Death Penalty Essay

Many governments have found that death penalty is a harsh way to punish murderers and has been removed from their system. These inhuman forms of punishments include: the electric chair, hanging, lethal injection, shooting, strangulation and others.

The death penalty is a controversial topic in the United States today and has been for a number of years. The death penalty was overturned and then reinstated in the United States during the 1970's due to questions concerning its fairness. The death penalty began to be reinstated slowly, but the rate of executions has increased during the 1990's. There are a number of arguments for and against the death penalty. Many death penalty supporters feel that the death penalty reduces crime because it deters people from committing murder if they know that they will receive the death penalty if they are caught. Others in favor of the death penalty feel that even if it doesn't deter others from committing crimes, it will eliminate

     There are many reasons to both support and oppose the death penalty. Many people can feel very strongly about whether or not they approve of this method of punishment. I feel that the death penalty is wrong, and I believe that there is much support to back this up. I believe that the death penalty is wrong because it is not an effective deterrent, racially and economically bias, unreliable, expensive, and morally wrong of society.

There are many problems facing our criminal justice system today. Some of the more important ones are overcrowded jails, the increasing murder rate, and keeping tax payers content. In light of these problems, I think the death penalty is our best and most reasonable solution because it is a highly effective deterrent to murder. And, tax payers would be pleased to know that their hard-earned tax dollars are not being wasted on supporting incorrigible criminals who are menaces to society. In addition, they would not be forced to fund the development of new penitentiaries in order to make room for the growing number of inmates in our already overcrowded jails. Moreover, the death penalty would

“Murder is wrong” (“Capital Punishment”). We’ve been taught this indisputable truth since childhood. The death penalty is defined as one human taking the life of another. Coincidentally, that is a classification of murder. There are as many as thirty-six states with the death penalty, and it’s essential that they change it. The United States needs the death penalty abolished because it is filled with flaws, cruel and immoral, and is an ineffective means of deterrent for crime.

Since 1976, there have been 1,417 inmates killed by the death penalty. Out of those 1,417 inmates, 1,242 killed by lethal injection, 158 by electrocution, 11 by gas chamber, 3 by hanging, and 3 by firing squad. The Death Penalty was first enforced in 1608; therefore, Captain George Kendall was the first person to ever be put on death row and actually be prosecuted. In the United States today, only 32 states still have the death penalty. (Death Penalty Information Center) Some people think the death penalty will defer further murders, while others believe the penalty is cruel and is the easy way out for the inmate. Furthermore, the penalty should be illegal because it costs way more money for the inmate to go their than be put in prison for life, also, it is the easy way out for the inmate, they might have serious issues that won’t ever be solved because the courts decided to kill them.

     Julian Ptachin was only 14 years old in October 1997 when a drunk driver smashed into his parents van. His Dad, a physician, had to hold Julian while he died on the side of the road. The drunk driver was a three-timed convicted, repeat offender. He was convicted of second-degree murder and was ordered to serve eight years in jail. Doesn’t something seem wrong with this picture? Repeat crime convicts are running down the streets rapid: endangering our children, our loved ones, and even us.      

The death penalty seems to be a very debatable subject. There are arguments and support for both sides of the debate, but which side is right? That is a tough question to ask. After reading the article in the textbook, two other articles, and looking at statistics, I seem to feel that the death penalty may not be the right answer.

In society today there are murders committed everyday. Everyday the people who commit these crimes are found guilty in a court of law and sentenced in prison. Some even get chances for parole. What the courts should do is take every murderer, give every one of them the death penalty, and follow through with it. The death penalty should be legal in all 50 states and carried through when given out as a sentence. Gary Gilmore faced a firing squad at the Utah State Prison on January 17, 1977. There have been 55 murders in that state during 1976. During 1977, in wake of the Gilmore execution, there were 44 murders: a 20 percent decrease. As you can see, the execution had some effect on the murder rate in Utah (Solotaroff 2001).

The Death Penalty seems to haunt the US mindset. While more countries are dropping the procedure as cruel the US still holds on. Eighty percent of Americans are still for the Death Penalty, citing revenge as the main reason, which is why families are allowed to watch the execution . Organizations like Amnesty International condemn the US regularly, as well as most Democratic nations. What I want to address is why the dialogue is ineffective. The proponents of the Death Penalty make arguments aimed at people's deepest emotional fears. They develop an idea of revenge within people's minds by suggesting the death of family members and create sympathy for families' victims. On the other hand groups like Amnesty

that an eye for and eye and a life for a life, is justice. If someone is

Virtually every major program designed to address the underlying causes of violence and to support the poor, vulnerable, powerless victims of crime is being cut even further to the bone… In this context, the proposition that the death penalty is a needed addition to our arsenal of weapons lacks credibility…

a) Through the Utilitarian perspective, Bedau is a firm believer in the removal of capital punishment; Bedau thinks that no reason is good enough justify the more severe punishment like death penalty on the moral ground, and no evidence of deterrence and prevention is sufficient enough to support the retribution of justice to keep capital punishment. Bedau have raised several arguments direct to the issue of death penalty: The morality of self-defense and death penalty; the efficiency prevention and the deterrence through capital punishment; then finally the inequity treatment towards the racially disadvantaged and poor.

Do you believe that people should get the death penalty? People should get the death penalty because Americans are just wasting our money on criminals who aren't learning their lesson. People should get the death penalty because they have far too many privileges in prison that people actually want to go there. People should get the death penalty because if there is a bigger consequence for their actions there wouldn't be as many people in jail. It would be advantageous for the American civilization to adopt the death penalty as a common penalty.

The issue of the death penalty is widely disputed. So disputed that maybe I shouldn’t have picked this topic. But nevertheless, the death penalty is an issue that needs to be addressed. Should the death penalty be abolished from our criminal justice system? Well, that depends on whom you ask. If you ask me… no. I personally don’t see anything wrong with the death penalty because there are a lot of criminals that are just too dangerous to society and death is the only punishment they deserve.