Capital Punishment Targets the Poor In some states, inmates can be executed for crimes committed at age 16; in others, only those who committed murder at age 18 or older are eligible for the death penalty. This essay will demonstrate that such inconsistencies and many other factors cause a situation where the poor are constantly targeted by the death penalty. Some, but not all, states prohibit the execution of mentally retarded people. Some states include criminal homicide (unpremeditated murder committed in the course of another crime such as robbery or burglary) as a capital crime; others don't. In the 29 states that offer life without parole, 23 have statutes that prohibit judges from letting jurors know they have this sentencing option. Since studies consistently show that when given the choice between a death sentence and a sentence of life without parole, most people will choose the latter, failure to inform the jury of this alternative is tantamount to sending more people in the execution chamber. he discredited the claim that execution discourages murder. Most murders are committed in the heat of passion and/or under the influence of alcohol or drugs, when little thought is given to the possible consequences of the act. “Hit men” and other killers who plan their crimes in advance intend and expect to avoid punishment altogether by not being caught. Law enforcement knows that the death penalty is not a deterrent. Imposing the death penalty more often was deemed cost-effective by only 29 percent of 386 randomly selected U.S. police chiefs in a survey conducted by Peter D. Hart Research Associates in 1995. States that have death as their focus of the paper. .....ily as an alternative to the death penalty(Death). In 45 states, laws allow life sentences for murder that severely limit or eliminate the possibility of parole. Thirteen states impose sentences without the possibility of parole of 25 to 40 years, and all but three states that use the death penalty also have the possibility of life in prison without the possibility of parole. Although it is often assumed that capital punishment is less costly than life imprisonment, the opposite is true: in terms of dollars, in terms of crime control, and in terms of morality. Is there any other way forward other than opposing capital punishment? No.WORKS CITED:Death Penalty Information Center http://www.deathpenaltyinfo.org/Stanford Law Review http://support.lexis-nexis.com/online/record.asp?ArticleID=LXE_Law_Rev_S