s for inmates, both federal and state, after their convictions. (ABCNEWS.com) The awareness of this problem is even occurring in the Supreme Court.Problems:There have been many attempts to fix what is wrong with capital punishment and sentencing. According to Supreme Court Justice Harry Blackman in the Collins versus Collins 1994 decision, the death penalty remains fraught with arbitrariness, discrimination, caprice, and mistake (Culver). It has to be admitted that race plays a part as well as class since normally the two social aspects go hand in hand. Not only race of the defendant but of the victim have to be considered when understanding the idiosyncrasies of sentencing. While race may be focused on more in the media, class or socioeconomic status controls the reins even more. The vast majority of people executed since 1977, when employed, worked in menial or low-paying jobs at the time they committed their capital crimes (Culver). Not only is income level influential but educational level is as well. The average educational level for prisoners on death row in 1996 was only the 11th grade with 15% of them having less that an 8th grade education. (Culver)Defense:One of the chief concerns in the sentencing phase is that of the defense attorney. Lower class people cannot afford high-profile lawyers or those experienced specifically Hutchinson, Death Penalty, 3in capital cases. The attorney may not have a great deal of competency when it comes to criminal law. The accused also may not be able to help provide resources for such things as analysis and/or research that would aid in defense. The attorney who is inexperienced and who represents an indigent accused of a capital crime is unlikely to command the resources needed to assemble a panel of mental health professionals and verify the extent of the problems maintained by the defense or to persuade a jury of the important absence of other compelling evidence (Culver). This ...
