Death Penalty Opinion.

GCSE Religious Studies (Philosophy & Ethics)

Death Penalty Opinion

The Death Penalty has been around since and before the Americas were found. Even though it has been in affect for hundreds of years, I do not feel it is at all right. The methods are cruel and in some cases, very painful for the inmate. most people think the death penalty is a good way of justice in the United States, and it issaid to be a humane way of execution, but from what I have found, it is far from humane. Since 1976, 549 people have have been executed by lethal injection, 149 by electrocution, 11 by gas chamber, 3 by hanging, and 2 by the firing squad. Of the 714 people executed in the United States, 332 were in Texas and Virginia alone. After World War II, many countries left the practices of capital punishment. The United States did not stop the practice of capital punshment. If there is a slight mistake, in any of the executions, the inmate feels even more pain than usual. The gas chamber is one of the most painful of executions. "At first there is evidence of extreme horror, pain, and strangling. The eyes pop. The skin turns purple and the victim begins to drool"(Duffy, Clifton-San Quenton Penitentiary warden). If done wrong, hanging can be just as horrific as the gas chamber. If the rope is to long, the body can be decapitated. If the rope is to short, the inmate can sufficate for as long as 45 minutes. Electrocution is a very common way of execution in Alabama and Nebraska. The prisoner has between 500 and 2000 volts of electricity, shot through their body for 30 second intervals. the process is continued until the prisoner is dead. "The hands grip the chair and there might be violent movement of the limbs that can cause dislocation or fractures. Defecation usually occurs. The eyes can pop out and rest on the cheeks. The prisoner vomits blood and drools. The body turns bright red and can some timescatch fire. Witnesses hear loud sounds, like bacon frying"(Brennan, William-U.S.supreme Court Justice). Lethal Injections and the firing squad are the other ways that are used in the United States, they aren't as brutal if done properly. If done wrong, the patient can go through extreme pain until they finally die. This classifies even the least painful, rank up with the most Before, I felt all killers should be puished for what they had done to people in society. Now however, I'm against capital Punishment, because of the pain the prisoners go through for their lst breath of fresh air. Saying it is humane to send 2000 volts through some one for 30 seconds is insane. In one instance, an inmate's leg and head caught on fire(Virginia Department of Corrections). In Texas, Stephen McCoy, who had a violent reaction to drugs, twiched and faught on the table so violently that 2 male witnesses fainted on the spot(Karen Zellars-Mcoy's attorny). Donald Eugene Harding, was executed by cyanide in Arizona. Hardings spasms and jerks lasted around 6 minutes and 37 seconds(Cameron Harper-Telivision Journalist who witnessed th execution of harding). With these examples, how can this be a humane way to kill some one. These aren't animals that are put to sleep at the vet, these are human beings. These animals, as we treat them, can still feel pain, they know suffering, and they still have rights. A lot of people are all for the death penalty, but what if it were you child, would you be able to watch them send eletricity through his body, or inject pioson in them. Maybe having chemicals flood their lungs as they fight to breathe. Until it is your child or something happens to

Capital punishment deters murder, and is just retribution. Capital punishment, is the execution of criminals by the state for committing crimes, regarded so heinous, that this is the only acceptable punishment. Capital punishment does not only lower the murder rate, but its value as retribution alone is a good reason for handing out death sentences.

This is a preview of the whole essay

The death penalty deters murder by literally putting the fear of death into 'would be' killers. A person is less likely to do something, if he or she thinks that harm will come to him. Another way the death penalty deters murder, is the fact that if the killer is dead, he will not be able to kill again. If society has a right to protect itself against such men as Hitler, Stalin and Kemmler, why may it not do so in whatever way proves effective, and protect itself from those evil,malevolent slaughterers? If it is urged that capital punishment is not the most effective way, such an argument, well supported by facts, is pertinent and valid. However, this is not to say that the society which inflicts capital punishment commits murder. Murder is an offensive act. Capital punishment, however effective it may be and through whatever ignorance it may be resorted to, is strictly a defensive act.

Which world would we prefer to live in? Since it is better to kill a murderer to save innocent lives than to allow the deaths of innocent people to preserve the life of a murderer, capital punishment is a practice our society must have. It is a fair trade-off to execute murderers on the chance that innocent lives will thereby be saved. If we only save one precious life, capital punishment is justified. Why should we think that a life for a life is apt? Why do we and our politicians not understand that capital punishment is an option for any civilized society? It is an uncontreversal moral truth that justice entitles us to set capital punishment upon murderers. Vengeance is not always without justification, for as John Stuart Mill has argued, "It likely has its basis in self-defence. But once we factor that out , we are left with pure vengeance, and it does seem always repugnant to act on that."

Thousands of people will attack the death penalty. They will give emotional speeches about the one innocent man or woman who might be executed. They are forgetting one crucial element, they are forgetting the thousands of victims who die every year from the hands of these evil, blood-thirsty murderers. Unfortunately, the death penalty is used so rarely currently that it isn't nearly as effective as it could be. If the punishment fits the crime, it is morally just to go as far as suitable, even to the limit of death. Capital punishment is an expression of society's moral outrage at offensive conduct. This expression of anger is essential in an ordered society. It asks us citizens to rely on legal procedures rather than to self-help their wrong doings. It is morally right to sentence a person to the death penalty who has commited a crime as serious as murder. If someone has murdered a person it is, "unethical to let the murderer live when you have an innocent person who is dead ." Capital punishment has to based entirely on consideration of justice and morality.

Robert Matthews a journalist once wrote, "Some people argue that the absence of Capital punishment in England is the mark of a civilized society." I believe we are rapidly becoming uncivilized. Some of the things that happen on our streets and in people's homes certainly do not constitute civilized behavior. These criminals do not care about the lives of those they have destroyed. They are the ones that make this nation uncivilized. They are the ones that are the most uncivlized individuals in this entire country. If anything, the death penalty is not enough. It can never bring back the loved ones to the families that have lost them. It can never bring back the innocent lives that have been taken in cold blood. Yes, capital punishment cannot bring back the dead, but it does prevent others being killed.

The issue of execution of an innocent person is troubling to both sides of the Capital punishment arguement. Some people are frightened of this possibility enough to be convinced that capital punishment should be abolished. This is not true at all. The execution of innocent people is very rare because there are many safeguards guaranteeing protection of the rights of those facing the death penalty. There is legal assistance provided and an automatic appeal for people convicted of capital crimes. We must accept the few risks of wrongful deaths for the sake of defending public safety. Genesis 9:6 says, "whosoever shed's man's blood, by man his blood be shed." This classic argument in favour of the death penalty has been interpreted as a proper and moral reason for putting a murderer to death. The phrase I mentioned earlier,"Let the punishment fit the crime," is its counterpart. Both quotes prove that the murderer deserves to die and it was his own actions that has placed his unmerciful soul in the death row. Society has the right to kill in defence of its members, just as an individual has the right to kill in self defence for his or her own personal safety.

Criminals convicted of murder 99.9% of the time ask to be sentenced to life in prison without parole rather than the death penalty. Obviously for them, being locked up all of one's life is much better than facing death. If criminals fear that punishment is worse, doesn't it make sense that death would deter more than life in prison. By implementing capital punishment more seriously, we are fighting the war to protect our freedom, instead of throwing down our weapons. Imagine a man who commits murder once, is given a fifteen year jail sentence and is returned to the streets where he kills again. He is imprisoned again only to be released. This could happen since almost one in ten death row inmates has been convicted of murder at least once. That means that some death row inmates have been given more than one chance to rehabiliate in prison and continue to commit violent crimes. Should our country's justice system continue to let violent criminals back on the streets where they are likely to commit murder again? Of course not.

The death penalty ultimately saves precious lives and serves a definite purpose. However in order to serve its purpose it must be adjusted and made more effecive and efficient. The world needs a uniform standard for deciding who receives the death penalty, the dealth penalty should be decided by a jury, the death penalty should become the standard punishment for murder, and the dealth penalty should be helped to truly deter crime.

There is firm evidence that the death penalty is increasing in popularity and countries are beginning to find it more useful. For example, at year end 1998, 37 states and the American Federal prison system held 3,452 prisoners under sentence of death, 4% more than in 1997. An intriguing fact is that 314 Hispanic inmates under sentence of death accounted for 10% of inmates with a known ethnicity. Surely these facts are proof enough that capital punishment does eradicate those evil people in today's society. A recent study was published by economist Stephen Layson at the University of North Carolina showed that every execution of a murderer deters, on average, 18 murders. The study also showed that raising the number of death sentences 1%would prevent 105 murders. However, only 38% of all murder cases result in a death sentence, and of those, only 0.2% are actually executed. Obviously the death penalty deters but countrys are hesitant to use it. I am curious,what are countries afraid of? Personally I think its a disgrace that nobody can give us a straight answer.

I feel strongly towards using capital punishment for punishment for unspeakable crimes. It is a deterrent for criminal activity because of its severity and it will never allow a murderer to kill again and destroy another family. The death penalty is not a problem if all avenues have been investigated and nothing is questionable. If a criminal performs a premediated heinous murder he should be put to death. And lets face it, many murders are premediated. It is that simple. Repeat offenders and people who enjoy killing do not deserve to walk our street. I feel that it is important to send a message to all future 'thrill-killers' that taking the life of another human is wrong and if they decide to try it, they must face the ultimate consequence-death.

Capital puishment must be the standard by which each and every country abides by. If we cannot join together and defeat crime, it will certainly take us over. We can no longer sit and let our lives be terrorized. No longer can we sit back and watch criminals be released and then kill again. No longer must we human beings live our lives in fear. We must come together and draw the line on crime. For a cold blooded killer, capital punishment is the only true justice.

Death Penalty Opinion.

This is a preview of the whole essay

Document Details

Related Essays

The Death Penalty

Death penalty.

Death Penalty.

The death penalty