US: Has the death penalty faced a death of its own?

(Disclaimer: La Tonique Media LLC does not represent any political ideology. While we do not espouse any political beliefs, we do seek to provide a balance perspective by incorporating voices from both sides of the political spectrum.)

By Elaine Sanderson

On Dec. 10, 2020, Brandon Bernard was executed by lethal injection. Initially put in prison for killing two youth ministers 20 years ago, he is part of Trump’s agenda to fast-track the execution of death row inmates before the end of his presidency. International attention was drawn as the United States remain one of few countries to still enact capital punishment. Joe Biden pledged to “seek the end” of the death penalty once he formally takes office in January.

Bernard’s death caused outrage among human rights groups and reignited the topic of abolishing the death penalty. Bernie Sanders said on Twitter, “Brandon Bernard should be alive today. We must end all federal executions and abolish the death penalty. In a world of incredible violence, the state should not be involved in premeditated murder.” It sparked the question: is the death penalty out of date?

Cases of Innocence 

The two men Carlos DeLuna and Carlos Hernandez look strikingly similar. (Corpus Christi police department | DeLuna family | Hernandez family | Texas dept of criminal justice | Corpus Christi Caller Times)

Not everyone who faces the death penalty is guilty. One example is Carlos DeLuna, a man executed in 1989. Convicted for the fatal stabbing of a Texas store worker, DeLuna’s guilt was put in doubt in 2006 through evidence uncovered by reporters. According to reports, another man - Carlos Hernandez - had a record of similar crimes and repeatedly confessed to the murder. Hernandez and DeLuna looked so similar that their families confused photos of the men for each other. DeLuna’s claims that the crime was committed by the “other Carlos” were dismissed as “a phantom”. See The Wrong Carlos: Anatomy of a Wrongful Execution. 

Since 1973, over 170 inmates have been released from death row after substantial evidence arose of their innocence. 

Support for the death penalty has wavered

Since 1998, the number of US death sentences have been in decline. Robert Dunham, executive director of the Death Penalty Information Center said, “America is in the midst of a climate change on capital punishment.” He continues, “When you look at public opinion polls, support for the death penalty is also at a 40-year low. We’re seeing a historical movement away from the death penalty.” 

In a Gallup Values and Beliefs Poll, 54% of US adults said the death penalty is morally acceptable. With a six-percentage-point decline, this is the lowest score in its 20-year history. However, this slim-majority could make repealing the death penalty difficult in some areas. 

Crime Control and Costs

The death penalty is not an effective form of crime control. When police officers ranked the factors they believed reduced the rate of violent crime, the death penalty was noted as the least effective. In the eyes of law enforcement, capital punishment is not successfully deterring criminals. Instead, it is cruel and unusual. Dunham said, “There is, in fact, no evidence that the death penalty is a deterrent. In actuality, murder rates are higher, on average, in the states that have the death penalty than in the states that do not have the death penalty.”

Since 1978, California has spent around $4 billion to execute 13 individuals. 

Racial Injustice

In 1987, the Supreme Court rejected a plea to end the death penalty in Georgia based on evidence it was racially discriminatory. The case - McCleskey v Kemp - resulted in the court finding no constitutional error in a system filled with racial disparities. Law professor Eric M. Freedman said, “The continuing adherence of the Supreme Court to McCleskey is a continuing statement that Black lives do not matter.”

Since 1976, 295 Black people have been executed for the killing of a white person. However, only 21 white people have been executed for the killing of a Black person. A defendant is more likely to face the death penalty for killing a white person rather than a Black person.

Human Rights

If a defendant is sentenced to capital punishment for murder on grounds that is a heinous crime, what allows the same act to be taken upon them? It breaches human rights: the right to life and the right to live free from torture or cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment.

In the UK - where the death penalty is banned - the Human Rights Act protects the above. In 2017, Human Rights Minister Lord Ahmad said, “It is over 50 years since the UK government abolished the death penalty. We believe its use undermines human dignity, that there is no conclusive evidence of its deterrent value, and that any miscarriage of justice leading to its imposition is irreparable.” If other developed Western nations can do it, why can’t the United States take the same progressive step?

Public opinion, international outrage and lobbying from human rights groups, as well as the pledge from President-elect Joe Biden, shows death penalty support is dying out within the United States. Marc Hyden, National Advocacy Coordinator at Conservatives Concerned about the Death Penalty said, “As more and more Americans are confronted with the death penalty’s failures – risk to innocent life, high financial cost, failure to protect society, and harm on murder victims’ families – its days are numbered.”

Elaine is a political writer for La Tonique. You can follow Elaine on Twitter @sando_99.