What 40% of Scots who back death penalty should learn from US death chamber workers
Punishment for crimes can have psychological consequences for the people who administer it, such as nightmares, insomnia, depression, and suicide
When we talk about punishment, we usually picture the person at the centre: the perpetrator. Whether it’s a short sentence, decades behind bars, or – more extremely – capital punishment, our focus almost always rests on them.
Yet the impact of punishment is not confined to the individual being sentenced. People responsible for enforcing sentences or making life-or-death decisions can carry a heavy psychological burden, often hidden from the public. Capital punishment is the clearest example of this: it exposes the human cost of carrying out punishment and reminds us that its effects reach far beyond the person being sentenced.
These consequences are perhaps clearest in the case of execution workers. Many are not volunteers but are selected for the role, and the work can have profound psychological effects.
Suicidal thoughts
In 2022, radio station NPR interviewed 26 people who were involved in a total of more than 200 executions in the US. None of those who witnessed executions supported the death penalty afterwards, in part because of the toll it took on them.
Execution staff reported nightmares, insomnia, depression, and dissociation as a result of their work. These experiences illustrate that carrying out punishment, even when legally sanctioned, can have a profound impact on those tasked with it.
One former executioner in the US described feeling moral conflict over his role, saying the experience left him questioning himself and contemplating suicide, according to NPR. At least one execution worker is reported to have killed themselves.
The nature of the system means that few workers have ever discussed their experiences openly. Legal restrictions and a broader culture of secrecy have kept identities and experiences hidden, and many have carried the burden in isolation, with some never even telling their families about their work in the death chamber.
READ MORE: Scotland imprisons more of its people than most of Western Europe – then lets them out early
Effects on juries
Punishment also leaves a mark on ordinary citizens tasked with sitting on capital juries. For jurors, the weight of deciding another person’s fate can challenge their sense of morality, leaving a lasting psychological impact after the trial ends.
Jurors in the US have reported feelings of anger, guilt, or remorse over their decisions. Some later learned information that wasn’t disclosed during the trial – such as the convicted person having a mental illness or brain injury – and said they would not have imposed the death penalty had they known.
Others felt pressured by fellow jurors into voting for death instead of life. Many have experienced nightmares or symptoms consistent with post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). For some, the burden is lifelong, with jurors describing how their decision continues to weigh on them decades later.
Scotland divided on capital punishment
Although Scotland abolished the death penalty 60 years ago, debate about the harshest forms of punishment hasn’t disappeared. A YouGov poll of Scots conducted six years ago found that 41 per cent of those surveyed would reintroduce the death penalty for murder, with opposition only marginally higher at 44 per cent.
These debates tend to focus on deterrence or just deserts, while paying little attention to the psychological burden it places on those tasked with carrying out or enforcing the punishment.
Even without capital punishment, the human cost of punishment impacts many. Public debate often encapsulates punishment as a moment, often when the sentence is handed down. In reality, that punishment has to be lived out.
For prison officers, that can mean years – or even decades – of daily proximity to people who have committed violent crimes. The sentence may mark an ending for the public, but for those tasked with enforcing it, it marks the beginning of a long journey together, with officers sometimes spending more time with the convicted than their own families.
Violence and self-harm
The consequences of justice work are visible in patterns of poor mental health across organisations. Among prison officers in Scotland, stress was the leading cause of absence last year – accounting for more than 20 per cent of all absences.
Similar problems are evident in policing. Last year, 1,236 police officers in Scotland were signed off work due to stress, depression, anxiety or PTSD – an increase of 52 per cent since 2021. Research elsewhere has also linked policing and prison work to an elevated risk of suicide.
Both police and prison officers regularly encounter situations which can contradict their moral beliefs, such as witnessing violence or self-harm, failing to prevent harm or enforcing certain rules. This can result in a ‘moral injury’, with individuals feeling intense guilt, shame or anger. Research suggests there is a correlation between exposure to such events and depression and self-harm.
While capital punishment is no longer part of Scotland’s justice system, the psychological weight of participating in judicial decision-making is still visible. Research suggests that even Scottish jurors, though not deciding matters of life and death, can experience emotional distress – particularly during deliberations – further highlighting that the human cost of punishment extends beyond the offender to many who play a role in the justice system.
Punishing wrongdoers
When the state determines that punishment is required, it is carried out by people, on behalf of the rest of us. Execution workers, jurors, police and prison officers all bear the psychological weight of decisions made in the name of justice.
Acknowledging this human cost doesn’t mean rejecting punishment or denying the need for justice. Rather, it highlights the effects on the lives of those who enforce or impose punishments.
When we debate how harshly society should punish wrongdoers, we are also determining the psychological cost that can fall on those tasked with carrying it out. That reality may be most visible in capital punishment, but it ripples far beyond, reaching many involved in the administration and enforcement of justice.
Kaigan Carrie is a criminologist and host of the Evolving Prisons podcast