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The Death Penalty In The American Justice System

Decent Essays

Argument Essay: Death Penalty
The American Justice System has been using the death penalty, also known as capital punishment, as a way to serve a prisoner's sentence usually due to the crime of murder. The death penalty in the American Justice System has been used for many years now. Although in 18 states the death penalty has already been abolished, there are still 32 states where it is still legal. The death penalty should not be legal in the American Justice System, because it is immoral, unjust, and ineffective.
When something is immoral it usually means that it is unacceptable in our social or ethical principles. Not only do we go against murder, but also there are some people who say this and are for the death penalty and want the …show more content…

A capital punishment is something that cannot be undone and is irreversible.
Fig. 1. Innocent people released from death row.

In the case of Cameron Todd Willingham we are able to see how unfair and unjust Cameron was executed for murders he did not commit. The case of Cameron had many questionable evidence that was not investigated further and because of these mistake, Cameron Willingham was sentenced with the death penalty and executed. The death penalty is also lacks proper justice because it denies prisoners rehab. Many of the crimes committed were due to the influence of drugs and alcohol. According to the National Council on Alcoholism and Drug Dependence (NCADD), 50% of jail and prison inmates are clinically addicted to either drugs, alcohol, or even both. This study shows that since they are clinically addicted it could also mean that they could have been using the substance while committing the crime. We should not be putting people on the death penalty if they were unable to make rational decisions due to their addiction to drugs or alcohol. Mentally ill people are also affected with the death penalty and there are cases where a person was executed and had a mental disability. It is wrong to sentence someone to the capital punishment knowing that they were unable to make correct decisions due to their state of health. We should be able to provide the help

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