Death Penalty

Death penalty, which is also known as capital punishment is a sanctioned practice where the government puts a person to death as a punishment for crimes committed. This is referred to as a death sentence, and is mainly practiced on criminals who have committed capital crimes such as murder, crime against humanity, war crimes, rape, spying and treason. The death sentence occurs through hanging, shooting or stoning. Many countries have completely abolished the death penalty while a few countries still retain death sentences. The American population is split into two halves when it comes to their perspective on the death penalty. Statistics show that 41% of American citizens supported the death penalty, 44% were against it and 15% were not sure. This is because human rights activists view the penalty as inhumane and a violation of human rights as it denies people the right to life. This paper will analyze the reasons why death penalty is not the best form of punishment, its effects and why it should be abolished.

One may argue that death sentence prevents murderers from killing another person, but people forget that death sentence is irreversible. Some people may argue that those who kill should also be killed but in most cases they forget that a person might be innocent. The judges and juries can judge unjustly and they end up executing the wrong person. Justice is never 100% correct. Some suspects have poor quality defense and unqualified lawyers. A study of Colombia University shows that 68% of capital punishment cases were reversed on appeal. Similarly, since 1973, 4% of the verdicts on the death row in America have been found innocent of the crimes they were convicted of. In 2004, a Texas man, Todd Willingham, was executed for apparently setting up a fire that killed his three daughters, further investigation revealed that he was innocent, but it came too late (Jacobs & Carmichael, 2002). Similarly, Donald Marshall, a Canadian, was jailed for a decade for a murder he did not commit. Detaining a criminal in jail is the best as a person might be proven innocent in the future and their sentence reversed. If the court had decided to execute him, his innocence could not have been proven. The jury should be cautious when determining the penalty to be sure of the guilty and the innocent.

In the world today, some people may argue that executing foreigners is cheaper than deporting them to their countries. However, the death sentence should not be practiced due to the increased rate of racial discrimination. A black American may receive a death penalty for a crime committed while a white man receives an imprisonment for a similar crime. Also, white peoples’ killers are more likely to be executed than a verdict who murders a black person. Before the abolishment of the death penalty in Canada, Native Indians and French Canadians were experienced more cases of execution than the other citizens (Bedau, 1997). A jury which has racists and believe in death penalty is more likely to declare a person guilty while one opposed to death sentence may vote innocent. They are not willing to take the blame of killing someone whether innocent or guilty. Also, executions made on discrimination only increases enmity between different people and they feel the urge to revenge thus resulting to racial killings.

Some people may argue that it is cheaper to execute a person rather than paying taxes to sustain them in jail. But, capital punishment is inhumane, immoral, cruel and degrading. The correct punishment for a murderer is not to murder them, but to try and help them reform. “Murder is wrong”. People have been taught this since childhood. Everyone has a right to live and executing a person is a violation of the human rights. The bible also rebukes murder because God is the giver of life and according to his rules, he is the one responsible to take life away. When the jury executes a person, they go against God’s commandment. This shows that the court encourages the same crime instead of rebuking it. Many countries used cruel methods of execution such as lethal injection which is believed to be less cruel to the verdict and less brutalizing to the killer. Lethal injection has many flaws as it involves direct involvement of doctors. This goes against their work ethics. Also, post mortem results showed that the amount of anesthetic induced in offender’s body enabled them to consistently wake up and they could experience pain before dying (Banner, 2002). When one is put to prison, they get the time to realize their mistakes and the suffering they endure in jail makes them to regret their actions. The death penalty tends to focus on the criminal and the victim is forgotten in that process.

Death sentence creates a brutalizing society where humanity is meaningless. The society today is full of violent images, whether fictional or real. Killing of people by those in authority gives the citizens a mentality that taking a person’s life is acceptable. People no longer think twice about a character dying in movies or a person jumping out of a storey building. The concept of human life has lost its meaning. When a person is executed, the country is entitled to that murder as a whole and people end up living with the consequences which is violence. Convicts are not seen as human beings. The murder rate in U.S states where the death penalty was practiced, in the year 2010, was 4% per 100,000, as compared to 5% in those states where the penalty was abolished. Capital punishment should be abolished and convicts should be seen as human beings before humanity is wiped out from people experienced in everyday lives. With time, violence may become so common that people see no problem in killing one another. According to Bedau (1997), “A society that chooses violent death as a solution to the social problems gives birth to a climate of violence”.

Supporters of capital punishment may argue that it acts as a lesson to others and prevents more crimes from occurring, but deterrence is a concept which is morally flawed. Studies show that countries which practice capital punishment have high crime rates than those who abolished it. For example, Michigan and Lowa are countries that are doing well without the death penalty. This is because the penalty is implemented inconsistently and only fewer cases of first degree murder are sentenced to death (Berns, 1979). Also, killing of criminals is an indirect way of helping criminal escape the suffering in jail and some people who commit capital crimes do not value their lives and are ready to die rather than facing life sentences, for example, execution might not make any difference to a planner of suicide bombing. The key to discouraging crimes in the society is to focus on the increasing the detention and conviction rates. Death penalty might be harsh as a punishment but it is not enough threat to criminals in the society.

Death penalty supporters may argue that the killing of criminals might be seen as an exceptional way to give the victim’s families relieve and justice for their loved ones but execution does not heal or end their pain. Families of murder victims undergo psychological trauma and the loss of their loved one. The extended time which is taken for execution only prolongs their pain which they could have taken to heal (Paternoster et al, 2008). The families would also benefit from the funds used for the costly process of execution through counselling and the necessary help, like giving money to cater for the victim’s children if any. The trauma during execution is extended to judges and the military because, no person wants to live their lives as murderers. No job description should include the killing of another person as one of the requirements. Detaining should be the case as prisoners have no threat to the wellbeing of the citizens. Many judges and juries live with this guilt, but their circumstances force them to stick to those jobs in order to cater for their family’s needs.

Another reason to oppose the death penalty is because mentally ill people are not considered when it comes to execution. Since 1977, one in ten people who get executed are mentally retarded. This research was carried out by the National Association of mental illness and the Amnesty International. These people perform capital crimes unknowingly only to regret later on, but the jury does not put their conditions into to consideration. They are judged harshly. Many of the mentally retarded people are not able to participate fully in their trials and appear unengaged, rude and cold toward the judges. They are also unable to hire high quality lawyers to represent them. Some are forced to get medication in order to be lawfully competent for execution. People who are unstable mentally should not face conviction let alone execution. Oregon, a U.S state has not passed a law banning the execution of mentally retarded people despite the Supreme Court ruling decreeing that no mentally ill person should be executed (Berns, 1979).

Those in support of capital punishment may argue that justice cannot be compared to financial expenses, but the death penalty is more expensive as compared to life imprisonment. Capital punishment is three times more costly that detaining criminals. The death penalty requires more money on the many trials undertaken because the court needs to trials to determine whether the verdict deserves the death penalty. More trials means more attorneys and experts who need to be paid. Additional cost is used on automatic appeals and the tight security needed during the prolonged period prior to execution which is meant to prevent criminal’s escape means greater housing expense. In U.S, execution of Timothy McVeigh, a man who bombed the Oklahoma City, cost the government more than 13 million dollars (Banner, 2002). Some countries’, like New Jersey and New York, reasons for the abolishment of capital punishment was because of the high cost of the execution process. Death penalty only brings suffering to citizens due to increased taxation meant to cater for the process. This funds could be used to improve the U.S economy when invested in other constructive activities.

Some judges may claim that the courts are fair and just in their ruling, but money is a major determinant when it comes to court rulings. The court discriminates against the poor and chances of a poor person facing death penalty are higher than those of a wealthy person (Paternoster et al, 2008). This is because, rich defendant are able to hire highly qualified attorneys as compared to poor people who depend on the courts to provide them with attorneys, who in most cases are poorly trained. The wealthy people in the society are able to bribe their way out of cases leaving the poor people to die, because they lack enough money to bribe the judges. Some of this people are even wrongly accused but they are not given the chance to prove their innocence and they end up facing death penalties while innocent. It is therefore important for countries to abolish capital punishment in order to ensure justice for the poor and remove the society’s mentality that “money talks”. The quality of representation between the poor and the rich should be equal.

 Death penalty is one of the cruelest form of punishment as no there is no reason good enough to justify murder. Many people have lost their lives unjustly while families of the murdered victims are left more traumatized. Killing of criminals has only increased crime rates in the society. A lot of money is wasted on criminals’ execution which could be used to boost the economy of a country. It is therefore advisable for all states to abolish death penalty in order to reduce executions which result from discrimination and to observe the human rights.

                                      

 

 

 

References

Banner, S. (2002). The death penalty: An American history. USA:Oxford University Press.

Bedau, H. A. (1997). The death penalty in America: Current controversies. New York: Oxford

            University Press.

Berns, W. (1979). For capital punishment: Crime and the morality of the death penalty.

            New York: Basic Books.

Jacobs, D., & Carmichael, J. T. (2002). The political sociology of the death penalty: A pooled

            time-series analysis. USA: American Sociological Review.

Paternoster, R., Brame, R., & Bacon, S. (2008). The death penalty: America's experience with

            capital punishment. USA: Oxford University Press.