Innocence And The Death Penalty

If we examine some arguments presented from both sides, opponents of the capital punishment claim that executing someone is nothing more than an immoral, state-authorized killing which undervalues the human life and destroys our respect for our government which itself says that killing is wrong. But the supporters of the death penalty think that certain murderers

“The use of the death penalty in the United States has been rapidly declining since the end of the 1990s” (Dieter, 2015). This is contrast to the believes of the Founding Fathers where “the death penalty was widely accepted at the time the U.S. Constitution and the Bill of Rights were ratified” (Gardner & Anderson, 2014). While the crimes have not changed, aspects of capital punishment which were once viewed as constitutional, today are deemed cruel and unusual. The prevailing liberal view sees the death penalty as morally unjustified and a vengeful form retribution. “It is the most brutal form of state power, requires massive state administrations and it costs significantly more than life imprisonment which is both more humane and equally effective” (Davidson, 2015). They point to the lack of deterrence it provides and highlight the racial and gender biases of the criminal justice system and the potential for the execution of the innocent by the State. In contrast, those in favor of capital punishment see it as a valid, moral and constitutional punishment as punishments should be imposed in proportion to the crime. The death penalty is reserved for the most violent of crimes in society and without it, justice is not achieved for victims and their families. The death penalty must be viewed again as a valid, moral and legal

The death penalty has been a controversy in the United States justice system since its commencement (Bakken & Morris, 2010). Although extremely controversial, it has stood the test of time as the definitive penalty. Numerous countries are at present bring an end their death penalty law. Contrary to that, the United States has thirty eight out of its fifty states with death penalty still operational. It seems the United States needs the death penalty more than ever before due to rising rate of sever violent crimes across the nation. Statistics shows that since the early nineties roughly around 355 people have been put to death through death penalty and approximately 3300 are still waiting on death row. Similarly since 1976 around 552 felons have been put to rest through death penalty across the United States (Bakken & Morris, 2010). If you break these deaths down according to the methods utilized about three hundred ninety-four by lethal injection, one hundred forty-one by electrocution, eleven by gas chamber, three by hanging, and two by firing squad. Almost half of the 1976 executions have taken place within the last five years, which includes 52 that took place this year. Even though the death penalty has brought countless gooey criminals to end, the course of death penalty that it is founded on is inconsistent one.

According to Amnesty International, one hundred and forty countries have abolished the death penalty. In 2012, only one country, Latvia, abolished the death penalty for all crimes. In 2013, twenty two countries around the world were known to have carried out executions and at least fifty seven to have imposed death sentences (“Amnesty International”, 2015). The United States is the only Western industrial nation to have the death penalty and is ranked fifth for the highest numbers of executions in the entire world. The country is ranked behind China, Iran, Iraq, and Saudi Arabia for the most executions last year and remains ahead of Yemen and Sudan. However, this ranking is not a surprise due to the same countries remaining in the top eight every year. According to Brian Evans, the director of Amnesty International, “the U.S. has a strict attitude toward punishment in general. Having a severe attitude toward the death penalty is only natural when you consider that the U.S. leads the world in mass incarceration of prisoners (“Amnesty International”,

The use of death as a punishment for one’s crimes is not a new concept in early American history. Up until the 1960s, the Fifth, Eighth, and Fourteenth Amendments to the United States Constitution have permitted the use of death as a penalty to those who committed heinous crimes. However, the fundamental legality of the death penalty is being

The jurisdiction of the death penalty in the United States for decades the death penalty has been an emotional and almost unmentionable controversial  issue that has affected people in a many of different ways. This Essay addresses head-on most of the common arguments that are used in favor of the death penalty and some that are opposed.

The history of the death penalty is a long and brutal one. From the stoning and crucifixion killings of the B.C. era to today’s methods of the electric chair and lethal injection, governments of one kind or another have sentenced people to death for thousands of years. Capital punishment does not work, there is an interest of mounting evidence that proves this .The death penalty, both in the U.S. and around the world, is discriminatory and is used disproportionately against the poverty-stricken, minorities and members of racial, ethnic and religious communities. Since humans are fallible, the risk of executing the innocent can never be eliminated. Death row inmates in the U.S. typically spend over a decade awaiting execution. Some prisoners have been on death row for well around 20 years. During this time, they are consistently isolated from other prisoners, excluded from prison educational and work

The death penalty’s main argument is morality. Is it wrong or is it right to sentence someone to death for a crime. The idea of capital punishment stems back from the world’s earliest known societies (Garland, 2011). In the United States today the death penalty is used as form of punishment in 32 states. America is a country of opinion, Americans have their own outlook on everything and the death penalty is no different. Many Americans feel capital punishment is wrong and unethical; while other Americans feel it is ethical and needed.

As we near the culmination of the twentieth century, capital punishment is in decline. Once a near universal practice, the death penalty has been abolished in 101 countries, as of July 2015(Amnesty International, 2015) and executions have become less common amongst industrialised democracies. Some nations keep capital statutes for instances of exceptional crimes such as treason, but parts of the former Soviet Union, Japan and the United States of America (USA) still administer death sentences for ‘ordinary’ crimes of violence.

This article is about the international perspective on death penalty. In most countries, death penalty is strictly reserved for the espionages and murderers. The ongoing debate about death penalty in international law has significantly evolved over the years. According to Dieter (1999), “The increasing use of the death penalty in the United States and in a number of other states is a matter of serious concern and runs counter to the international community’s expressed desire for the abolition of the death penalty” (para. 1). Although there is rather an inexorable trend towards the elimination of death penalty, per se, a vast number of countries still practice the execution of criminals and political opponents. In the American society, it is

A rarity exists in a single topic that can cause a degree of controversy so large that it attracts politicians, judges, community organizers, economists and even religious officials to discuss it. This issue is one that some support and others oppose; that is, the issue of capital punishment. Capital punishment is loosely defined as the execution of an offender who is sentenced to death after conviction by a court of law for a criminal offense (Encyclopedia Britannica). This execution of an offender model exists in many nations and also in many forms. For instance, in the country of Zimbabwe, executions are carried out for individuals convicted of treason and drug trafficking, and is exclusively in the form of hanging (Death Penalty Worldwide 2015). Although capital punishment exists around the world, the focus of this paper will be centered on the United States, on the state level. Capital punishment is legal in some states, but the legality does not imply that it is free of problems. There have been growing concerns and strong evidence of the problem of capital punishment. However, the two issues featured in this paper will be issues on racial bias, questions of innocence. These concerns will be analyzed in the following sections: definition of the problem, unit of analysis, analysis of political coalitions, analysis of policy

By opening the article with a statement questioning whether or not capital punishment is actually effective, Kolodny immediately grabs the attention of the intended audience. Though the Huffington Post is a widely popular newspaper throughout the United States, the majority of its readers are left winged liberals who are spilt on their views about capital punishment. Kolodny explains, “support for the death penalty has dropped by 23 percent since 1996, and new information is leading to renewed conversations around its abolition”, implying that the program is ineffective and is losing more and more support. By doing this, she shows the popular opinion about the death penalty is significantly

Introduction: The debate about capital punishment, commonly referred to as “the death penalty”, is as old as the death penalty itself. It is caused by different controversial opinions about the propriety and legitimacy of the death penalty. It’s not surprising that since the start of this debate the philosophical or ethical arguments against or in favour of the death penalty has remained notably unchanged. Thesis statement: The public concern about the death penalty has reasonably resulted from perceived risk that errors in the legal system and potential political and personal bias; could result in the execution of innocent people.

Throughout the history of humanity, punishments have been in place for the wrongful acts of citizens within governmental systems of all kinds. In America during the early days of the country, the death penalty was a more viable solution than it appears today due to the quality of the prisons, which couldn’t sustain prisoners long-term. (Von Drehle, 2015). Today, this is not an issue with prisons that are provided both by the state and federal governments and that are fully capable of holding offenders throughout the length of a life sentence (Von Drehle, 2015). However, many will argue that capital punishment should be eliminated. Foes of the death penalty are split into two groups with one that argues that capital punishment should and will cease based upon public support, that it doesn’t deter crime, and the current processes of executions are too costly and problematic. The other will take a more humanitarian approach and claim that it is not the role of the government to decide the fate of an individual, and that crimes punishable by death are not justifiable. Determent, morals, severity of the crime, and revenge are among the many arguments that are geared in favor of protecting a centuries old government system. These groups give more pragmatic reasons as arguments.

The death penalty is faulty in its age and obsolete in its usage, and frankly should be put out of its misery. Capital punishment began its time in the Middle Ages, as people were executed for simply thinking differently from the rest of society. Even now, as we look back on history we find their ways of execution purely barbaric and malicious in all its forms. However, we continue to practice these forms of butchery; the traditional method of execution, hanging, is still an option available in certain states. In addition, couple of states also still allow firing squads, and the electrocution chairs has been readily used throughout the last century. The United States stands as one of the few developed nations with a death penalty still in place. There’s a reason most of the European countries have banned the usage of death as punishment, it’s cruel, unusual and barbaric! Is that the image the U.S. wants to portray the alling regions, one of intolerance and unforgiveness? The United States surpasses those barbaric ways, with its exceedingly advanced ways and state-of-the-art technology, yet it’s one of the only countries left of the Western world that still has