--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Capital punishment? It makes no sense as…" description: "\"Capital punishment? It makes no sense as a policy: It's not a deterrent, and economically it's a disaster. It's very clear that there are innocent peop..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a1e/tony-goldwyn-11587_capital-punishment_capital-punishment-it-makes-no-sense-as_1566656.jpg" --- # Capital punishment? It makes no sense as a policy: It's… ![“Capital punishment? It makes no sense as a policy: It's not a deterrent, and economically it's a disaster. It's very clear that there are innocent people on death row. And if I put an innocent person to death, that's murder.” quote by Tony Goldwyn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a1e/tony-goldwyn-11587_capital-punishment_capital-punishment-it-makes-no-sense-as_1566656.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a1e/tony-goldwyn-11587_capital-punishment_capital-punishment-it-makes-no-sense-as_1566656.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a1e/tony-goldwyn-11587_capital-punishment_capital-punishment-it-makes-no-sense-as_1566656.jpg) > “Capital punishment? It makes no sense as a policy: It's not a deterrent, and economically it's a disaster. It's very clear that there are innocent people on death row. And if I put an innocent person to death, that's murder.” [Tony Goldwyn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tony-goldwyn/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The argument states capital punishment fails as deterrent, is costly, and risks executing innocents, equating it to murder. **In simple terms:** Death penalty is ineffective, expensive, and morally wrong. Key Takeaway Reconsider the death penalty. Themes justice ethics policy economics Mood serious urgent Type ethical political When to use this quote - criminal justice reform - budget allocation - human rights advocacy Key Concepts deterrence cost innocent lives state violence Questions to Reflect On - Can a society be safe without capital punishment? - What alternatives ensure justice and deterrence? A Different Perspective Moral arguments may clash with public safety concerns. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Capital punishment](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/capital-punishment/) [Crime](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/crime/) [Death](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/death/) [Death row](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/death-row/) [Disaster](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/disaster/) [Innocent people](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/innocent-people/) [Innocent person](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/innocent-person/) [Murder](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/murder/) [Penalty](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/penalty/) [People](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/people/) [Punishment](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/punishment/) ## Related quotes > [There is no free will if to exercise it in certain ways produces punishment. 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But there… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sister-helen-prejean/t-here-are-some-human-rights-that-are-so-deep-that-we-can-t-negotiate/) Sister Helen Prejean > [We don't know if capital punishment is a deterrent, but we know that men we execute will not murder again.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mario-puzo/we-don-t-know-if-capital-punishment-is-a-deterrent-but-we-know-that/) [Mario Puzo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mario-puzo/) > [I support the death penalty because I believe, if administered swiftly and justly, capital punishment is a deterrent against future violence and will save…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-w-bush/i-support-the-death-penalty-because-i-believe-if-administered-swiftly/) [George W. Bush](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-w-bush/) > [“Being a hangman requires you to take someone else’s life based on someone else’s judgment, and carry it out on someone else’s schedule. 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As they prepare to make their pathetic walk to the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martin-luther-king-jr/make-your-way-to-death-row-and-speak-with-the-tragic-victims-of/) [Martin Luther King, Jr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martin-luther-king-jr/) > [The death penalty issue is obviously a divisive one. But whether one is for or against, you can not deny the basic illogic -…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-lagravenese/the-death-penalty-issue-is-obviously-a-divisive-one-but-whether-one/) [Richard LaGravenese](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-lagravenese/) > [The death penalty would be even more effective, as a deterrent, if we executed a few innocent people more often.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edward-abbey/the-death-penalty-would-be-even-more-effective-as-a-deterrent-if-we/) [Edward Abbey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edward-abbey/) > [What kind of system do we have when innocent people can sit on death row for 30 years?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anthony-ray-hinton/what-kind-of-system-do-we-have-when-innocent-people-can-sit-on-death/) [Anthony Ray Hinton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anthony-ray-hinton/) ## More by Tony Goldwyn > [Nothing's wrong with honest emotion.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tony-goldwyn/nothing-s-wrong-with-honest-emotion/) [Tony Goldwyn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tony-goldwyn/) > [My mother's whole family had been from the theater, really. Because I grew up in Hollywood, I wasn't that interested in Hollywood. But the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tony-goldwyn/my-mother-s-whole-family-had-been-from-the-theater-really-because-i/) [Tony Goldwyn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tony-goldwyn/) > [#GivingTuesday is the perfect cyber-counterbalance to Black Friday and emphasizes giving back in this era of mass consumption.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tony-goldwyn/givingtuesday-is-the-perfect-cyber-counterbalance-to-black-friday-and/) [Tony Goldwyn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tony-goldwyn/) > [I directed and produced Conviction, a movie about a man who spent 18 years in prison for a crime he didn't commit. I got…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tony-goldwyn/i-directed-and-produced-conviction-a-movie-about-a-man-who-spent-18/) [Tony Goldwyn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tony-goldwyn/) > [My parents were obsessed with us being normal kids, so I never knew movie stars. 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I find the way Washington works is just fascinating to me.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tony-goldwyn/i-ve-been-a-political-junkie-for-a-long-time-i-find-the-way/) [Tony Goldwyn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tony-goldwyn/) > [I'm a moderate Democrat. I've always been fascinated and maddened by the way things get done in our system, which as an ideal is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tony-goldwyn/i-m-a-moderate-democrat-i-ve-always-been-fascinated-and-maddened-by/) [Tony Goldwyn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tony-goldwyn/) > [Nothings wrong with honest emotion.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tony-goldwyn/nothings-wrong-with-honest-emotion/) [Tony Goldwyn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tony-goldwyn/) > [Every day should be #GivingTuesday when it comes to surviving natural catastrophes and man-made disasters.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tony-goldwyn/every-day-should-be-givingtuesday-when-it-comes-to-surviving-natural/) [Tony Goldwyn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tony-goldwyn/) > [Our age-old faith in divine male intuition is no longer good enough. Reality check, fellas: We are not gods. We are men. Let's own…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tony-goldwyn/our-age-old-faith-in-divine-male-intuition-is-no-longer-good-enough/) [Tony Goldwyn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tony-goldwyn/) > [Relationships are super complicated and always have dark and light in them. And all good sexual relationships do, too.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tony-goldwyn/relationships-are-super-complicated-and-always-have-dark-and-light-in/) [Tony Goldwyn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tony-goldwyn/) > [I've played several real characters, and I've always found it very difficult because you don't want to do an impersonation.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tony-goldwyn/i-ve-played-several-real-characters-and-i-ve-always-found-it-very/) [Tony Goldwyn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tony-goldwyn/) > [I loved working with Ed Zwick.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tony-goldwyn/i-loved-working-with-ed-zwick/) [Tony Goldwyn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tony-goldwyn/) [Explore all 59 Tony Goldwyn quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tony-goldwyn/) ## More Capital punishment quotes > [“The next time believers tell you that 'separation of church and state' does not appear in our founding document, tell them to stop using…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dan-barker/the-next-time-believers-tell-you-that-separation-of-church-and-state/) [Dan Barker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dan-barker/) > [“The very mention of crucifixion was taboo in polite Roman circles, since it was the lowest form of capital punishment, reserved for slaves and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/n-t-wright/the-very-mention-of-crucifixion-was-taboo-in-polite-roman-circles/) [N.T. Wright](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/n-t-wright/) > [It is better and more satisfactory to acquit a thousand guilty persons than to put a single innocent one to death.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maimonides/it-is-better-and-more-satisfactory-to-acquit-a-thousand-guilty/) [Maimonides](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maimonides/) > [Let us leave the EEC, abolish human rights laws, take TV sets, pool tables and phones out of prisons, bring back corporal and capital…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ken-bates/let-us-leave-the-eec-abolish-human-rights-laws-take-tv-sets-pool/) [Ken Bates](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ken-bates/) > [ The law which attempts a man's life \[capital punishment\] is impractical, unjust, inadmissible. It has never repressed crime--for a second crime is every day… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marquis-de-sade/the-law-which-attempts-a-man-s-life-capital-punishment-is-impractical/) [Marquis de Sade](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marquis-de-sade/) > [Capital punishment kills immediately, whereas lifetime imprisonment does so slowly. Which executioner is more humane? The one who kills you in a few minutes,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anton-chekhov/capital-punishment-kills-immediately-whereas-lifetime-imprisonment/) [Anton Chekhov](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anton-chekhov/) > [To take a life when a life has been lost is revenge, not justice.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/desmond-tutu/to-take-a-life-when-a-life-has-been-lost-is-revenge-not-justice/) [Desmond Tutu](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/desmond-tutu/) > [Capital punishment...treats members of the human race...as objects to be toyed with and discarded.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-j-brennan/capital-punishment-treats-members-of-the-human-race-as-objects-to-be/) [William J. Brennan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-j-brennan/) > [But now inquiry is being made concerning these issues. First, can any believer enlist in the military? Second, can any soldier, even those of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tertullian/but-now-inquiry-is-being-made-concerning-these-issues-first-can-any/) [Tertullian](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tertullian/) > [Capital punishment would be more effective as a preventive measure if it were administered prior to the crime.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/woody-allen/capital-punishment-would-be-more-effective-as-a-preventive-measure-if/) [Woody Allen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/woody-allen/) > [ “\[T\]here are some human rights that are so deep that we can't negotiate them away. I mean people do heinous, terrible things. But there… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sister-helen-prejean/t-here-are-some-human-rights-that-are-so-deep-that-we-can-t-negotiate/) Sister Helen Prejean > [I favor capital punishment. 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