Indiana Execution Rate Lowest in 15 Years

One major misconception regarding capital punishment is that it represents a more affordable alternative to a life imprisonment sentence. A study commissioned by former Governor Frank O' Bannon in 2002 found, however that the exact opposite is true. The arduous time and legal proceedings associated with death penalty cases require vast financial resources from local and state government budgets.

Due to this fact, many analysts believe cost considerations are a major impetus behind Indiana's decline in executions as well as several other states. Considering the facts, is this an indication of a long-term trend or just a short term phenomenon?

Indiana has gone two years without an execution for the first time since the mid-1990s, when it put five inmates to death, and prosecutors say the decline could be a sign of things to come.

“We’re running out of death row inmates,” said Clark County Prosecutor Steven Stewart, who maintains a pro-death penalty Web site.

Full AP Article here.