Opposing Arguments Against Capital Punishment

Do two wrongs make a right? That is the question you should ask yourself. How can one life be worth more than another?s? Would you like to have your dignity, and even your basic human rights to stripped away from you at the flick of a switch or the pull of a trigger?

Capital Punishment is a sensitive topic that seems to constantly generate controversy amongst many individuals. To give a little background, capital punishment involves executing a person deemed guilty of a severe crime. Various countries, including America, accept the use of this method. However, other countries such as Canada are strictly against the act due to many reasons. Although some argue that they are the best form of punishment, life imprisonment is the better alternative. It is more humane, improves the financial and social state of the country, and finally is safer.

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

In 1940, Lawrence Bittaker, an infamous serial killer from the 1970’s, was born to two unloving parents in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. He was adopted but eventually left abandoned by his adoptive parents who could not put up with him anymore (Chojnaki, M. & Danz, E. p. 1). By the age of 17, Bittaker dropped out of high school, never to obtain his GED. From the ages of 21 to 26, Bittaker was diagnosed “borderline psychotic” and “basically paranoid” multiple times by different doctors (Chojnaki, M. & Danz, E. p. 1). Bittaker was in and out of jail before murdering five teenage girls in 1979 with a partner, Roy Norris (Chojnaki, M. & Danz, E. p. 2). In 1981, Bittaker was sentenced to death. As of today, he is 70 years old and is still on death row at San Quentin Prison in California (Chojnaki, M. & Danz, E. p. 3).

People who are against the death row are worried that people who are on it might be innocent. The people who support death row, are saying they can’t site one person in modern times who were executed and later proven innocent. DNA test prove that there are a lot more innocent people that have been convicted of a crime, than we thought. There are many cases where people were wrongly accused, and were close to being executed.

Capital punishment is the punishment of a criminal by death, now usually done by lethal injection. It is still used in some states of the USA and many other countries. In Canada, it was used until it was eliminated on July 14, 1976. At the time when it was still used. hangings were used instead of injections. About half of Canadians are in favor of using capital punishment, and one half is against it. On one hand, it would mean a larger deterrent against crimes like murder, less criminals on the street, and less tax money going towards paying for prisoners needs. On the other hand, there are obvious moral problems with killing someone for committing a crime, and there is always a possibility of someone innocent being executed.

Life is sacred. This is an ideal that the majority of people can agree upon to a certain extent. For this reason taking the life of another has always been considered the most deplorable of crimes, one worthy of the harshest available punishment. Thus arises one of the great moral dilemmas of our time. Should taking the life of one who has taken the life of others be considered an available punishment? Is a murderer's life any less sacred than the victim's is? Can capital punishment, the death penalty, execution, legal murder, or whatever a society wishes to call it, be morally justifiable? The underlying question in this issue is if any kind of killing, regardless of reason, can be accepted. In this

Since its earliest inception, society has always had in place some form of public accountability, rules, and in some cases, punishment, in hopes to dissuade would-be offenders from perpetrating any number of offenses. It has been a verdict applied to a variety of crimes ranging from the abandonment of soldiers during periods of war, to that of appalling crimes perpetrated by serial killers. Capital punishment has been characterized by some as brutal, disgusting, abnormal, and unnecessary. (1) While some argue for its continued existence, the judgment of death, according to some, violates the constitutional ban and is an application of cruel and unusual punishment, since it

According to our textbook” Capital Punishment “is punishment by execution of someone officially judged to have committed a serious, or capital, crime” (pg.311) This simply explains that death penalty will apply those ones who committed a major law breaking or crime.

The second argument against capital punishment would be their unfair justice system. People that are less fortunate and don't have money are the ones that are more likely to get the death penalty. These people sometime get wrongly convicted and by not having much money they can't defend themselves. The rich people in the other hand can contact the best lawyer and get out with a lesser sentence. There are many cases where money and race play a big part in their cases. For example: A white male would do a much severe crime than an african american male and the african american male would end up with a much severe sentence. According to a 1994 report from the American Bar Association's Criminal Justice section, “minorities who are arrested

If it were up to me, every murderer in this country would be put behind bars on death row and have their life taken from them just as they took the life of another. The guidelines of " an eye for an eye" go back thousands of years. Many countries still hold true to these guidelines. Although America doesn't follow the same as these countries, I believe when it comes to murder, they should.

“For every action, there is an equal and opposite reaction”. (Newton) This begs the question if it is okay for humans to dictate the taking away of a life from a person, no matter the circumstance that is presented. Capital punishment (death) is the maximum punishment that governments have put in practice around the world. Treason, terrorism, espionage, federal murder, large-scale drug trafficking, and attempting to kill a witness, juror, or court officer in certain cases are all examples of crimes that would justify a person being put on death row. The major problem with death that comes up every couple of years is the morality of taking away a human life and in doing so what lesson does this provide to deter others from committing such

Welcome to America, the land of the free, of the prosperous, of the opulent. America the Beautiful, one of the only places in the world where all citizens regardless of race, background, or social class are constitutionally guaranteed life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness—that is unless you're on death row. In modern day America we are still faced with the antiquated ritual of capital punishment, a practice that interferes directly with the law of the land. The same forms of punishment used during the middle ages are still in effect today, the same ideas that should have been abolished had the U.S. government revised it's penology. Capital punishment is cruel as well as unusual and inadequate for our advanced society. The United

The Abolitionists often use the Ethical/Moral/Religious categories to argue against the death penalty. The arguments they use are usually along the lines that it is inhumane; however, the criminals put this burden upon themselves by taking another life. Furthermore, the heinous murderers do not feel remorse for what they did to their victims. If a murderer chooses to kill an innocent person, then he should get the

Capital punishment is beneficial to the community. It provides the society with a sense of security. The death penalty contains a positive influence on the future. A heavily debated topic is, “Does capital punishment deter people more than a life sentence to prison?” An explanation on why will be covered later. An issues many people have with capital punishment, is when it is just or not just. This is a topic many stray away from, because it is difficult to decide. Finding the right consequence for an action is difficult. While this paper is for the use of capital punishment, it is clearly not needed for every crime, or even every murder. Overusing capital punishment, such as using it for every murder, will negatively impact the country, and not using it has the same effect.