Death Penalty - what is your opinion about it?

[Tispower]

z64dan said:
Here's what bugs me about the whole "prison is a waste of taxpayers money" argument: When inmates are on death row, they might BE on death row for 25 years, its not like they die a couple months after commiting the crime, guys. Probably the fastest execution in the past 50 years was Timothy McVeigh (OK City bomber), and that was mostly because it was a federal court, and he attacked a federal building (And the attorney general did not like him). It still took something like 7 years for him to be killed.

Check this page out: http://www.tdcj.state.tx.us/stat/offendersondrow.htm

You will see that, while half of the offenders got put on death row AFTER 1997, half of them were put there before 1997, with some dating back to 1976 (which means he has been on death row 31 years). According to this TX website, the average time spent on death row is 10.2 years. (Then you gotta add the additional prison time, during the trials, for the true cost of death row).

So, just because they are on death row, doesnt mean the state is really saving alot of money. (I live in TX by the way).

I remember reading once that it takes like $1mil to kill somebody. Primarily because of all the various appeals. You gotta remember the first time they go in court doesn't decide the fate, they can easily appeal against the decision time and time again. Si I think life inprisonment acually becomes cheaper.