Capital Punishment Essay

As far back as one can look into human civilization, justice for a murder victim has always been by taking the life of the killer. In today’s society capital punishment is needed to defend it from further harm, bring justice and/or vengeance to the victims of the loved ones, and encourage psychological deterrence. As of today, there are thirty-two states which offer the only just punishment for a crime without parallel and eighteen states having abolished the death penalty.

“Capital punishment is literally a life-and-death issue. Sometimes called the death penalty, it is the execution of people who have been found guilty of offenses considered to be capital crimes. In 2015, twenty-eight people (including one woman) were executed in the United States” (“Capital Punishment, Par. 1). During the 15th century in England, there were seven capitals crimes, the crimes included treason, murder, larceny, burglary, rape, and arson. However, currently in the United States, murder is the only capital crime that Supreme Court punishes by death. (“Capital Punishment,” Encyclopedia). Capital punishment serves as a deterrent to those contemplating committing a capital crime because the consequence is so severe.

There are about 121 innocent people sitting on death row tonight. A study by the National Academy of Sciences reports that conservatively, 4.1 percent of defendants sentenced to death are indeed innocent. Capital punishment is abolished in many parts of the developed world, but is still carried out daily. In this day and age, its existence may seem questionable. After World War II, crime rates increased in the United States, peaking from the 1970s to the early 1990s. Violent crime nearly quadrupled between 1960 and its peak in 1991. Sure enough, thirty-two states, the federal civilian and military legal systems permit the death penalty. Its application is limited by the Eighth Amendment to the Constitution to aggravated murders committed

Since 1977 there has been 1,188 people executed in the United States. From 1973 there has been 7,482 people executed in the world. The death penalty has been a highly discussed topic in today’s news because it is a controversial issue that has endless reasons of if it is justified or not. Our world is changing at a rapid pace and so our the criminals in it. Some may think that the crimes being committed are getting out of hand. The issue now is what type of punishment do the murderers and brutal criminals receive? Or what type of punishment do they really deserve? Death row and execution is the best option in some people's eyes, but the problem is that some people strongly disagree with this idea. Is the execution of murderers and other brutal criminals really justified?

This proves my argument that capital punishment is not humane. Emanuella Grinberg of CNN states, that “there is no such thing as a ‘humane’ execution.” (Emanuella Grinberg, 2015) Places who still believe in capital punishment are continuing to take the risk of executing innocent people. Our lives are far too valuable to be put into another humans control. Once who execute someone you can never bring them back even if you discover later on that they were actually blameless. “A 1987 study in the Stanford Law Review points to 350 cases between 1900 and 1985 in which innocent people were wrongly convicted of capital crimes; in 23 of those cases, the innocent person was executed, 8 in New York alone. Having capital punishment on the books ignores the possible mistake of human judgment and the criminal justice system.” (The New York Times, 1995) Crime continues despite the fact the death penalty is still intact. People should be given second chances in

Other people favour the death penalty because they believe that it prevents and eliminates crime, although there has been no found link between the death penalty and the murder rate. Studies have shown that there is no unusual increase in murders when capital punishment is abolished. According to Amnesty International, about 100 nations have abolished capital punishment. About 90 countries still permit capital punishment, including most developing nations.

The thought of retribution as a form of capital punishment makes a whole lot of sense too many people. According to Adams (2004) “Retribution has its basis in religious values, which have historically maintained that it is proper to take an "eye for an eye" and a life for a life” (p.1). People have come to believe that if one has done something horrible they should be punished for their actions regardless of religion. When a life is taken by a person the equilibrium of fairness becomes deeply disturbed by nature. The fairness of the life that was taken if it does not receive any justice the people will uproar into violence. The taking of the killer’s life can restore the balance that society needs and shows society that murder itself is intolerable with a hefty consequence attached to it. The taking of the murder’s life will not bring back the victim to their family but it will bring the closure needed for the killer’s crime. The death penalty is needed for the heinous crimes that deserve the worst punishment possible under the law. Any less punishment then this is merely undermining the value that society places on protecting lives. (http://deathpenaltycurriculum.org/student/c/about/arguments/argument2a.htm) Elizabeth Adams

Capital punishment is the execution of a perpetrator for committing a heinous crime (homicide), and it is a hotly debated topic in our society. It has always been a belief for some that if another person wrongs them, they should have the right to take revenge against that person. In the present day, this view still remains, but has been toned down by laws that state the rights of the accused and have developed punishments for offenders. Many, me included, still believe that those punishments are not harsh enough and allow criminals to take advantage of them, knowing that if caught, the punishment is not near enough to make it wise to simply avoid the risk. I believe that capital punishment is an effective

He is escorted down to a room with handcuffs on both arms and feet. The tension in the room causes nervousness and a stirring in his stomach, which entombs his dinner from the night before. He is told to take a seat. Still in doubt of his fate he notices the witnesses and their various expressions. His family is grief-stricken, a sharp contrast to the family of the brutally murdered, for which he was found guilty of. If only they knew what he knew; for they would not be strapping him into the chair, soaking a sponge, and placing it on top of his head along with the metal skullcap. If they knew the truth there would be someone in his place today. But alas, the

Capital punishment can act as a source of relief to the loved ones of those who have been affected and can be helpful in promoting healing for the affected victim's families. And this is because of the assurance that the victims cannot be in the position to hurt them again. It is clear that if the offender is not sentenced to death the family members and loved ones will remain living in fear, thinking one day this offender will be on the streets again. This can result in revenge and retaliation that will lead to more crimes in society. It may give rise to the increase of the question as to why somebody who has hurt an innocent person will still be living in this world and yet they are supposed to suffer, and why criminals are given so many

With all of the arguments against the death penalty, you would think that it’s still being implemented due to its effectiveness at inhibiting crime rates. However, this is not the case, as it has been heavily discredited and proved to not discourage crime rates at all (McElwee). According to “Death Penalty Information Center”, since 1990 there has actually been a higher rate of homicide in states with the death penalty than states without, and in 2015 there was a 25% higher rate of homicide in those death penalty states. This proves that in fact, the death penalty is so brutal on society, that when such violence is condoned via the death penalty, more violence is to follow (Brook). In addition, while one belief is that it is cheaper to kill the criminals instead of housing them, the overall costs of proceeding with the death penalty overtake those of its alternative; life imprisonment. Over the full extent of a case, executing prisoners can be up to three times as expensive as life in prison, due to factors like higher costs of capital punishment trials, automatic appeals, the long review process, and heightened security on death row (Brook). There is no need to fund a more expensive and inefficient means of punishment if there is a more humane and cost effective one available in life

Death Penalty The death penalty, outlawed in most of Europe, Canada, Australia and most other countries in the world, is still practiced in almost 40 states in the U.S. Today, there are more than 3,000 people on death row waiting the day of their execution. They are put to death by methods such as hanging, electrocution, lethal injection and by firing squad. Since the death penalty was reinstated bye the supreme court in 1976, by the Gregg v. Georgia decision, more than 525 people have been put to death.

Despite all the pros and cons of capital punishment, society must think about what is truly correct and most practical for our world. Capital punishment is not functional in today’s legal system. There are countless amounts of evidence that proves these legal killings to be ineffective. We, as Americans, must correct this irrational practice before it does anymore permanent damage.

When the term capital punishment comes up, consideration must be given to the history of mankind in relation to such form of retribution. From the beginning of recorded history, the death penalty has existed and for many crimes other then first degree murder. Before anyone takes a FOR or AGAINST position on capital punishment, perhaps we should take a look at the actual facts and statistics on this controversial topic. Then, with all this in mind, take a dialectical approach, with the idea of death itself and see if we can come up with a clearer understanding of the reason for such actions to be accepted in our society. However, if a stand needed to be taken to keep the death penalty or abolish it, one must

Death punishment, gives closure to the people involved with the tragedy. It helps to the overpopulation problem in the prison system, instead keeping an intern 25 years or more. Finally, people who received the death punishment usually are not able to be rehabilitated. If these people have the opportunity they will kill, rape, and torture again. There are many factors that make murders incapable to