Jay Johansen

According to Jay Johansen in the following viewpoint, the death penalty has a positive correlation to the homicide rate. As the number of executions declines, the homicide rate increases, and as the number of executions rises, the homicide rate falls. Therefore, Johansen concludes, the death penalty deters violent crime. Johansen is a freelance writer in Ohio.

As you read, consider the following questions:

1. According to the U.S. Department of Justice, what was the homicide rate throughout the 1950s, as cited by Johansen?
2. What happened in 1967, and how did this event affect the homicide rate, according to the author?
3. In Johansen’s view, why did the Supreme Court once again permit executions to take place"

Advocates of capital punishment routinely argue that statistics prove that it deters crime. Opponents of capital punishment just as routinely argue...