While the incarceration rate has risen dramatically in the past 20 years, the number of people executed has declined. Identify t
wo factors that explain this decrease in the execution rate. Does this signal a change in punishment philosophy in the United States? Explain, using facts, why or why not.
The incarceration rate has gone up due to increase in population and increase in gender equality. Female populations are more likely to become incarcerated than before. For the execution part, more and more people are starting to see the death penalty and its following executions to be seen as "cruel and unusual punishment." along with the cost of a death penalty sentencing compared to life in prison, judges are opting more for other alternatives besides death penalty. This could signal a potential change in punishment philosophy, with death penalty potentially going away in the future.
