History of the Death Penalty in Washington State

Botched Executions Since the Furman Decision

A Review of the Costs, Length, and Results of Capital Cases in Washington State

The Death Penalty is not a deterrent.
For years, studies have failed to show that capital punishment deters crime. It is not the solution to decreasing violent crime, even though it is often an easy answer for politicians who want to seem tough on crime. Life imprisonment without the possibility of parole, a sentence we have in Washington, effectively removes murderers from society.

Innocent people have been and continue to be executed.
From 1973 through May 28, 2004, 114 people have been released from death row with evidence of their innocence. During this time, it is likely that innocent prisoners have been executed.

The DP is racist and punishes the poor.
"In 82% of the studies [reviewed], race of the victim was found to influence the likelihood of being charged with capital murder or receiving the death penalty, i.e., those who murdered whites were found more likely to be sentenced to death than those who murdered blacks." - U.S. General Accounting Office, Death Penalty Sentencing, Feb. 1990. While African Americans make up less than 13% of the U.S. population (U.S. Census Bureau), they make up at least 43% of death row (DPIC).

The DP is cruel and unusual punishment.
Capital punishment is cruel because a sentence of life without the possibility of parole accomplishes the same objective of community safety non-violently. It is unusual for our government to continue executing its citizens while all other democracies worldwide have abolished the death penalty.

The DP costs more than life imprisonment.
In 2000, (the now former) WA State Supreme Court Chief Justice Guy added to many other studies showing that the process of executing a prisoner is several times more expensive than sending and keeping him in jail for life. This is true around the country, i.e., Florida spends an average of $3.2 million to execute an inmate, six times more than it spends to keep a person in prison for life.  Many states have discovered that death sentences are an extreme burden on their budgets. Most costs are at the trial stage and not for appeals. The State pays for judges, court-appointed lawyers, expert witnesses, and more. Meanwhile, states cut social services, take police off the streets, and release prisoners early for lack of money. Okanogan County, WA, laid off half its public-health nurses and couldn't afford to replace aging police equipment because of just the pre-trial expenses for one death-penalty case. Why risk public safety on a penalty that does not deter crime?  (See the review of costs at the bottom of this page.)

The DP prolongs suffering of victims' families and families of the accused.
Many people argue that we owe it to the victims' families to execute murderers. But not all victims' families support the death penalty. Many believe that executing the murderer does nothing to relieve the pain and does not bring back the victim, but only continues the cycle of violence. Imposing the death penalty often prolongs their suffering for years. As the public attention is focused on revenge during each appeal and each devastating execution date, the victim's family's need to heal and move beyond the tragedy is ignored.

A Review of the Costs, Length, and Results of Capital Cases in Washington State.
A comprehensive study costs and policies associated with the death penalty in Washington State by the Washington Death Penalty Assistance Center from September 2004.  From the summary:  On average a death penalty trial costs more than double the amount spent on a non death penalty trial.  Death penalty appellate review take longer than those for non-death penalty cases.  Twenty-one death sentences have completed their appellate review.  Seventeen death sentences (81% of completed reviews) have been reversed and none, after remand, have resulted in a sentence of death.  The reversals demonstrate the presence of systemic error leading to the death sentences being reversed rather than a single identifiable factor.  Four resulted in executions; three defendants effectively waived their federal appellate review.  Only one case resulted in an execution after all review was exhausted, which took eleven years.  (Download the entire study.)