Is the Death Penalty more costly than life in prison?

There's a claim that it is more expensive for the state to execute a criminal than to incarcerate him for life. Many opponents present, as fact, that the cost of the death penalty is so expensive (at least $2 million per case?), that we must choose life without parole ("LWOP") at a cost of $1 million for 50 years. Predictably, these pronouncements may be entirely false. JFA (Justice for All) estimates that LWOP cases will cost $1.2 million - $3.6 million more than equivalent death penalty cases.

And life without parole prisoners face, on average, 30 or 40 years in prison while the annual cost of incarceration is $40,000 to $50,000 a year for each prisoner or more! There is no question that the up front costs of the death penalty are significantly higher than for equivalent LWOP cases. There also appears to be no question that, over time, equivalent LWOP cases are much more expensive - from $1.2 to $3.6 million - than death penalty cases. Opponents ludicrously claim that the death penalty costs, over time, 3-10 times more than LWOP.

The $34,200 is conservative, if TIME Magazine's (2/7/94) research is accurate. TIME found that, nationwide, the average cell cost is $24,000/yr. and the maximum security cell cost is $75,000/yr. (as of12/95). Opponents claim that LWOP should replace the DP. Therefore, any cost calculations should be based specifically on cell costs for criminals who have committed the exact same category of offense - in other words, cost comparisons are valid only if you compare the costs of DP-equivalent LWOP cases to the cost of DP cases. The $34,200/yr. cell cost assumes that only 20% of the DP-equivalent LWOP cases would be in maximum security cost cells and that 80% of the DP-equivalent LWOP cases would be in average cost cells. A very conservative estimate. The $60,000/yr., for those on death row, assumes that such cells will average a cost equal to 80% of the $75,000/yr. for the most expensive maximum security cells. A very high estimate. Even though we are calculating a 75% greater cell cost for the DP than for equivalent LWOP cases, equivalent LWOP cases appear to be significantly more expensive, over time, than their DP counterparts. For years, opponents have improperly compared the cost of all LWOP cases to DP cases, when only the DP equivalent LWOP cases are relevant.

Annual cost increases are based upon: 1) historical increases in prison costs, including judicial decisions regarding prison conditions,and the national inflation rate; 2) medical costs, including the immense cost of geriatric care, associated with real LWOP sentences; 3) injury or death to the inmate by violence; 4) injury or death to others caused by the inmate (3 and 4 anticipate no DP and that prisoners, not fearing additional punishment, other than loss of privileges, may increase the likelihood of violence. One could make the same assumptions regarding those on death row. The difference is that death row inmates will average 6 years incarceration vs. 50 years projected for LWOP); 5) the risk and the perceived risk of escape; and 6) the justifiable lack of confidence by the populace in our legislators, governors, parole boards and judges, i.e. a violent inmate will be released upon society.

$75,000 for trial and appeals cost, for DP-equivalent LWOP cases, assumes that the DP is not an option. It is believed that this cost estimate is very low. It is over-estimated that DP cases will cost twenty times more, on average, or $1.5 million. This exaggerated estimate states that the DP will have twenty times more investigation cost, defense and prosecution cost, including court time, guilt/innocence stage, sentencing stage and appellate review time and cost than DP equivalent LWOP cases. Even though abolitionists have greatly exaggerated the cost of DP cases, DP cases still prove to be significantly less expensive, over time, than the DP equivalent LWOP cases.

6 years on death row, prior to execution, reflects the new habeas corpus reform laws, at both the state and federal levels. Some anti-death penalty groups speculate that such time may actually become only 4 years. If so, then DP cases would cost even that much less than the DP equivalent LWOP cases. However, the average time on death row, for those executed from 1973-1994, was 8 years. Therefore, 6 years seems more likely. Even using the 8 year average, the DP equivalent LWOP cases are still $1 million more expensive than their DP counterparts ($2 million @ 2% annual increase).

So the death penalty costs reside mainly in appeals costs. Life without parole prisoners get the same appeals and should be considered to bear the same costs.

Salem

I believe studies have shown that it is. I would consult the ACLU.

jrhd

The death penalty costs more, mostly due to the fact that death penalty trials and appeals are longer and more costly. Also, the inmate typically spends years on death row, and death row prison housing requires more security and costs more than regular prison. I've included a link; scroll down to see specific costs of the death penalty v.s. life in prison.

Forget War Buy More

Yes, due to the appeals process.

Susan S

Yes, much more. Some people are surprised to learn that the death penalty is much more expensive than life in prison, mostly because of the legal process, which, most of us hope, will prevent executions of innocent people.

Examples from reports of individual states:

Washington State â€œAt the trial level, death penalty cases are estimated to generate roughly $470,000 in additional costs to the prosecution and defense over the cost of trying the same case as an aggravated murder without the death penalty and costs of $47,000 to $70,000 for court personnel.â€ (Final Report of the Death Penalty Subcommittee of the Committee on Public Defense, Washington State Bar Association, December 2006,
http://www.wsba.org/lawyers/groups/committeeonpublicdefense.htm

Tennessee: â€œDeath penalty trials cost an average of 48% more than the average cost of trials in which prosecutors seek life imprisonment.â€ (The Tennessee Comptroller of the Treasury Office of Research's Report, "Tennessee's Death Penalty: Costs and Consequences."
http://www.comptroller.state.tn.us/orea/reports/deathpenalty.pdf)

Kansas: â€œThe study counted death penalty case costs through to execution and found that the median death penalty case costs $1.26 million. Non-death penalty cases were counted through to the end of incarceration and were found to have a median cost of $740,000. For death penalty cases, the pre-trial and trial level expenses were the most expensive part, 49% of the total cost. The investigation costs for death-sentence cases were about 3 times greater than for non-death cases. The trial costs for death cases were about 16 times greater than for non-death cases ($508,000 for death case; $32,000 for non-death case).â€ (. Kansas: Performance Audit Report: Costs Incurred for Death Penalty Cases: A K-GOAL Audit of the Department of Corrections)

North Carolina: The most comprehensive death penalty study in the country found that the death penalty costs North Carolina $2.16 million more per execution than the a non-death penalty murder case with a sentence of life imprisonment http://www.deathpenaltyinfo.org/northcarolina.pdf
links to ("The Costs of Processing Murder Cases in North Carolina" Duke University, May 1993)

Other states report similar findings. (Visit www.deathpenaltyinfo.org and click on costs for links to additional state reports.)

Why is the death penalty so expensive? The costs of the death penalty begin to accumulate from the very beginning of a death penalty case. Here are just a few of the contributing factors:

â€¢ more pre-trial time will be needed to prepare: cases typically take a year to come to trial
â€¢ more pre-trial motions will be filed and answered
â€¢ more experts will be hired
â€¢ twice as many attorneys will be appointed for the defense, and a comparable team for the prosecution
â€¢ jurors will have to be individually quizzed on their views about the death penalty, and they are more likely to be sequestered
â€¢ two trials instead of one will be conducted: one for guilt and one for punishment
â€¢ the trial will be longer: a cost study at Duke University estimated that death penalty trials take 3 to 5 times longer than typical murder trials

Of course, after conviction and sentencing, there will be at least one appeal, while inmates are held in the high and expensive security of death row.

It probably depends on the age of the person, but it probably is more expensive on average because of the very long process of appeals and then the 3 injections or whatever they do. It's such a rediculous process to go through just to kill someone who is going to spend the rest of their life in prison anyway and might be innocent.

xxxx1101xxxx

No, while the ceremony may cost several thousand dollars the lifetime of expenses accumulated keeping a inmate alive will total more. (unless their like 80 or something when their sentenced)

shelabel

Ummm.....Well It depends....are you ready to face god or are you ready to spend your whole life in a jail cell?

Jason

i have always heard that it was ..... not sure how that is possible though

Aimee

probably not

whatlifebrings

well, you're alive and you get to visit your family.

Gramma Might Know

Only morally. Once dead, a person is pretty cheap.

kreacher92

yes, the long legal process often costs more than simply putting someone in prison for life, but i still think it is worth it.

Mercer Devil

Depends on how long the prisoner lives.

wonderer

No not in a financial way if that is what you are asking it cost more to pay living expenses in prison for inmates than it does to execute the death itself

ssnmielke

No. The death penalty is definitely cheaper. To house an inmate for a lifetime costs alot for the cell, their meals, everything including activities. The costs may be high, but over all it's cheaper for the death penalty.

I know this as a CJ major.

Iqbal A

hell no.

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