The death penalty is one of the debated issue in the Criminal Justice System especially in the United State because many people have very strong opinions about how offenders should be punish for the harm they course in our communities. When the death penalty will continue to be an issue that will be debated among citizens for many years to come. Those who are in fovred of the death penalty will agarue that the death penalty is a fair punishment to those who take another human life, however, there are those who disagree. This essay will cover a brief history of the death penalty, and arguments put forward by those who are in favoured of the death penalty and then those who are opposed to the idea.
Intro/History:
The death penalty has been around throughout history and it is the most severe form of punishment
The first death sentence historically recorded occurred in 16th Century BC Egypt where the wrongdoer, a member of nobility, was accused of magic, and ordered to take his own life. During this period non-nobility was usually killed with an ax (Pbs.org).” Britain had a long history of how criminals where being punished. During the middle ages, hanging was the most use method in Britain. In addition, “Britain influenced America 's use of the death penalty more than any other country. When European settlers came to the new world, they brought the practice of capital punishment. The first recorded execution in the new colonies was that of Captain George Kendall in the Jamestown colony of Virginia in 1608” (deathpenaltyinfo.org). Kendall was executed for being a spy for the Spanish government and he was executed by firing squad. After Kendall’s execution many other executions took place. “In 1862, 38 Native Americans were hanged simultaneously in Mankato, Minnesota, for murder and rapes committed during the Dakota War;
All through the history of our country, we have sentenced people to death as the last form of punishment for grave crimes. Even before our founding fathers wrote the constitution and its amendments, the colonies had public executions. Capital punishment
The death penalty was around for many years, though we do not really hear much about it today. The death penalty was used as a way of punishment for committing the most serious crimes. This punishment was executed in various ways, all of them leading to the death of the person being executed. However, there are reasons why this punishment is no longer being used today.
Capital punishment has been around in the United States since the early 1600s; it was a penalty for breaking common law. It was enforced in the American colonies prior to the Declaration of Independence being written. The first recorded death sentence was in 1608, given to Captain George Kendall, who was executed by firing squad (Capital Punishment in the United States). In earlier times, the method of execution was immensely gruesome. Death by burning, stoning and crushing are just a few examples of how brutal the death sentences could be. Majority of Americans throughout history have always supported the death penalty, but as time has gone on, the number of Americans in favor of the death penalty has dropped.
The death penalty should be legal. If it were there would be millions of murderers that wouldn’t be in the world anymore and everybody would be scared to kill again. Prisons are being over populated because we are letting Murderers live when they should be executed. Murderers should be killed all they do is cause problems. If they aren’t going to contribute to society in any way and they just kill people they aren’t useful.
Capital Punishment is a very controversial topic, there is both irrefutable and critical evidence that supports capital punishment. There is a plethora of inquiry you can ask yourself such as, what kind of limitations are there? How much are we really willing to spend on executions and does the cost outweigh its benefits? Then there is one question that everyone asks, is there credible evidence that supports that capital punishment does in fact deter crime. Based on the evidence there in fact is credible evidence that supports that capital punishment does deter crime.
This essay will discuss the various views regarding the death penalty and its current status in the United States. It can be said that almost all of us are familiar with the saying “An eye for an eye” and for most people that is how the death penalty is viewed. In most people’s eyes, if a person is convicted without a doubt of murdering someone, it is believed that he/she should pay for that crime with their own life. However, there are some people who believe that enforcing the death penalty makes society look just as guilty as the convicted. Still, the death penalty diminishes the possibility of a convicted murderer to achieve the freedom needed to commit a crime again; it can also be seen as a violation of the convicted person’s rights going against the Eighth Amendment of the United States Constitution.
The death penalty, capital punishment, in the words of the Oxford English Dictionary is the legally authorized execution of an individual as discipline for a crime (“Death Penalty”). Exactly one hundred and sixty-nine years before the establishment of the United States of America, in year 1607, George Kendall was the first to meet his fate to a firing squad in Jamestown, Virginia as retribution for discord, mutiny, and espionage (Green 1). Some four hundred and seven years later, the fate of the death penalty itself has become one rather controversial—in the landmark Supreme Court case Furman v. Georgia (1972), the implementation of absolute justice was ruled unconstitutional; yet a mere four years later, this decision was overruled. One thousand
Since the 13 colonies were first established in America, the death penalty has been the main form of capital punishment as a firmly deep-rooted institution in the United States. Today, one of the most debated issues in the criminal justice system is the issue of capital punishment. While receiving disapproving viewpoints as those who oppose the death penalty find moral fault in capital punishment, the death penalty has taken a very different course in America while continuing to further advancements in the justice system since the start of the new millennium. While eliminating overcrowding in state jails, the death penalty has managed to save tax payers dollars as well as deteriorate crime and apprehend criminals.
The death penalty is not a new idea in our world. Its origins date back 3,700 years to the Babylonian civilization, where it was prescribed for a variety of crimes (Kronenwetter p.10). It was also greatly used in the Greek and Roman empires. In ancient Roman and Mosaic Law they believed in the rule of “eye for and eye.” The most famous executions of the past included Socrates and Jesus (Wilson p.13). It continued into England during the Middle Ages and then to the American colonies where it exist still today. In the colonies, death was a punishment for crimes of murder, arson, and perjury. Although today the death penalty is used for murder.
"Excessive bail shall not be required, nor excessive fines imposed, nor cruel and unusual punishment inflicted." This is what is stated in the 14th amendment of the Bill of Rights. So why is there still a death penalty in the United States? The first laws created towards the death penalty go as far back as the Eighteenth Century B.C. in the Code of King Hammaurabi of Babylon, which allowed the death penalty to be carried out for 25 different crimes. In these early times death sentences were done in ways such as crucifixion, drowning, beating to death, burning alive, and impalement. Newer ways to go about the death penalty, more nineteenth century, include hanging, electric chair, gas chamber, and lethal injection. What do all these methods
To start off, I will discuss the history of the death penalty. The first established death penalty laws date as far back as the Eighteenth Century B.C. in the code of King Hammaurabi of Babylon, which codified the death penalty for 25 different crimes. Death sentences were carried out by such means as crucifixion, boiling, beheading, drowning, beating to death, burning alive, and impalement.
The death penalty honors human dignity by treating the defendant as a moral able to control his/her own destiny for good or bad behavior. I believe it is an asset to society. The death penalty should not be abolished because it will reduce crime rate, it will save us and the government money, and It helps our society.
Our society is like a bed of flowers; when a harmful weed sprouts we eliminate it before it harms the rest. Criminals are the weeds, and if they are not taken care of, they will only grow in numbers and consume the rest of us. The death penalty has been a popular issue for many years. Thirty three states currently support the death penalty verses seventeen that do not (Death Penalty Information Center). There is a great deal of opposition towards capital punishment, and the most popular opposing arguments are that Capital punishment is unconstitutional, it is biased towards race and class, and many innocent people are wrongfully executed due to mistakes in the system. These arguments are false, and are cleverly constructed with the help of logical fallacy’s and rhetoric. Capital punishment should be adopted by all fifty states because it discourages crime, and is a great representation of justice, and a moral punishment.
I was a firm believer in the death penalty when I was younger. Not fully understanding the severity and backlash that comes with it. I actually believed that lethal injection was a privileged way of dying for some crimes. I even supported the harsher punishments such as stoning or execution by firing squad. I use to think an eye for an eye. I felt that way from the pain of losing someone. As I grew older and became more open minded and seeing the world around me I oppose the death penalty. I feel the way I do for what may be common reasons, but also for reasons that might be less common. We are taught to think do people deserve to die for the crimes they’ve committed, but the real question is do we deserve to kill?
Why are people so quick to agree on ending a human being’s life? Have people ever thought of that could have been them being sentenced to death? Death penalty is a death sentence that a person receives when convicted of a capital crime and is punished with execution. Some who have been found guilty and received the death penalty but insist on their innocence are denied their legal rights. They are not allowed to give the person a statement at their trial, they are even denied victim services because they are “pro-defendant,” and they are removed from the courtroom during trials. The death penalty has brought so much controversy and misery people are going back and forth arguing whether or not the death penalty should be abolished,