some as a more humane method of execution also has its share of problems. It was reported by Michael Radelet that in a 1989 Texas execution, inmate Stephen McCoy had such a violent reaction to the drugs (i.e. heaving, coughing, gasping) that a male witness fainted- crashing into and knocking over another witness. In Texas, December 1988, Raymond Landry was pronounced dead 40 minutes after being strapped to the table. Two minutes into his execution the syringe came out of his vein spraying deadly chemicals across the room towards the witnesses of the execution. The U.S. Court of Appeals in 1983 made the observation that "…Lethal injection poses a serious risk of cruel, protracted death…even a slight error of dosage or administration can leave a prisoner conscious but paralyzed while dying…a sentient witness to his or her own asphyxiation." Many individuals in defense of the death penalty give the argument that a life sentence as compared to execution is a waste of taxpayer money. However, numerous studies have shown that the cost of execution far exceeds the cost of life imprisonment. Whitehead 10 In The Geography of Execution…The Capital Punishment Quagmire in America it is reported that Florida estimates the total cost of an average life in prison of 40 years to cost $680,000, far less than the #3.18 million average cost of a single execution. These figure correlate with those of Texas, the nation's leader in executions, according to Department of Justice figures. In Punishment and the Death Penalty the Texas criminal justice system estimated the cost of appeal capital murder at 2.3 million dollars. The cost of life in prison totals only $750,000. Clearly, state executions are not cost effective. When given concrete figures the public's support of capital punishment diminishes. A 1994 Gallup poll asked that if given a choice, which would be a better choice-, the death penalty or life in prison without parole? Su...
