First Degree Murder

First degree murder is intentional and premeditated. It means that the crime was committed after planning or lying in wait for the victim. It is also considered first degree murder if a person dies due to a violent felony. The punishment for first degree murder is death. Although there are other crimes, first degree murder is the most common offense that will get someone on death row. The death penalty has been a source of controversy for many years. Clearly, the death penalty is cruel, costly, and inhumane. Murderers could be on death row for a long period of time, never knowing when their life will come to an end. A death should not be answered with another death. Bryan Stevenson (2014) says, “each of us is more than the worst thing we’ve ever done.” Some people argue that for people who commit the most heinous crimes, death is the only punishment suitable. They believe that this punishment causes people to think twice before committing murder; therefore, these crimes happen less. Taking the death penalty away would give criminals more courage because they would know that they will not be put to death for their actions. They also believe, that although a number of innocent lives have been taken because of this, that number is very minimal compared to the amount of guilty people who have been executed.

This money could ultimately go toward education or creating jobs. All of these costs could help better peoples lives by giving them a better education or job. If people were to have more stable lives they could be less inclined to commit a crime. With more to lose, people might think twice about committing a crime. The death penalty does nothing to deter other criminals from committing murder, so the extra money could be better used to help prevent crimes. “The FBI has found the states with the death penalty have the highest murder rates” (“The Case Against the Death