Truthdig - Ear to the Ground - A Cruel and Unusual Waste of Money:
"Executing people is expensive. A new report by the Death Penalty Information Center says California is spending more than 10 times as much on capital punishment—$137 million a year—as it would on an alternative life-without-parole system. New York and New Jersey repealed the death penalty after spending hundreds of millions without an execution to show for it.
Why is it when states look to cut costs, as California has, they go after positive social programs that benefit the poor, kids and seniors? If we’re going to slash education budgets every time we hit a downturn, then we ought to start thinking about execution as a luxury. It may be wildly popular in this country, but we just can’t afford it. —PZS"
"Executing people is expensive. A new report by the Death Penalty Information Center says California is spending more than 10 times as much on capital punishment—$137 million a year—as it would on an alternative life-without-parole system. New York and New Jersey repealed the death penalty after spending hundreds of millions without an execution to show for it.
Why is it when states look to cut costs, as California has, they go after positive social programs that benefit the poor, kids and seniors? If we’re going to slash education budgets every time we hit a downturn, then we ought to start thinking about execution as a luxury. It may be wildly popular in this country, but we just can’t afford it. —PZS"
