Delaney

Lisa Delaney
Professor Jessica Alzen
English 123
24 January 2016
The Death Penalty: Literature Review
Capital punishment in the United States of America has been a controversial issue since
colonial times. It is not a simple issue to address. There are many ways to look at what exactly
the death penalty encompasses and it is important to understand it all before taking a stance
(Evans, 2012; Garland, 2005; Palmer, 2014; Scherdin, 2014). Religion is just one side of the
argument when it comes to abolishing capital punishment (Davidson, 2001; Megivern, 1999).
The financial costs of pursuing the death penalty is another (Dieter, 2009; Frances, 2014; Wood,
2008). From a religious and financial stand point, capital punishment no longer makes sense for
continued use in the United States.
To begin a conversation about the death penalty and its validity in the United States, it is
first important to understand what it is. Evans and Palmer both break down capital punishment,
starting with what crimes can be tried seeking the death penalty and the motions the trials go
through. They explain the costs and explore issues facing the death penalty including race,
religion, and poverty. Both Evans and Palmer spend time explaining the evolution of the death
penalty citing notable cases such as Gregg v. Georgia which reaffirmed the acceptance of the
death penalty in the United States by the Supreme Court. Palmer makes a point at the beginning
of his book to inform the reader, [The book] is not intended to speak for or against the death
penalty. This volume aims only to provide an objective review of how capital punishment works
in the United States. (Page 1). Evans, on the other hand, concludes her work with arguments

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both for and against capital punishment in the United States using statements made by former
Justices of the Supreme Court, members of the Senate, and members of the House of
Representatives, and victims on either side: a widow of a victim of a violent crime who supports
the death penalty, and an exonerated former death row inmate who does not.
When questioning the death penalty in the United States it is important to note how
different the United States is from the rest of the world and the other countries that have already
abolished capital punishment. Palmer and Scherdin point out that the Eighth Amendment
changed and shaped the death penalty in the United States into what it is today. Scherdin takes it
a step further and explains that the American federal system prevents the United States from
abolishing capital punishment outright. Garland also makes this connection stating, The
political and governmental structure of the USA makes elite action of this kind very much more
difficult. Since the USAs constitution allocates jurisdiction in criminal matters to the states
rather than the federal government, it is not possible for the United States Congress to abolish
capital punishment by any means short of a constitutional amendment (Page 363). This is the
reason abolishing the death penalty is a state-by-state decision and not one the entire country can
make in one fell swoop. There are currently thirty-one states that still have the death penalty and
nineteen that have abolished it. California, which has the highest number of death row inmates,
will see the option to abolish the death penalty in November when it will show up on voter
ballots.
When it comes to the argument of religion, it is important to note that religion and the
death penalty have a long history with one another. Davidson and Megivern explore this history
and how religious support for capital punishment has shifted over the course of history. Both
Davidson and Megivern tell the history of capital punishment intertwined with religion and how

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it found strength in Scripture throughout time. Davidson references Genesis 9:6, Whoever sheds
the blood of man, by man shall his blood be shed, for God made man in his own image, as the
earliest mention of capital punishment in the Bible. Davidson states, This verse from Genesis
and the prescription of punishment by death for a variety of crimes in the Torah have been cited
for centuries particularly by Christians as justification for capital punishment. (Page 143).
While Davidson and Megivern also acknowledge the role of the Roman Empire and the
use of the death penalty, Davidson points out that Christianity was a minority religion at the time
and its people were often victimized until Emperor Constantine converted and it was not until
then that, Christian views on capital punishment took on greater significance. (Page 146).
Megivern echoes this statement by stating that, after the alliance of the church with the
Roman Empire under Constantine I, churchmen largely set aside objections and accepted use of
the death penalty by combining elements of the Christian Old Testament and earlier Roman law.
(Page 96). However, both state that most early Christians were likely against the death penalty.
Megivern states that early Christians probably originally opposed the death penalty, During the
first three centuries of Christianity, it was probably the memory of the execution of Jesus and the
early martyrs that led Christians to oppose capital punishment. (Page 96). While Davidson
writes, Most argued that killing was contrary to Christian ethics and that Christians must play
no role in executions, although they conceded that the state did have the right to impose the death
penalty. (Page 146). Davidsons statement points out that while Christians were against capital
punishment, the power ultimately resided with the states and their right to choose.
Davidson and Megivern also agree that World War II was likely the turning point in the
relationship between religion and capital punishment. Where before Christians may not have
agreed on the use of the death penalty, they did agree the state had the power to choose, but

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World War II changed that thinking. Megivern writes, New to the conversation was the frank
recognition given to the fact that state power had been horrendously abused. Awareness was high
that governments could not function without errors and abuses, and it would therefore be well
not to entrust them with the power of putting their citizens to death. (Page 97). Davidson notes
that not long after the end of World War II, Germany, Italy, and Austria all abolished capital
punishment and from the mid-1950s through the 1960s many Protestant denominations
formally announced their support for abolition. (Page 162).
At the end of both articles, each author acknowledges the fact that religious support for
the death penalty has diminished. Davidson makes a bold statement of what that really means in
America by stating, Americans may be a religious people, but the theological understanding of
our religious institutions no longer directly shape the views of many Americans on a variety of
social issues, including penal policy. (Page 170). While both authors do show how religious
support for capital punishment has changed from ancient times to modern times, they lack
relating religious support for abolition to Scripture. Yet, when religions were choosing to support
the death penalty they found strength in Scripture.
Another strong case against capital punishment is the financial aspect of it all. Dieter and
Wood both explore the costs of a trail seeking the death penalty and explain why costs cannot be
cut. Dieter explains why costs cannot be cut by shortening the appeals process or setting a limit
to the trial expenses, with a focus on the defensive side of the case. He states, From a cost
perspective, the reasons for providing a full defense are also compelling. In recent years the U.S.
Supreme Court has overturned several death penalty cases because of inadequate representation.
(Page 18). Wood uses an actual trial to demonstrate the importance of defense attorneys in capital
cases seeking the death penalty and how the bill affects the state paying for the defense.

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Using the Brian Nichols case, Wood explains how seeking the death penalty in the Brian
Nichols case immediately started off $350,000 over budget for the Georgia legislature. The costs
only continued to rise throughout the trial and caused issues for the trial including delays and
what could have been a very costly overturned verdict. When the state refused to give any more
money to the defense, the case was halted until the defense was paid. Had the defense not been
paid it was likely the verdict of the case could have been overturned due to Sixth Amendment
issues and, the state of Georgia [would] have paid nearly $7 million for a trial that [would have
accomplished] nothing. (Page 179). In the end, Nichols was sentenced to multiple life-in-prison
sentences when the jury could not come to a unanimous decision on the death penalty. This
sentence could have been achieved at a much lower cost to the state of Georgia had the death
penalty not been pursued.
Scherdin points out that in 2013 there were 49,000 inmates serving life sentences
compared to the 3,200 inmates on death row. In the United States, juries are having a harder time
condemning people to death. However, by the time a jury makes its decision, most of the money
has already been spent. According to the DPIC website, The most comprehensive study in the
country found that the death penalty costs North Carolina $2.16 million per execution over the
costs of sentencing murderers to life imprisonment. The majority of those costs occur at the trial
level. (Fact Sheet).
Dieter and Frances point out that the death penalty is ineffective when it comes to
deterring violent crimes. In Dieters report, he polled police chiefs across the nation and asked if
they believed if capital punishment was effective in preventing crimes from happening, Fiftyseven percent (57%) said the death penalty does little to prevent violent crimes because
perpetrators rarely consider the consequences when engaged in violence. (Page 10) Frances

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echoes this by stating, And what is societys reward for all this effort and expense? Precious
little. In many states and in federal cases, the death penalty has become purely symbolicAnd in
the states committed to actually following through on the death penalty, there is no evidence that
executions have any more deterrent value than life without parole. If the death penalty holds
next to no weight when it comes to deterring violent crimes and juries are unwilling to sentence
violators to death, it is important to question whether the costs of even seeking the death penalty
is worth it.
In the end, it is important to understand exactly what capital punishment means and
encompasses in the United States in order to take a stance on it. From a religious point of view,
there is a long history between the death penalty and Scripture. In fact, religion used to heavily
support the death penalty using Scripture as reasoning. More recently, since World War II, most
religions no longer condone capital punishment on any level. From a financial aspect, the costs
of just seeking the death penalty do not make sense when the United States is in a decline of
actually implementing it. Life sentences have become the standard in the United States, yet
taxpayers are still paying millions of dollars each year for executions that do not happen. For the
United States, the death penalty just does not make sense anymore, it is time to abolish it.

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Works Cited
Death Penalty Information Center. n.p. n.d. Web. 10 Jan. 2016
Davidson, Douglas. God and the Executioner: The Influence of Western Religion on the Use of
the Death Penalty. William & Mary Bill of Rights Journal 9.1 (2001): 137-70.
Dieter, Richard C. Smart on Crime: Reconsidering the Death Penalty in a Time of Economic
Crisis. Death Penalty Information Center, Oct. 2009. Web. 10 Jan. 2016.
Evans, Kim Masters. Capital Punishment: Cruel and Unusual? 2012 ed. Detroit: Gales, 2012.
Information Plus Reference Series. Gale Virtual Reference Library. Web. 10 Jan. 2016.
Frances, Allen. The US Cant Afford to Continue the Death Penalty: Not a Cost Effective Way
to Reduce Crime. Psychiatric Times 31.7 (2014): 1-2 2p. CINAHL Complete. Web. 10
Jan. 2016.
Garland, David. Capital Punishment and American Culture. Punishment & Society 7 (2005):
347-76. Print.
Megivern, James J. "Capital Punishment." Contemporary American Religion. Ed. Wade Clark
Roof. Vol. New York: Macmillan Reference USA, 1999. 95-98. Gale Virtual Reference
Library. Web. 10 Jan. 2016.
Palmer, Louis J. The Death Penalty in the United States: A Complete Guide to Federal and State
Laws. 2nd ed. Jefferson: McFarland, 2014. Print.
Scherdin, Lill, ed. Capital Punishment: A Hazard to a Sustainable Criminal Justice System?
Burlington: Ashgate, 2014. Webcat Library Catalog. Web. 10 Jan. 2016.
Wood, Dennis Brandon. "Driving up the Costs: An Examination of the Brian Nichols Trial and
the New Attack on the Death Penalty The Journal of the Legal Profession 33. (2008):
173. LexisNexis Academic: Law Reviews. Web. 10 Jan. 2016.