What’s the big deal about executing people? If they killed someone, isn’t it their own fault that they’ll die for it?
The answer depends on whether you think childhood trauma, brain injury, intellectual disabilities,, and serious mental illness–or a combination of these factors– is the offender’s fault or choice. Did 18 people in the U.S. die at the hands of the state in 2018 because the crimes they committed were influenced by something not in their control? It’s something to consider when we mark our ballots on the issue of the death penalty. Take a look at this chart:
