Myth #1: The death penalty provides closure

False. There is no such thing as closure for murder victims' families. Nothing can bring their loved one back. There is, however, a common desire among family members for justice. To be meaningful, justice should be swift and sure. The death penalty is neither. Capital punishment prolongs pain for victims’ families, dragging them through an agonizing and lengthy process that holds out the promise of an execution at the beginning but often results in a different sentence in the end. A life without parole sentence, on the other hand, begins as soon as victims’ families leave the courtroom and is served anonymously, outside the spotlight of the news cameras.

Myth #2: Victims' families' needs are met by the death penalty

False. The death penalty does not address the real needs of murder victims' families. The death penalty’s cumbersome and expensive process diverts millions of dollars and attention from the critical services that homicide survivors need to help them heal, including specialized grief counseling, financial assistance and ongoing support. In most states, including Ohio, these services are sorely lacking.

The few services that are available are often provided through the county prosecutor’s office, so when the criminal case is over, the services for the victims’ family end along with it.

For families of unsolved murders, there is the added pain of never learning what happened to their loved ones. Meanwhile, the perpetrators remain on the streets, free to kill again, while countless law enforcement hours are spent chasing a handful of executions instead of solving more cases.

Myth #3: The death penalty unites grieving families

False. The death penalty divides families. The death penalty splits families apart, forcing relatives with different views on the issue to engage in a polarizing debate at a time when they need each other most. Families are asked to weigh in on the prosecutor’s decision to seek the death penalty at a time when they are still processing the shock of the news of the murder. They are in no position to evaluate how the long process will effect them years down the road.

In cases where the defendant and victims are related, families are even further torn apart. In many cases, for example, children must first cope with the murder of one parent and then suffer a new layer of trauma and grief when the other parent is executed for the crime.


“The death penalty offers a false promise of closure to victims’ families, who are led to believe that an execution will bring relief. While families wait through the lengthy, roller-coaster appeals process, reliving our original pain again and again, the focus remains on the murderer rather than on the victims or on our own anguish as surviving family members. The death penalty is a distraction from the victims’ real needs, not a solution.”

-Renny Cushing, whose father, Robert, was murdered.