Capital Punishment Ethical Issues

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Recommended: The importance of ethics in decision making

Have you been ethical today? With yourself and the people around you? Being ethical in our decisions and actions is what many people try their best to do, as it presents them as a good person and also brings a lovely and satisfying feeling of gratitude. When we are faced with ethical issues in our lives, most times being ethical can be simple, but sometimes it can also be quite challenging. Ethics is the major branch of philosophy, encompassing proper conduct and good living. It deals with a system of values concerned with right conduct, also known as morality or our morals. A huge ethical issue which has waged debates in courts and society for decades is capital punishment. Why is an ethical response to capital punishment so challenging? …show more content…

In August 2009, a public opinion poll of Australians, conducted by Roy Morgan Research, found that 64% of respondents believe the penalty for murder should be imprisonment, while only 23% of those polled stated it should be the death penalty. Capital punishment remains a contentious issue in society, even where its use is limited to punishment of only the most serious crimes. Supporters argue that it deters crime, prevents recidivism, and is an appropriate punishment for the crime of murder. However, on the other hand, opponents argue that it does not deter criminals more than would life imprisonment, that it violates human rights, and runs the risk of executing some who are wrongfully convicted, particularly minorities and the poor. Punishment that allows criminals to reflect and reform themselves is arguably more appropriate than execution. Yet, in the ideal society, human beings should be able to recognize, based on their own conscience, that crimes deemed serious enough to merit the death penalty or life imprisonment constitute undesirable, unacceptable …show more content…

The relational perspective of capital punishment is that it violates human rights which is not a moral action, but it may also be fitting to provide justice and keep society safe from these dangerous criminals. In terms of the spiritual perspective, we can understand this by examining the catholic viewpoint towards capital

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