Death Penalty

The death penalty is defined as “the punishment of execution, administered to someone legally convicted of a capital crime.” It has been highly debated in the United States, especially in recent years. Some think it is justified and others think of it as cruel and unusual punishment. In fact, it’s been on multiple voting ballots throughout recent years but has never been overturned. While that’s true, there are many people who believe the death penalty is ultimately wrong and are ok with abolishing it. Some think it is justified and others think of it as cruel and unusual punishment. So should we abolish the death penalty? This article is here to inform readers about both sides of the argument.

The U.S is 1 of just 56 countries that continue to use the death penalty in our justice systems. (That itself may seem ironic, death used as punishment in a justice system.) In the past year we executed 25 people and left 2,738 people on death row.

People who are anti-death row have 5 main reasons that they believe it should be abolished. They are as follows:

1. People Have Been Wrongly Executed

Studies suggest that 1 in 25 people who are sent to death row are innocent. That means that 109 people of the 2,738 people left on death row last year would technically be innocent. In one case an innocent man was executed for allegedly setting his house on fire with his 3 daughters inside. However, he was later found innocent after he was executed. Executing innocent people is a risk that people who are anti-death penalty believe we just can’t afford to take.

2. It Costs a Lot of Money

It can cost millions just for one death penalty case to go through. According to the Oregonian, “In 1995 the trials for three Washington County murder cases cost more than $1.5 million. One was sentenced to death. The two others, one of whom was found guilty of four murders, are not on death row. In 2000 a fiscal impact summary from the Oregon Department of Administrative Services stated that the Oregon Judicial Department alone would save $2.3 million annually if the death penalty were eliminated. It is estimated that total prosecution and defense costs to the state and counties equal $9 million per year.” And to think, that’s $9 million saved for just one state. California spend an average of $300 million to use the death penalty on just 1 inmate.

3. People Who Are Mentally Ill Get Executed

About 1 out of Every 10 people executed are mentally ill. This is entirely unfair as they may not have been aware of what they did. Not to say that they should go free, just that they shouldn’t be killed.

4. It’s Inconsistent and Pure Luck.

Whether someone is sentenced to death, relies on a lot of different factors. Your sentence could differ based on your defense, your location, or your jury. Basically it’s a “lethal lottery.” It doesn’t seem very just that some people receive the penalty while others committing similar crimes, may not receive the penalty. Of the approximate 15,000 to 17,000 people who commit homicide each year only 120 people are sentenced to death row.

5. It’s Never Just to Kill

Some people would argue that by killing those who have committed murder, you are the same as them. They believe it fosters a culture of revenge and unforgivingness.

While these are all valid reasons, people who are pro-death penalty have their owns reasons, such as those that follow:

1. It Goes Against the Constitution

Through the application of the fifth, eighth, and fourteenth amendments the death penalty is allowed for appropriate cases. It has been challenged in the Supreme Court multiple times but has never been found unconstitutional.

2. Criminals Should Face the Consequences of Their Actions

Those for keeping the death penalty argue that we are taught that our actions have consequences from infancy. Why should that change at the worst of actions. Don’t they deserve the worst of consequences? They believe that consequences, including the death penalty bring order to our society.

3. Advances In Science Help Us Reduce The Amount of Innocent People Executed

Scientists can now use DNA evidence to specifically pinpoint the true criminal that committed the crime. The combination of this with a human jury makes it very difficult for an innocent person to be wrongfully sentenced to the death penalty.

4. It’s Not Cruel or Unusual Punishment

Since the use of lethal injection for those sentenced to the death penalty, the inmate cannot feel pain in most cases. Even when inmates can feel pain, such as when electric chairs are used, the pain is very quick and they can’t feel it for very long.

5. The Death Penalty is Rational and Moral for Some Crimes

People who are pro-death penalty believe that it is wrong to think that it is morally superior to not execute death row inmates. They say that while it’s easy to feel sorry for those wearing an orange jumpsuit about to be killed, you have to remember that they did commit a malicious crime. Especially since the crime they must have committed to be on death row, was ultimately violent, inhumane, and ended the life of someone innocent.

Both sides of the argument certainly have very strong opinions and reasoning for their opinions. As to whether the death penalty will be abolished? There’s really no way to tell.