The Death Penalty Should Be Legal Essay

Capital Punishment, also known as the Death Penalty, has been a part of the United State’s justice system for the majority of the country’s existence. Today, 31 out of the 50 states still recognize the death penalty as a viable option when dealing with high profile crimes, most notably murder and sexual assault. While many people argue that the death penalty should be made illegal, there is also widespread support in favor of keeping the death penalty, leaving the nation divided on the issue. Both sides of the argument possess valid evidence that supports their claims, but in the end, the arguments in favor of the death penalty are noticeably stronger. The death penalty is an appropriate sentence that should continue to be allowed in the

     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.

A controversial issue in the United States as of recently is should the death penalty be allowed or not. The death penalty or capital punishment, is the punishment for a severe crime by way of death. As of July 1, 2015, the death penalty is used in thirty one states in the United States. The main states with it are in the south and Midwest and the states without it are up north. This is very controversial in the United States at the moment. The death penalty should be banned from the United States because it is wrong morally and it gives criminals an easy way out for crimes they should have to do their time for.

There is a lot of controversy about whether the death penalty should be legal or not. It is widely used, with only 18 out of the 50 states having abolished it, but should it be permitted, regardless of the popularity of it? The answer is no. It should be abolished because it demeans life, is cruel, prison is a better punishment, and it is not effective.

“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.

In the article titled “The History of Capital Punishment”, the author states that, “During the 18th century B.C., the Code of Hammurabi…codified the death penalty for 25 different crimes, although murder was not one of them. In 621 B.C. the Greek lawmaker Draco…made all crimes punishable by death.” The author goes on to explain that during King Henry VIII’s reign, more than 72,000 people were executed. Although by the 1700s, more than 222 crimes were punishable by death, in 1800 a reform movement began and today there is no capital punishment in Britain (“The History of Capital Punishment”). Manning elaborates on the first uses of the death penalty in North America stating, “In 1605, Captain George Kendall became the first adult to be executed in the Jamestown colony of Virginia…In 1632, Jane Champion became the first woman to be put to death in the new colony. The first known execution of a teenager took place in Massachusetts in 1642.” Obviously, the whole ‘eye for an eye’ sense of justice has been around for quite some time. Manning also reveals, “The United States is the only nation in the Western democratic world that has not abolished capital punishment. Virtually every other nation has done away with it or severely modified it.” Clearly, the death penalty has been around for thousands of years and is nothing new. The only term that might be confusing

Do psychopaths who have no remorse in taking human lives deserve to live, or should they be executed with the same cold death they showed toward their victims? If the state governments establish the regulation of capital punishment, it would contain peace within the victim’s family and local communities.

The death penalty was a feature of English law that the early colonists brought with them (Supreme Court Debates). The death penalty was first established in the United States back in the Eighteenth Century B.C. In the U.S 1,436 people were executed from 1977 through May of 2016. Most death penalty cases involve the execution of murderers although capital punishment can also be applied for treason, espionage, and other crimes (ProConorg). There are cons and pros to putting criminals on death row. Also, only certain crimes get the death penalty, and it’s not in every state.

The idea of the death penalty first arose in 18th century BCE from the set of laws known as the Code of King Hammurabi. In the code it uses the phrase, "an eye for an eye" which means that if someone theoretically takes someone's eye out, that person deserves the same or as harsh of a fate. This is a basis to set up punishments that were thought to be as harsh as the crime, like the death penalty. Places all over the world soon used the Code of Hammurabi as precedent for

The death penalty plays a controversial role in modern society. Many arguments against the death penalty are raised to question whether it is biased against race or violates the constitution. Reuben Greenberg, the first black police chief involved in innovative criminology and author of the article “Race, the Criminal Justice System, and Community-Oriented Policing,” openly shares his opinion on how race does not affect the death penalty. Reuben Greenberg also proves false accusations of the death penalty wrong. Jack Greenberg, American attorney and author of "Against the American System of Capital Punishment,” disagrees with Reuben Greenberg's statement, and claims that race does hold a high position within the death penalty. Aside from

The death penalty, also known as capital punishment is a legal procedure in which a state executes a person for crimes he/she has committed. This punishment has been implemented by many states, and is normally used for atrocious crimes, especially murder. It is also used on crimes against the state such as treason, crimes against humanity, espionage, and violent crimes while other states use it as part of military justice. There are mixed reactions on capital punishment depending on one’s faith, and the state they come from. In my view, I am not in favor of death penalty, as I strongly believe that, death penalty is unacceptable and an inhumane practice for it denies one the right to live. Death penalty does not deter crime, it is an act

The 14th Amendment states that excessive bail should not be required, nor excessive fines imposed, nor cruel and unusual punishment inflicted. If this is stated in our Constitution, why is it that 31 out of the 50 states in the USA enable the death penalty? The answer to that is beyond me because, in my opinion, no state should allow capital punishment for the simple reason that it is a form of cruel punishment. Because of this and many other reasons that I will bring up, I believe that the death penalty should be abolished throughout the United States.

Is the death penalty right or wrong for the inmates or the justice for the victim’s family? Believers for the death penalty and opponents against the death penalty have challenged this situation since the beginning of time as for capital punishment and for revenge. Advocates supporting for the death penalty are discouraged because it prevents future murders and prevents future funerals; and that in the death penalty serves as bitter sweet revenge because in a society full of evil, no one cares about the other. Uncertainty that someone takes a life, then their life should end as well. Abolitionist on the other hand is against the death penalty because they feel it is corrupt, served unfairly, and serves to agreement revenge instead of dealing with the consequence of jail time.

The death penalty is no doubt a just punishment to any person that purposely takes another man’s life. The Bible confirms that “whosoever shades man’s blood by man shall his blood be shed: for in the image of God made He man.” (Genesis chapter 9 verse 6). But the first murderer in the bible; Cain, was not executed but was banished for life. It became clear that there is an error in the idea of killing someone that killed another person. Such people should be sentenced to life imprisonment in order to be free from every man’s blood. Abolition of the death penalty will be beneficial to our society because: there is a risk of killing the innocent, the poor that cannot afford good lawyers will always be victims, racial prejudice is an issue

Capital punishment, also known as the death penalty, “is the lawful infliction of death as a punishment.” (thefreedictionary.com). The topic is quite controversial, as its merits and effectiveness as a deterrent for crime have been argued many times over. However, the death penalty is perfectly within reason, as it rids the streets of criminals that have committed serious crimes and is also cheaper for the government versus giving life sentences. Even so, there are many who are against the death penalty. One such argument that has been made is that the death penalty is barbaric because many innocents have been sent to their deaths. Although this would be true if these opposers lived before 1986, that is not the case in today’s world considering there is access to DNA tests and profiling. According to www.interpol.int, “Deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA) molecules contain the information all living cells in the human body need to function. They also control the inheritance of characteristics from parents to offspring.” (interpol.int). DNA profiling plays an important role in crimes as it has the potential to link a series of crimes and to place a suspect at the scene of a crime. Not only that, but also DNA can help to prove a suspect’s innocence. With DNA testing, no innocent person will die from the death penalty on the grounds that DNA tests can be used as concrete evidence to prove the suspect’s innocence.