how much does it cost to defend a death row case
Based on these figures, the Bee concluded that death penalty trials were six times more expensive, costing on average $592,500. Meanwhile, the Bee estimated that it cost $93,000 to try a non-death penalty case. Adjusting for inflation to 2007 dollars, the cost of each death penalty trial would be approximately $1 million compared with $163,000 for each non-death penalty trial.
The additional cost of confining an inmate to death row, as compared to the maximum security prisons where those sentenced to life without possibility of parole ordinarily serve their sentences, is $90,000 per year per inmate.onclusions. This study concludes that the enhanced cost of trying a death penalty case is at least $1.25 million more than trying a comparable murder case resulting in a sentence of life in prison without parole.