I cannot think of one legitimate reason in support of capital punishment. No credible research has found the penalty to have a deterrent effect. It cannot bring murder victims back to life. It can't fill the emptiness in the lives of victim's families and friends.

However, there are many reasons to vote against the upcoming death penalty advisory referendum. It should be noted that the death penalty is opposed by most major religious denominations. So, while some may rush to the Old Testament for support of capital punishment, this seems to fly in the face of most religious groups in the United States.

Secondly, our criminal justice system is imperfect. Over 120 people have been exonerated of the crimes for which they were sentenced to death in the past 30 years. It makes you wonder how many innocent men and women have been executed?

The death penalty is very expensive, much more costly than life in prison without parole. Many have said that we could cut the costs by reducing/limiting the appeal process, but many exonerees have spent 10 to 15 years on death row before being exonerated. Limiting the appeals process increases the likelihood of executing the innocent.

The death penalty discriminates against the poor. Many men sitting on death row have not had adequate defense counsel.

Finally, the provision for DNA evidence in the Wisconsin referendum is specious. Most capital cases are decided primarily on eyewitness testimony, and not on DNA evidence. In fact, it is the problems associated with eyewitness testimony and shoddy police work that is at the heart of most exonerees cases.

In closing, I would ask why some politicians feel the need for the death penalty advisory referendum in Wisconsin? What do they hope to accomplish? What specific problem is going to be addressed with its passage? Will our communities be safer? No! My guess is that the politicians are motivated by the possibility of distracting voters from the real problems that we face in society. Real problems are not solved by quick fixes, and that is basically what this amendment is.

Richard Jones is an associate professor and chair of the Department of Social & Cultural Sciences. Crime, punishment and incarceration are a few of the teaching areas he specializes in.