...The debate over capital punishment has been going on for endless amount of years now. Capital punishment is unethical. It violates the eighth and fourteenth amendment. Capital punishment has been used for awhile now, in fact, there are 31 states right now such as: Alabama, Arkansas, Delaware, Ohio, Tennessee, Texas, Utah, and many others still using capital punishment. This must come to an end. The eighth amendment states that “ Excessive bail shall not be required, nor excessive fines imposed, nor cruel and unusual punishments inflicted.” A fairly recent court case Kennedy v. Louisiana, June 25, 2008 violates the 8th amendment. The background information about this case is that, Patrick Kennedy was sentenced to death for raping a child. Now, the child didn’t die from being raped. The court decision definitely violates the 8th amendment because, Kennedy didn’t kill the poor child, he simply raped her. Not that I’m saying raping a child is ethical, but, the child’s life wasn’t taken away, just sexually assaulted is what happened. The court took it to a whole other level by sentencing him to death. Why go out of your way to kill him, there’s certainly other ways to punish Kennedy, but taking his...
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...Problem Definition Assignment Capital Punishment The issues on capital punishment and the problems associated, this policy should always be considered an issue until it is resolved in a just manner. Capital punishment directly violates the ban on cruel and unusual punishment, giving the authority to take the life of another, if for no other reason, than it is discriminatory, or done in a premeditatory fashion. One chief complaint is that capital punishment exacts retribution for crimes that severs as justice to murder victims and their survivors. Another complaint is the inequities that relate to the moratorium on executions, this just states the debate as to the fairness of the policy. According to the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU), their opposition is that the death penalty in the US is applied in a manner that is unfair towards people, based on money, skills of their attorney, race and where the crimes have taken place. Statistics state that the race of the victim is the biggest factor in determining whether or not a person will be executed. The importance of capital punishment is to answer some direct questions: 1. Does this deter crime? 2. Is this fiscally responsible for the government and taxpayers? Does this somehow fix the deficit? 3. Does this create a better economy? 4. Who does this punishment have the greatest impact on? This paper will cover, checking governmental policies, state and federal in Missouri, other states as a...
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...Capital Punishment, a very contradictive topic, has significantly received increase support to abolish it. Society considers it to be unethical and barbaric; the attitude portrayed by the abolishers is impractical. Capital Punishment is not meant to for cruelty, it's meant for true justice for the murderers. In an online article, Ten Reasons to Oppose the Death Penalty, one of the ten reasons was that even the guilty have a right to life (Americamagazine.org). When you let a guilty man or woman live while their victim(s) are dead is an injustice for society. When someone takes another person's life there's an unbalance in justice. If we do not fix the balance between good and bad, society will be overcome by the bad, which is the inequality of letting someone who willingly kills someone live. An ethics guide points that the retribution is just a "sanitized from of vengeance" (BBC- Ethics Guide). To this argument I would like to turn the attention to a famous quote, "An eye for an eye will make the whole world blind." This quote means that getting revenge on someone can cause everyone to end up harmed, and that at the end revenge could only lead to negative effects. The rebuttal would have made a good point if capital punishment was meant for revenge, it is meant to punish those who did unforgivable acts. The criminal is getting punished for his actions like everyone else in society does when the law is broken. Of course there must be proportionality between criminal and...
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...Capital punishment has always been in debate across the globe for ages now, sometimes in my own head. In the real world, there are pro group and against group always trying to prove each other wrong, or maybe in this case, prove themselves right, much (un)like the prosecution and defense. I always wonder what goes into sentencing of a perpetrator or like the defense would like to call ‘a defendant’ (by the law of ‘innocent until proven guilty’)? More often than not, or from my little knowledge, I believe that capital punishment is mostly reserved for those involved in murder or serious threat to life, which is understandable. No one has the right to take another man’s life, or woman’s. But how does a judge, or a...
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...he 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. A big part of abolitionist’s argument is that the death penalty is not humane. They pull in Amendment 8, “…nor cruel and unusual punishments inflicted.” What the victim went though was indeed “cruel and unusual punishments’.” The murderers’ death is not cruel. The people will demand justice for what he or she has done (Bidinotto 19). Hanging and the electric chair are topics more reasonable to argue, but now because of lethal injection capital punishment has become more humane. The death penalty is not barbaric, the pain and agony that the victim went through is barbaric. Abolitionists were very upset in 1996 when rapist and murderer John Albert Taylor was executed by firing squad; they said his death was barbaric (Feder 32). Charla King, the poor 11-year-old girl he raped and strangled with a telephone cord, her death was barbaric! It makes no sense to think that John Taylor’s’ death was barbaric or inhumane. He would...
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...Cruel and Unusual Punishment: The Death Penalty I remember watching the movie Dead Man Walking; it was about this man named Matthew Poncelet who allegedly raped a girl and killed a teenage boy. Poncelet pleaded not guilty, but was convicted as a murderer and put on death row. He asked for several appeals stating that Carl Vitello, the man he was with at the time, was the one that should be at fault. Poncelet seems very convincing that it wasn’t him, but at the end, the courts had enough evidence to grant Poncelet the retribution of execution. The movie has me questioning America’s justice system; what if someone was actually innocent? Is it right to kill someone as a consequence for their wrong doing? To some, it seems like the right thing to do. If someone breaks the rules you simply punish them. But how should we carry out these punishments? When eight-year-old Billy steals a candy bar from Seven Eleven, you can bet that one of the parents will deliver some whippings. In Texas, when I was in elementary school, I started a fight, and as a result I got sent to the principal’s office and received three licks with a paddle. So where do we draw the line? At a higher level, what happens to me if I kill someone? Since the beginning of time, societies in almost every culture and background have used capital punishment or physical chastisement as a consequence for the killing of others. But, we shouldn’t be doing this anymore; life is too valuable. Even though some people...
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...Arguments on Capital Punishment Length: 2 Pages 545 Words Printer Friendly Version Capital Punishment: Is It Right or Wrong? Capital Punishment is a controversial topic discussed in today's society. There is a heated debate on whether states should be able to kill other humans or not. People that are in favor of the death penalty say that it saves money by not paying for housing in a maximum prison. Those opposed say that it is against the constitution, and is cruel and unusual punishment for humans to be put to his or her death. I believe that the death penalty is against the constitution and is cruel and unusual punishment. The death penalty is cruel because you cannot punish anyone worse than by killing them. It is an unusual punishment because it does not happen very often an it should not happen at all. Therefore, I think that capital punishment should be abolished. Capital punishment is the death penalty, and has been legal in most states for many years. The death penalty did not begin reporting executions until 1930, although legal executions have been preformed before then. From 1930 to 1992, there have been 4,002 executions in the United States (Foster, Jacobs, Siegel 54). From around the 1930s to the 1960s there was a steep drop in the total numbers of executions in the US until the mid 1960s. The drop in executions is due to the lack of public support and legal challenges. Then a 10-year moratorium began in order to determine a constitutionally acceptable way...
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...Capital Murder I think capital punishment has its ups and downs. I deem some instances you should use it and some you shouldn’t. I’m going to give you both sides and my opinions on capital punishment also facts on this controversial punishment. The first side I’m going to give you is that capital punishment is ultimate denial of human rights and that two wrongs don’t make a right. What this means is that by killing the person doesn’t change what he did and by killing him goes against everything we live for. Giving him the death penalty essentially says he is not a human and doesn’t not have right to live on this Earth. In my opinion this quote shows how amiss capital punishment is. The U.S hasn’t always practiced capital punishment but since it became recognized by the Constitution in 1776 there have been a total of 1281 executions. That is 1281 more people that have had their life decided on by fate and not by a group of jurors. Our justice system isn’t one hundred percent, which means we have no idea how many innocent people our justice system has murdered from capital punishment? Study’s say that thousands of people are falsely convicted each year even with our technology. I asked myself after I read that, why do we keep capital punishment then? If we are convicting that many innocent people and we know, what is the point to keep it? It makes our government look inhumane and like a half breed of Hitler and Ed Gein. Another sickening thought is what if the convict is mentally...
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...Dr. Margaret Dunn October 24, 2012 Is Capital Punishment Justifiable Is capital punishment really worth it. Is the planning of taking human life really that cost effective that we as humans can break our own morals and laws. Passions in the US are sharply divided and are equally strong on both sides of the argument. Since colonial times, roughly about 13,000 people have been executed under capital punishment, but what makes it right? Many people argue that capital punishment is well deserved to some of the criminals we see in the old today. "There are some defendants who have earned the ultimate punishment our society has to offer by committing murder with aggravating circumstances present. I believe life is sacred. It cheapens the life of an innocent murder victim to say that society has no right to keep the murderer from ever killing again. In my view, society has not only the right, but the duty to act in self defense to protect the innocent" says a New York Attorney. Many people agree with him as well. They feel that if someone feels like its ok to take anthers life then their life can be taken as well for punishment. People also feel that they pay for what these criminals do. To hold an inmate in prison, on death row or not, its about $30,600 per year that comes straight out of our taxes. So in reality people feel that we pay for the mistakes of these criminals when some of them should be held to capital punishment for the crimes that they have committed...
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...The Death Penalty Capital punishment is putting a condemned person to death. When one reads history of the world, it is seen that many people were sentenced to death because they raised a voice against the king. Ending a person’s life without giving him a chance to repent is not the best of the correctional methods. It might serve as deterrence for others but to what extent is that entirely true will be examined in the paper. The “cruel and unusual” clause in the eighth amendment states that “cruel and unusual punishment” such as torture or lingering death can not be inflicted on anyone as a form of execution. It is however permissible under the 8th Amendment to execute a convict by means of hanging, shooting, electrocution, and lethal gas. There is still confusion about what is actually constitutes “cruel and unusual punishment.” There have been several court cases of interest that have challenged and redefined this concept. In Louisiana ex. Rel. Francis v. Resweber, a convicted murderer was subject to a botched execution, and subsequently argued that a second attempt at execution would be a violation of the Eighth Amendment constituting cruel and unusual punishment. Previously the forms of execution were very painful. Many were beheaded while many were crucified. Crucifixion was the method used to execute Jesus according to Christianity. Such methods aimed at prolonging the pain before death. “Some may attempt to argue that there is scriptural authorization for the death penalty...
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...As of 2016 more than two thirds of the world's countries have abolished capital punishment. It was only in 1998 that Canada had fully eradicated the death penalty for all crimes. After examining the facts of both the J. Kindle and G. Burns & A. Rafay cases, I have capital punishment will not return to Canada in the future. Joseph J. Kindler is found guilty of first degree murder, kidnapping and conspiracy to commit murder. The jury on this case had recommended the death penalty as his punishment. While awaiting his sentencing he escaped prison and fled to Canada. After being found once again the U.S had asked for his extradition back to America. This was approved by the Minister of Justice but the Minister of Justice had failed to insure that...
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...Capital Punishment and Crime Deterred Should capital punishment be used in a justice system to deter the level of serious crimes in a society? There have been arguments that capital punishment is the best way to deter crime and arguments that say it is not all over the world. The justice system is in place to keep societies functioning proper, and punish those who hurt that goal, capital punishment is one of the ways that have been aiding in the success. If capital punishment does act as a deterrent for crime, shouldn’t a society use it as a tool for the justice system? However, if capital punishment does not act as a deterrent for crime, then should it be scrapped by the justice system and emphasis be placed on looking for a new way to deter crime? This is more than just a crime deterrent issue because it involves taking a life to save a life. This is an ethical issue of whether capital punishment is the best way to solve the problem, and this has been argued by millions of people all over the world for decades and it is still a highly debated topic to this day. Capital Punishment, also known as the death penalty, is the practice of sentencing a person to execution as punishment for a capital crime after a proper legal trail. It is typically only used as a form of punishment for people who commit serious types of murder. It may not be known, because many countries never actually use it, but there are 58 countries that currently have a form of the death penalty (Unknown, 2010)...
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...Life without Parole v. Capital Punishment in California Capital punishment is the focus of much controversy lately amongst Californians. In November, Proposition 43 gave California the option to eliminate capital punishment and convert current sentences to life without the possibility of parole. The vote against it won with only 53% of the vote. Over half the states in America favor the death penalty and apply it, while at least a dozen states have chosen not to implement it. As a resident of California, I believe that with our current fiscal crisis, it would be wise to convert current death penalty sentences to life without parole in an effort to save taxpayers millions of dollars. “Legal executions in California were authorized under the Criminal Practices Act of 1851” (History of capital punishment in California, 2010). Since that date, over 500 people have been executed by the state. California has gone through the transition from hangings, to the gas chamber, to lethal injection. In 2006, executions were put to a halt due to claims that the 3 combination lethal injection was cruel and unusual punishment. There are currently over 700 inmates, both men and women, who are waiting to be put to death. The death penalty system that we currently have in place is inactive. However, it is still costing taxpayers their money, and a large amount of it at that. California taxpayers, a considerable amount more per death row inmates than we do general population inmates. If...
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...The Death Penalty: Cruel and Unjust As Ronald Ryan fell to the ground on February 3, 1967, a flock of pigeons flew away in a scare (York). Everyone nearby knew this man’s life had been taken from him and never to be used again. This moment was the last of Australia’s executions. 50 years later, however, the United States of America still commits Capital Punishment, and regularly, too. The topic is debated whether or not the Capital Punishment should be legal. The government is already involved in the lives of those who commit crimes, but the idea of it taking away someone’s life creates an uneasy thought. Some people believe that execution is wrong, inhumane and should be abolished while others believe that it projects positive impacts and will benefit the world, in such ways as lowering crime rates and ridding the world of the worst criminals....
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...States continue to use capital punishment? When I read “Execution Rules Still Inhumane” it spoke of one particular accident that led to Florida’s death chamber being shut down their activities for a five month period. The Department of Corrections down their used this time set up all new procedures and protocols for the lethal injection in hopes that it will prevent anymore “botched executions”. They say even with these new procedures, things can still go wrong; problems can still arise. The execution of Angel Diaz is what led to the chamber’s closing. They say it took him twice the normal amount of time to die and he appeared to suffer a great deal because it turns out that no medically trained professional had been there to administer the drugs. Should this one epic fail determine whether or not capital punishment continues to be used in this country? I am going to have to say no. There is a reason why we chose to have the death penalty in the first place, because some crimes that are committed are just too horrible and deserve severe punishment. It is true that what happened to Angel Diaz was a horrible mistake but I was not aware that when attempting to kill someone for crimes committed that we were suppose to make them as comfortable as possible? That whole thing seems a bit hypocritical to me. This may seem harsh but if someone is sentenced to death then obviously the things they have done to land them there make them deserving of their punishment but not pity. One big...
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