The cost of capital punishment: death-penalty opponents are using a new argument for tough economic times: that capital punishment is too expensive.

• Author: Urbina, Ian
• Position: NATIONAL

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CRITICAL THINKING

Capital punishment is included in one of the first written codes of law, King Hammurabi's code, from Babylonia, around 1750 B.C. It included the phrase "an eye for an eye."

* What does this phrase mean, and why might modern supporters of capital punishment invoke it? What are some arguments for and against the "eye for an eye" philosophy?

* Why do you think capital punishment has been in use for so long?

WRITING PROMPT

Research your state's current and past position on capital punishment (see Web Watch), and use your findings and information from the article to write an editorial for your local newspaper for or against the death penalty.

DEBATE

Support or refute: The death penalty's effectiveness in reducing serious crimes, like murder, outweighs its economic costs.

DISCUSSION QUESTIONS

The death penalty is sometimes applied to federal crimes like treason, terrorism, and espionage. Why do you think these crimes may be punishable by death?

Do you agree with those who say eliminating the death penalty will result in an increase in crime? Why or why not?

Are you surprised that the U.S. is one of the few industrialized democracies that still has capital punishment? Why do you think this is so?

What might account for changes over time in public support for the death penalty?

Why do states get to determine whether or not to use the death penalty?

FAST FACT

According to Amnesty International, in 2008, China had the most executions worldwide--1,718--followed by Iran (346), Saudi Arabia (102), and the United States 137).

WEB WATCH

www.deathpenaltyinfo.org

The Death Penalty Information Center provides state-by-state information regarding capital punishment.

Maryland Governor Martin O'Malley went to his state legislature in February and made an unconventional argument that is becoming increasingly popular in cash-strapped states: Abolish the death penalty to save money.

O'Malley, a Catholic who has cited religious opposition to the death penalty in the past, is now arguing that capital cases cost three times as much as homicide cases where the death penalty is not sought. "We can't afford that," he said, "when there are better and cheaper ways to reduce crime."

Lawmakers in Colorado, Kansas, Montana, Nebraska, and New Hampshire have made the same argument in recent months as they push bills seeking to repeal the death penalty.

And last month, New Mexico became the most recent state to abolish the death penalty...