Death Penalty Doubts, Revisited

In an October 3rd post, Alice of Texas Messes' critiqued the Austin American Statesman's Editorial Board's editorial, "Death Penalty Doubts."  The post acknowledges the fallibility of our criminal justice system, and yet concludes that if only one or two innocent people have been put to death in Texas, our system must be working.

First of all, I believe that it is optimistic to assume that only two innocent people have been put to death in Texas. Consider that many people have been executed prior to the emergence of DNA testing and other forensic testing.  Furthermore, most death row inmates lack the legal and financial wherewithal to mount a compelling appeal, or are represented by unprepared or poorly compensated attorneys.  It seems quite likely to me that the death row inmates exonerated in the U.S. represent the tip of the iceberg, and that given resources and willingness from politicians, we would uncover many more.

We should also consider the permanent nature of the death penalty.  Anyone wrongfully convicted and given a lesser sentence can be exonerated and released, even after many years.  If an innocent person is sentenced to death and executed, there is obviously no such recourse.  We are left with a government that executes innocent people, however few, and this is unacceptable.  To my mind, if the possibility exists that even one innocent person might be put to death, it is ample reason to discontinue the death penalty.