You are clothed in a bright orange jumpsuit with your arms and legs shackled with heavy chains, giving you no choice but to slowly shuffle down the hallway. There are 6 by 8 cement rooms with barred doors, cages, keeping a person in, and everyone else out. Hope left you decades ago, when they locked you away from the rest of the world. You know where you are heading, strapped to a bed with three hooded men pushing drugs into your body through IV bags, drugs that will kill you within minutes. Should this be legal, or should criminals have to live with their crimes? Capital punishment is the cause of many debates throughout the country. Some people believe that Capital Punishment should be allowed as it gives the victims families the closure they desperately require. Others, like myself, believe that those who do unspeakable crimes should have to live with that guilt in a 6-foot by 8-foot cement room. Also, the problem with Capital Punishment, is sentencing the wrong person to death. Mary Lynn Smith, a writer for the Star Tribune in Minneapolis, tells us about Damon Thibodeaux, an almost-victim of Capital Punishment. Thibodeaux spent 16 years on Death Row for a murder he did not commit.
He was pressured into confessing due to a horrendous past of child abuse and guilt for not giving the murder victim a ride to the grocery store. One night in the summer of 1996, Thibodeaux spent the night with some relatives. The next morning he declined their daughter, Crystal
Imagine that you are arrested and going to be tried for a crime that you did, or did not, commit. What if you cannot afford the cost of a lawyer? Will you be able to handle the physical and mental toll that all of the appeals have on a person? The death penalty, or capital punishment, is one of the most debated topics in America. It has been used for centuries, but many claim it to be barbaric, and want the practice to end all together. The death penalty should only be used in cases where there is absolute evidence that the criminal is guilty, because life in prison can be an alternative, there are many flaws in the justice system, and it can be a cruel and unusual punishment.
Why Capital Punishment should be illegal The Constitution that governs our laws in America is there to protect all of its people and that include the criminals that are on death row. The death penalty materially violates the constitutional ban against cruel and unusual punishment, the guarantees of due process of law, and of equal protection under the law. This is the reason why capital punishment should be illegal in all fifty states. We believe that the states should not give itself the right to kill any human beings. Capital punishment is an inexcusable denial of civil rights and is inconsistent with the basic values of our democratic system. The death penalty is uncivilized in theory and unfair in practice. The death penalty system in the US is applied in an unfair and unjust manner against people, largely dependent on how much money they have, the skills of their attorneys, race of the victim and where the crime took place. Through litigations, legislation, and encouragement against this vicious and brutal way, we strive to prevent executions and seek to abolishment of capital punishment. We would like to think that the death penalty is more cost effective. It seems like the accused is seen in court for their horrendous crime, sentenced for Capital Punishment, and the next day they face execution. Easy, cheap for us taxpayers. That is far from the truth. The death penalty is a waste of taxpayers’ funds. It boggles the time and energy of courts, prosecuting attorneys,
Since 2000, there have been over 200 exonerations from death row. More than half of these exonerations are because of DNA evidence that is found which proves a defendant innocent. The reason for these exonerations is that people make mistakes, there is no way to be fully positive of somebody else’s guilt. In some cases, evidence found against a defendant could just come down to bad timing. People may agree or disagree with capital punishment because it can become a very controversial topic. The main argument against the death penalty is that it is no longer morally correct and goes against certain beliefs. The death penalty should remain illegal in Canada because it costs more for taxpayers than life without the possibility of parole, it
Capital Punishment is not a fair choice to do and it violates the human right to life. Everyone is born with the human right to life, even those who commit any type of crime; sentencing a person to death and executing them violates that right ( ). Just because a murderer killed someone, it does not mean their life should be taken away for punishment. It is generally accepted that people should not be punished for their actions unless they are guilty ( ). Whether the person is guilty is guilty or not they should not be given a deadly punishment. He inmates should just be locked up in prison and die from natural causes. When the prisoner becomes executed it is painful and cruel.
Capital punishment is the punishment of a heinous crime like murder. It is being used now in some states and has also been used in the ancient times. Thirteen states right now don’t have the death penalty: Alaska, District of Colombia, Hawaii, Iowa, Maine, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, North Dakota, Rhode Island, Vermont, West Virginia, and Wisconsin. But all states should ban it because the American Civil Liberties Union believes the death penalty inherently violates the constitutional ban against cruel and unusual punishment and the guarantees of due process of law and of equal protection under the law. Capital punishment is an intolerable denial of civil liberties and is inconsistent with the fundamental values of our democratic
People may think capital punishment is a good thing that the criminals deserve to die for the horrible crime they have committed. But the truth is that capital punishment is expensive, it violates the U.S Constitution, sentencing someone to jail for life is a worse punishment than being sentenced to death, and the death penalty goes against God and several religious beliefs. There are also innocent people on death row and that the death penalty is not a crime deterrent. These are some reasons why it should be illegal to give criminals the death sentence.
A 35 year-old man, guilty of brutally murdering his ex-wife and her father, was sentenced to death. This man underwent a botched execution, which was excruciatingly painful due to human error. The inmate awoke shortly after the lethal drugs had been injected and remained conscious for nearly 45 minutes until he experienced a heart attack and died. Although this man suffered greatly, many argue that the criminal still deserved the punishment received and tat there is no alternative more humane. Until 1976 executions were more brutal, for example public hangings, the electric chair, and firing squads but now more than 85% are preformed by lethal drugs ("Capital Punishment: Should" 5). The topic
There are several controversies surrounding capital punishment. Some people are in favor of the death penalty and some people are against it. Capital punishment is the death penalty for a crime. It is not right to seek revenge on another person’s life, and we have the right to live. There should be justice for the crime but not take the life of the person that committed the crime. Many people are not aware of how wrong, painful, and costly an execution is, and above all, it is possible to kill innocent people.
Albert Einstein, a physicist and philosopher of science, “once said, no problem can be solved with the same level of thinking that created it” (Einstein). The intelligent man expressed his ideas clearly that if a killer kills someone and we also kill the killer then what would be the difference between us and the killer because we both are killers. The Death penalty was influenced by Britain. The practice was brought by European settlers for practice in U.S. The first recorded execution in the new colonies was Captain George Kendall in the Jamestown colony of Virginia in 1608. Kendall was executed for being a spy for Spain (“Part I”). According to the Death Penalty Information Center, 31 States in the United States allow the death penalty and 19 states do not allow the death penalty (“Deterrence”). The death penalty should be abolished in our society because it is not an effective crime deterrent, it puts a strain on our economy, it may result in the loss of innocent lives, and it promotes racial discrimination.
In America, when someone is convicted of murder, they are put on trial to receive the death penalty. Some say it is what they deserve, while others say that it is a “cruel and unusual”punishment. States, such as New Jersey, have already banned the penalty, but some states are still pending on whether to have the penalty or to follow New Jersey’s path .
Capital crime is something that is meant for people that are found guilty of committing a serious crime, such as murder, rape, or theft. These are offences that should not be taken lightly but by killing the offender, the government is carrying about the action that they are trying to prevent. Also, the wrong person may be sentenced to death. After this person is executed, there is obviously nothing that can be done for the terrible mistake to be reversed. The death penalty should be abolished because it is more expensive than life imprisonment, numerous innocent people are condemned to death row, and it is cruel and inhumane.
Every little thing had been managing to build up, and I began to feel as if I couldn't breath. The days just seemed to drag on for no other reason than to cause me pain, and while I would admit I did deserve punishment for the crimes I had committed, I just couldn't help but wonder if maybe I had paid enough already. I had already known nothing but pain my entire life. I had nothing and no one to call my own, and the universe just kept pushing more onto my plate.
Imagine yourself lying on a bed, being somewhat conscious, not being able to move any part of your body and then slowly starting to asphyxiate. After the choking, would come a burning sensation throughout your whole body that is so intense, it feels like you are in the fiery pits of Hell. Then would come the worst muscle cramp that you have ever felt in your entire life, however, it is not only just your calf or thigh, it is your entire body. Then finally your heart gives out on you because you have just gone into cardiac arrest. That experience is not a dream for a convicted felon who has received the death penalty sentence, it is his or her reality. The drugs used in the lethal injections are Sodium Thiopental or Pentobarbital which acts as an anesthetic, Pancuranium bromide, also known as Pavulon, which acts as a paralytic, and Potassium Chloride, which gives the inmate all of those sensations before sending him or her into cardiac arrest. The company that is contracted by the United States Government to make the drug Sodium Thiopental, Hospira, has officially stopped making this drug due to global outrage by death penalty opponents. This requires states to now figure out a new way to execute the people on death row. A firing squad method would be the easiest and most efficient to implement. Lethal injections do not always work like they should. Lethal injections are also not always pain free. In fact, according to newscientist.com over 90% of inmates felt pain, and over
Since their declaration of independence, America had incorporated many aspects of Great Britain’s culture; one of those aspects include the death penalty, which began in 1608 at the time of the Jamestown executions. The death penalty, a topic discussed since it began, includes death by electric shock, gas chamber, hanging, firing squad, and, most commonly used, lethal injection. In 2014, it took an Arizona man two hours and fifteen times the normal amount of medicine to die with lethal injection. Knowing that the outcome of the death penalty may cause immense pain, the use of the death penalty should be illegal in all states throughout the United States.
There are quite a few problems within the criminal justice system of the United States. One of these so called problems with our system of justice is the death penalty. Capital punishment in this country seems to have its pros and cons. There are more issues and complications with being sentenced to death, while the positives are minuscule. The death penalty should not be allowed in the United States, and there are many reasons for this argument.