Many people are also unaware of the high cost and inefficiency of the death penalty in the U.S. With 3002 (as of April 2015) inmates on death row, there were 3

Many people are also unaware of the high cost and inefficiency of the death penalty in the U.S. With 3002 (as of April 2015) inmates on death row, there were 35 executions in 2014. http://www.deathpenaltyinfo.org/documents/FactSheet.pdf http://www.deathpenaltyinfo.org/documents/FactSheet.pdf Depending on the state, a trial with a death penalty could cost anywhere from half a million dollars more, to millions more than a trial without a death penalty. Even at the absurdly high price of $35k per year per prisoner, life without parole is likely a cheaper option for tax payers than the death penalty. I don't mean to say this is the only reason why the death penalty is wrong. We know for certain that provably innocent people have been put to death. It's just that in addition to being morally wrong, it's also expensive and a waste of resources. The only reason I can theoretically imagine for keeping it around is that supposedly criminals might be less likely to commit a crime for fear of the death penalty. I think every serious study has shown that harsher penalties don't deter crime. One of the best ways to actually reduce crime is to provide better early education for poor people.