Throughout history, governments have struggled with the concept of preventing crime. One of the most obvious ways to prevent crime is by eliminating the criminals through capital punishment. In our society, capital punishment (the death penalty) has been legal since 1976. Since then, it has been proven not effective. It has been shown not to decrease murder rates, there are too many innocent people both falsely placed on death row as well as executed, and an alternative through education is easily applicable. For these reasons, the death penalty is not necessary, and can be eliminated through understanding it's weak points, and modifying this civilization's approach to crime.
             Since it's reinstatement in 1976, numerous studies have been conducted to measure the death penalty's effectiveness as a deterrent. The results are unanimous. One study uses a graph to show that even though executions in 1995 were at an all time peak, the murder rates were not altered. Another study shows that the vast majority of polled police chiefs don't believe the death penalty is an effective law enforcement tool. Still another shocking poll revealed that many of the states in support of the death penalty actually have higher murder rates than their neighboring states that do not support it.1 The evidence is clear; the death penalty has not had it's desired affect on American crime.
             Another of the death penalty's purposes is to protect the safety of the innocent. Protecting the safety of the innocent is a supportable cause, but the current system of determining the guilty is so flawed that many people determined guilty, and sentenced to death have been later found innocent. For at least 23 of these people, the news came too late . Leo Jones was one of these people who was wrongfully executed. He was found innocent after the only eyewitness to the case confessed
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