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Essays on whether or not the death penalty is effective or not
Essays on whether or not the death penalty is effective or not
Essays on whether or not the death penalty is effective or not
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Capital Punishment and Deterrence
Abstract
Capitol Punishment has been around since the beginning of mankind; eye for an eye and
tooth for a tooth. Since then the public have debated for or against capital punishment
revolving around issues of deterrence, retribution, discrimination and Irreversibility.
Leaving us with the responsibility to analyze the factors surrounding capital punishment.
A number of studies have also been done specifically on the deterrent effects of capital
punishment. Many officials believes that capital punishment not only prevent s the
offender from committing additional crimes but deters others as well. The research of
Franklin E. Zimring and Gordon J. Hawkins demonstrated that punishment is an effective
deterrent for those who are criminally inclined. Another research has been to examine
murder rates in given areas both before and after an execution. Clear and cole(2000) have
examined more than 200 studies evaluating the effectiveness of the death penalty in
deterring crime. A recent study found that a significant deterrent effect is associated with
the increased use of capital punishment since 1977 ( Dezhbakhsh, Rubin and Shepherd,
2001).
Michael Radelet and Ronald Akers attempted to determine if having the Death Penalty
indeed act as a deterrent on criminal homicide. Is the theory of “Just Deserts” (Bedau,
1978; Finckenenauer, 1998) in anyway credible? It is also often argued that death is what
murderers deserve, making criminals reap what they sow. Most believe that in order to
assure deserts, the punishment should always fit the crime. It would require us to rape
rapists, torture torturers, and inflict other horrible and degrading punishment on
offenders. It would require us to betray traitors and kill multiple murderers again and
again, punishments impossible to inflict. ( Bedau 1978).
However the principle of just deserts is understood to require that the severity of
punishments must be proportional to the gravity of the crime, and that murder being the
gravest crime deserves the severest punishment, then the principle is no doubt sound. But
it does not compel support for the death penalty. What it does require is that crimes other
than murder be punished with terms of imprisonment or other deprivations less severe
than those used in the punishment of murder. Criminals no doubt deserve to be punished,
and punished with severity appropriate to their culpability and the harm they have caused
to the innocent. But severity of punishment has its limits -- imposed both by justice and
There is a common knowledge that capital punishment would prevent people from committing crime. But until now, there has not been any actual statistics or scientific researches that prove the relationship between the capital punishment and the rate of crimes. According to Jack Weil, “criminals, who believe that their chances of going to jail are slight, will in all probability also assume that their chances of being executed are equally slight. Their attitude that crime pays will in no way be altered” (3). Most people commit a crime when they are affected by the influence of drugs, alcohol or even overwhelmed emotions, so they cannot think logically about they would pay back by their lives. Also, when criminal plan to do their crime, they prepare and expect to escape instead of being caught. Some people believe that the threat of severe punishment could bring the crime rates down and that capital punishment is the ultimate crime deterrent. However, in fact, the rate of ...
Deterrence theorists view murder as rational behavior, and assume that in calculating the gains and losses from killing, potential offenders are aware of the death penalty and regard it as a more severe sanction than imprisonment. Because the threat of one's own death presumably outweighs the rewards gained from killing another, murder is not an option for most people and always discouraged. In addition, some noted proponents assert that capital punishment provides an important educative function in society by validating the sanctity of human life (Berns, 1979; van den Haag, 1975; van den Haag & Conrad, 1983). Despite this logic, some challenge the applicability of deterrence to murder. Rather than being a product of deliberation and calculation, it is known that most murders are emotionally charged and their crimes are spontaneous events; they are "acts of passion" or result from a situated transaction rather than from deliberation (Bowers & Pierce, 1980; Chambliss, 1967; Luckenbill, 1977). Indeed, a significant proportion of homicides may not be intended. The situation escapes calm discussion, or due to some extraneous factor, an assault victim dies. Under such conditions, it is unlikely that perpetrators ("killers") give serious thought to whether they reside in a death penalty jurisdiction, or the possibility of execution.
With the field of philosophy, the concept of "desert" suggests the status of deserving a particular response based upon prior action. The term is often invoked within conversations dealing with blame and justice. However, philosophers disagree on whether desert justifies responsive behaviors such as punishment or revenge. This debate is particularly significantly within the context of a legal system that purports to punish criminals in a manner that is consistent with their crimes.
The capital punishment has been cited as a reasonable sentence by those who advocate for retribution. This is essentially when it comes to justice so that people take full responsibility for their individual actions. Studies have proved that the decision to take away life of a person because they committed a certain crime serves to perpetuate the crime in question. It also serves to enhance the progress of organized and violent crime. It has been noted that various flaws in the justice system has led to the wrong conviction of innocent people. On the other hand, the guilty have also been set free, and a plethora of several cases has come up when a critical look at the capital punishment has been undertaken. Killers hardly kill their victims deliberately, but they probably act on anger, passion, or impulsively. In this regard, it is not proper to convict them exclusively without
...l punishment as a just and morally sound method of justice. After all, "An eye for an eye" seemed to be a rationale that many embraced as fair. Now there is an era of closer examination of what is truly just and morally ethical, as well as economically sound. A consequence needs to be fair, humane, and effective. Does capital punishment meet these criteria? There are compelling reasons to change the system we have blindly acclaimed. Hopefully we are in the process of implementing a new way of dealing with an age-old dilemma.
3) Though the claim that death penalty serves as a deterrent is valid, it is controversial in its soundness. It is sound that criminals fear the death penalty. Indeed, death penalty is fearful, as it is irrevocable and takes away the life and future of the criminal sentenced to it. However, the evidences supporting the second premise that is the core function of the claim for the deterrence argument is too excessive. In the letter, the author first presents his own experience to prove that the fear of death penalty deters offenders from carrying a gun. However, using an experience as a proof for deterrence for such a complex and serious punishment as the death penalty is extreme. While supporters of the author may respond with the author’s credibility as a police officer for thirty years, personal experience and insight can’t be extrapolated with possibilities of bias...
punishment is an asset to society: it is the only punishment that fits the crime, it deters potential criminals
The death penalty has existed almost as long as civilization itself, established in the Eighteenth Century B.C. in one of the first large societies, by the Code of King Hammaurabi of Babylon, which prescribed the death penalty for 25 unique crimes. Furthermore, the death penalty continued to be used in early civilization, such as in the Hittite Code, the Draconian Code of Athens and the Roman law of the Twelve Tablets, which spanned hundreds of years. At the time, most death sentences were horrific and painful, including drowning, beating, burning, impalement and crucifixion. Later, in countries such as Britain, hanging became the predominant method of giving capital punishment, and William the Conqueror, who ruled at around that time, abolished the death penalty altogether, then, a dramatic move. However, the death penalty was restarted in the Sixteenth Century under Henry VII, where thousands and thousands of people w...
This essay has identified sanctions imposed on offenders including imprisonment and community corrections. Described how punishment is justified with the just desert and deterrence theory. Discussing the rate of individuals being imprison comparted to community, provided rates for assault which shows crime being maintained and community member feel safe enough to allow for this to
Americans have argued over the death penalty since the early days of our country. In the United States only 38 states have capital punishment statutes. As of year ended in 1999, in Texas, the state had executed 496 prisoners since 1930. The laws in the United States have change drastically in regards to capital punishment. An example of this would be the years from 1968 to 1977 due to the nearly 10 year moratorium. During those years, the Supreme Court ruled that capital punishment violated the Eight Amendment’s ban on cruel and unusual punishment. However, this ended in 1976, when the Supreme Court reversed the ruling. They stated that the punishment of sentencing one to death does not perpetually infringe the Constitution. Richard Nixon said, “Contrary to the views of some social theorists, I am convinced that the death penalty can be an effective deterrent against specific crimes.”1 Whether the case be morally, monetarily, or just pure disagreement, citizens have argued the benefits of capital punishment. While we may all want murders off the street, the problem we come to face is that is capital punishment being used for vengeance or as a deterrent.
The death penalty has been promoted for thousands of years, for countless crimes committed by humans. The first established death penalty laws date as far back as the Eighteenth Century B.C. in the Code of King Hammurabi of Babylon, which codified the death penalty for 25 different crimes. The death penalty was also part of the Fourteenth Century B.C.'s Hittite Code; in the Seventh Century B.C.'s Draconian Code of Athens, which made death the only punishment for all crimes; and in the Fifth Century B.C.'s Roman law of the Twelve Tablets. Death sentences were carried out by such means as crucifixion, drowning, beating to death, burning alive, and impalement. Now in today’s society the most common methods of execution are; firing squad, hanging, and in recent years: lethal injection which is undeniably more humane than any other form of execution throughout history. The death penalty has been used to protect society from the iniquities that mankind has presented itself. The criminals, rapists, murderers, and sadists, who harm innocent people, should undeniably forfeit their own right to live as Margaret Thatcher has stated. The use of capital punishment is essential to the security of our nation and the justice in which those who are innocent and those who are the victims deserve.
The death penalty has been around for centuries. It dates back to when Hammurabi had his laws codified; it was “an eye for an eye, a tooth for a tooth”. Capital punishment in America started when spies were caught, put on trial and hung. In the past and still today people argue that, the death penalty is cruel, unusual punishment and should be illegal. Yet many people argue that it is in fact justifiable and it is not cruel and unusual. Capital punishment is not cruel and unusual; the death penalty is fair and there is evidence that the death penalty deters crime.
If there has been a successive restriction of the death penalty, then society seriously questions the appropriateness of the death penalty today. (implied)
Offenses such as robbery, drug dealing, vandalism and DUI should be dealt with according to the number of crimes committed. Robbers and thieves should lose fingers, joint by joint. Multiple offenders should lose their hands. Drug dealers should be put to death by overdose of the drugs they peddled. Vandals should be dealt with in the same manner as in Singapore, caning. Multiple offenders should be beaten to death. Multiple offenders of the DUI laws should be killed by alcohol poisoning except in the case of vehicular homicide in which the offender should be put to good use... as a crash test dummy.
Punishment has been in existence since the early colonial period and has continued throughout history as a method used to deter criminals from committing criminal acts. Philosophers believe that punishment is a necessity in today’s modern society as it is a worldwide response to crime and violence. Friedrich Nietzche’s book “Punishment and Rehabilitation” reiterates that “punishment makes us into who we are; it creates in us a sense of responsibility and the ability to take and release our social obligations” (Blue, Naden, 2001). Immanuel Kant believes that if an individual commits a crime then punishment should be inflicted upon that individual for the crime committed. Cesare Beccaria, also believes that if there is a breach of the law by individuals then that individual should be punished accordingly.