Capital Punishment in the United States
Capital punishment is one of the comprehensive, but debatable punishments given to criminal offenders in the U.S. And many other nations across the globe. Capital punishment involves the issuance of the death penalty because of committing serious crimes like crime in the society. Capital punishment has received tumultuous public support touching both ends of the society with its authorization in thirty-seven American states. It is widely used by the federal system of government and the military. The essence of capital punishment or the death penalty was directed at ending or terminating acts of violent behaviors among U.S. citizens. Many people support this form of punishment while others view it as unfair, unconstitutional, and sheer breakage of human right to life. Based on the connotations laid out by the U.S. state and other nations supporting the elimination capital punishment, capital punishment should be eradicated in the…...
mlaReferences
Bedau, H.A., Pierce, C.M., & American Orthopsychiatric Association. (1976). Capital
punishment in the United States. New York: Published for the American Orthopsychiatric
Association [by] AMS Press.
Bye, R.T. (1919). Capital punishment in the United States. Philadelphia, Pa: Committee on Philanthropic Labor of Philadelphia Yearly Meeting of Friends.
From 1977 to 2007, the number of death sentences per capita was as follows: Alabama .89, Oklahoma .818, Mississippi .558, Nevada .546, Delaware .497, North Carolina .481, Florida .463, South Carolina .422, Arizona .412, Arkansas .399, Texas .379, Louisiana .342, Missouri .313, Pennsylvania .277, Ohio .270, Tennessee .270, Idaho .267, Georgia .236, Illinois .233, California .219, Kentucky .193, Virginia .192, Oregon .184, Indiana .148, Nebraska .147, yoming .134, Montana .104, Maryland .094, South Dakota .075, New Mexico .071, Utah .068, New Jersey .066, ashington .057, Connecticut .037, Kansas .029, Colorado .027, and New York .004 (Death Penalty Information Center, Death Sentences Per Capita by State). Therefore, it becomes clear that the leaders in executions may not be the per capita leaders in executions, and that one must examine executions in comparison to state populations.
The number of executions in each state also varies dramatically, and some of that variance becomes…...
mlaWorks Cited
Death Penalty Information Center. "Death Row Inmates by State." Death Penalty
Information Center. 30 November 2011. Web. 4 Dec. 2011.
Death Penalty Information Center. "Death Sentences Per Capita by State." Death Penalty
Information Center. 30 November 2011. Web. 4 Dec. 2011.
However, on the contradicting side, the question is "Can death penalty really deter criminals?." Several studies show it does not. An online source indicates the following evidences.
From 1976 to 1996, the number of executions per year in the United States has increased from 0 to just under 60. The homicide rate per 100,000 population has remained constant at just under 10.
Criminologists who belong to the American Society of Criminology, the Academy of Criminal Justice Sciences, and the Law and Society Association were polled. Over 80% believe that our current knowledge does not indicate a deterrent effect. 75% felt that increasing the numbers of executions or decreasing time spent on death row would not result in a deterrence.
Despite of different opinions and stands on death penalty, several researches find that there are more reasons why death penalty should be abolished. First of all, death penalty does not value human life.…...
mlaBibliography
Wagner, Peter. Crime and Punishment in the U.S. http://www.westernprisonproject.org/PrisonIndex/Section_1/DeathPenalty.html
Johnson, David. Deadly Questions. http://www.infoplease.com/spot/deathpenalty2.html
Capital Punishment: The Death Penalty. http://www.religioustolerance.org/execute.htm
Facts About Capital Punishment. http://www.religioustolerance.org/execut3.htm
The death penalty may exact a high cost but so does remaining behind bars for life imprisonment (Haag 1986). ut righting wrongs in a society has a higher option than entailing the costs. Penalties are also acts of social retribution to restrain personal or private vengeance aimed at vindicating the law and social order, which has been injured or violated by a crime. Proponents or advocates of the death penalty emphasize on this viewpoint. They also see that executing a murderer, though unpleasant, is lawful as against the unlawful and undeserved killing, wherein the criminal's life must be taken away. They also view the death penalty as not unjust as it is necessary in deterring crimes and in instituting justice. It may, at times, be inappropriate but the punishment of the guilt is not viewed as unjust. y committing a crime, the person takes the risk of acquiring that punishment…...
mlaBibliography
1. Haag, Ernest van den. The Ultimate Punishment: a Defense. Harvard Law Review Association, 1986
2. Hood, Roger. The Death Penalty: a Worldwide Perspective, revised edition. Clarendon Press, 1996
3. New Abolitionist. Campaign to End the Death Penalty, CEDP Fact Sheet, 2000. http://www.nodeathpenalty.org
4. Wikipedia. Capital Punishment. Media Wiki. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Death_penalty
Capital Punishment
Currently, 38 states have legalized capital punishment statutes. In most states, the reinstatements of the death penalty were a response to public outcry over the perceived increase of violent crimes. There are now more than 3,000 people on death row, and more are being convicted each year.
Despite this legalized status, a vocal group of opponents have raised questions regarding the constitutionality, fairness and effectiveness of capital punishment. This paper argues that opponents of the death penalty are misguided, and that the death penalty is a sad but necessary tool for American society.
The first part of the paper is an overview regarding capital punishment in the United States. It looks at which states have legalized the death penalty and how this punishment is imposed. It focuses especially on Texas, the leading state in the number of executions.
The next part of the paper gives an overview of the concerns of death…...
mlaWorks Cited
Bonner, Raymond and Fessenden, Ford. "States with No Death Penalty Share Lower Homicide Rates." The New York Times (22 September 2000): A1.
Cohen, Laurie P. "Inside the Cell: Innovative DNA Test Is an ID Whose Time Has Come for the FBI," The Wall Street Journal (19 December 1997): A1+.
Goldberg, Steven. "The Death Penalty Deters Murder," in The Death Penalty. San Diego, CA: Greenhaven Press, 1991.
"Introduction to the Death Penalty," n.d., (24 October 2004)
[DPIC] Similarly, many other researches were conducted but failed to offer any conclusive evidence as to the effectiveness of capital punishment in deterring crimes. The lack of consistency in these results presents a complex problem before us in evaluating the utilitarian value of death penalty.
One more aspect to be considered under the utilitarian thought is the cost of executions. It is well-known that the legal cost of executions in the United States is the greatest in the world and exceeds the cost for a lifetime imprisonment. However the 'cost of execution' ratio is not the same in other parts of the world and hence cannot be universally applied in evaluating capital punishments. Also the right to high quality legal representation is a major factor in deciding the outcome of the case. Poor people have no recourse to hiring expensive lawyers and are left in the lurch. This disparity that…...
mlaBibliography
1) Washington State University, "The Code of Hammurabi," Accessed on 3rd February 2005, http://www.wsu.edu:8080/~wldciv/world_civ_reader/world_civ_reader_1/hammurabi.html
2) University of Alaska, "The death Penalty in the U.S.," Accessed on February 3rd 2005, http://justice.uaa.alaska.edu/death/history.html
3) DPIC, "History of Death Penalty," Accessed on 3rd February 2005, http://www.deathpenaltyinfo.org/article.php?did=199&scid=15
4) DPIC, "Executions in the United States from 1976 to 2005," Accessed on February 3rd 2005
The study also made an assessment of the 14 countries who eradicated the capital punishment. Murder went up by 7% from five years prior to the abolition period to five years following the abolition claimed by the study. Besides, researches were conducted by Prof. Issac Erlich from the years 1933 to 1969. He came to the conclusion that "An added execution per year might bring down the number of murders." (Death Penalty Arguments: This Paper in Memoriam of Sean Burgado) the average number of years spent in death row is 10 years. We are all aware that all the appeals, the capital punishment is not rapid! In reality, nearly every killer believes that they have every possibility that the death sentence will be waived. In case the capital punishment was rapid and unavoidable, a lowering of the homicide rates was a distinct possibility. ecurring murders were eradicated and murders…...
mlaReferences
Brief Summary of Pros/Cons of the Death Penalty. Retrieved at Accessed on 16 April, 2005http://www.lwvil.org/death_penalty/docs/pros_and_cons.doc .
Capital Punishment: Life or Death? Retrieved at Accessed on 16 April, 2005http://www.cwrl.utexas.edu/~tonya/spring/cap/group1.htm.
Capital Punishment: Three good reasons for supporting the death penalty. Retrieved at Accessed on 16 April, 2005http://www.biblebelievers.com/jmelton/punish.html .
Death Penalty Arguments: This Paper in Memoriam of Sean Burgado. Retrieved at Accessed on 16 April, 2005http://www.prodeathpenalty.com/OrnellasPaper.htm.
Capital Punishment
Like abortion, the institution of capital punishment is a very divisive topic. The line dividing the supporters and opponents of capital punishment is variably drawn across political philosophies, race, sex and religion. The Governor of Illinois, not long ago, declared a moratorium on death penalty cases in his state. This essay is dedicated to a presentation of facts about capital punishment, without delving into personal opinions in support or opposition. Approximately, 80 per cent of Americans support the death penalty. When options are offered, such as life imprisonment without possibility of parole, the number of people who support the death penalty reduces to about 53 per cent. Recently, the number of people put to death has decreased. Improvements in forensic technologies, especially, DNA testing is the cause. Many unfairly condemned people have been exonerated.
Strong cases have been made for and against capital punishment. Supporters of the death penalty believe…...
mlaBibliography
Bedau, H.A. Killing as Punishment: Reflection on the Death Penalty in America. Boston: Northeastern University Press, 2004.
Cauthen, K. Toward a New Modernism. Lanham, Md.: University Press of America, 1997.
Dorsen, N. The Unpredictable Constitution. New York: New York University Press, 2002.
Easterbrook, G. DNA and the End of Innocence. The Myth of Fingerprints. 31 July 2000. Available:
Capital Punishment
The issue of the death penalty and capital crime has become one of the dominant issues debated in contemporary culture. The reason for this is firstly a moral questioning of the right to take a life, even when it is in retribution for extreme crimes like murder. The foundation of this contemporary attitude lie in the view that modern culture and society should be able to deal with extreme crime in a more humane and therapeutic way than is at present the case.
The issue of capital punishment also leads to hosts of pertinent issues and questions that often extend further than confines of the topic and have a direct and indirect connection to social, cultural and sociological issues. One of the most relevant issues debated today is the fallibility of the legal system. Many critics refer to statistics that prove numerous people have been executed as a result of…...
mlaBibliography
Derechos. Human rights. Acessed 17 April, 2004. http://www.derechos.org/dp/
Baird, Robert M. And Stuart E. Rosenbaum, eds. The Current Debate. Amherst, NY: Prometheus Books, 1995.
Bedau, Hugo Adam, ed. The Death Penalty in America An Anthology. Chicago: Aldine Pub. Co., 1964.
Bienen, Leigh B. "The Death Penalty: A World-Wide Perspective." Journal of Criminal Law and Criminology 89.2 (1999): 751.
Death Penalty: Social Attitudes and Modern Alternatives
The issue of the death penalty raises deep emotions on all sides of the debate. Many feel that the death penalty no longer holds value as a tool for society to prevent heinous crimes. In the past, the prevalence of the death penalty created a measure of deterrence on social behaviors. However, in modern life, there is no longer is a measurable deterrence felt in the public consciousness. Like a magnet which is too far from a piece of iron to draw the metal toward it, the distance between the commission of the crime and a death penalty execution has diminished deterrence in all but theoretical discussions.
Many feel that the death penalty contains a measure of justice, and that the criminals 'deserve' to die, as well as society 'deserves' to see justice through death of the convicted. Those who present this argument also do…...
mlaBibliography
Bedea, Hugo. The Death Penalty in America: An Anthology Chicago: Aldine Pub. Co., 1964
Reprinted, by permission of the author and publisher, from "Is Capital Punishment Wrong?" Christianity Today, vol. IV, no. 1. October 12, 1959, pp. 7-9.
The Case Against Capital Punishment," Social Action., pp. 4-15. The Council for Christian Social Action, United Church of Christ. April, 1961
Friends' Conference on Crime and the Treatment of Offenders, What Do the Churches Say on Capital Punishment? 1961, p. 24.
Opponents also provide evidence that the death penalty is unjust. Data show that death row prisoners are disproportionately low income, minority, and under-represented by the legal system. Thus, we many wonder if those who can't afford the best lawyers are more likely to be sentenced to death, and if so, then we may have effectively put a price on the life of a criminal. Similarly, if the flawed legal system convicts an innocent person and sentences him to death, there is no opportunity for justice to prevail when the prisoner's innocence is ultimately proven. Two states, Maine and hode Island, discovered that they had likely executed innocent men and subsequently abolished the death penalty.
Many note that the time and expenses associated with the death penalty are reasons enough to disallow it. Extensive review and judicial process is guaranteed for death row cases, with the intent of ensuring that innocent people…...
mlaReferences
Arguments For and Against Capital Punishment. Available at:
http://www.capitalpunishmentuk.org/thoughts.html
Bailey, William C., et.al. (1974). Crime and Deterrence: A Correlation Analysis. Journal of Research in Crime and Delinquency, 11 (2): 124-143
Death Penalty Arguments: Pros and Cons. Available at:
, 2010, p. 428). In a country where Blacks represent only 13% of the population, as of 2010 they made up "twenty-eight of the fifty-seven (49%) of inmates on federal death row," Cohen writes on page 428.
Speaking of the "geography of the federal death penalty," Cohen asserts that six of the ninety-four federal judicial districts account for fully "one-third of death authorizations." Seven federal districts are responsible for "…approximately 40% of the individuals on federal death row," Cohen explains on page 428, though he doesn't identify where the districts are located. Juxtapose those data with the fact that two-thirds of districts have never sentenced anyone to death, and you see the difficulty in justifying the geographic breakdown of death penalty cases.
Conclusion
Clearly there are problems -- very serious problems -- within the system of justice when it comes to the death penalty. hy, for example, do 80% of the cases in…...
mlaWorks Cited
American Bar Association. (2001). Death Without Justice: A Guide for Examining the Administration of the Death Penalty in the United States. Retrieved March 2, 2011, from http://www.americanbar.org/content/dam/aba/migrated/irr/finaljune28.pdf .
Cohen, Ben G., and Smith, Robert J. (2010). The Racial Geography of the Federal Death
Penalty. Washington Law Review, 85(3), 425-493.
Saad, Lydia. (2008). Americans Hold Firm to Support for Death Penalty. Gallup. Retrieved March 2, 2011, from http://www.gallup.com .
Politically correct or not, criminals should pay for the crimes they commit. In no society do we see no punishment for crimes. alter Berns notes that Aristotle taught anger is just and those who kill should be held responsible. e do not live in such a politically correct society that executing justice is perceived as wrong. Justice is never wrong and we as a society should never feel guilt or wrong when we feel angry because someone has been murdered. Anger is a "human passion" (Berns qtd. In hite 147), states Berns and murderers are "properly the objects of anger," (148). In some cases, anger is healthy and no one can argue that anger over murder is not justified. Berns understands that angry men are also capable of respecting life. Supporting the death penalty does not make one less human it defends life. Defending life and the sanctity of…...
mlaWorks Cited
Amsterdam, Anthony. "Capital Punishment." Contemporary Moral Problems. White, James Ed.
New York: West Publishing Company. 1991. Print.
Bayat, Mufti Zubair. "Capital Punishment Maintains Law and Order." 2008. Opposing
Viewpoints Resource Center. Gale Resource Center. 27 Feb. 2010
Our society does not truly condone or express interest in the Old Testament eye for an eye type of justice - we do not support the removal of limbs or torture, we do not force the criminal to forfeit their property (other than money) as direct restitution (criminal law does not generally include a commitment to the victim other than jail time - money is doled out in civil court), nor do we support the killing of the perpetrator's family in the case of murder. ather, our support for capital punishment comes from something less direct and more limited in scope - the idea that there is a point at which a criminal act goes too far, crosses a line that there is no returning from. Some crimes, to a particular society, are so heinous, so unforgivable, that allowing the perpetrator to live, even in jail, is an affront…...
mlaReferences
Cohen, Michael. "The Victims and the Furies in American Courts." The Humanist. Jan/Feb, 2006; 66:1, p19(5).
Coope, Christopher Miles. "Death Sentences." Philosophy January, 2006; 81:315, p5-32.
The Hangman's Knot." The Christian Century. Feb 2007; 124:3, p5.
Capital Punishment
In more than half the countries of the world, there is no death penalty as was the case in Australia for a long time. As many as 76 countries do not have death penalty for any crime. In Australia, Queensland was the first among the states to abolish death penalty in 1922 and the last death penalty was carried out in 1913. (Capital Punishment)
In many countries, punishment is very harsh and the nature of punishment is comparable to capital punishment. One such country is Saudi Arabia. There the Shari at convention or the religious laws of Muslims are applicable. When a Muslim changes his religion to some other religion the punishment is death, if he does not convert back. For others there are many other equally harsh punishments, and in October 2000, Amnesty International reported that two teachers of the Ismailia Shia faith, who were arrested in April 2000,…...
mlaReferences
Encyclopedia: Status of religious freedom in Saudi Arabia. Retrieved September 5, 2005, from the World Wide Web: http://www.nationmaster.com/encyclopedia/Status-of-religious-freedom-in-Saudi-Arabia
Healey, Justin. 2004. Capital Punishment. Issues in Society. Volume 205. Retrieved September 5, 2005, from the World Wide Web: http://www.spinneypress.com.au/205_book_desc.html
Kingston, Margo. 2003. Howard to the states: Capital punishment your call. Retrieved September 5, 2005, from the World Wide Web: http://www.smh.com.au/articles/2003/08/08/1060145858623.html
Stolinsky, David. C. America: The Most Violent Nation? Retrieved September 5, 2005, from the World Wide Web: http://www.haciendapub.com/stolinsky.html
Capital punishment remains one of the most controversial topics in criminal law. The ethics of the death penalty are complicated. Many people believe that the death penalty is simply unethical under any circumstances, while others argue that the death penalty is not only ethical, but that it is unethical not to execute certain killers. The law provides guidance about when it can be applied, but laws vary from country-to-country and, within the United States, there is even tremendous variation in state laws about the death penalty. Therefore, any essay about the death penalty is expected....
Sure, here are some complex and thought-provoking essay topics on Pembunuhan (murder):
1. The psychological motivations behind committing murder: exploring the factors that drive individuals to take another person's life.
2. The role of justice and punishment in cases of murder: analyzing the effectiveness and ethical implications of different approaches to dealing with murder cases.
3. The impact of media coverage on perceptions of murder: examining how sensationalized news reports and true crime documentaries shape public attitudes towards murder.
4. The intersection of race and class in cases of murder: discussing how social inequalities may influence who is targeted and how murders are perceived....
1. The impact of Pembunuhan on society and communities
2. The psychology behind individuals who commit Pembunuhan
3. The role of media in glamorizing Pembunuhan
4. The ethical implications of capital punishment for Pembunuhan offenders
5. The connection between mental health issues and acts of Pembunuhan
6. The effectiveness of rehabilitation programs for Pembunuhan offenders
7. The cultural and societal factors that contribute to acts of Pembunuhan
8. The depiction of Pembunuhan in literature and media
9. The prevalence of Pembunuhan in different regions and countries
10. The role of law enforcement and criminal justice systems in addressing and preventing Pembunuhan crimes.
11. The impact of societal stigma on individuals....
Yes, there are many essay topics that present opposing viewpoints and are suitable for debating. Some examples include:
1. Gun control: Should there be stricter gun control laws to reduce gun violence, or should individuals have the right to own firearms to protect themselves?
2. Abortion: Is abortion a woman's right to choose or is it morally wrong and should be banned?
3. Climate change: Is climate change caused by human activities and should drastic measures be taken to combat it, or is it a natural phenomenon that is not influenced by human actions?
4. Capital punishment: Is the death penalty an acceptable form....
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