Posted: November 14, 2014
Three capital cases in one county have already cost Washington
almost $10 million, and have barely begun. For the trial of Christopher
Monfort, King County has already spent over $4 million, and it is still
in the jury selection phase. Two other capital cases in the county have
cost a combined $4.9 million, and the trials have not started. The
capital case of serial killer Gary Ridgway, which is believed to be the
most expensive case in Washington's history, cost about $12 million and
resulted in a sentence of life without parole. In February, Governor Jay Inslee
instituted a moratorium on executions in Washington, highlighting both
the costs and the arbitrariness of the death penalty, noting, "Equal
justice under the law is the state's primary responsibility. And in
death penalty cases, I'm not convinced equal justice is being served.
The use of the death penalty in this state is unequally applied,
sometimes dependent on the budget of the county where the crime
occurred." Defense attorney Mark Larrañaga said, "It is a complete waste
of resources and time. We've had five executions in 40 years.
Seventy-five to 80 percent of these cases are reversed.”Read more
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