Jake Mustin
Research Paper
Deloach (English 101)
Capital Punishment: A Refutation of Archaic Penalties
If an individual commits a gruesome murder of another and is caught, he will be brought before a jury of his peers who will decide his ultimate fate. If convicted of his crimes, the criminal could face the death penalty. Seemingly endless trials and appeals will plague the remaining life this criminal has. His days will be spent in solitary confinement, often with below-standard conditions and treatment. In the end, he will die a painful death, a final performance before an audience, before his curtain falls. When his last breath leaves his lips, the American judicial system can mark off another successful execution, attributed to the name of almighty justice. Something is wrong with this picture. In a society that claims to be advanced in methods of morality and humanity, capital punishment has no place. Capital punishment is the state-sponsored execution of an individual, serving as punishment and atonement for the crime the individual committed. Through legal precedent, the punishment is not applied to mentally-challenged individuals, those whose sanity is questioned, and children under the age of 18 (“Cruel & Unusual?” 4-6). In a post-Hammurabian society, it is not considered appropriate to rape a rapist, burn an arsonist, or steal a kidnapper’s children (Bedau A3). In the same way, we should not be content to execute a killer, willfully enabling revenge and parading it
In the public eye today, the expression "Capital punishment" mixes up a great deal of discussion and feelings. At whatever point the word comes up, in-your-face extremist from both sides hollers out contentions to bolster their position. One side says "eye for an eye", the other side says there 's a capability of executing a pure man; one says equity, reprisal, and discipline; the other side says execution is homicide. Wrongdoing is a clear a portion of society, and everybody knows that something must be done about it. A great many people know the danger of
“And despite scientific efforts to implement capital punishment in a "humane" fashion, time and again executions have resulted in degrading spectacles, including the botched lethal injection in April 2014 that took more than 40 minutes to kill Oklahoma inmate Clayton Derrell Lockett and prompted Glossip v. Gross” (Heyns and Mendez). Capital punishment is an inhumane and outdated way for punishing criminals. The use of capital punishment is hundreds of years old in America. It is used as a punishment for criminals who have committed a violent crime in which they physically harm others. The point of the death penalty is to show that these kinds of crimes are not tolerated, and to deter criminals from committing these kinds of crimes. Unfortunately
For ages, humans have been ending the lives of others in the name of morality and
The moral and ethical debate on the sentencing and enforcement of capital punishment has long baffled the citizens and governing powers of the United States. Throughout time, the interpretation of the U.S. Constitution, and the vast majority beliefs of Americans, have been in a constant state of perplexity. Before the 1960s, the Fifth, Eighth, and Fourteenth Amendments to the United States Constitution were interpreted as permitting the death penalty. However, in the early 1960s, it was suggested that the death penalty was a "cruel and unusual" punishment and therefore unconstitutional under the Eighth Amendment. Many argue that capital punishment is an absolute necessity, in order to deter crime, and to ‘make things right’ following a heinous crime of murder. Despite the belief that capital punishment may seem to be the only tangible, permanent solution to ending future capital offenses, the United States should remove this cruel and unnecessary form of punishment from our current judicial systems.
Judge Arthur Alarcon and Prof. Paula Mitchell of California have recently done a study on capital punishment and the cost that it has had on the state of California. Their findings may shock some, California has spent $4 billion in the past thirty years to up keep the death penalty, and the average capital trial cost $1 million more than non-capital trials (Alarcon & Mitchell, 2011). Capital punishment is a legal process where the punishment for a crime is death. This is a concept that has been around for a long time. One of the earliest written documents that support capital punishment is Hammurabi’s Code with the theory of “an eye for an eye” (Mark, 2011). The topic of capital punishment has become a very controversial one in the past couple decades. Many people are against it, saying that it is a “cruel and unusual punishment” and those for it fight say what a great deterrence it can be. While capital punishment may have had a purpose in the past, in our modern society I believe it should be an obsolete practice.
The Death Penalty, or capital punishment is nothing new in the world. SInce the dawn of civilization people were sentenced to death for sometimes even the most minor of crimes, such a theft. As the world has changed in the last few thousand years, so have attitudes toward the Death Penalty,yet it is still a punishment that is carried out throughout the world today. In the United States, as of July of 2015, 31 states in the Union actively carry out the death penalty. Only 19 states have abolished the death penalty and replaced it with life in prison without the possibility of parole as the maximum sentence. However, with the declining popularity of the death penalty in the United States and throughout the world, the question that needs to be
The controversy surrounding capital punishment goes back for thousands of years. As far back as the 18th Century BC, the Code of King Hammurabi codified the death penalty for 25 specific crimes (Reggio). Since that time, every generation has dealt with passionate arguments on both sides of the issue and ours is no exception. Despite being liberal in most of my views, I am a supporter of capital punishment in cases of heinous crimes. In order to reflect on an opposing view, I settled on the following Time magazine article to read, consider and evaluate: “The Death of the Death Penalty” by David Von Drehle.
Murder, a common occurrence in American society, is thought of as a horrible, reprehensible atrocity. Why then, is it thought of differently when the state government arranges and executes a human being, the very definition of premeditated murder? Capital punishment has been reviewed and studied for many years, exposing several inequities and weaknesses, showing the need for the death penalty to be abolished.
Crime in America is something that has been around for many decades. While a large number of crimes are considered minor, many more result in the serious injury or death of another human being. “When we think about crimes, we … normally focus on inherently wrongful acts that harm or threaten to harm persons or property” (Bibas 22). The death penalty, also called capital punishment, has been used as a means of punishing the most violent of criminals in an attempt to prevent others from committing similar crimes. Over the centuries, the methods used to conduct these executions have evolved and changed due to effectiveness and public opinion.
Despite all the pros and cons of capital punishment, society must think about what is truly correct and most practical for our world. Capital punishment is not functional in today’s legal system. There are countless amounts of evidence that proves these legal killings to be ineffective. We, as Americans, must correct this irrational practice before it does anymore permanent damage.
In 1879, the United States Supreme Court ruled, by a vote of 9-0, that execution by firing squad was not cruel and unusual punishment under the Eighth Amendment of the Constitution. This began a long debate on whether or not a government reserves the right to punish those who have taken a life by taking their lives. There are many reasons as to why someone would be against capital punishment: it is not our right as humans to play God, it is against the constitution, the threat of capital punishment is not a valid deterrent, it is morally corrupt to take a life. All of these points are valid, and they represent the mindset of millions of Americans; however, capital punishment is a valuable asset to be reserved for only “the most heinous murders and the most brutal and conscienceless murderers” (Alice).
Capital Punishment or more commonly known as death penalty is argued whether or not it is right or wrong. Some people say that it is inhumane and others argue that it is totally acceptable. First we will talk about a couple states that have Capital Punishment. Then, we will discuss some of the practices of death penalty. Finally, we will move on to a topic more emotional for some people; veterans on death row, and some have Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder, more commonly shortened and called PTSD. There are a great deal of people who debate and protest about the death penalty and who in their minds think it should cease to exist. Many others think it should be an eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth. Which in my opinion is exactly what Capital Punishment is. In my personal opinion I believe that death penalty should continue.
The death penalty is a humane practice that has been going on for centuries, even to Biblical times. Though it has transformed many times from its ancient ways into modern society, it remains
Capital punishment, that is putting a convicted criminal to death for his or her crimes, has probably been utilized since man first began organizing into communities. Various cultures have utilized numerous means by which to accomplish this task. Early crucifixions, stonings, beheadings, and drawing and quartering have been denounced by most modern countries as ‘cruel and unusual punishment,’ although many third world countries still practice stoning and beheading. The crimes for which one might be put to death have varied over the years, but for most of the modern world, only the most awful rapes and murders are considered punishable by death. Religions vary as to their official stance on capital punishment, although Christians’ views are often dependent on whether their church subscribes to the Old Testament or the New Testament. There is considerable controversy over whether a state has the right and/or responsibility to put an individual to death, and there are many legitimate concerns on both sides of the controversy. Although some crimes, such as the Manson killings, are too horrible to even consider the possible rehabilitation of the criminal, there remains a question in some people’s minds as to the proper punishment.
There are many things that Americans do not think about on a daily basis. One of these things are the ways that we punish people for committing a capital crime. There are two ways of thoughts that are interconnected to the apposite punishment of those who commit a capital crime, and while the death penalty and life in prison have a variety of differences there are some similarities that should be taken in consideration. When you think about these you should wonder what would you choose if you had to punish someone. You might think about giving them an easy punishment or maybe “Let the punishment match the offense. (Cicero)