The Death Penalty

"If we execute murderers and there is in fact no deterrent effect, we have killed a bunch of murderers. If we fail to execute murderers, and doing so would in fact have deterred other murders, we have allowed the killing of a bunch of innocent victims. I would much rather risk the former. This, to me, is not a tough call."
John McAdams - Marquette University/Department of Political Science, on
deterrence
The Death Penalty: Morally Defensible?
The death penalty has faced much opposition as of late. Can the death penalty possibly be a morally acceptable punishment? …