We are currently one of the only liberal democracies that continues to practice capital punishment. Although 16 states and the District of Columbia do not use the death penalty, it remains a legal punishment in 34 states and the military.
The United States executed 46 people in 2010, exceeded only by China, Iran, North Korea, and Yemen. Since 1976, 1,270 people have been executed. Numerous studies have shown it is possible that lethal injections may allow the person being executed to remain conscious, resulting in an extremely painful death, classifying it as cruel and unusual punishment. In addition, executing a single criminal can cost millions of dollars, far more than life imprisonment without parole.
Let us behave like a civilized people, and end this barbaric practice.