On October 13, offi­cials from the U.S. and Europe held what may have been the first ever inter­na­tion­al forum of law enforce­ment offi­cers on the mer­its of the death penal­ty in reduc­ing vio­lent crime. The offi­cers dis­cussed whether cap­i­tal pun­ish­ment actu­al­ly helps to keep cit­i­zens safe, assists heal­ing for vic­tims, and uses crime-fight­ing resources effi­cient­ly. The pan­elists, who includ­ed cur­rent and for­mer police offi­cers from the U.S. land Europe, addressed issues such as deter­rence, clo­sure to vic­tims’ fam­i­lies, and costs as com­pared to alter­na­tive sen­tences. The pan­el was held at the National Press Club in Washington, D.C. You can find resources regard­ing the forum and video clips of the pre­sen­ters’ remarks on DPIC’s new web­page here.

(DPIC, post­ed Nov. 3, 2010). See Costs, Deterrence and New Voices.

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