The Rage to Kill Those who Kill
Few issues in the United Stated today are as emotionally charged and controversial as the death penalty. More formally known as capital punishment, the death penalty has been hotly debated not only as a legal issue, but as a religious, ethical, and political one, historically as well as in the present day.
Parts of the criminal justice system are straightforward, requiring little interpretation or subjective thinking to understand their meaning. For example, law enforcement officials must properly collect and introduce evidence to determine whether a subject did in fact commit a crime. And once a suspect is apprehended, very clear rules are followed on the process of his or her arrest. Crimes themselves are clearly defined, as well: murder, arson, robbery. The constitution is specifying that the death penalty may be used, but warns that there are certain stipulations that must first be met.
Does the death penalty really deter crime? The death lobby wants you to believe the answer to that question is "yes." But, in fact, it is a resounding "NO." Consider this…the US is the only Western nation that still allows the death penalty, and we also have on the highest crime rates. During the 1980's, death penalty states averaged an annual rate of 7.5 criminal homicides per 100,000, while abolition states averaged a rate of 7.4 per 1000,000. That means murder was actually MORE common in states that use the death penalty. Also consider this…. in a nationwide survey of police chiefs and sheriffs, capital punishment was ranked LAST as a way of reducing violent crime. Only twenty-six percent thought that the death penalty significantly reduces the number of homicides. The theor...
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...ure or be used as a means for revenge. The death penalty is a severe penalty for a sever crime. I feel that it does work as a deterrent for crime because of its severity over any prison term. Capital punishment is necessary for a stable society and should not be abolished.
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Work Cited:
McGraw, Dan. "Convert Convict Put to Death." U.S. News & World Report February 16,
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"Death Penalty Law Materials." Legal information Institute
http/www.law.cornell.edu/topics/death_penatly.html (November 10, 1999)
Loyola of Las Angeles Law Revies
Matthew 5:38-41 (Oxford Annotated Bible, NSRV)
1990 report released by the Federal Government's General Accounting Office
Genesis 9:6 (Oxford Annotated Bible, NSRV)
deter crime? A study into the effect of Capital Punishment said, 'the presence of the death penalty in law and practice has no discernible effect as a deterrent to murder.' How does this serve as a deterrent to crime? It offers the convict an easy way out with no reflection on what they've done. They don't learn from their mistakes and although there is obviously no risk of re-offence, the criminal cannot give anything back to society.
Death Penalty is an effective deterrent to crime “The eyes of a psychopath are a chilling sight. I have looked into the eyes of more than one cold blooded murderer- and wished them dead.” (Landau) The Death Penalty is used in rapists, murderers, and other high crimes. Many people say it works great to keep crime underway. The Death Penalty is a cruel and unusual punishment mostly used against the poor and minorities. “Twelve percent of americans are black. Thirty percent of them are on death row” (Prejean) The death penalty has been used against the poor and minorities for quite some time.
and tension in our country. The controversy in our society is whether the death penalty/capital punishment serves as a justified form of punishment. Justice can be served by inflicting the death sentence for murder.
Death penalty has always been a topic of controversy. Interchangeably known as capital punishment, death penalty legalizes the authorization to sentence the execution of a criminal. Controversy that rise from death penalty involve the notion of ethics and epistemology. Many people questions whether it is morally right to take another person’s life, tieing into the 8th amendment that prohibits people from suffering from a certain type of punishment. Another factor is that what exactly determines whether a person deserves execution or not. The justice system has the legal dilemma of properly determining to what extent of a crime committed is reprehensible enough to face death or if it is not as grave and more suitable with merely a life sentence.
The answer to the question of whether or not the death penalty deters crime is no, it does not. For one, the fear of possibly being sentenced to death isn’t nearly enough to stop a crime from happening. Philosophy professor and Holocaust survivor Agnes Heller, who appeared on the “Death Penalty” episode of “Penn & Teller: Bullshit!” to argue against the death penalty, points out that there are different motives for those types of crimes where the convicted could be sentenced to death: there are crimes of passion, crimes for profit, and crimes for pleasure (such as a serial killer fulfilling their fantasy), and that in all of these circumstances, the desire to go forward with the crime is strong enough that they either don’t care about the consequ...
I believe that capital punishment is necessary to ensure justice. Certain criminals commit crimes so great that they warrant death. The emotional tolls of the people around the victim can be alleviated by the death of the perpetrator. Prisons are inherently difficult to run, and capital punishment reduces the efforts that must be expended to successfully manage a prison. Capital punishment reduces crime in the way that it offers an incentive great enough to prevent offenses such as mass murder. Capital punishment holds much support in its favor, and I believe that it should remain.
One of the most repetitive and controversial topics discussed in the criminal justice system, is the death penalty. Capital punishment has been a part of our nation’s history since the creation of our constitution. In fact, as of January 1st, 2016, 2,943 inmates were awaiting their fate on death row (Death Penalty Information Center). Throughout my life, I have always been a strong advocate for the death penalty. During the majority of my undergraduate degree, I was a fierce supporter of capital punishment when discussing the topic in classes. However, throughout many criminal justice courses, I found myself in the minority, regarding the abolishment of the death penalty. While debating this topic, I would always find myself sympathetic to the victims and their families, as one should be, wanting those who were responsible for heinous crimes to
Capital punishment is a controversial topic in that people can only really have two opinions on the matter. Either you believe that it is acceptable to kill someone for their wrong doings, or you do not. I never really formed my own opinion on capital punishment until this past election season, when I started researching state bills I would be voting on. I realized that there are both good and bad aspects to the death penalty and all that comes with it.
The death penalty is one of the most controversial topics debated today. Like every controversial topic, there are two sides to it. Each side has valid arguments for what they believe, however, I believe that one side is more right than the other. Some of the arguments that come into play when discussing the death penalty are the following: the cost of having someone on death row, a person has the right to live, whether or not it discourages crime, and possible innocence of the defendant.
On the other side of the debate, there are those that believe that the death penalty is a deterrent. For most criminals, they are aware of the fact that if they get caught, they will be sent to prison. However, other than being sent to prison, there are not really any other repercussions for committing a crime. They argue that if a person were to be presented with the possibility of the death penalty, they would more than likely think twice about their actions and realize that there are more risks than just im...
Second, the death penalty does in fact deter crime. New York, 1990, the murder rate was up to about 2,650 people, every year it has dropped, in 2009 there were only 778 murders.
According to the Journal of Criminal Law and Criminology: 88.2% of criminologists that were polled do not think that capital punishment works as a deterrent (Radelet 2009) and less than ten percent of those polled think that the death penalty works as a stronger deterrent than a life sentence in prison.(Radelet 2009). Experts agree, death penalty does not deter
The death penalty deters murder. The death penalty is the best way to stop a killer from killing someone else. Some say that prison is enough, but it isn’t. Death is necessary because if they are only sent to prison there is always the risk that some day the same killer that brutally killed a 5-year old or raped and strangle a college student might return to the streets.
The death penalty has always been and continues to be a very controversial issue. People on both sides of the issue argue endlessly to gain further support for their movements. While opponents of capital punishment are quick to point out that the United States remains one of the few Western countries that continue to support the death penalty, Americans are also more likely to encounter violent crime than citizens of other countries (Brownlee 31). Justice mandates that criminals receive what they deserve. The punishment must fit the crime. If a burglar deserves imprisonment, then a murderer deserves death (Winters 168). The death penalty is necessary and the only punishment suitable for those convicted of capital offenses. Seventy-five percent of Americans support the death penalty, according to Turner, because it provides a deterrent to some would-be murderers and it also provides for moral and legal justice (83). "Deterrence is a theory: It asks what the effects are of a punishment (does it reduce the crime rate?) and makes testable predictions (punishment reduces the crime rate compared to what it would be without the credible threat of punishment)", (Van Den Haag 29). The deterrent effect of any punishment depends on how quickly the punishment is applied (Workshop 16). Executions are so rare and delayed for so long in comparison th the number of capitol offenses committed that statistical correlations cannot be expected (Winters 104). The number of potential murders that are deterred by the threat of a death penalty may never be known, just as it may never be known how many lives are saved with it. However, it is known that the death penalty does definitely deter those who are executed. Life in prison without the possibility of parole is the alternative to execution presented by those that consider words to be equal to reality. Nothing prevents the people sentenced in this way from being paroled under later laws or later court rulings. Furthermore, nothing prevents them from escaping or killing again while in prison. After all, if they have already received the maximum sentence available, they have nothing to lose. For example, in 1972 the U.S. Supreme Court banished the death penalty. Like other states, Texas commuted all death sentences to life imprisonment. After being r...
The death penalty honors human dignity by treating the defendant as a moral able to control his/her own destiny for good or bad behavior. I believe it is an asset to society. The death penalty should not be abolished because it will reduce crime rate, it will save us and the government money, and It helps our society.