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The Federal Death Penalty
Jul. 25th, 2019 07:05 pmFor the first time in 16 years, the Federal government has lifted its unofficial moratorium on the death penalty. Five executions have been scheduled.
One of the reasons that I live in DC, not that it was in my top 3, is that it doesn't have the death penalty. Virginia and Florida vie for second in the country after Texas and Maryland hasn't executed anyone in a while but still has the law on its books. Considering many people's views of who supports the death penalty, it may be considered something of a surprise that West Virginia also doesn't have the death penalty.
I have been viscerally opposed to the death penalty for years, but only mentioned it to my family when I was 16. France conducted its final execution -- via guillotine -- in 1977. My father asked me why, and I explained that it really was visceral. He gave me the most important lesson I could learn at that point: "Feel what you like, but find the facts to support it if you want to change others' minds."
So I did. Violent crime rates, and specifically murder, are higher in places with the death penalty. For instance in 2017 the Commonwealth of Massachusetts had 2.5 murders per 100,000 of population and the State of Texas had 5.0 (Virginia 5.3 and Louisiana, which had the highest rate, 12.4).
The fact is violence isn't a deterrent. The fact is, in a civilized country, we don't take the lives of our citizens.
One of the reasons that I live in DC, not that it was in my top 3, is that it doesn't have the death penalty. Virginia and Florida vie for second in the country after Texas and Maryland hasn't executed anyone in a while but still has the law on its books. Considering many people's views of who supports the death penalty, it may be considered something of a surprise that West Virginia also doesn't have the death penalty.
I have been viscerally opposed to the death penalty for years, but only mentioned it to my family when I was 16. France conducted its final execution -- via guillotine -- in 1977. My father asked me why, and I explained that it really was visceral. He gave me the most important lesson I could learn at that point: "Feel what you like, but find the facts to support it if you want to change others' minds."
So I did. Violent crime rates, and specifically murder, are higher in places with the death penalty. For instance in 2017 the Commonwealth of Massachusetts had 2.5 murders per 100,000 of population and the State of Texas had 5.0 (Virginia 5.3 and Louisiana, which had the highest rate, 12.4).
The fact is violence isn't a deterrent. The fact is, in a civilized country, we don't take the lives of our citizens.
