Death Penalty suspended

Sister Helen Prejean's lobbying efforts paid back when New Jersey decided to suspend all executions until a task force studies the costs and fairness of the death penalty as opposed to life in prison without the possibility of parole. Don't get me wrong, I'm all for punishing criminals, and I would actually make prisons less comfortable than what they apparently are judging from what we see on TV shows like OZ and Prison Break, where luxuries like cable TV, high-speed Internet access, and air conditioning are offered to inmates when honest, working poor people can't afford them. However, I'm against the death penalty for several reasons. First of all, it can't be undone. If exculpatory evidence is uncovered after a person has been put to death, society can't fix the mistake, and an innocent person has been killed unfairly. And this happens more frequently than we're comfortable with even thinking. Second, apparently putting someone to death is even more expensive than keeping him alive in a cell till his death, which should prompt every smart taxpayer to call for switching over to life terms instead of death rows. Third, although being on death row must be psychologically taxing (without considering the actual last day, when I can't even imagine how the person must feel), the punishment is really over once the sentence is carried out, while a life sentence would end up punishing the criminal for a much longer time. I mean, psychologically, it must be horrible to be prepared for death, but given that it's carried out mostly painlessly (at least when through lethal injection), the thought of being locked up forever in a prison cell must take its toll as well. And lasts much longer. Finally, although there are several countries left in the world that still have the death penalty, none of them are in the so-called civilized world, and so I really feel like it diminishes this country's image to be associated with countries like Iran, Syria, and Rwanda. Anyway, New Jersey has suspended its executions and becomes the second state to do so after Illinois (Maryland had suspended but now resumed its executions). This is from the CNN article:

Under the measure, a 13-member commission would have until November to report on whether the death penalty is fairly imposed and whether alternatives would ensure public safety and address the needs of victims' families. [...] "By its action today, the Assembly joins the Senate in signaling deep concern that the state's death penalty system isn't working," said Celeste Fitzgerald, director of New Jerseyans for Alternatives to the Death Penalty. She said capital punishment is meted out unfairly and risks executing the innocent. [...] "We've heard about people who have been put to death and were then found to be innocent. We've looked at the cost, which is enormously more for someone on death row than for a person who's imprisoned for life without parole," Allen said.

More good news is that other states are apparently taking a look at how the system really fares compared with life sentences:

New Jersey lawmakers are not alone in considering a study of executions. Concerned about wrongful convictions and whether the poor and minorities are more likely to receive the death penalty, at least 12 other states have appointed study commissions. Thirty-eight states allow people to be sentenced to death.

What I ask myself most is, how long will it take the US to get rid of the death penalty altogether and finally join the civilization it so proudly purports to lead?