October 22
USA:
New Low of 49% in U.S. Say Death Penalty Applied Fairly
The percentage of Americans who believe the death penalty is applied fairly
continues to decrease, falling below 50% this year for the 1st time. 49 % now
say the death penalty is applied fairly and 45% say it is applied unfairly.
The 49% who say the death penalty is applied fairly is, by 1 % point, the
lowest Gallup has measured since it first asked the question in 2000 and
reflects a gradual decline of this view over the past decade. Meanwhile, the
percentage who say capital punishment is applied unfairly has edged higher,
with this year's 4-point gap marking the smallest difference between the 2
views in Gallup's polling.
These latest data, from Gallup's annual Crime poll, were collected Oct. 1-10 --
just before the Washington state Supreme Court on Oct. 11 struck down that
state's death penalty, saying it had been unequally applied across racial
groups. In its decision, the court cited evidence that "black defendants were 4
1/2 times more likely to be sentenced to death than similarly situated white
defendants." The decision makes Washington the 20th state to outlaw the death
penalty. Percentage of Democrats Who Say Death Penalty Is Applied Fairly
Remains Low
The decline in Americans' belief that capital punishment is applied fairly is
largely the result of a sharp drop in this view among Democrats. 31 % of
Democrats this year say the death penalty is applied fairly, similar to the low
of 30% in 2017 but down significantly from 2005 and 2006, when slim majorities
held this view.
Meanwhile, 73% of Republicans say the death penalty is applied fairly, and the
percentage holding this view has been fairly stable over time -- typically in
the low 70s.
More Americans Say the Death Penalty Is Imposed "Too Often"
Americans remain most likely to say the death penalty is not imposed enough
(37%), while smaller percentages say it is imposed "too often" (29%) or "about
the right amount" (28%).
While belief that the death penalty is not imposed often enough is still the
most common view, the latest 37% is down from a high of 53% in 2005 and is by
one point the lowest reading since 2001.
At the same time, U.S. adults have gradually become more likely to say capital
punishment is imposed "too often," with the latest 29% slightly higher than in
previous years.
Small Majority of Americans Continue to Favor Death Penalty
Historically, Americans have been generally supportive of the death penalty as
the punishment for murder. In all but two polls (in 1965 and 1966), Americans
have been more likely to say they are in favor of than opposed to use of the
death penalty. However, support for capital punishment too has been trending
downward since peaking at 80% in the mid-1990s during a high point in the
violent crime rate.
Currently, 56% of U.S. adults favor capital punishment -- similar to last
year's 55%, which marked the lowest level of support for the practice since
1972, when the constitutionality of the death penalty was being challenged.
Bottom Line
Washington is the latest in a string of states that have outlawed the death
penalty over the past decade. While courts sometimes drive abolishment, as was
the case in Washington, most abolition of the death penalty in recent years has
taken place via legislation by state lawmakers and governors, who are beholden
to voters and public opinion. So, if public support for capital punishment
continues to wane, it's not unfathomable that other states could follow suit.
Some Americans' views on the subject may have been influenced by stories of
people sentenced to death who were later found to be innocent. In a 2014 poll,
Gallup found that about 1 in 6 people who were opposed to the death penalty
said they were against it out of concern that the defendants might actually be
innocent. Other news stories, such as a case in Alabama earlier this year
involving a botched execution, may have influenced opinions on the issue.
Future support for the death penalty may depend partly on whether crime
continues to decrease, because support for capital punishment peaked along with
U.S. violent crime statistics, and as crime statistics declined thereafter, so
did support for capital punishment.
Meanwhile, as executions in the U.S. have decreased along with the generally
sinking crime rate, Americans have become more likely to say capital punishment
is unfairly applied and that it is imposed too frequently. But this appears to
have been driven mostly by shifts in Democrats' views on the subject -- with
blue states far more likely to have abolished the death penalty.
(source: gallup.com)
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