Death Sentence vs Life In Prison - How Do They Actually Compare?

Summary

This script explores the history and evolution of capital punishment in the US, contrasting it with life imprisonment. It delves into early public executions, the shift to private penitentiaries, and the quest for more humane execution methods, from hangings to lethal injection. It discusses the moral and practical reasons behind the preference for life imprisonment, including the potential for exoneration and the high costs associated with death penalty trials and death row maintenance.

Takeaways

• 💡 The death penalty in America dates back to the 17th century with hangings as the primary method of execution.
• 👥 Public executions were intended to serve justice and act as a deterrent to crime.
• 📈 Despite the belief that harsh punishments deter crime, data shows that crime rates increased during times of public executions.
• 🏛 Early Americans emphasized limiting the death penalty, showing clemency in certain cases.
• 🌐 The death penalty was mostly reserved for murder in the US, with a growing movement for its complete abolishment.
• 📉 The number of crimes punishable by death increased in the South, particularly for crimes committed by slaves.
• 🏭 The creation of penitentiaries shifted focus towards reforming criminals rather than deterring crime through punishment.
• 🔬 The 20th century saw the US becoming more selective with the death penalty, often opting for life imprisonment.
• 🔄 Execution methods evolved from hangings to electric chair, gas chamber, and finally lethal injection, each with their own controversies.
• 💉 Lethal injection, despite being considered the most humane method, has faced criticism for being potentially painful and distressing.
• 🏛 Life imprisonment is seen as a more moral option and allows for the possibility of exoneration with new evidence.

Q & A

What was the primary purpose of public executions during the 17th century?

Public executions were meant to serve justice and act as a deterrent to crime.

How did the early Americans differ from their English counterparts in their approach to the death penalty?

Early Americans placed great emphasis on limiting the use of the death penalty, often showing clemency in cases of good personal character, youth, or extenuating circumstances.

What was the significance of the creation of state prisons in the context of the death penalty?

The creation of state prisons led to an increased investment in reforming criminals rather than simply deterring crime through punishment, and it allowed authorities to end public spectacles of executions.

How did the 20th century see a change in the use of the death penalty in the United States?

The United States became more progressive in the use of the death penalty, reserving it for only the most heinous crimes, and often opting for life imprisonment over execution.

What were some of the issues with the method of hanging as a form of execution?

Hanging could go wrong if the rope's length was not properly calculated, resulting in a slow and painful death or decapitation if the condemned's weight was not correctly measured.

What was the electric chair introduced as a replacement for, and what were its problems?

The electric chair was introduced as a replacement for hangings, promising a quick and efficient death. However, it had problems such as the condemned catching on fire or still being alive after the application of voltage.

Why is lethal injection currently the preferred method for executing the death penalty?

Lethal injection is seen as a more humane and efficient way to execute the death penalty, despite having its own set of problems.

What are some of the issues with the administration of lethal injections?

Lethal injections are often administered by prison guards with minimal training, which can lead to mistakes in finding veins, inserting IV lines, and administering drugs in the correct doses and order.

Why is life imprisonment considered a more moral option than the death penalty?

Life imprisonment is seen as the more moral option because it avoids the moral pitfall of the state killing someone, no matter the crime.

How does life imprisonment provide a practical advantage in terms of legal redress?

Life imprisonment allows for the possibility of new evidence or forensic techniques to be discovered, which can lead to the freeing of an innocent person or a reduction in sentence.

Why is the death penalty more expensive than life imprisonment without parole?

The death penalty is more expensive due to the costs of lengthy trials, multiple appeals, and the additional expenses of running a death row, including staff, observation, maintenance, and healthcare costs.

Outlines

00:00

🗽 Historical Overview of Capital Punishment

This paragraph delves into the history of the death penalty in America, starting from the 17th century. It discusses how public hangings were a form of entertainment and deterrence against crime. The narrative contrasts the American approach with that of England, where bodies were displayed to deter crime. The paragraph highlights the evolution of the death penalty in the U.S., from its early use with leniency in certain cases to the eventual restriction to heinous crimes. It also touches on the shift from public to private executions and the move towards more humane methods of execution, including the introduction of the electric chair and lethal injection.

05:00

💉 Issues with Lethal Injection and the Debate on Capital Punishment

The second paragraph focuses on the practical and ethical issues surrounding lethal injection, the current method of execution in the U.S. It points out the lack of medical professionals' involvement due to ethical concerns, leading to prison guards with minimal training administering the injections. The paragraph raises concerns about the effectiveness of the drugs used and the potential suffering of the condemned. It also discusses the moral and practical arguments against the death penalty, including the possibility of executing innocent individuals and the high costs associated with death penalty trials and incarceration. The paragraph concludes by comparing the U.S.'s stance on capital punishment with that of other countries that have abolished it in favor of life imprisonment.

Keywords

💡Death Sentence

The death sentence refers to a legal punishment of death ordered by a court for a person convicted of a particular crime, usually murder. In the video, it is discussed in historical context, from its origins in the 17th century to its modern application. The script mentions that the death sentence is reserved for the most heinous crimes and is seen as a form of justice and deterrent, though data suggests it does not effectively deter crime.

💡Life Imprisonment

Life imprisonment is a sentence where a convicted person is imprisoned for the rest of their natural life. The video contrasts this with the death sentence, highlighting it as a more moral option and one that allows for the possibility of exoneration with new evidence. It is also presented as a more practical alternative due to advances in forensic technology.

💡Public Executions

Public executions were a form of capital punishment where the execution of a prisoner was carried out in public. The script describes how they were a spectacle in the 17th century, serving as a deterrent to crime. However, the video notes a shift in the United States towards private executions as public opinion and practices evolved.

💡Capital Punishment

Capital punishment, also known as the death penalty, is the practice where a person is killed by the state as a punishment for a crime. The video discusses the historical use of capital punishment, its methods, and the moral and practical debates surrounding it.

💡Hanging

Hanging was a common method of execution historically. The video describes how it required precise calculations to ensure a quick death and contrasts the intended humane execution with the many ways it could go wrong, leading to a prolonged and painful death.

💡Electric Chair

The electric chair was introduced as a method of execution that was believed to be more humane than hanging. The video explains how it worked and provides examples of when things went wrong, such as the condemned catching on fire or the execution failing to kill them.

💡Gas Chamber

The gas chamber was another method of execution that was seen as a more humane alternative to the electric chair. The video recounts an instance where a prisoner was asked to signal if the gas caused pain, illustrating the potential for it to be a prolonged and cruel method.

💡Lethal Injection

Lethal injection is the current method of execution in many death penalty jurisdictions. The video outlines the three-stage process and discusses the issues surrounding it, such as the lack of medical training of those administering it and the possibility that the condemned may be aware and in pain throughout the process.

💡Appeal

An appeal in a legal context is a request made after a trial by a party that has lost on one or more issues that the court make a different decision or take different action. The video mentions that death penalty trials are granted an automatic appeal, reflecting the gravity of the punishment and the desire for a fair trial.

💡Death Row

Death row refers to the place in a prison where inmates awaiting execution are held. The video discusses the long waiting periods on death row, which can last decades, and the additional costs associated with maintaining death row and the health issues of its aging population.

💡Forensics

Forensics in the context of the video refers to the application of scientific methods to legal problems, particularly in the investigation of crimes. The video suggests that advancements in forensic technology have led to more cases being overturned, making life imprisonment a more practical option than the death penalty.

Highlights

One man received the death sentence for killing during a robbery, while another got life imprisonment for killing two in a drunken rage.

The death sentence in America dates back to the 17th century with hanging as the primary method.

Public executions were intended to serve justice and deter crime.

England used public displays of corpses to deter crime, but data shows this did not reduce crime rates.

Early Americans emphasized limiting the death penalty and showed clemency in certain cases.

The death penalty was mostly reserved for murder in the US, with a movement towards abolishment growing.

The south increased death penalty-eligible crimes, especially for slaves.

State prisons were created to focus on reforming criminals rather than deterring crime through punishment.

By the 20th century, the US was reserving the death penalty for the most heinous crimes.

Experimentation with execution methods aimed to find more humane ways to carry out the death penalty.

Historical issues with hangings included botched executions causing prolonged suffering.

The electric chair was introduced as a more efficient execution method but had its own grisly failures.

The gas chamber was seen as a humane alternative until it too was associated with painful executions.

Lethal injection became the preferred method, despite concerns over its potential for pain and distress.

Lethal injection is administered by prison guards with minimal training, raising questions about its execution.

Many believe the drugs used in lethal injection may not effectively render the condemned unconscious.

Life imprisonment is seen as a more moral punishment than the death penalty.

Life imprisonment allows for the possibility of exoneration with new evidence or forensic techniques.

The death penalty process is lengthy, intended to allow time for new evidence to emerge.

The death penalty is more expensive than life imprisonment, contrary to popular belief.

Death penalty trials are longer and more costly due to the need for extensive evidence and multiple appeals.

Death row requires additional resources, leading to higher costs for the government.

The criteria for the death penalty vary by state, with some states having specific circumstances that make it applicable.

The decision for the death penalty is made by the jury after fulfilling state legal requirements.

Transcripts

One defendant kills a victim in the midst of a robbery and gets the death sentence.

Another defendant kills two people in a fit of drunken rage and gets life in prison.

Why did one man get death and the other life imprisonment?

What is the real difference between the death sentence and life in prison?

The death sentence in America gets it start all the way back with the first settlers in

the 17th century.

Back then hanging was the most popular form of execution, and the event would draw quite

a crowd.

People would dress in their best fineries to attend an execution, and a condemned criminal

might follow suit as well.

Of course, the condemned may also choose to dress in rags so that the hangman would be

cheated of his prize- the now dead felon's clothing.

Following the common ideology of the time, public executions were meant to not just serve

justice, but act as a deterrent.

In England, where they made execution the default penalty for a shockingly high number

of crimes, it wasn't enough to simply hang the condemned.

Their bodies would then often be put on display, in an effort to deter other criminals.

Today we have the data to prove that tough punishments do nothing to deter crime- even

if people don't want to believe it- and crime actually increased during the times England

attempted to deter it the most with grisly displays of 'justice'.

Here in the United States though there would be no public display of corpses for months

on end.

Instead, a trial would be held almost immediately after apprehension, so that the memory of

the crime in the local community wouldn't fade.

Then a gallows would be erected as close to the actual scene of the crime as possible,

where throngs of people could gather.

A sermon would be delivered, usually followed by a final statement from the condemned.

Then, the execution was on and within minutes the condemned was dead.

Much unlike their colonial masters, the early Americans actually placed great emphasis on

limiting the use of the death penalty.

Clemency would be shown in cases of good personal character, youth, or extenuating circumstances

surrounding the crime committed.

Governors and other local leaders would also often intervene on the behalf of the condemned

in the case of overzealous judges or harsh laws.

At the same time back in England, children were regularly put to death for the act of

stealing food.

After the successful revolutionary war, the death penalty was abolished for most of the

lesser crimes that English law still assigned it.

Most of the new states would choose to exercise the death penalty only for murder, though

even back then a budding movement for the complete abolishment of the death penalty

was already growing.

Perhaps unsurprisingly, in the south the number of crimes the death penalty could be issued

for was increased for crimes committed by slaves.

The creation of state prisons, or penitentiaries, led to an increased investment in reforming

criminals rather than simply attempting to deter crimes by punishment.

Penitentiaries were exactly that- places criminals were meant to go and repent of their crimes.

They also allowed the authorities to put an end to the public spectacle of executions,

instead holding them in private inside the walls of a penitentiary.

Entering into the 20th century, the United States was slowly becoming one of the most

progressive countries in the world in the use of the death penalty, reserving it for

only the most heinous crimes.

Often, even then criminals were likely to receive life imprisonment over the death penalty.

A strong desire for more humane executions also led to experimenting with the process

of taking life.

Hangings had been popular for hundreds of years, and were considered very humane- but

hangings could, and often did, go terribly wrong.

For starters, a proper hanging required the precise calculation of an individual's height

and weight- down to the pound.

The goal of a good hanging was to have the individual fall through the trap door and

have their neck broken by the thick rope, thus bringing nearly instant death.

Without precise measurements of height and weight, a hanging would go very wrong.

If the rope was too short, the condemned would not build the velocity needed to physically

snap their neck.

They would be left to dangle and kick helplessly, sometimes for up to ten minutes as they slowly

choked to death.

If the rope was too long however, the individual might achieve too great a velocity and have

their head popped off like a cork.

This would be a particularly grisly affair, with the torn-off head flying several feet.

This could also happen if the condemned's weight wasn't correctly calculated.

In one particularly grisly case, the rope snapped and the condemned fell to the ground-

but not before the rope had torn through part of the condemned's throat.

Surely modern science could offer a better solution- and that solution came in the form

of the electric chair.

Delivering thousands of volts directly to the brain, the electric chair promised quick

and efficient death.

And much like hanging, when it went right it certainly seemed to achieve that aim- though

it's doubtful it was a very pleasant way for the condemned to die.

When the electric chair went bad though, much like hanging, it went spectacularly bad.

The condemned would often catch on fire, flesh would melt from the extreme current and heating.

Teeth could even pop right out of the gums like popcorn.. and even after half a minute

of voltage the condemned might still be alive.

The gas chamber was seen as a humane replacement to the electric chair, until unsurprisingly

it too was soon creating horror stories of its own.

One prisoner condemned to die by the gas chamber was asked to nod his head if the gas caused

pain.

For fifteen minutes he nodded his head in the affirmative before finally succumbing.

Today lethal injection is the method of choice for executing the death penalty.

You're not going to be surprised to hear that this too has serious problems.

A lethal injection works in sequence, with one injection serving to knock the condemned

unconscious, so that they aren't aware of what's coming next.

The second injection paralyzes the lungs so as to stop the condemned from breathing.

Finally, the third injection shuts down the heart.

On paper, it's a humane and efficient way to end life.

In reality, lethal injection is plagued by problems.

For starters, the injection is administered by prison guards who have at best, two weeks

training.

This is because no doctor- who's hyppocratic oath forbids them from causing harm- will

accept assignment in executing the death penalty This leaves mostly untrained prison guards

to try and find the condemned's veins, correctly insert the IV lines that feed the drugs in,

and then administer the drugs in the proper doses and order.

Unsurprisingly, investigations into lethal injections find that serious mistakes happen.

Most worryingly of all though is the belief by many doctors that the barbiturate meant

to knock the condemned unconscious doesn't actually do its job right.

Instead, the victim is left in a paralytic state, fully aware of the effect of the other

drugs but unable to speak or otherwise signal their extreme distress.

Doctors also affirm that the effects of the other drugs are without a doubt, extremely

painful and distressing.

For better or worse, lethal injection is for the moment, here to stay, as is the death

penalty.

Once, one of the most progressive countries on earth in the elimination of the death penalty,

the United States now comes well in the rear of modern nations- with most European nations

having abolished the death penalty in favor of life imprisonment.

The real question is why though.

For one, life imprisonment is seen as the more moral option in exercising punishment

for the most heinous of crimes.

The act of killing someone- no matter their crime- is seen as intrinsically making the

state no better than the killers it may be trying to punish.

Life imprisonment completely avoids this moral pitfall.

There's a more practical reason for life imprisonment though.

As forensic technologies have increased in capabilities, more and more sentences are

being overturned.

If a criminal is condemned to die, then there is no chance of redemption once the sentence

has been carried out.

Life imprisonment meanwhile allows for the possibility of new evidence or forensic techniques

to be discovered, and either the freeing of an innocent victim, or a commuting of a much

more harsh sentence to something more befitting the new level of guilt.

In many countries were the death penalty remains in use, executions can often take years- here

in the United States it can even take decades.

This isn't just government bureaucracy moving slowly, it is also meant to allow ample time

for new evidence to come to light.

Lengthy stays on death row are thus seen as a compromise of sorts- though most condemned

report that instead it only makes their punishment worse by dragging out the inevitable end they

expect to face.

But there's also a matter of money.

Often proponents of the death penalty will say that they rather see the most monstrous

amongst us die instead of living on at the tax payer's expense.

At first glance, this makes good sense- however, diving into the data we see that the death

penalty is often much more expensive than life imprisonment without the possibility

of parole.

The cost of a trial alone can be upwards of three times as expensive as a trial where

the death penalty was not sought.

This is largely because in the US, the defense is allowed many opportunities to appeal the

sentencing, seeing as it is a very permanent punishment.

The actual trial itself is much longer than a normal trial, due to the exacting amount

of evidence that must be gathered by both the prosecution and the defense in order to

earn, or beat, the death penalty.

Death sentence trials are also granted an automatic appeal at state appellate courts.

Once more, because of the severity of the death penalty the US government wants to ensure

as fair a trial as possible.

Often though, motions for new trials are immediately filed even before getting to this point.

Once the death penalty is approved by the state appellate court though, the case goes

to the state's supreme court.

If it passes the state supreme court, then a federal judge reviews the case one final

time.

Once on death row, the costs keep on adding up.

Running a death row requires additional staff versus a similar-sized segment of the general

population.

There are also more costs in the observation and oversight of death row inmates, greater

maintenance costs, and surprisingly, greater healthcare costs.

As most death row inmates will spend around 15 years awaiting their execution, the death

row population is on the whole more elderly than general population, which leads to a

greater increase in healthcare costs due to age-related illnesses.

In one study, a death row inmate cost the US government $1.12 million more than a general

population inmate.

With approximately 2,500 inmates on death row today, this comes out to $2.8 billion

in extra costs to both state and federal governments.

So when can you expect the death penalty or life imprisonment?

That is a tricky question to answer.

Currently all across the US, only crimes resulting in a victim being killed is punishable by

death.

But each state's legislature can set specific circumstances that make murder eligible for

the death penalty.

In one state, the murder of a minor may automatically earn you the death penalty, while in a state

next door it may be up to the body count- how many victims there were.

Then, after a trial, the jury must come to agreement on the application of the death

penalty after it fulfills their state's legal requirements.

Now go check out Last 60 minutes of being on death row, or click this other video instead!