...there are only three industrialized democracies that still use the death penalty as part of their justice system (Japan, Singapore, and South Korea). The global movement toward peace can never be led by a country that continues to sanction killing. First, I intend to give an overview of capital punishment, including its history, Supreme Court decisions, and the general controversy. Next, I will present my case by establishing the most relevant points in my argument, including statistics that contradict capital punishment as a crime deterrent, evidence that shows the inconsistency in how defendants are sentenced to death row, and finally evidence of mistaken executions. For my counterargument section, I will acknowledge those who support the death penalty by highlighting their cogent points. The primary counterargument in favor of the death penalty rests on giving the families of victims a sense of closure and justice. This counterargument will be refuted using evidence gathered primarily through national studies and statistics. Finally, I will conclude by summarizing key points in the argument, by offering possible alternatives to the death penalty, and be reasserting the case to federally abolish capital punishment once and for all.Sunshine 2 I do need help with a few questions and concerns I have for the paper. Am I correct in thinking that the primary reason people support the death penalty is retribution (having a punishment that fits the crime)? Could it...
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...It can be very difficult for a family member that have lost someone to the death penalty to express their loved one’s situation with the death penalty. Death penalty is also known as capital punishment or execution. Communities from all over the world have used this punishment at one point in history, in order to avenge criminals. Most common reasons for being sentenced to death were war crimes, war treason, murder, theft, property damage, practicing magic, and espionage. In America and England, there are still cases where the death penalty occurs. In America, the idea of capital punishment has been proposed to be abolished but was rejected. In England, the idea of capital punishment was abolished first and came back into the people’s lives. The idea of abolishing capital punishment is similar in America and in England because it was thought to be abolished by both countries but was approved in England. In America, proposals were made to abolish capital punishment, but were not successful, while in England capital punishment is abolished, which holds meaning to the people in both countries. The United States has had the death penalty since the eighteenth century. Execution in the United States became the first legal system which continues to enforce the law and its responsibilities. The death...
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...[pic] BACHELOR OF BUSINESS ADMINISTRATION WITH HONOURS MAY / 2012 MPW2153 MORAL STUDIES MATRICULATION NO : 740704125850-001 IDENTITY CARD NO. : 740704-12-5850 TELEPHONE NO. : 016-3699817 E-MAIL : : madelinaj@maybank.com.my LEARNING CENTRE : SABAH LEARNING CENTRE Tables Of Contents 1.0 INTRODUCTION 1.1 Drug Laws 2.0 DISCUSSION 2.1 Global Overview on the Status of the Death Penalty for Drug Offences 2.2 The Pros of Death Penalty 2.2.1 Precedent Server 2.2.2 Just Punishment 2.2.3 Society Safety Concerns 2.2.4 Excess Sympathy 2.3 The Cons Of Death Penalty 2.3.1 Wrong Convictions 2.3.2 Costs 2.3.3 Deterrence 2.3.4 Rehabilitation 2.4 Religious Views On Death Penalty 2.4.1 Buddhism 2.4.2 Hinduism 2.4.3 Christianity 2.4.4 Islam 3.0 SUGGESTION TO REPLACE DEATH PENALTY 3.1 Life Imprisonment 3.2 Prison with Parole 3.3 Rehabilitation or Reformatories 3.4 Community Service Orders 4.0 SUMMARY REFERENCE 1.0 INTRODUCTION Law is a system of rules and guidelines which are enforced through social institutions to govern behavior. Laws are made by governments, specifically...
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...For decades the death penalty has been an emotional and almost unmentionable issue that has affected people in many different ways. Whenever the word "death penalty" comes up, extremists from both sides start yelling out their arguments. One side says deterrence, the other side says there's a potential of executing an innocent person; one says justice, retribution, and punishment; the other side says execution is murder. Regardless of people’s philosophic points of view, it is important to be aware of the facts. This is exactly what I would like to talk about in this essay: the facts regarding this controversial issue. I do not have the answer to this question; I believe both viewpoints have good arguments. Everyone is entitled to his or her own opinion in this or any other matter, but no one is entitled to his own facts. What is the death penalty? Congress or any state legislature may prescribe the death penalty, also known as capital punishment, for murder and other capital crimes. (Death Penalty: An Overview, 2010) As far back as the Ancient Laws of China, the death penalty has been established as a punishment for crimes. In the 18th Century BC, the Code of King Hammurabi of Babylon established the death penalty for twenty five different crimes, although murder was not one of them. The first death sentence historically recorded occurred in 16th Century BC Egypt where the wrongdoer, a member of nobility, was accused of magic, and ordered to take his own life. During this...
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...(ProQuest Staff) The Death Penalty, “is the process by which convicted criminals are executed by a governing authority” (Issist and Newton). And “It violated the eighth amendment’s prohibition on cruel and unusual punishment” (ProQuest Staff). The death penalty should be abolished because it is a violation of the Eighth Amendment and often results in the deaths of innocent citizens. The death penalty should be abolished because it violates the 8th amendment. To begin, the death penalty is cruel and unusual and should not be allowed, but only “Eighteen states have abolished the death penalty” (Issitt and Newton). Warner, committed a murder and was given a botched execution. He was, “In a renovated death chamber, the lethal cocktail began flowing into the veins of...
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...Speech Organization Pattern Topic: Death Penalty Organizational Pattern: Problem-Solution Specific Purpose: To persuade you’ll that the death penalty should be abolished. Primary Audience Outcome: I want you’ll to become willing to contact their local lawmakers to make the necessary change to eliminate the death penalty as form of capital punishment. Introduction (Attention Getter) After committing a capital crime which is defined as a crime such as first-degree murder or rape of a child, a large percentage of people are sentenced to capital punishment. The end result is absolute death! But what if you were actually innocent of the crime? This unsettling tombstone could be on the grave as a result of the death penalty! (Thesis Statement) There has been a nationwide decline in capital punishment, but unfortunately potentially innocent people are still often executed. (Preview of the main points) This afternoon, I will first share with you some of the injustices that are occurring in the American legal system. Then I will explore with you reasons why we should consider adopting life without the parole as the only form of punishment for capital crimes. Body The death penalty has more victims than just the person who was convicted of the crime. A. Wrongly convicted people are often exonerate, but more than not executed. 1. The 100-plus innocent people exonerated from death row represent further proof that the death penalty should be abolished. Issues &...
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...the death penalty. Death penalty is whereby a state through its judiciary system gives a court punishment for an offence as death. That person would be legally killed within a set period of time. This is an ethical question in that some people feel that death penalty is wrong, while others feel that it is justifiable in some cases. This is a great debate in most countries and the debate includes a lot of civic and religious groups. In some cases the discretion to give a death penalty is vested in a few people in the judiciary system. Looking at the issue of death penalty, there are varied reasons that support the penalty as well as some reasons that seem to suggest that death penalty is bad. In many countries the constitution tells whether or not the death penalty should be upheld in the country. Overberg (n.d) says that about 75% of the people in the United States indicated that they favour death penalty. The same author says that the Catholic Bishops and Jews are against the penalty. The contrasting thing is that in 1966, according to this same author only half the population in USA approved of the death penalty. This shift in number of people favouring the death penalty is suggested to come due to the increased number of murders and violent crimes. So some people believe that the death penalty would deter would be violent offenders to shun violence as the would fear the death penalty. It is reported that the USA government has a shift towards wanting the death penalty. The...
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...Article Rebuttal Unraveling the “Three Strikes law and making it unconstitutional is the primary focus of the Criminal Defense Clinic at Stanford Law School. Its founder Michael Romano States in his article “Striking Back: Using Death Penalty Cases to Fight Disproportionate Sentences Imposed Under California’s Three Strike Law” (2010), his clinic believes the “Three Strikes Law” is unconstitutional and unfair punishment. Our argument we will make the case stating he is using fallacies to strengthen his argument. In California there are no class systems for felonies. Whether or not the felony is violent or not violent, California imposes a harsh sentence. We will give an overview of what “The Three Strikes” law are, the “Death Penalty” and our rebuttal. California's Three Strikes Law "is a sentencing scheme that adds significant time to the prison sentences of certain repeat offenders convicted of serious or violent felonies." California Criminal Defense Lawyers,(2013). This law "three strikes law" also known as the Three Strike Law, was enacted in California in the 1990s to allow harsher punishments for those that committed felonies more than once and to provide for relief of the crimes themselves. A felony is defined "as a crime that has a greater punishment imposed by statute than that imposed on a misdemeanor" The Felony Law & Legal Definition (2013). Although a violent felony is defined as "a crime consisting of conduct that presents a serious risk of potential...
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...Bill of Rights Unit 1 Lonzo Davis AIU Online Bill of Rights Unit 1 Lonzo Davis AIU Online The main overview of the bill of rights pertaining to criminal defendants in the 4th-6th and 8th Amendments is discussing what rights Americans can claim if they are accused of crimes. The 4th Amendment is the search and seizure. That is to stop the government from making general search and seizures of property. The 5th Amendment forbids double jeopardy, which is the act of bringing a person to trial a second time for the same crime (http://www.ushistory.org/gov/10c.asp). It also prevents a person of being convicted or accused of a serious crime without a grand jury investigation. The 6th Amendment also known as the right to counsel is the guarantee that a person accused of a crime have the right to a defense lawyer. The last one is the 8th Amendment which is cruel and unusual punishment. This Amendment prevents someone of suffering cruel and unusual punishment rather it’s a certain type of death penalty or a harsher sentence/punishment than the crime the person committed (http://www.ushistory.org/gov/10c.asp). One example of how the 8th Amendment affected procedures in the courts is, in 1972. Up until then the courts did not challenge the death penalty. In 1972 the case of Furman v. Georgia; the Supreme Court stated that capital punishment was not cruel and unusual punishment, but it has to be carried out in a fair and consistent manner (http://www.ushistory.org/gov/10c.asp)...
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...controversial and debatable issue as Americans and as Christians within the United States. All capital offenses require automatic appeals which means that approximately 2,500 men and women are presently on "death rows" awaiting their appeals or death (Wests Encyclopedia). Mankind is created in the image of God, and being created in the image of God means, among other things, that man has been commissioned by God to carry out certain responsibilities, like administering justice (Howard “Christians and Capital Punishment”). According to Kronenwetter, Capital punishment—or death—is generally considered the most terrible penalty society can inflict not only because it is the most violent of all legal punishments, but because it is the most final and complete ( Dieter “Sentencing For Life”). The definition of Capital punishment is “The lawful infliction of death as a punishment; the death penalty” (“Wests Encyclopedia of American Law”). In my opinion, As a Christian man and a citizen of the United States, capital punishment should be handled at state levels and the criminals convicted after a fair trial for a murder should be given the death penalty. As Christians and citizens of the United States, capital punishments have caused numerous deaths, has had different interpretations between the Old testament compared to the New Testament, has created disagreements and arguments in favor of and against capital punishment, has left the U.S. seemingly contradicting the...
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...Pros and Cons of Death Penalty Does the execution of a murderer serve justice for all? One of the most controversial topics in the world today not only deals with the death penalty, also known as capital punishment, but whether it should be abolished or not . While some believe that the death penalty is “cruel and unusual punishment” violating the 8th amendment of the United States Constitution, others argue that “an eye for an eye” does justice. Thirty-four different states support this type of punishment including Oklahoma, leaving fifteen states that do not. According to Newport and the Gallup Polls, as of May 2007, “sixty-six percent of Americans -- almost the same percentage that supports the death penalty” consider the death penalty “morally acceptable.” Only twenty-seven percent of people believe the death penalty is morally wrong. Some say that the “legality in the United States is critically undermining American moral stature around the world (Ballaro & Cushman)." The death penalty is a very emotional, complex, and rather complicated matter that includes, but not limited to, the argument of the pros and cons as well as the fact that some convicted people whether executed or not are then later freed from guilt and blame (exonerated). There are many different pros of the death penalty, but I have chosen to only discuss a few of the most controversial topics. Supporters of death penalty believe that “[j]ustice is only achieved when a crime is met with the proper punishment...
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...Death Penalty By Susan Doe PHI 103 April 15, 2013 Is the Death Penalty Just and Applied Fairly? The death penalty, also known as capital punishment, is the punishment of execution, administered to someone convicted of a capital crime; it is the most severe form of corporal punishment. The death penalty in the United States has been an ongoing debate throughout history. Capital punishment has been banned in many countries, except in the United States; there are thirty-three states that currently have the death penalty. According to ProCon.org, the United States has executed 1057 people from 1997 through 2006. There are some that are against the death penalty, they feel that it is unconstitutional and immoral. Then, there are others that have a different feeling towards the death penalty; they feel that the ones that commit serious capital crimes should be punished with their own life. Those that support capital punishment say that it is deterrence and that it wastes money on the ones that are doing life. Those that are against capital punishment say that it is killing innocent people and that it is not saving money, that it costs more to put someone on death row. Is the death penalty just and applied fairly? There is no evidence that supports the death penalty being a deterrent to violent crimes. The death penalty is a waste of taxpayer’s money. There have been many innocent people have been sent to death row. Both sides will be argued to give an unprejudiced look with...
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...Is the Death Penalty Just and Applied Fairly? Susan Doe PHI 103 Instructor Robert Bass April 15, 2013 Is the Death Penalty Just and Applied Fairly? The death penalty, also known as capital punishment, is the punishment of execution, administered to someone convicted of a capital crime; it is the most severe form of corporal punishment. The death penalty in the United States has been an ongoing debate throughout history. Capital punishment has been banned in many countries, except in the United States; there are thirty-three states that currently have the death penalty. According to ProCon.org, the United States has executed 1057 people from 1997 through 2006. There are some that are against the death penalty, they feel that it is unconstitutional and immoral. Then, there are others that have a different feeling towards the death penalty; they feel that the ones that commit serious capital crimes should be punished with their own life. Those that support capital punishment say that it is deterrence and that it wastes money on the ones that are doing life. Those that are against capital punishment say that it is killing innocent people and that it is not saving money, that it costs more to put someone on death row. Is the death penalty just and applied fairly? There is no evidence that supports the death penalty being a deterrent to violent crimes. The death penalty is a waste of taxpayer’s money. There have been many innocent people have been sent to death row. Both...
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...punishment also known as the death penalty is the process by which convicted criminals are executed by the federal government. The death penalty has always been part of human history; there is archaeological evidence that proves executions were practiced as early as the 8th century BCE. The first execution in the American colonies took place in Virginia in 1608 when George Kendall was accused of espionage. By 1612, many colonies approved the method of execution by hanging or firing squad; the executions were made public in an effort to increase fear of committing a crime (Issitt, Micha L.Newton, Heather). Executions were abolished in 1972, by the Supreme Court during the Furman v. Georgia. The court ruled that death sentences are handed down arbitrarily, violating the 18th amendment of the U.S. constitution and where “cruel and unusual” (Farley Matchett). The United States did not perform any capital punishments for five years. Then, in 1976 the death penalty was reinstated and Gary Gilmore was the first person to be executed after this hiatus (Issitt, Micha L.Newton, Heather). In a modern society that values life, righteousness and justice, the United States is still part of a decreasing number of countries that still use this sort of punishment. The death penalty is a highly debatable topic since it makes it hard for an observer to pick a side, because for every point there is a counterpoint. From where I stand, after making extensive research, the death penalty has; killed innocent...
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...the first known case of the death penalty in the American colonies happened in the James town colony in 1608 when George Kendall was executed for spying for the Spanish (Green, Melissa S.,compiler. (1998-2009). Focus on the Death Penalty). Capital Punishment is a subject in the United States that was and still is very controversial. Many people want capital punishment to be abolished but on the other hand there are a handful of people who want capital punishment to end. The purpose of this study is to show why capital punishment should be abolished. Capital punishment needs to be abolished because there are way too many cases and executions. During the time span of the Revolutionary war, capital punishment was widely accepted. During this time 162 documented cases of capital punishment were recorded. In the nineteenth century, following that era, capital punishment had increased to 1,391 documented cases. As of April 1, 2008, there were a total of 1,099 people who received the death penalty. The State of Texas had the most cases of capital punishment with a number of 405 cases (Bureau of Justice Statistics 1-2). That is way too many cases just for one state. The States of New York, New Hampshire, New Jersey, and Kansas recorded zero cases of capital punishment. In today’s society, 38 out of the 50 states in the United States accept the capital punishment idea. In the year 2010, over 3000 people convicted of crimes were sentenced to the death penalty (Bureau of Justice Statistics...
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