The Execution Of An Inmate Essay

Capital punishment is the legally authorized killing of someone as punishment for a crime. The first established death penalty laws date as far back as the Eighteenth Century B.C. in the Code of King Hammurabi of Babylon, which codified the death penalty for 25 different crimes. If then history makes it clear that murder was not part of the crimes to be punished by the death penalty, then the state should not have any legal justification for taking anybody’s life for what so ever reason it may be. In this light of the above mentioned, I will stand for the point that capital punishment should totally be abolished and never be practiced in modern times.

“And despite scientific efforts to implement capital punishment in a "humane" fashion, time and again executions have resulted in degrading spectacles, including the botched lethal injection in April 2014 that took more than 40 minutes to kill Oklahoma inmate Clayton Derrell Lockett and prompted Glossip v. Gross” (Heyns and Mendez). Capital punishment is an inhumane and outdated way for punishing criminals. The use of capital punishment is hundreds of years old in America. It is used as a punishment for criminals who have committed a violent crime in which they physically harm others. The point of the death penalty is to show that these kinds of crimes are not tolerated, and to deter criminals from committing these kinds of crimes. Unfortunately

The Eighth Amendment states that the execution must be constitutional and not a savage punishment. There are times when the punishment will not occur successful and a painless death is not guaranteed (Schmalleger, 2015).

This case stemmed from several Oklahoma inmates who were disputing the use of a sedative called midazolam used in executions to numb the inmate. Apparently the sedative doesn’t render a person fully unconscious before the lethal injection which in turn causes immense pain and violates the 8th amendment against cruel and unusual punishment. However no alternative sedative is available in place of midazolam. The group of inmates failed to prove to the justices that a large dosage midazolam actually caused any real pain. Two of the inmates also questioned whether the death penalty was constitutional which if it weren’t we wouldn’t have it or death row. One inmate wrote he believed it was “highly likely” that it violates the 8th amendment. The inmate’s lawyer also argued that midazolam was unable to reliably knock out the inmate before the paralytic and finally the potassium chloride which stops the heart. Most states until 2009 like Oklahoma had used this three step execution process but nowadays most states that still do executions nowadays just use a single step execution

Earlier in 2015, a man named Brock Turner, aged 20, was convicted on three counts of sexual assault after he was found sexually assaulting an unconscious woman behind a dumpster outside a fraternity house on the Stanford campus (Knowles 2016). Two Swedish students witnessed the event and pulled Turner off the young woman, holding him until the police arrived and in March 2016, the jury found Turner guilty (Knowles 2016). The case would have been forgotten, thrown under the immense pile of campus rape incidents in the US, had it not been for Judge Aaron Persky and his decision to award Turner a sentence of six months in a county jail and probation rather than the ten years in prison his conviction warranted (Knowles 2016). Outrage ensued surrounding this decision and the fact that Persky justified his choice by citing that, “a prison sentence would have a severe impact on him, I think he will not be a danger to others” (Fantz 2016). As if the victim of his crime hadn’t already been severely impacted by his actions, and will continue to be impacted for the rest of her life. Her suffering was compounded when she did not receive a simple apology or acceptance of responsibility, and also failed to receive the justice that the system should have awarded her. It is here that we see white male privilege and the culture of victim blaming coalesce with horrifying outcomes. The attention that Brock Turner has brought to this cultural issue is the reason for which he should remain a

The death penalty is currently used by 34 states and is used by the federal government for punishing federal crimes. And in most cases the death penalty is used when the criminal has been convicted of murder. However, two people have been sentenced to death for the rape of a minor. The definition of the death penalty is: execution of an offender sentenced to death after conviction by a court of law of a criminal offense. This begs the question does the government have the right to take away someone’s life? And if so is it ethical and moral? Overall the goal of the Criminal Justice system is to give the right sentence and protect the people. Even though the death penalty does this, there are better more efficient ways to accomplish that

Hands stained with blood, our justice system still remains battered and broken. States disintegrating the laws that once stood, the laws stealing the lives of innocent, further perpetrating injustice. No matter the decline, abhorrent and controversial execution methods still remain commonplace. Challenge must be made against such methods as lethal injection. Capital punishment, with declining support must be eliminated from our country’s justice system, for the inability to hinder crime, slaying the innocent and underprivileged, while the realization that death is not the perfect punishment sets in.

Since the late 1970s, roughly 1500 prisoners were executed in the United States. A capital punishment, also known as death penalty, refers to the execution of a perpetrator convicted of any capital offense, such as murder or treason. Ratified in 1791, the Eighth Amendment, which was originally concerned with the criminal on death row rather than the process of execution, constitutionally bans cruel and unusual punishments. Yet, like any other amendment or constitution, the interpretation of the cruel and unusual punishment clause today differs immensely from the interpretation during the early 1790s, due to the changing standards of society, hence the increase in questions about the moral and ethical issues of death penalty, and what constitutes

It is more reasonable to utilize the death penalty than to abolish it. The death penalty should not be abolished because (1) it deters people from committing murder and (2) because the death penalty gives peace of mind to the victims and their families and puts an end to the crime.     

Almost all nations in the world either have the death sentence or have had it at one time. It was used in most cases to punish those who broke the laws or standards that were expected of them. Since the death penalty wastes tax money, is inhumane, and is largely unnecessary it should be abolished in every state across the United States. The use of the death penalty puts the United States in the same category as countries like Iran and Saudi Arabia which are two of the world’s worst human rights violators (Friedman 34). Lauri Friedman quotes, “Executions simply inject more violence into an already hostile American society.”

The death penalty has both supporters and non-supporters. The following essay will not solve the issue; I will only try to persuade the reader to understand my point of view. The death penalty is justified in certain cases such as Mcveigh Vs State of Indiana; however it is unjustified in other cases, including Bloodsworth Vs State of Maryland. The death penalty is a must, especially in today’s society. With the increase in vicious crimes today, the government must act just as harsh with our justice system to try and prevent these types of crimes. Non-supporters argue that the death penalty is inhumane and should be considered murder. People of this malicious caliber must be dealt with in the same way, an eye for an eye. Putting these

The eighth amendment specifically states that “Excessive bail shall not be required, nor excessive fines imposed, nor cruel and unusual punishments inflicted” (U.S GPO). Every American citizen is entitled to their own rights. Inflicting death and pain upon someone and killing them is cruel and unusual. The justice system is said to have fast and efficient procedures of killing but what the public does not see is the numerous accounts of botched executions that are buried in a system of lies. For example, on June 24th 1987 a man named Elliot rod Johnson was attempted to be put to death by lethal injection. “Because of collapsed veins, it took nearly an hour to complete the execution” (Radelet, 2014). Another example is that on November 7, 2001 a female named Georgia high had a lethal injection “High was pronounced dead some one hour and nine minutes after the execution began. After attempting to find a useable vein for 15 to 20 minutes, the emergency medical technicians under contract to do the execution abandoned their efforts. Eventually, one needle was stuck in High's hand, and a physician was called in to insert a second needle between his shoulder and neck”(Radelet, 2014).There are thousands more of these gruesome and revolting

It would be a lie to state that every individual claiming innocence, while being tried and sentenced through the judicial system, is in fact truly innocent. It would also be a lie to state that every past, present and future prisoner, that was or will be tried and sentenced through the judicial system, is or was, guilty as charged. Behind bars, in prisons all over the United States, there was or is an innocent person who was found guilty and assigned an inmate number. Those found guilty by various judicial flaws, sentenced to hard time, life sentences, and for some a death sentence, have nothing but that borrowed time to sit and think about their innocents while waiting for evidence and appeals, that may or may not come, to exonerate and free them of a life in confinement or freedom from one’s court ordered demise.

     Capital punishment is a very controversial issue, but it is a just penalty for murderers. Murderers forfeit their lives for taking the life of another. Capital punishment deters criminals from committing violet crimes. Incapacitating criminals is also another form of deterrence. The death penalty removes harmful criminals from society. In doing this, people can feel much safer knowing that there is one less criminal on the streets. The death penalty is also more economical than life without parole. Capital punishment is good for society, and should be used in a more timely manner.

As of January 1, 2010, 3,261 people live on death row (“Death”). Fewer than 3,261 people live in my small town of Belle Plaine, so to me this number is outrageous. Inmates that wait on the death penalty jail create a problem for everyone in the country. If we would put these inmates through the death penalty quickly, we could take the problem away from the country. Why do we keep murderers and criminals on death row around? People argue the controversial topic of the death penalty very thoroughly, and address all sides. On one side people argue that we would save money and the death penalty sets an example for other criminals, while on the opposition people argue that life without parole is cheaper, capital punishment is morally