ond: the police were under pressure to solve the crime. And finally "above all, because the public was clamoring for some way to express its indignation (for the death of Mrs. Stuart), found Willie Bennett a plausible target"(Baird and Rosenbaum 97). Cases just like this one lead to innocent men found guilty with the potential of being put on death row.Today, there are over three thousand prisoners on death row. Between 1972 and 1996, 68 death row inmates were released because proof of their innocence was found (Acker, Bohm, and Lanier 232). Only after struggling with expensive lawyers and a harsh system of justice were Cusson 3the majority of these prisoners finally able to receive a second chance. It is preposterous to think that of the three thousand prisoners on death row, all of them are guilty and deserve the death penalty. The death penalty is unfair for several reasons, one of them being that legal assistance for inmates on death row has become increasingly difficult to find. Prisoners on death row filing for appeal have little or no chance for receiving a fair second chance. "Most of the legal work is done for free, and even lawyers dedicated to making sure these prisoners receive all their legal rights cannot be expected to spend all of their time working for nothing"(Baird and Rosenbaum 107).There is a fundamental inequity that exists in our justice system. Those with money and power seem to cheat death and get off of death row. The majority of those on death row are poor blacks or Latinos. How can we say that discrimination does not still exist when the judicial system treats these people as societys castaways--those who can not afford a Dream Team(Katha 1). The purpose of capital punishment is to deter capital felonies. Does capital punishment really deter criminals from committing these crimes? Ernest van den Haag states, "Unless intent on suicide people do not jump from high mountains cliffs, however tempt...
