The Pros And Cons Of Capital Punishment

Death penalty is also known as capital punishment or execution. Societies from all over the world have used this sentence at one point in history, in order to avenge criminals. Most common reasons for being sentenced to death were war crimes, war treason, murder and espionage. Back then, the capital punishment was almost always accompanied by torture, and executions were public. The most used execution method was by hanging. If an inmate chooses the electric chair it takes anywhere between 2 min and 15 minutes. The criminal receives a jolt between 500 and 2000 volts for every 30 seconds, attending doctor waits for body to cool after each bolt and check if the heart is still breathing. While in some societies, violent death penalties are still being employed – like shooting, hanging, electric chair and gas chamber – in most countries, these have been replaced with a painless method – the lethal injection. When the person is put to death for the death penalty they use a lethal injection execution, in most cases. Sodium thipal makes the person go deeply unconscious but unable to feel himself being paralyzed from the “pancuronium bromide”. On death row an inmate waited an average of 15 years between sentencing and execution but a quarter of inmates die on death row from natural cases. The time has come to make punishment fit the crime, too oppose lethal injection, but not because these untried new drugs might obituary cause pain, but cause confusion, lethal injection conflates

CON: "[T]here is no credible evidence that the death penalty deters crime more effectively than long terms of imprisonment. States that have death penalty laws do not have lower crime rates or murder rates than states without such laws. And states that have abolished capital punishment show no significant changes in either crime or murder rates. The death penalty has no deterrent effect. Claims that each execution deters a certain number of murders have been thoroughly discredited by social science research."

It could be said that the capital punishment deters crime. However, the death penalty does not scare off offenders. In the opinion of Jonathan Zimmerman, " The death penalty won't deter the most vicious criminals". Rotting in jail for the rest of your life with no interaction with people, sounds worse than being put off to sleep with one injection. Therefore, the capital punishment is not a meaningful punishment and does not discourage criminals. The criminals are already willing to risk committing the highest degree of crimes than they are most not afraid of death. As stated by Carina Kolodny, "The death penalty makes good fiscal sense. It costs less than paying for a convicted murderer to live out their natural life on the state's dime". However, that is just a myth in reality, states could save a ton of money from removing the death penalty. In accordance with the California Commission for the Fair Administration of Justice, California could save 125.5 million annually by eradicating the capital punishment. In summary, the capital punishment is not needed, there are no benefits to

Furthermore, when investigating the costs of the death penalty versus a life without parole (LWOP) sentence, the Justice For All (JFA) estimates that, over time, “LWOP cases will cost $1.2 million - $3.6 million more than equivalent death penalty cases” (Sharp, D., 1997). The death penalty is not only supported by most of the general public and arguably less expensive than LWOP sentences, but it is also a just punishment for individuals whom commit heinous acts. Often, non-supporters of the death penalty will use the Bible, specifically the Sixth Commandment, to fight against the law, however, some Christians rebuttal saying that Jesus said to his disciples “’…all who take the sword will perish by the sword’ (Matt 26: 52)” (Lowe, W., 2011). Though Christians view every human life as important, we also believe that the death penalty is necessary in cases where the defendant is a grave threat to the community while alive. Lastly, those sentenced to death shalt not be the ones remembered or given attention to, but rather we should remember the thousands of lives lost each year to murder – “The combined loss is incalculable” (Who Speaks for the Victims of Those We Execute?, 2015). The guilty criminal who receives this punishment has voluntarily assumed the

To those who oppose the death penalty capital punishment is not only immoral, but also allows for a lot of different issues to arise as well. To many Christians the use of the death penalty should not be practiced in the U.S. because it is ineffective in reducing crime, costs a lot, is risky, and is immoral.

In 1989, Cameron Todd Willingham was convicted and executed for the deaths of his three daughters in a 1991 house fire near Corsicana, Texas. In 2009, the Texas Forensic Science Commission received an arson expert’s report that the investigation leading to his conviction was so flawed, that it’s finding could not be supported. Scientific experts — who debunked the arson evidence used against Willingham at his 1992 trial — convinced District Court Judge Charlie Baird in 2010 that the state of Texas wrongfully convicted him. However, Baird’s intended order never came to light because the court of appeals criticized his handling of the case and prevented him from working on it before he left the bench at the end of 2010 after choosing not to seek re-election. This case is a perfect example of why capital punishment should be abolished. Capital punishment, which is commonly known as the “death penalty,” is the lawful infliction of death as a punishment in response to a crime. Its motive is not found as morally correct but rather found as getting revenge against those who have committed an atrocious crime. Like the Willingham case, the justice system contains mistakes or flaws, which evolves into the killing of the innocent who are imprisoned. Consequently, it is imperative the focus is centered on the awareness that killing a human is absolutely wrong under all circumstances. Capital punishment is cruel, inhumane, and degrading; therefore, regardless of who is accused, the crime

Cruel and unusual or appropriate and justifiable? Capital punishment is a hotly debated topic that often divides opinion. There are three sides to every story: the criminals, the victims, and the laws a society elects to have. I happen to believe that capital punishment is a justifiable consequence of horrendous crimes where loss of life occurred. Furthermore, this extreme punishment must be reserved for very specific crimes and there should be no question of guilt.

Capital punishment is a government practice where guilty defendants are put to death by the state as a way of punishment for their crime. These crimes are typically related to treason, espionage and violent murder, and many find difficulty in finding a punishment to fit these extreme crimes. The debate regarding the morality and overall functionality of the punishment has been long debated. Some believe it is immoral and against the eighth amendment which ruled cruel and unusual punishment illegal. Others believe it is a fitting punishment for heinous crime. However, the death penalty is legal in thirty-one states and has seen many complications. Some inmates on death row have been found innocent based on new evidence, as well as discovered how cost ineffective the treatment is. Harsh prison life is also argued to be worse than facing death for a crime.

There are around 3,000 people that are sent to jail/prison every day, and costs $24,000 a year to incarcerate them. There are lots of morbid ways to execute someone who has allegedly committed a crime: lethal injection, hanging, electrocution, gas chamber, and firing squad. Though it’s a major controversial topic in America, some believe that anyone who commits a crime should have their life confiscated from them. Prisoners shouldn’t be executed no matter how cruel, wicked, and sinful the crime was. Most people can say that prisoners are supposed to have their life confiscated from them because they violated the law which leads them to being punished, and won’t make the same mistake as they did. But isn’t life sacred? Capital punishment is debated as either a justice or an inhumane act. The debate whether the individual should die or not is either an inhumane act or it brings justice. Does the U.S. entirely know if they’re executing the prisoner who was waiting on death row be innocent or not? Can we be a civilized society, even when we kill our own citizens? Capital punishment jeopardizes innocent people’s lives, violates the eight amendment of the Bill of Rights and the fifth and the third article of the Declaration of Human Rights (DHR).

The death penalty is one of the most hotly deliberated topics in the United States. Also referred to as capital punishment, it is the punishment of execution, legally administered to someone convicted of a capital crime. Although the number fluctuates from year to year, 1,465 executions have been performed since the year 1976. Those opposed to the death penalty would say that number is 1,465 cases too high, while proponents would say it is too low.

From 1976, until May 12, of 2016, there has been a total of 1,436 deaths due to the execution of prisoners, who were legally given the death penalty in the court of law. What is the death penalty? The death penalty is an execution legally administered to someone convicted of a capital crime. In the United States, 31 states still uphold the death penalty as a form of punishment to those on death row. Although the capital punishment, which is just the act of execution, is the cruelest punishment a person can receive; the death penalty should be abolished for various reasons.

The death penalty is the ultimate punishment. There is no harsher punishment than death itself. Currently 58 nations practice the death penalty. Our nation, the United States of America, is one of the 58 nations that practice the death penalty. Currently the United States will only use the death penalty, if one commits first-degree murder. Individuals that believe in the death penalty believe that capital punishment will deter murderers. In this paper, I will be arguing that the death penalty does not deter criminals and that the United States should outlaw the practice.

Most Americans are in favor of ending somebody’s life. Mark Berman’s article in the Washington Post claims that the majority of Americans support capital punishment. The Death Penalty Information Center, an organization that records national polls and studies on capital punishment, put the number of supporters at sixty-two percent. However, only about a quarter of those supporters believe that there are enough safeguards in the system to prevent the execution of an innocent life. Americans’ faiths in the legal system have historically been the basis of arguments for and against the death penalty.

As of August 2017, capital punishment is legal in 31 US states. As of April 28, 2017, since 1973, 1,458 people have been executed in total. The problem lies in the fact that, despite counter arguments, there are many flaws that lie in the concept of capital punishment. The practice of the death penalty inadvertently manages to disprove any argument in support of it and in the end, is only used to set a warped sense of false justice.

One may argue that having capital punishment in the states will deter the crime rates in that state because criminals fear death. “When a policeman holds a criminal at gunpoint and tells him to get on the ground…Why would they do that unless they were afraid of the lethal power of the gun?” (Lowe). Having capital punishment gives the person time to think about the crime that they committed and they can see the seriousness of their actions. It’s also a way for the families to have some peace within themselves because they will know that justice is being served. It is not always about how the person feels about receiving capital punishment, it’s about how the family must live knowing that their loved one is no longer with them, due to someone senseless actions.