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Carlos DeLuna was only 20 years old when he was arrested in February of 1983 for the murder of Wanda Lopez. Basic forensic procedures were overlooked and the case was largely based on the testimony of one man, a person who later admitted his inability to tell one Hispanic man apart from another. Even with virtually nonexistent evidence, DeLuna was found guilty and sentenced to the death penalty which was later carried out.

DeLuna is just one man of many who has been abused by the American criminal justice system. While most aspects of the criminal justice system require change, the first step that should be implemented is the abolition of the death penalty, due to its inhumane nature and racial biases.

The first point that should be considered is the fact that even though criminals on death row may have committed heinous crimes, they are still human beings. Many people are born into situations in which, from the start, they really do not stand a chance. While it is important to note that having a mental illness does not mean a person will become dangerous in any way, it is also important to realize that about 10% of homicides are committed by people with schizophrenia and/or bipolar disorder. When we start to talk about mass murder, that number jumps to 33%.

In addition to mental illness, there can also be many environmental factors or “triggers” that cause a criminal to commit a violent act. While I am not suggesting that this in any way gives them an excuse for murder, it does show that these people do not deserve to be put to death for their crimes. The point of the criminal justice system should be to protect the community by keeping violent offenders off of the streets so that they no longer pose a threat to the safety of the community. A life sentence does exactly this, without the inhumane act of killing the criminal — an unnecessary step when considering community safety.

In recent years, there have been many successful attempts to humanize death row inmates in the public eye. One of the most compelling ways to illustrate this inner humanity is through poetry. One especially compelling poem was written in 2010 by Shane Christopher:

This poem highlights the true human agony felt by prisoners on death row. They are not only put to death, they are sentenced to the torture of being forced to count down their final weeks, days, hours, minutes, seconds on this earth. No man, even the most evil to walk this earth, truly deserves a fate like this, and no death, even the most horrific, will ever bring back the victims lost to murder and violence.

The only thing accomplished by Capital Punishment is the continuation of an ongoing circle of violence that will not come to an end until fundamental changes are made to our Criminal Justice system, starting with the abolition of the death penalty.

In addition to the mere idea that human beings never deserve death, capital punishment is also statistically rooted in systemic racism and disproportionately affects African Americans and minorities. For example, only half of the murder victims in the United States are white, but over 75% of murder victims result in Capital Punishment are white. This illustrates that a person is much more likely to be sentenced to death if they kill a white person than if they kill someone of another race. Additionally, only 21 white defendants have been killed for murdering a Black victim while 296 Black defendants have been killed for the murder of a white victim.

When looking at these statistics it becomes glaringly obvious that the death penalty is not in existence to deter criminals, it is in existence to punish criminals, especially those who are not white.

Further evidence also proves that the death penalty is virtually ineffective in deterring criminals. In states where the death penalty is still allowed, there are actually more murders committed per capita than in states where it has been abolished. As an American citizen, you have to ask yourself: if capital punishment is not used for the purpose of deterring criminals, what is its true purpose?

As members of your communities, I urge you to face this problem head-on and fight for the right to life for all people. Urge your congress and house members to reject the death penalty and instead work towards more progressive detention methods focused on rehabilitation rather than punishment. The death penalty is a threat to justice and a threat to life and it should be abolished nationwide.

Mikayla Cassidy

Writing since February 2022 · 1 story contributed