Every western industrialized nation except the United States has abolished the death penalty. Even South Africa no longer allows capital punishment, and in early June 1999, the Associated Press reported that President Boris Yeltsin had commuted the death sentences of all 716 condemned prisoners in Russia. The United States stands alone among its peers in continuing to execute its citizens. Life imprisonment without possibility of parole protects the public. This means that, contrary to the myths, defendants who have committed terrible crimes will not be released within a matter of years.
Studies also show that, with aging, violent offenders are able to adjust to the prison environment.
Church doctrine opposes the death penalty. Although many people of faith presently support the death penalty, and although the Church once did as well, that is no longer the case. Jesus, himself the subject of an execution, forgave those who put Him to death. The antidote to violence is love, not more violence. Respect for life flows from teachings on the dignity of the human person.