Capital punishment as a form of justice

However, I must point out that the implementation of capital punishment as a of justice is one that will impact multiple aspects of society, and that focusing on just one facet of the issue, as my opponent has done, is rather short sighted. The Death Penalty wastes both time and money:Contrary to popular belief, statistics show that life imprisonment is actually cheaper than the death penalty, and not just by a negligible margin. Because of the extended trial process, which consumes an increased amount of both time and money, each death sentence in the US costs an average of 4.2 million dollars, making life imprisonment cheaper by tens of millions of dollars. Exactly how much does the death penalty bog down the system? In California, for example, it takes nearly 20 years for an inmate to go from the death row to the cemetery. It’s an excruciating lengthy process punctured by appeals, repeat trials, and the processing of legal papers. In a time of financial crisis, legalizing the death penalty would mean wasting both time and money on the legal process, meaning less money and time is available for the things that actually make difference in public safety- law enforcement and the police department. Source: . http://www.msnbc.msn.com...The Death Penalty carries the risk of wrongful executions:Even with the extended and more thorough trials, innocents still manage to slip through the system. For instance, Wayne Felker, who was executed for aggravated rape in 1996 by electric chair, was exonerated by DNA evidence only four years after his execution. If the death penalty had been abolished, we could have given Felker the possibility of returning to society and living a normal life. Instead, the Supreme Court of Georgia ruled against life imprisonment and murdered an innocent man. On average, three death row inmates are wrongfully convicted every year in the US. It is in instances like these where the loss of innocent, “precious, cheerful and starry eyed” human life, as my opponent so eloquently puts it, is not the fault of murderers and psychopaths. It is the fault of the judicial system, and in turn, capital punishment. Source: . http://en.wikipedia.org...The legal system is not based solely on punishment:My opponent appears to have mistakenly labeled the legal system as a vehicle for vengeance, whose lone purpose is to satisfy “the bloodlust of those who suffered at his (the convict’s) hands”. In reality, the legal system is much more than simply punishing the wrongdoers; it’s also about rehabilitation and repaying the community. In every single one of these principles, life imprisonment is much more effective than capital punishment. Some people simply don’t care about their life. That’s most likely the case of the convict my opponent gives as an example as he wanted to be remembered as a martyr, as someone who died for a cause. This characteristic is also prevalent in most murderers. When we take that into consideration, the death penalty for convicts is comparable to your cat pissing on that ugly sweater your grandmother gave you for Christmas last year- you didn’t really want it anyway, so it doesn’t really bother you. In terms of what’s more taxing for the convict, life imprisonment may very well be worse than capital punishment. Pro’s idea of finally taking retribution for the families that suffered is false anyway; in reality, waiting for twenty years for the murderer to finally be punished is probably less preferable than an immediate life sentence. Additionally, some people can be changed. A murderer may simply be the victim of a rough childhood or an untreated mental disease. By advocating the idea of capital punishment, we deny these people the chance to rehabilitate and contribute to society. Conclusion:When we take a look at the bigger picture, what we find is that capital punishment is not really effective at all. My opponent isn’t really advocating justice; he’s appealing a romanticized idea that is not only useless, but drains time and money which could be spent on fixing the real problems with society. Thank you, I hand the podium back to Pro.