...out the correct way to deal with law-opposing criminals. From crucifixion and slavery, to death by firing squad and life sentences, the world has utilized different forms of discipline. The death penalty has formed into the most questionable form of punishment, drawing the most attention from the public eye. The United States government uses this sanction to punish criminals for committing the most heinous crimes and offenses. The crimes that obtain the death penalty mostly consist of murder which include murder during a kidnapping, murder for hire, drug-related drive by shooting, and genocide. However, the crimes can also consist of other capital offenses, such as espionage, treason, and death resulting from aircraft hijacking. The United States of America...
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...Constitution in today’s debates. There are those who advocate for the death penalty and those who oppose it, arguing that it constitutes as cruel and unusual punishment. With that being said, this paper will discuss the constitutionality of the death penalty. Controversy over the death penalty in the U.S. Supreme Court can be traced back to 1879 with Wilkerson v. Utah, which stated that the Utah territorial statue of execution by firing squad was not cruel and unusual punishment under the eighth amendment of the U.S. constitution. (Wikipedia: Wilkerson v. Utah) In 1972, the United States Supreme Court struck down capital punishment, reducing all death...
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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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...The Use of Human Dignity in Death Penalty Cases: An International perspective An examination of cases from several jurisdictions that address the legality of the death penalty reveals various uses of the notion of human dignity. In 1972, in Furman v. Georgia, the United States Supreme Court declared all existing death penalty statutes at the time unconstitutional as a violation of the Eighth Amendment prohibiting "cruel and unusual punishment". There was no majority opinion, and each of the five majority members wrote a separate opinion. While three of them based their decision on the arbitrary and discriminatory application of the death penalty in the U.S., Justices Brennan and Marshall based their opinions on the per-se unconstitutionality of capital punishment. Justice Brennan argued that although human dignity is not explicitly guaranteed by the United States Constitution, it is the fundamental concept underlying the Eighth Amendment. In his opinion: "The State, even as it punishes, must treat its members with respect for their intrinsic worth as human beings. A punishment is "cruel and unusual, therefore, "if it does not comport with human dignity". He declared that the severity of capital punishment is degrading to the dignity of a man, and since even the vilest criminals share an inherent dignity, the punishment is unconstitutional. Though in Brennan words human dignity functions as a justification for the Eight Amendment, they seem to illustrate the psychological approach...
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...sentence me to death, I will escape from prison and murder every single one of you”, threatened John Louis Evans to the jury on April 26, 1977. Within less than fifteen minutes of discussion, the jury found him guilty and sentenced him to death by electrocution in the “chair”. Six years later, the first of three attempts of 1,900 volts of electricity were sent accelerating through John Evans's body. The final excruciating jolt boiled his brain and extremities in a horrifying manner, causing the nauseating stench of burnt flesh to quickly pervade the open air. John Evans's execution, which should have been only 30 seconds, lasted 14 minutes long. Whenever the phrase “death penalty” is brought up, two sides of extremists are riled up shouting for either approval or forbearance; thus creating a whirlpool of dissent and provocation. Many critics of this controversial issue may state that the moral aspects are inhumane and that the use should be discontinued from the United States; however, the crimes deemed worthy of capital punishment should not and cannot be overlooked simply because of a certain belief. The implementation of the death penalty should remain in practice to prevent heinous crimes and victimization of the innocent. Sometimes the “chair” truly is the best seat in the house. The supreme court case of Alabama vs John Louis Evans of 1977 shifted the viewpoint as to how the United States would approach the sensitive issue of the death penalty. John Evans was...
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...Justin Jernigan 12/6/2013 Documented Argument Essay The debate on whether or whether not the death penalty is effective or even constitutional has been going on since the beginning of it. A lot of people believe “eye for an eye” and others believe that it dance on a thin line of human rights, serves no real purpose, and is a waste of money. Since the start of the death penalty, people thought that it was put in place to make an example out of people, scare people from committing crimes, and eventually stop it but studies show that the death penalty is only wasting tax payer’s money because it has neither stopped nor slowed crime. The death penalty is cruel and unusual punishment and doesn’t do anything to right the wrong of the convicted nor bring back or give the victim peace. Also what about the innocent people that were convicted and sentenced to death, you can’t make it right. So how can the death penalty be effective and constitutional if crime rates are still high, an innocent person can be killed, and when tax payers have to come out of pocket to kill a human being? It can’t and it isn’t constitutional. People that support the death penalty say that it is designed for future criminals who are thinking about committing harsh despicable crimes most likely murders, rape, etc. I can’t agree with this because criminals do not think about what they’re doing when they do it most of the time or even might not care what the consequences are. There is research that will prove...
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...THE DEATH PENALTY IS CRUEL AND UNUSUAL PUNISHMENT PHI 103: INFORMAL LOGIC JUNE 2, 2012 THE DEATH PENALTY IS CRUEL AND UNUSUAL PUNISHMENT In the United States there are currently 33 states that have the death penalty as a form of punishment. The legal system in the U.S. is imperfect resulting in many innocent people’s convictions of death. There have been several exonerations of innocent people on death row. According to the Death Penalty Information Center, “From 1973-1999 there was an average of 3 exonerations per year. From 2000-2011, there has been an average of 5 exonerations per year” (Death Penalty Information Organization, pg 2 para 3). Because of the imperfections of the legal system there are thousands of people as well as politicians that believe the death penalty should be abolished in the the United States, I am one of the people that are against the death penalty but for more reasons other than just the imperfections of the legal system. The other reasons the death penalty should be abolished are more based on the ethical issues, people’s rights to life, and the economic issues associated with the death penalty. Because of all the exonerations in the past three or four decades this form of justice should be abolished, it is not applies fairly and just and it makes me wonder how many people were actually put to death that were innocent. Fact is that in the 33 states that use the death penalty as a form of punishment do not all use the same...
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...CONSTITUTIONALITY OF THE DEATH PENALTY The Supreme Court of the United States has the authority to decide whether state statutes conflict with the provisions of the Constitution and the Court’s prior interpretations of those provisions. This power of judicial review has given the Supreme Court the crucial responsibility to assure individual rights, as well as to maintain a “living Constitution” whose broad provisions are continually reviewed and applied to complicated new situations. Since Justices are appointed for life, when the Supreme Court rules on an issue involving the interpretation of the U.S. Constitution, that judgment is final unless altered by a constitutional amendment or the Court’s subsequent ruling (Booklet). The Court decides whether specific state statutes are applied rightly or whether a person’s Constitutional rights have been violated. The Constitutionality of the death penalty in the United States has been decided by the Justices of the Supreme Court based on cases appealed from different states. The people who founded the United States came from England and European countries where there had always been a death penalty. This does not mean there are no reasons for states to abolish the death penalty; just that it is currently legal for the states to have this punishment. The present controversy started when the Supreme Court decided in Furman v. Georgia, 408 U.S. 238 (1972), that imposition and carrying out of the death penalty in the cases before...
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...Death Penalty The Death penalty is one of the most controversial and debatable questions in the history of criminal justice. The main problem is that the death penalty is irrevocable so a wrong decision can lead to a terrible mistake and injustice towards an innocent person. “On the other hand, the death penalty is the only possible measure to punish criminals and protect our society from cruelty and repeat crimes” (Coyne and Entzeroth 72). Objectively speaking, plausible moral arguments can be made both for and against capital punishment. A key element of the debate, moral arguments have tended to remain fairly static over the years, and often have been used in conjunction with religious arguments. Two moral arguments have remained particularly important throughout the death penalty debate: retribution and the sanctity of life. Argument: Death penalty is a crucial punishment which violates human and constitutional rights of people, thus it is the only possible measure to protect society from violence and repeat crimes. Those favoring the death penalty often argue that society must express moral outrage at -- and condemnation of -- heinous crimes such as murder. Proponents of death penalty typically consider deterrence to be one of its fundamental goals. “The execution sermons of the early colonies were full of warnings against following in the footsteps of the condemned, and executions were public events designed to instill fear and reverence for the law in the people of...
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...Pick a country that has abolished the death penalty. Discuss the reasons that motivated the country to take that stand Death penalty as capital punishment caused and continues to cause heated debates in the society. Nowadays there are many countries where the death penalty is provided by legislation, for example, the USA, China, India, Egypt, Afghanistan, Saudi Arabia, Japan and others. The most common arguments "for" this punishment are the following: protection of society, deterrent effect, economic injustice of life imprisonment, and act of humanism. However, a large number of countries in the world have refused this type of punishment, in particular, Algeria, Tajikistan, Sri Lanka, Laos, Russia and others. They cite the following reasons: possibility of a miscarriage of justice, absence of addressing the causes of crime, contradiction to the international law standards. In the modern globalized world the international community faced faces with the active development of global problems such as terrorism, drug trafficking, corruption, etc. These problems stimulate the constant debate about the necessity to toughen penalties for dangerous criminals, in particular, people discuss the need for of the death penalty in states, where the law does not provide it as capital punishment. The Russian Federation is one of these states. It is the largest country in the world, and many criminal elements from neighboring less prosperous countries penetrate on its territory, they commit...
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...equal if the justice system is not blind? In 1976, the Supreme Court ruled that the death penalty is constitutional. Even though capital punishment is considered constitutional and has led to 500 executions of convicted murderers, there is an ongoing debate about the fairness of this ruling. This debate involves an issue deeply ingrained in America’s history: race. In order to determine whether or not there is an association between race and death sentences in the U.S., the Death Penalty Information Center conducted a study. Researchers followed 667 murder convictions in Philadelphia courts between 1983 and 1993 and published their results in the 1998 study The Death Penalty in Black and...
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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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...Death Penalty Should Exist It has been a long debate whether death penalty should be executed or not. Dated back to 18 century B.C., Babylonian King Hammurabi set very own legal guidelines, known as Hammurabi’s Code. One of the famous laws is summarized as “An eye for an eye, a tooth for a tooth”. It sounds unethical to some people. However, standing in victims’ shoes, one can realize why they think there should be death penalty. Criminals who have committed felonies have left numerous heartbroken families of victims. Consequently, it is believed that capital punishment should not be abolished. Death penalty is definitely necessary for the society. First and foremost, in order to maintain social order, the execution of death penalty can eliminate criminals with unforgivable crimes like murder. Death penalty also gives victims’ families a sense of justice being served, for instance, one of the most devastating cases in Taiwan is 2014 Taipei Metro Attack. The 21-year-old...
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...The death penalty was established on January 17th, 1977. There are currently 32 states in the United States in which the death penalty is legal and 18 where it is not. The death penalty is often referred to as capital punishment as well because it can only be used as a conviction to capital offenses that are seen as extreme cases. Examples of this include espionage, treason, death resulting from aircraft hijacking, and various forms of murder; such as murder committed during drug-related drive by shootings, murder during a kidnapping, murder for hire, and genocide. Death penalty was seen as a constitutional punishment in the case Furman v. Georgia that took place in 1972. In this case a man named Troy Gregg had been found guilty of murder and armed robbery and sentenced to death. He then asked the court to go further into the case and rule the death penalty itself unconstitutional. The case then got carried to the supreme court in which they ruled that the death penalty does not violate any part of the constitution, including the 8th amendment. The eighth amendment bans cruel and unusual punishment under the constitution. In the Furman v. Georgia case it stated that the death penalty does not violate the constitution because under the eighth amendment it shapes how certain procedural aspects regarding when a jury may use the death penalty and how it must be carried out. In modern days the death penalty is carried out by lethal injection unless the inmates choose an alternative...
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...Ms. Middleton 2,030 To Live Without Fear There are many influential documents for which the United States of America was founded on; the Declaration of Independence, the Pledge of Allegiance, and the United States Constitution are three well known documents that ensure the rights of the people of the United States. The Pledge of Allegiance states that we are “One Nation” and the Declaration of Independence states that “all men are created equal.” The term “Hate Crime” defined by Public Law #103-322A, a 1994 federal law, defines a hate crime as: “a crime in which the defendant intentionally selects a victim, or in the case of a property crime, the property that is the object of the crime, because of actual or perceived race, color, religion, national origin, ethnicity, gender, disability, or sexual orientation of any person.” Although this is the federal definition, each state has their own legal hate crime statues, which states what constitutes and is punishable as a hate crime in that state. Some states do not recognize hate crimes at all, yet, as it clearly states in the countries founding documents the people of this country are “one nation” and “all men are created equal.” The number of hate crimes being committed is growing in numbers. What is considered a “hate crime” today is no longer restricted to the issue of black and white, but the national standard for these crimes remains unclear. ...
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