(10/04/11) -

Most Americans Prefer the Death Penalty for Convicted Murderers

Only 12 per cent of respondents in the country think capital punishment is never appropriate.

A large proportion of Americans believe it is a good idea to allow prosecutors to seek the death penalty in murder cases, and a majority prefer capital punishment over life imprisonment for convicted murderers, a new Angus Reid Public Opinion poll has found.

In the online survey of a representative national sample of 1,020 American adults, 63 per cent of respondents think the death penalty is sometimes appropriate, while 17 per cent deem it always appropriate, and just 12 per cent believe it is never appropriate.

Across the country, seven-in-ten Americans (70%) support the possibility of prosecutors relying on the death penalty for murder cases in, while only one-in-five (20%) are opposed to this course of action.

Supporters of the death penalty believe that the punishment fits the crime (70%), and say that it saves taxpayers money and the costs associated with having murderers in prison (53%) serves as a deterrent for potential murderers (52%), and provides closure to the families of murder victims. One-in-four death penalty supporters (26%) think that murderers cannot be rehabilitated.

Opponents of the death penalty are concerned about a person being wrongly convicted and then executed (76%), believe that it does not serve as a deterrent for potential murderers (52%), and think it is wrong to take the murderer’s own life as punishment (42%). Fewer respondents state that murderers should do their time in prison as indicated by a judge (36%) and 13 per cent believe that murderers can be rehabilitated.

When asked to select the appropriate punishment for convicted murderers in the United States, 56 per cent of respondents pick the death penalty, while 27 per cent choose life imprisonment.

Analysis

The regional fluctuations on these questions are not dramatic, although respondents in the Midwest are the least likely to deem capital punishment as inappropriate, and also the least likely to oppose the possibility of prosecutors relying on the death penalty for murder cases in the United States.

On the political front, Independents (76%) are closer to Republicans (83%) in their level of support for the death penalty. Democrats are lower (62%), but not truly opposed to capital punishment. However, while Republicans and Independents select the death penalty over life imprisonment by sizeable margins, Democrats are almost evenly split.

Americans who support the death penalty firmly believe that the punishment is adequate, and more than half also see it as a practice that saves taxpayers money and acts as a deterrent. Conversely, three-in-four opponents of capital punishment are worried about wrongful convictions.

Full Report, Detailed Tables and Methodology (PDF)

CONTACT:

Mario Canseco, Vice President, Angus Reid Public Opinion
+877 730 3570
mario.canseco@angus-reid.com

Methodology: From September 21 to September 22, 2011, Angus Reid Public Opinion conducted an online survey among 1,020 American adults who are Springboard America panelists. The margin of error—which measures sampling variability—is +/- 3.1%. The results have been statistically weighted according to the most current education, age, gender and region Census data to ensure a sample representative of the entire adult population of the United States. Discrepancies in or between totals are due to rounding.