Capital Punishment is defined as the execution of a criminal by the state. In simpler form: legalized murder. This is an extravagant public policy that produces virtually no benefit. Violence of all kinds has become a part of our cultural routine. The death penalty only encourages vengeance as a way to overcome grief. Does it really provide satisfactory closure for the victim? Since 1976, when the Supreme Court ruled the death penalty to be a legitimate form of Punishment, there have been 697 people executed in the United States (Barry 1). Capital Punishment is practiced in thirty-seven of the fifty states (Bedau 1). The United States, which has always taken a strong stand in fairness, needs to reevaluate its criminal justice system. Capital Punishment does not benefit society, the economy, or the legal system itself.
             Most people assume that a life-imprisonment sentence is more expensive than capital Punishment. However, when all relevant costs are taken into account, the reverse is true. Capital murder trials drag on much longer than those without the death penalty. Legislation cost build up quickly, due to the numerous appeals and execution dates. The time of the judges, prosecutors, public defenders, and court reporters, along with numerous other expenses are all costs borne by the taxpayer (Bedau 1). Florida, with one of the nation's most notorious death rows, has estimated the cost of each execution to be about 3.2 million dollars. In other words, every death sentence is approximately six times the cost of a life term in prison (Bedau 3). A 1982 study in New York showed that if the death penalty were introduced in their state, the cost of the capital trial alone would be more than double the cost of a life-imprisonment sentence (Bedau 3). Obviously, capital Punishment is not a better economic alternative to life imprisonment.
             Large numbers of people that have been sentenced to death are later proven innocen...