DEATH PENALTY

Death Penalty

Death Penalty

Background

Capital punishment is also known as the death penalty or execution and is the punishment of a criminal offender by killing. Capital punishment is typically reserved for very serious offenses such as premeditated murder, treason, or murder as a by-product of crimes such as kidnapping. While most of the world once legally practiced capital punishment, today capital punishment is illegal in most countries outside the United States and has been prohibited by law or in practice in all Western European countries (Gerber & Johnson, 2007).

The philosophy of capital punishment is a subject of moral and ethical debate in the United States. When polled, the U.S. public generally favors the practice of capital punishment, but dissent is often great among opponents. Proponents of capital punishment rely on its history of use in countries throughout the world and refer to the philosophy of retribution or an “eye for an eye”. Under this philosophy, the punishment for killing should be the life of the offender. Opponents of the practice of capital punishment often refer to the sanctity of all life and say that the violence of murder should not be met with a violent solution from society. Opponents also refer to state-sponsored execution as a violation of basic individual rights by government tyranny. Finally, Americans argue that the Eighth Amendment of the United States Constitution, with its protection against "cruel and unusual punishment," prohibits the killing of offenders. However, since the 1947 case of Louisiana ex rel. Frances v. Resweber, the United States Supreme Court has held that the death penalty is not cruel or unusual.

Advantages of Death Penalty

From society and legal authorities' view point, death punishment should be used to discourage the crime rate and offenses rate from such serious offenses. Since no one want to lose his life, that is why people favor for the death penalty and the think that is the highest punishment to deter murder. If criminal are ordered for the death penalty, and executed then the other person who may think of crime will be reluctant by the fear of losing his own life. There are three main approaches for the favor of the death penalty.

Deterrence

Retribution

Incapacitation

Deterrence

There are two main categories in deterrence, specific and general. Specific deterrence intends at individual criminals. It is the way to make punishment too harsh so, the criminal in the future will not follow the same crime. General deterrence intends at the general public, and with this, intention is to make an example so, others will learn the lesson from it and never attempt to commit the same mistake (Britt, 1998).

Retribution

The concept of retribution based on the theory of past that "an eye for an eye" and “a life for a life”. It is justice for them who has any relative, son, dad, mother or anyone else has been killed by any devil mind person, so he should also deserve the same what he did with the victim. When someone murders, it also not only murder that person but ...