Sorry to dredge up this chestnut, but the following article is relevant:
http://www.cnn.com/2009/CRIME/10/20/...lty/index.html
As I believe many (including myself) have said, this system, which originally was meant as a deterrent, has failed in its intended purpose. With the advent of more lawyers and more laws protecting the civil rights of murders, torturers, rapists, and pedophiles, we're left with (probably) thousands of people on death row who will never be executed. Why have a death penalty if society doesn't use it? It only wastes money and time on people who don't deserve either.
Quote:
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"Thirty-five states still retain the death penalty, but fewer and fewer executions are taking place every year," said Richard Dieter, executive director of the Death Penalty Information Center. "But the overall death row population has remained relatively steady. At a time of budget shortfalls nationwide, the death penalty is turning into an expensive form of life without parole."
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Sentence the bastards to LWOP and be done with it.