Persuasive Essay On The Death Penalty

Our forefathers fought in many great wars and struggled valiantly to craft the United States of America into the proud country it is currently. A well known, and still standing, way that they strengthened and shaped our government was through the creation of the United States Constitution. The U.S. Constitution was established in 1787, The Constitution was written in a particular manner which, if necessary, allowed for it to be amended, and over time it has. The most recent amendment that has been made was the 27th amendment, in 1992. The eighth amendment of the U.S Constitution states, “Excessive bail shall not be required, nor excessive fines imposed, nor cruel and unusual punishments inflicted” (U.S. Const, amend Vlll) The eighth amendment, although seemingly to the point, is deceitful in its brevity and contains many ambiguities, particularly upon the last phrase of the sentence. It raises the question of what constitutes as cruel and unusual. As the amendment was passed in 1791, is it what would be considered cruel then? Or rather, what is cruel in today’s society?

The death penalty is something that the whole United States should use. It is a controversial topic that has been argued back and forth for years. As of 2016 nineteen states and the District of Colombia have all determined that the death penalty is not something that they need. The other thirty-one of the fifty states, along with the United States military and government, allow the death penalty to continue.

When researching a very controversial topic the Death Penalty I came across a whole different beast and that is our Justice System. A very strong campaign “A War on Crime” is really “A War on Race”. Black people make up 6% of the U.S. Population but in prison make up 40% of U.S. general population in prisons. The U.S population accounts for 4.4 percent of the world’s population but the U.S. holds 22 percent of the worlds prisoners. To many African Americans are being put in prison. Major corporations should not have control over what laws do and don’t get passed. There has to be a problem with the U.S justice system and because of it our prisons are overcrowded.

According to Deathpenaltyinfo.org, as of July 1st, 2017 there were approximately 2,817 prisoners on death row. CNN.com says that, as of now, the death penalty is only legal in 31 out of the 50 states. Did you know that the average death row inmate will spend roughly 15 years in prison before they meet their final day; nearly a quarter of death row inmates die of natural causes while waiting for execution, and exhausting all of their appeals? How about that in Virginia death row inmates are now able to play games, watch TV, send emails, and have physical contact with visitors along with much more? Death row is for criminals that have committed heinous crimes and have been convicted by 12 unanimous jurors to death. So, why give them that many privileges?

Leviticus 24:21 “The man who strikes and kills an animal should make compensation for it, but the one who strikes and kills a man should be put to death”. The death penalty has been around for a very long time and is not a new concept to our world. The usage of the death penalty dates back as far as the Babylonian era and was used for an assortment of crimes. This practice was also used greatly by the ancient Greeks and Romans, soon England began to practice this punishment and the founding fathers of our now great American colonies carried the capital punishment with them when they crossed over, where it is still used today as lawful punishment is a majority of states.

All throughout the historical criminal backdrop of Americans the punishment of death was given to crooks who violated the law. The death penalty is a very outrageous punishment for wrongdoing (Compton's) and is still being used today all throughput the world. A criminal can be sentence to death for different violations. Significantly, more were the strategies used to execute, many being merciless and uncommon. There have been many civil arguments on regardless of whether to cancel capital punishment. There are numerous upsides and downsides to this entangled issue.

Death penalty laws were established back in eighteenth century B.C. Back then the Code of King Hammaurabi of Babylon classified only 25 crimes an automatic sentence to death penalty. Death would consist of crucifixion, drowning, being beaten to death, burning alive and impalement. It wasn’t until A.D. Tenth Century that hanging became an act of punishment for the death penalty in Britain. Britain later influenced America’s use of death penalty which expanded more than any other country(deathpenalty.org 2017).

I understand that because of what you have experienced you feel closure from the death penalty. I do see your point of view, so I can understand why you agree. However, I must say I disagree. It does not deter crime. A criminal is not going to stop and think “if I kill this person I will have to sit in prison or be sentenced to death”. It just does not cross people's minds. You said that you believe he knew exactly what he was doing. That statement is probably true. However, if someone commits a horrific act on purpose, they usually are happy with the outcome. I know you would like to think that after seeing the aftermath of their actions they feel remorse. The reality is that they know right from wrong. They just have no regard for that feeling of knowing they are doing something wrong.

Cameron Todd Willingham was a husband and father of three infants. On December 23, 1991, Cameron woke up to his house in flames. As a result of the fire, the infants perished. When the police investigated the fire, they came to the conclusion that Cameron intentionally set the house on fire in hopes of murdering his daughters. Cameron pleaded not guilty but he was placed on death row and executed on February 17, 2004. After reopening the case and examining the evidence using modern technology, it became evident in 2011, that the fire was an accident. That's right: Cameron was innocent! The justice system failed Cameron Todd Willingham. This is one of the many reasons why the death penalty should be abolished across the United States.

I agree with the death penalty because it would be nice to have because it would be great for people who did bad things to people and they don’t get punished for what they did after we got rid of the death penalty. Now they just have a life sentence and they just slowly rot away and they could also get out on good behavior or testify against their life sentence in court and get out on good behavior with parole. They could go out of jail stay clean for a while then committee another crime then they should get the t death penalty or life sentence no parole so the they can't testify in the court of law. It would be nice to have it because if someone kills a person or multiple because they shouldn’t just be in jail getting bigger, stronger, etc. they should just keep getting closer to the chamber where they die and just have that on there conisin why did i kill that that person when they are getting closer to the camber. I also think they should not have the death penalty because if you didn’t do it you should be able to testify as much as they would like to testify. If they know they didn’t the should demand tho testify and demand them to keep on looking for clues. The death penalty gives closure to the victim's families who have suffered so much. Some family members of crime victims may take years or decades to recover from the shock and loss of a loved one. Some may never recover. One of the things that helps hasten this recovery is to achieve some kind of closure. Life in

Capital punishment remains a controversial issue in the United States. As of November 6th, 2016 there are 31 States that have the death penalty (States with and without the Death Penalty). People who are against the death penalty believe that it is cruel and unfair. The reason why is because killing someone is not going to bring the person killed back to life. People who are for the death penalty believe that if a person kills someone they deserve to be killed, so “an eye for an eye”. Since there are only 31 states that have the death penalty, two different people can commit the same crime in different states and one will get the death penalty and one won’t so it’s not really fair. For example a convict can commit a crime worthy of the death penalty in Nevada (where the death penalty is eligible), and another convict can commit the exact same crime in Iowa (where the death penalty is not eligible). One would be eligible for the death penalty, and one would not. The death penalty should be federal law, and all states should have the death penalty and effectively use it, under certain restrictions, and also to speed up the process of the death penalty.

The topic of the death penalty, or capital punishment, is a controversial topic all around the world because there are so many gray areas on the subject. This type of punishment dates back to colonial times, with more recent criminal cases resulting in the death penalty. Capital punishment deters crime and gives closure to the families of victims. Some crimes are so inherently evil that they demand strict penalties. The death penalty should be allowed as a criminal punishment.

What are your opinions of the death penalty? Do you believe that it should be a rightful punishment or do you believe that it does no good for the system? Many believe in the "eye for an eye" statement for the fairness of justice while others believe that capital punishment is not a strong way to go by. The death penalty is an efficient way to discipline criminals for the wrongdoing and the hurt that they caused for the families affected by it and to help bring closure for those individuals. Perry Edward Smith and Richard (Dick) Eugene Hickock deserve to be punished for the gruesome murders of the Clutter family.

You walk into a small, bleak room with several other people and you see the family of the victim, huddled together talking and crying softly to themselves. There is a window in the front of the room with curtains closed, you are told by an officer that the proceedings will start in five minutes. The curtains open and through the window you see a man lying on a gurney. His arms and legs are strapped down and one arm is lying sideways. As you look closely you see the tubing that is connected to his arm and you wonder why or what this man was thinking about when he killed that police officer. As he lays there he is paying for the crime in which he committed, with death. But is the death penalty worth it, or is it more of an eye for eye.

The death penalty was put into action and has been enforced since the eighteenth-century B.C, this is when the laws were first established for the death penalty. In 1608 Captain George Kendall was the first man to ever be executed in recorded history. Throughout history you see how the death penalty changed according to religion, race, and the severity of the crime committed. In the Code of King Hammaurabi of Babylon, he codified the death penalty therefore setting precedence for 25 different crimes, thus informing people what to expect for the crimes they committed or planned to commit. Draconian Code of Athens made death the only punishment for any crimes committed in the Seventh Century B.C.