Barbaric and expensive

Letter

Barbaric and expensive

Carol Moore, Concord

For the Monitor March 25. 2007 10:00AM

R e Tom Geno's complaint about the state's expenses for the prosecution of Mr. Addison (Monitor letter, March 21): One of the myths about the death penalty is that it is cheaper for the state. In fact, it is much more expensive to prosecute someone when the sentence may be death than to conduct the same prosecution without the possibility of death. In addition, Mr. Geno has already convicted and sentenced someone who, in our justice system, is presumed to be innocent until proven guilty. The House Committee on Criminal Justice narrowly defeated a bill that would abolish the death penalty. There are many reasons to abolish it. In addition to sanctioning the state's right to kill, it has repeatedly not been shown to be a deterrent; it punishes family and loved ones of the perpetrator who had nothing to do with the killing; mistakes have often been made and innocent people have died or languished in prison for decades until found innocent; and, as we are seeing with this case, it is not only a huge moral cost to kill but an enormous burden financially as well. HB 607 will be heard in the full House. I urge all those who believe not only that the death penalty is barbaric and inhumane, but that it has a huge emotional and financial cost, to call your representatives and ask them to support HB 607. Urge them to halt the possibility of state-sanctioned killing in our name. CAROL MOORE Concord