In the United States, the use of the death penalty continues to be a controversial issue. Every election year, politicians, wishing to appeal to the moral sentiments of voters, routinely compete with each other as to who will be toughest in extending the death penalty to those persons who have been convicted of first-degree murder. Both proponents and opponents of capital punishment present compelling arguments to support their claims. Often their arguments are made on different interpretations of what is moral in a just society. In this essay, I intend to present major arguments of those who support the death penalty and those who are opposed to state sanctioned executions application . However, I do intend to fairly and accurately represent both sides of the argument. Proponents of capital punishment persuasively argue that a “central principle of a just society is that every person has an equal right to life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness” (Cauthen, p 1). Within this principle, the deliberate (premeditated) murder of an individual is viewed as a heinous act, which prevents the person from realizing his or her right to pursue happiness. They strongly feel that persons convicted of first-degree murder must, themselves, pay the ultimate price. They claim that the death penalty must be imposed in order to maintain the moral standards of the community. Proponents of capital punishment are people who oppose the death penalty are fearful that innocent people may be wrongfully executed. They insist, however, that numerous “safeguards” are built into the criminal justice system which insures the protection of those facing capital punishment. Among the safeguards are: 1. Capital punishment may be imposed only for a crime for which the death penalty is prescribe by law at the time of its commission. 2. Persons below eighteen years of age, pregnant women, new mothers or persons who have become insane shall not be sentenced to death. 3. Capital punishment may be imposed only when guilt is determined by clear and convincing evidence leaving no room for an alternative explanation of the facts. 4. Capital punishment may be carried out only after a final judgment rendered by a competent court allowing all possible safeguards to the defendant, including adequate legal assistance. 5. Anyone sentenced to death shall receive the right to appeal to a court of higher j...
Capital punishment has been one of the most controversial issues in American history. Its complex history demonstrates how controversial the subject is. Capital punishment is the verdict of execution as a punishment for a person or persons convicted of committing a crime. In 1972, the Supreme Court determined that capital punishment violated the 8th Amendment of the United States Constitution’s prohibition of cruel and unusual punishment. However, this ruling did not last for long. In 1976, the court reestablished capital punishment as a legitimate means for punishment for criminals convicted of heinous crimes (Williams). Since that time, 1,271 people have been executed as a result of a guilty verdict. Yet, 138 people in 26 states have been exonerated from death row with evidence proving their innocence, while many more have been executed despite evidence indicating possible innocence. In the United States, 34 states have the death penalty in place, while 16 states prohibit it (Death Penalty Information Center, “States With and Without the Death Penalty”). This shows the indecisiveness among the states on whether or not capital punishment should be allowed or outlawed. Capital punishment should be outlawed due to the fact that it does not diminish crime rates; it is more costly than keeping criminals in prison for life, and most criminals on death row do not receive proper representation in order to justify their innocence.
Bedau, Hugo Adam., and Paul G. Cassell. Debating the Death Penalty: Should America Have Capital Punishment? : the Experts on Both Sides Make Their Best Case. New York: Oxford UP, 2004. Print.
Capital punishment in the United States is a highly debated topic. Arguments that want to get rid of this method of punishment usually mention the many problems that capital punishment is plagued with. The death penalty has many issues that cannot be resolved, and since these issues can’t be solved, the death penalty should be abolished. “The irrevocable nature of the death penalty renders it an unsustainable and indefensible remedy in an imperfect justice system.” (Evans 3) Even though the death penalty has been around since the 18th century, capital punishment has many issues such as wrongful convictions and high costs, proving it should be eliminated.
The Death Penalty is cruel and unusual, however we still give constitutional acceptance to the federal system. It presents “a relic of the earliest days of penology, when slavery, branding, and other corporal punishments were commonplace. Like those other barbaric practices, executions have no place in civilized society.”(1) It is wrong to advocate the the use of the capital punishment when numerous options are available to those in need of rehabilitation. Three of the most prominent problems with continuing this archaic method of retribution are innocents conflicted with inaccurate verdicts, the death penalty being a state-sanctioned killing that only continues the evolution of violence, and the nation's taxes going towards the purchase of fatal narcotics used in the killings of fellow human beings.
Despite the fact that over 135 countries across the globe have outlawed the death penalty and that there is little evidence to support its use, the United States remains as one of the few major industrialized nations that still execute prisoners. In every society, many cases occur where a criminal must be punished, so that they can be taught a lesson and be stopped from committing future crimes. There are many different ways of punishing criminals: one is the death penalty. The issue of the death penalty has been debated throughout history and even more so recently. Some people support the death penalty, since they say it is only fair for one to forfeit their life if they take the life of another. Many feel the death penalty is unfair, and
Capital punishment is a brutal, antiquated concept that must be abolished in the name of civilized society. A humane culture cannot abide the organized extermination of human beings in the name of justice. In the United States, dozens of people are put to death every year like stray animals, only perhaps in less humane ways. The methods of capital punishment vary greatly, but none are publicly accepted as humane. Society's support for the death penalty is waning, but there is still enough support in the United States to keep it legal in many states. The death penalty exercises only the most primal instincts to kill and extract revenge in an organized fashion. This is why the death penalty must be abolished entirely: to allow society to function in a civilized manner in which every person has the right to live. Capital punishment is hypocritical, selection is arbitrary and biased, and the practice itself is cruel and inhumane.
Since its earliest inception, society has always had in place some form of public accountability, rules, and in some cases, punishment, in hopes to dissuade would be offenders from perpetrating any number of offenses,. It has been a verdict applied for a variety of crimes ranging from the abandonment of soldiers during periods of war, to that of appalling crimes perpetrated by serial killers. Capital punishment has been characterized by some as brutal, disgusting, abnormal, and unnecessary.(Nickolaus Schneider) While some argue for its continued existence, the judgment of death, according to some violates the constitutional ban and is an application of cruel and unusual punishment since it is both discriminatory and arbitrary. Capital punishment could be characterized as an intolerable denial of civil liberties and inconsistent with the fundamental core values of our democratic system. This form of punishment
The death penalty is a source of capital punishment that is still being used today in many places including the United States. The death penalty is when someone is killed
Introduction
Death penalty or capital punishment is an issue which is quiet debatable. It is an issue that has divided the world socially and morally. There are both supporters as well as people who are against it. Due to human rights communities and lawmaker’s struggle much debate has been done on this issue. Capital punishment laws have been removed from most of the countries including Europe.