penalty]</ref> | | Though the United States suspended the death penalty in 1973, it was reinstated in 1977. 65% of Americans believe putting someone to death for a crime is acceptable, according to a recent poll. But respondents were close to evenly split on whether they would prefer the death penalty (50%) to mandatory life in prison (46%). The death penalty is most favored by age 30+ males who are [[Caucasian]] and [[Republican]].<ref>ABC News/Washington Post poll: [http://abcnews.go.com/images/Politics/1015a3DeathPenalty.pdf Death Penalty]</ref> |
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| − | Capital punishment for federal crimes began in 1988.<ref>http://www.justice.gov/dag/pubdoc/deathpenaltystudy.htm</ref> | + | Capital punishment for federal crimes existed for centuries. After the death penalty was suspended by [[judicial activism]] in 1973, the federal government reinstated it again in 1988.<ref>http://www.justice.gov/dag/pubdoc/deathpenaltystudy.htm</ref> |
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| − | Some studies conducted since the start of the new millennium have consistently shown a deterrence factor in the United States based on use of the death penalty. It has been calculated that each person executed saves the lives of anywhere from 3 to 18 innocent people.<ref>Studies: Death penalty discourages crime http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,280215,00.html</ref> Other studies have shown that as a whole, "death-penalty states" typically have higher murder rates than states that do not have capital punishment.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.deathpenaltyinfo.org/article.php?&did=1705#STATES%20WITH%20THE%20DEATH%20PENALTY%20V.%20STATES%20WITHOUT|format=HTML|work=Death Penalty Information Center|language=English|title=Deterrence|accessdate=2007-08-21}}</ref> | + | Some studies conducted since the start of the new millennium have consistently shown a deterrence factor in the United States based on use of the death penalty. It has been calculated that each person executed saves the lives of anywhere from 3 to 18 innocent people.<ref>Studies: Death penalty discourages crime http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,280215,00.html</ref> Other studies have shown that as a whole, "death-penalty states" typically have higher murder rates than states that do not have capital punishment, but obviously many other factors influence the overall murder rate, such as poverty and policies toward repeat offenders.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.deathpenaltyinfo.org/article.php?&did=1705#STATES%20WITH%20THE%20DEATH%20PENALTY%20V.%20STATES%20WITHOUT|format=HTML|work=Death Penalty Information Center|language=English|title=Deterrence|accessdate=2007-08-21}}</ref> |
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| | ===Morality=== | | ===Morality=== |