The year was 1985; 13-year old Karen Patterson was shot in her sleep by her neighbor, Joe Atkins. Atkins already severed ten years of a life sentence for killing his half- brother. After Atkins killed Patterson, he then killed his fathers, whom persuade the parole authority to release Atkins from his life sentence. In 1999, Atkins was put to death by lethal injection (Gibbs). In my opinion, all states should have the death penalty and those who are on death row should have shorter time fame on death row. The death penalty will forever incapacitate the criminal and the cost would be cheaper than keeping someone on death row for years.

First, the death penalty should be in all states is it incapacitating the criminal. Capital punishment permanently removes the worst criminals from society. This should prove much safer from the rest of society than having someone on a long term or permanent incarnation. With the death penalty in every state, things like the Patterson case would not happen. This way no one who has a life sentence will be let out of jail. If you think about it, dead criminals cannot commit any further crimes in jail or if the get out, like Atkins.

Next is the cost. Money is not an inexhaustible commodity. The government should spend the country’s limited resources on the old, the young, and the sick than on the long term imprisonment. It costs about 55.09 dollars a day for one person in prison.That is about 20,108 thousand dollars per year to keep someone in prison (Florida) .Most of the money is spent on security and medical services. The remaining money is spent on feeding, clothing, and educating. The cost of each prisoner varies; this is because of the type of inmates that are being house at a prison. It could be 99.12 dollars a day for an inmate at a reception center (Statistics). The cost does add up. Having someone be on death row for a shorter time would in the long run cost lest and make society safer, than what is already being done in the United States.
Lastly is the counter argument. Anti- capital punishment people cite it is a higher cost to executing someone, than having someone with life in prison. While this may be true in the United States; the only reason this may be true, is because of the endless appeals and the delays in carrying out the sentence. In the United States the average person is on death row is 12 years. If the United States did what Britain did in the 20th century, the cost would be a lot less. Britain, in the 20th century, had a death penalty where a person would only have about three to eight weeks on death row and where given one appeal (England). If there was a system like this now, were it limited the number of appeals, then it would eventually cost lest. Another argument, against the death penalty is it would be that it is inhumane. On the other hand, if you think about what these people did to others, the death penalty is not really that inhumane. It is like the person is getting the easy way out. So, why should someone, whom killed someone else, get too lived on tax payer money, which is paid by family member of the person that was killed, and get to stay alive?

Over all there are 35 out of 50 states, the US military, and the US government that have the death penalty (“States with”). If it is good for the government and the military, then why shouldn’t be good for every state. In the end the death penalty will incapacitate the criminal and the cost would eventually be cheaper. Even though there are things that need to be work out for it to be cheaper. The death penalty would make this country safer in the end. As American citizen call your local government and tell them you support the death penalty


Work Cited
. “Arguments for and against Capital Punishment.” England, 1500In. Capital
Punishment .U. 2008 Web.03 Feb.2011.
Gibbs, Louisa. “Ultimate Repentance or Punishment?” The Sandspur 8 Oct 2007. Web.
03 Feb.2011
“States with and without the death Penalty.” Death Penalty Information Center. 2010.
2010 Web.03 Feb. 2011.
“Statistics in Brief- Inmate Cost Per Day.”Florida Department of Cor