First, consider what you know and how you feel regarding the use of capital punishment (when the state puts an individual to death for certain crimes) in Texas. It may help to jot down any thoughts you have on the topic before going further with this discussion.
Next, read the discussion of capital punishment on pp. 236-242 (p. 252-258 in the Fifth Edition) in your Lone Star Politics textbook.
Texas has long been associated with its use of the death penalty. Although the methods by which it is carried out have changed, from hanging to electrocution to lethal injection, over the course of the state’s history, and various issues surrounding capital punishment and how it is practiced have come to the fore, particularly in recent years, it continues to be practiced in the state and favored by a majority of Texans. As stated on p. 238 in your text (p. 253 in the Fifth Edition), “Texas continues to favor and utilize the death penalty more than any other state and most other countries in the world.”
The use of the death penalty remains popular among Texans, with recent polls placing support for it as high as 71%. This higher-than-average level of support among Texans has been connected to the state’s residents’ traditional support for retributive justice: the idea that a punishment is justified due to the fact that it is deserved. (For additional information on this concept, see the discussion of “Justice in Texas” on pp. 222-223 of your text (p. 238-239 in the Fifth Edition).) Regarding why Texas executes significantly more people than other states, as stated in your text on p. 238 (p. 255 in the Fifth Edition), “Texans have a strong sense of right and wrong and are deeply attached to the idea of the death penalty as a deserved punishment.” Along these lines, the death penalty is seen as a particularly appropriate punishment for an individual convicted of committing a murder. Another common reason many Texans tend to support the death penalty stems from the idea that having it in place serves as a deterrent on crime, although it should be noted that this particular claim is not largely supported by statistical evidence, as states lacking the death penalty tend to have lower murder rates than those that do not. (See p. 240 in your text (p. 257 in the Fifth Edition) for more information.)
Although Texas still executes individuals at a higher rate than other states, its frequency of usage has seen a decline over the last 10-15 years. The number of states abolishing the death penalty completely has increased at a notable rate in recent years. There are a variety of reasons for this trend, but state budgetary consideration are one of the major factors driving it. As studies, such as the Dallas Morning News study cited on p. 241 of your text (p. 258 in the Fifth Edition), have demonstrated, the average death penalty case costs taxpayers substantially more than imprisoning an individual for life. Other controversies surrounding the death penalty that have led to its abolition in more states include the discovery of wrongly-convicted individuals serving terms of life imprisonment or sitting on death row, cleared through DNA evidence and often highlighted by groups such as the Innocence Project. (See more information on this organization here: https://www.innocenceproject.org ). Finally, longstanding concerns regarding the fact that racial minorities tend to disproportionately receive the death penalty continue to impact the debate surrounding it; as noted in your text, despite the fact that 71% of Texans support the death penalty, only 51% of Texans believe it is applied fairly.
How do you feel about the death penalty? Do you hold particular moral or ethical views that tend to shape whether you support or oppose it? Do you think that capital punishment, as practiced in Texas, is a tradition worth continuing or should the practice be reconsidered? After reading the pages from your text, did your views on the issue shift in any particular direction or stay about the same? If you do tend to support the death penalty, do you agree with the views regarding justice held by many Texans in terms of your support for it? Like many Texans, do you support it despite not believing it is applied fairly in practice? Are there other reasons you tend to support the death penalty? If so, what are these? If you tend to oppose capital punishment, does your opposition stem mostly from your moral or ethical views, or do other concerns, such as its cost, the discovery of wrongfully-convicted individuals being sentenced to death, or issues surrounding racial bias in its application play a part? Are there other issues or aspects of the death penalty that tend to drive your opposition to it? If so, what are these?
