The death penalty, U.S. Commonly referred to as capital punishment, the death penalty is a legal punishment is currently being exercised by 28 states in the U.S. Murder, treason, espionage, large-scale drug trafficking, or the attempted murders of a witness are some of the crimes punishable by capital punishment (Adler, 2015). The sentence's adoption is aimed at deterring crimes but has continuously been abused, resulting in its unfair imposition on criminals based on race. Recent statistics The current population of African Americans under the death penalty is 1062, representing 41.60%, while 1076 whites represent 42.15% (E NAACP, 2020). Despite being fewer than blacks, their number relative to population is high, which shows that the death penalty is likely to be imposed disproportionally on African Americans compared to whites. The percentage of African Americans executed since 1984 is 519 compared to 855 whites during the same period (E NAACP, 2020). Even after being found guilty, more whites than African Americans have been lucky to be removed from capital punishment. For example, by 2018, 59.3% of whites admitted to capital punishment were removed, while only 38.9% of African Americans admitted to capital punishment were removed (Davis & Snell, 2018). The extent of the problem can be seen when it comes to interracial murders. For example, only 21 white defendants have been punished through capital punishment where the victim was black, while 297 African Americans have been punished by murder where the victim was white (E NAACP, 2020). Through such statistics, it is evident that capital punishment is imposed unfairly on defendants. Race plays a role in determining whether it the death penalty will be imposed or not on a victim. Historical background and recent changes Discrimination based on race is nothing new in the United States. Discrimination based on race denied African Americans opportunities to acquire education and well-paying jobs, leading most of them to turn to violent crime to support their families (Adler, 2015). Inequality in such opportunities meant that more whites were involved in the criminal justice systems compared to blacks. It is for that matter that more African Americans were discriminated resulting in capital punishment in most cases. Recently, police brutality towards African Americans has been increasing in the U.S. (Schwartz, 2020). A large number of innocent African Americans have been executed in circumstances that did not warrant such an outcome. The protection and eventual dismissal of white officers behind such executions have resulted in instability in the U.S. Such instability has been seen through recent protests and demonstrations through the social movement black lives matter (Schwartz, 2020). I It is necessary to administer justice fairly and equally, including calls for policy reforms to avoid capital punishment's biased imposition to African Americans leading most of them to turn to violent crime to support their families (E NAACP, 2020). Inequality in such opportunities meant that more whites were involved in the criminal justice systems compared to blacks. It is for that matter that more African Americans were discriminated resulting in capital punishment in most cases. Recently, police brutality towards African Americans has been increasing in the U.S. (E NACCP, 2020). A large number of innocent African Americans have been executed in circumstances that did not warrant such outcomes. The protection and eventual dismissal of white officers behind such executions have resulted in instability in the U.S. Such instability has been seen through protests and demonstrations through the social movement black lives matter[11]. Therefore, it is necessary to administer justice fairly and equally to all that calls for policy reforms to avoid capital punishment's biased imposition to African Americans. You are off to a great start here, but there was a lot of redundancy which can be easily corrected. References: Adler, J. S. (2015). Less crime, more punishment: Violence, race, and criminal justice in early twentieth-century America. The Journal of American History, 102(1), 34-46. Davis, E., & Snell, T. L. (2018). Capital Punishment, 2016. Statistical Brief. Death Penalty Information Center. (2019, May 14). Executions by race and race of the victim. https://deathpenaltyinfo.org/executions/executions-overview/executions-by-raceand-race-of-victim E NAACP Legal Defense and Educational Fund, Inc. (2020). DEATH ROW U.S.A. Fall 2020. https://www.naacpldf.org/wp-content/uploads/DRUSAFall2020.pdf Schwartz, S. A. (2020). Police brutality and racism in America. Explore (New York, NY). 1 Death Penalty in the United States Previous Policy Attempts to Address the Problem. The United States experienced gradual stability in criminal justice from the 1920s to the early 1970s. However, the rate of incarceration has quadrupled in the last five decades. To put this into perspective, one out of 100 American adults is in prison, almost ten times higher than the rate in Western Europe and other industrialized democracies.1. The U.S. penal population is primarily composed of individuals from disadvantaged regions of the country, with most men under forty. Furthermore, the prison population is poorly educated and disproportionately minority. Prisoners are also adversely affected by alcohol addictions, substance abuse, lack of work preparation, and physical and mental illnesses. In the past, the federal government has strived to ensure fairness in the criminal justice system to ensure that African Americans and other minority ethnic groups are not unfairly targeted. In 2012, the Penalty Phase Jury Instructions Resolution was developed, which directed territorial, state, and federal courts to adopt jury instruction that is understandable to jurors without prior legal knowledge.2. However, it did not tackle the issues of discrimination in incarceration. In 2014, the Wrongful Execution Resolution provided that states that apply capital punishment should place an appropriate judicial procedure where the defendant can argue for wrongful execution.3. To some extent, it has ensured wrongfully convicted people can find justice and continue with their lives. In 2018, Discredited Forensic Science Resolution was adopted to ensure that the convicted individuals had the opportunity to challenge their convictions by4 proving that scientific or technological advances have undermined the forensic evidence used in their case. The policy helped people prove their innocence but barely addressed targeting a minority in imprisonment as most of them are caught without any evidence. In the same year, Late-Adolescent Death Penalty Resolution was adopted by jurisdictions that impose the death penalty to prohibit the execution of the prisoners under the age of 21 at the time of their incarceration. The policy protected African American young men who are unfairly targeted by the justice system. Articulation of Policy Options Previously, jurors disagreed on the mitigating factors as the factors do not have to be proven beyond a reasonable doubt. The justice system should make jury instruction even more understandable to allow the jury to find at least one mitigating factor or evidence in the course of the sentencing, not just aggravating proof listed in the instruction. The policy ensures that the jury cannot settle on the death penalty due to the Supreme Court's aggravating circumstances. The policy is consistent with the NASW ethical principle of competence. The jurors have to understand the instruction to make an informed decision during deliberation.5. 1 American Bar Association. (n.d). ABA death penalty policy. https://www.americanbar.org/groups/committees/death_penalty_representation/resources/dp-policy/ 2 American Bar Association, (n.d). ABA death 3 American Bar Association, (n.d). 4 American Bar Association. (n.d). ABA death penalty policy. https://www.americanbar.org/groups/committees/death_penalty_representation/resources/dp-policy/ 5 National Association of Social Workers. (n.d). Read the code of ethics. https://www.socialworkers.org/About/Ethics/Code-of-Ethics/Code-of-Ethics-English 2 The abolition of capital punishment minimizes the escalating crisis of executing the innocent due to errors in the criminal justice system. The loss of innocent defendants in the past has depicted a lousy picture of the U.S. government as inconsiderate for the lives of young men people are prospective breadwinners in their families. This policy is consistent with the NASW ethical principle of human dignity and worthiness. It ensures that every life is respected and the justice system is mindful of all individuals regardless of ethnic and cultural diversity. A thorough analysis of forensic evidence before court presentation should be a requirement. The Discredited Forensic Science Resolution policy may prompt longer trials, which translates to more cost of prosecuting criminals. Furthermore, successful challenges on forensic evidence presented by the District Attorney's Office may be interpreted as a government's weakness or use of unscrupulous methods to convict innocent people. Nevertheless, the policy provides an opportunity for individuals who could otherwise be wrongfully convicted to redeem themselves. The policy is aligned with NASW's ethical principle of integrity, where prosecutors should act honestly and promote ethical practice in gathering forensic evidence.6. Increase the legal age for capital punishment to at least 40 years to give the young people more time to redeem themselves7. The Late-adolescent Death Penalty Resolution prevents robbing of the economy's potential skills by eliminating young people who have time to change for the better. These young convicts can be inducted into technical programs during their incarceration and leave the prison with skills that can benefit their lives after serving their time. It is an excellent political gesture that the U.S. government cares for its youth population and has measures to reverse those who find themselves on the wrong side of the law. The policy is consistent with the NASW's ethical principle of social justice that aims at protecting the vulnerable or oppressed groups of people. Young adults are incredibly susceptible to imprisonment as they are at a stage where they are experiencing life without their parents' or teachers' surveillance. They can easily engage in social vices, including robbery, drug trafficking, or arm dealing with sustaining their lives.8. Policy Recommendation The elimination of the death penalty is the ultimate solution to deal with racial discrimination in the U.S. criminal justice system. The death penalty is irreversible, and many young men from minority ethnic communities pay for minor crimes or even crimes that they have not committed with life. For Instance, in 2004, Cameron Todd Willingham from Texas was executed for allegedly setting a fire that killed his three daughters, but further evidence revealed that he did not set the fire in the first place.9. Capital punishment does not deter criminals as other democracies such as Canada have experienced lower crime rates without the death penalty. The rate of crime is exceedingly high in the United States despite some states advocating capital punishment. Furthermore, there is no humane way to execute an individual. Some states replaced 6 National Association of Social Workers. (n.d). Read the code of ethics. https://www.socialworkers.org/About/Ethics/Code-of-Ethics/Code-of-Ethics-English 7 American Bar Association. (n.d). ABA death penalty policy. https://www.americanbar.org/groups/committees/death_penalty_representation/resources/dp-policy/ 8 American Bar Association. (n.d). ABA death penalty policy. https://www.americanbar.org/groups/committees/death_penalty_representation/resources/dp-policy/ 9 Amnesty International. (n.d). Death Penalty. https://www.amnesty.org/en/what-we-do/death-penalty/ 3 the electric chair with lethal injection, which is neither ideal for execution. In 2006, Angel Nieves Diaz spent his last 34 minutes excruciating pain when the doctors had to use two doses of a lethal chemical to execute him.10. Prisons are there to provide people with the opportunity to change their ways, not deny them life altogether. 10 Amnesty International. (n.d). Death Penalty 4 References American Bar Association. (n.d). ABA death penalty policy. https://www.americanbar.org/groups/committees/death_penalty_representation/resources/ dp-policy/ Amnesty International. (n.d). Death Penalty. https://www.amnesty.org/en/what-we-do/deathpenalty/ National Association of Social Workers. (n.d). Read the code of ethics. https://www.socialworkers.org/About/Ethics/Code-of-Ethics/Code-of-Ethics-English
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