Philosopher John Locke justifies the death penalty in his Second Treatise of Government by saying, “Each transgression may be punished to that degree, and with so much severity, as will suffice to make it an ill bargain to the offender, give him cause to repent, and terrify others from doing the like.” Many people agree with Locke in his beliefs that the death penalty is a justifiable punishment for protection of the union as well as to prevent murderers from harming the community again. However others do not seem to agree with Locke that defense of personal property should be protected by the death penalty. The only crime heinous enough to deserve the punishment of death is murder.
The United States Supreme court has ruled on many cases involving the constitutionality of the death penalty. The eighth amendment states that cruel and unusual punishments shall not be inflicted. In 1972, executions across the country were suspended after the court ruled in Furman v. Georgia. There the court ruled that the death penalty was cruel and unusual because it was “wantonly” and “freakishly” imposed. As a result of this case, the court said new guidelines needed to be set for judges and juries in capital punishment cases. That decision was later reversed in Gregg v. Georgia when the court declared that the death penalty was not unusual since three-fourths of states practiced it.
For crimes other than murder the court has found capital punishment to be unconstitutional in most cases, since under the eighth amendment, the punishment must be related to the crime. Other important rulings the court has made include that the mentally disabled, juveniles over fifteen, and the insane may be executed. Current debates in Florida are questioning not whether the death penalty is cruel and unusual but whether the method of execution is. Across the country people are divided on the issue of capital punishment. The major arguments in support of the punishment are direct and indirect deterrence as well as retribution. Proponents also believe the United States system of justice is a reliable one. Many measures are put into place to insure a fair trial , a right guaranteed by the Sixth Amendment, such as two component sentencing and the right to appeal. Also, the people of the United States are living in a democratic society in which the majority of the people are in favor of this form of punishment. The Supreme Court ruled the practice is constitutional, because all offenders are promised due process of law under the Fifth Amendment. Therefore the death penalty does not unfairly take away Locke’s sacred rights of life, liberty, and property.
On the other hand, major arguments against the death penalty are it is not cost-effective, it does not affect deterrence, and the judicial system is flawed. First, studies done in other countries as well as the United States, have shown that there is no correlation between the death penalty and deterrence. In 1976, after the death penalty was abolished in Canada homicide rates actually fell by 27%. In fact the United States is one of the only industrialized nations that still practices this form of punishment. Additionally, opponents say that the judicial system in unfair and that racial and gender biases exist. A contemporary example of the flaws in the judicial system is the current situation in Illinois. There, the governor, although pro-death penalty, implemented a moratorium on executions after a group of Chicago journalism students found that 13 of 23 cases studied have wrongful convictions. Finally, opponents argue against retribution, saying it is just as bad as killing some one out of vengeance.
It is recognized that there are flaws in the death penalty’s application and for this reason it is supported that there should be a moratorium on the death penalty. However, it is easy to still believe in the theory of the death penalty. Supreme court justice Anotnin Scalia talks of a case of an eleven year old girl who was raped by four men and then killed by stuffing her panties down her throat. Of this case he said, “How enviable a quiet death by lethal injection compared to that!” It is simple to believe, that in any case the punishment should fit the crime in cases of murder, capital punishment does just that without being cruel and unusual.
