The Pros And Cons Of The Death Penalty

First, the death penalty has its ups and downs because they could kill again if the criminal is released or if he or she escapes prison. There have been cases where the criminal serves his/her time in prison, then gets released and then kills again. They usually do this for two reasons: committing crime is all they are accustom to or they never learned their lesson while behind bars. There have also been times where people have escaped prison and the only way they know they’ll get away is by killing anyone that gets in their way. Majority of the public believes that if the criminal gets out and kills again, it’s the justice systems fault because it’s their job to keep us safe.

Keeping a prisoner in jail for life will be very expensive considering that it costs $80,000 a year; and the bad news is that the money comes from the taxpayer's pocket. Thousands of people will attack the death penalty. They will give emotional speeches about the one innocent man who might be executed. However, all of these people are forgetting one crucial element. They are forgetting the thousands of victims who die every year. This may sound awkward, but the death penalty saves lives. It saves lives because it stops those who murder from ever murdering again (Bryant). These opinions represent some of the strongest and most influential views that proponents hold. However, if our prison system could rehabilitate more effectively, perhaps those who murdered once, could change.

The death penalty does not help reduce crime. They compare and see the different crime rates between the states. In America's Death Penalty: Just Another Form Of Violence states in the article that “a recent study commissioned by The New York Times examined FBI data and found the death-penalty states average murder rates consistently exceeded those of non-death-penalty states” (Bessler 14). States that do not use capital punishment have lower crime rates than the states that use it. The death penalty does not stop crime but actually influences people to. When the crime rate is high, it also means that it is not as safe to be living there. In the book, Death Row and Capital Punishment, it states that “the places that use the death penalty the least seem to be the safest for police officers” (Kerrigan 45). It is saying that it is safer for officers which also means that it is safer for people too since there will be less crime. There are more cops to help protect people. The thing is that some people are deliberately being targeted and giving harsher punishments than to

Many people who are supporters of the death penalty say that it’s a successful deterrent. But this isn’t true because the death penalty is administered very inconsistently and arbitrarily. “Only a small proportion of first-degree murders is sentenced to death, and even fewer are executed” (Bedau). There are also several states that have a lower criminal rate without using capital punishment. For example Wisconsin, Iowa, and Michigan all get along just fine without the use of the death penalty. Also “…all other Western industrial countries get along quite well without killing their citizens” (Ryan). There are many judges that are against the use of capital punishment as well.

The death penalty has been battered backwards and forwards by the questions of abolishment and replacement, with mixed results. There seems to a jagged line in the sand on where people stand, and due to the continuous use today (albeit at a slower clip than in the past), it is still very much a prevalent topic of punishment. Those who argue for it believe that taking it away will take away a great deterrent, that families find peace, and that those who commit egregious crimes deserve only death. Anything less “would fail to do justice because the penalty – presumably a long period in prison – would be grossly disproportionate to the heinousness of the crime” (“Top 10 Pro & Con Arguments,” 2016). Those who don’t believe in this punishment as a modern-day, useful tool of deterrence and punishment for crime, continuously counter these arguments, as well as any others, daily at every turn. Though many states have made it illegal, others placing moratoriums or refusals to use it, the death penalty can still be found active today. But why can’t it be replaced with life without parole, and it if can why should it?

“The death sentence is a barbaric act . . . It is a reflection of the animal instinct still in human beings.” Said by Nelson Mandela. The death penalty is a very heated topic with strong opinions on both sides. There is a cornucopia of articles and statistics that support both sides. Although it is a more moral and personal option but there were a few facts that truly outweighed the benefits of the death penalty. The death penalty just has so many factors that could cause problems in the prisoner’s death. Although the prisoner may have desired corporal punishment, it does not justify a cruel and unusual death. Nelson Mandela had such a view back in his time that still holds up to this day. I believe the death penalty should be completely banned in the United States because the cost is ineffective, killing is an irreversible act, the methods are inhumane.

There are so many pro’s as to why we as a country need the death penalty. One of those reasons are, it provides closure for the victims, and or family members. The death penalty ensures families, and surviving victims that the murderer will be not be able to strike again. For example, a surviving victim will never feel closure unless the murderer himself is put to death. Meanwhile, the less fortunate ones who were murdered, raped, kidnapped, and etc. will never find closure until that person gets what they deserve.

There are many problems facing our criminal justice system today. Some of the more important ones are overcrowded jails, the increasing murder rate, and keeping tax payers content. In light of these problems, I think the death penalty is our best and most reasonable solution because it is a highly effective deterrent to murder. And, tax payers would be pleased to know that their hard-earned tax dollars are not being wasted on supporting incorrigible criminals who are menaces to society. In addition, they would not be forced to fund the development of new penitentiaries in order to make room for the growing number of inmates in our already overcrowded jails. Moreover, the death penalty would

According to “Facts about the Death Penalty,” the death penalty can be 3 times the cost of someone living in a jail cell for about 50 years. Contrary to popular belief, this shows that death in prison is cheaper than a death sentence. Many see that the death penalty violates the

Some may say the death penalty is one of the most ethical and controversial issues of all time. The issue brings forth anger among many individuals among todays society. This anger has developed over time throughout the history of the death penalty. Over time, the policy has been developed, started and evolved over time. Different states and countries choose to address the penalty differently resulting in more of a controversy. I personally believe that this policy is severely wrong and needs immediate attention. The numbers of people who live on death row are shocking. These high numbers create issues for citizens of the country, and if they were simply put straight to death there would not be so many issues for citizens. It is for the better interest of the states that the death penalty be utilized in all states. Through changing this policy, the crime rate will be lowered, the guilty receive what they deserve, taxpayers money is not spent on keeping the guilty in prison, and prisons are not overcrowded.

The death penalty has been a truly controversial topic in the past decade. Many different states having debates whether it is a constitutional punishment or if it violates the Eighth Amendment. There are thirty-one states that have decided that it is a just capital punishment and nineteen states have decided it contradicts the Constitution. That the death penalty violates the right to freedom from cruel and unusual punishment(“Death Penalty Information Center). Although, there has been a significant decrease in the past years of people being sentenced the death penalty as states start to review the death penalty. Some state’s have also started to forbid their healthcare practitioners from taking part in the death penalty as it contradicts the Hippocratic Oath. As is the case in North Carolina, where someone who has committed a violent crime can still be sentenced to the death penalty, but because North Carolina uses the method of lethal injection they cannot execute those on death row. This is due to North Carolina healthcare professionals being barred from partaking in the death penalty. This can cause problems such as overcrowding as well as have negative effects to the prisoners, the families of the victims and on society.

One reason the death penalty works is because it helps deter, or get rid of, crime. Most people think it does not help lower crime and that the state should just keep them in jail for life. In the article “Capital Punishment Works” David Muhlhausen stated that “Based on data from all 50 states from 1978 to 1997, Federal Communication Commission economist Paul Zimmerman demonstrated that each state execution deters an average of 14 murderers annually”. Therefore, for each execution it decreases the amount of murderers that could happen. In the article “10 reasons the death penalty..” by David Anderson stated that “Yet more research

One reason why the death penalty should be used is, it provides closure and sympathy for the victim’s family in a murder case, stopping a “horrible chapter in the lives of these family members.”(Death Penalty Cost, 2017) Execution could offer a “feeling of relief” for grieving families.(Messerli, 2017) The death penalty cannot comfort or bring back the victims but can provide sympathy for victims’ families.(5 Argument, 2015) Not only does the family get closure, but the death penalty murders the criminal, as the criminal killed the victim. The death penalty also provides a sense of an eye for an eye.

Although some may think that the death penalty is far too expensive and a waste of money, it is shown that through the years of being in jail/prison it actually adds up and is more expensive than a death penalty execution. What is the point in putting a criminal in jail/prison when taxpayers are paying their tax money to feed and support them, if they are going to live in a jail, the death penalty should be allowed to take care of them. If their crime is that terrible then why should people pay for them to live? Why should hard working people use their money to pay for them and

The death penalty is very costly to not only the government, but also society. The death penalty has no benefits at all and should be