The Issue of Capital Punishment in the United States

Capital punishment is a very controversial topic that people have different views about. Some people don’t know very much about capital punishment and I think everyone should know the pros and cons of it. Capital punishment, also called the death penalty, is the execution of a convicted felon as a punishment for a crime. Capital punishment in the U. S. A. is officially sanctioned by 38 of 50 states. The state with the most amount of executions since 1967 is Texas with 335 executions. The states with the least amount of executions are Kansas, New Hampshire, Mew jersey, New York, and South Dakota with zero executions. The state with the most amount of inmates on death row is California with 647 inmates on death row. The state with the least amount of inmates on death row is New Hampshire with zero inmates on death row.

Between 1976-2002, 7,524 death sentences were issued, 820 inmates on death row, 268 who died of natural causes, suicides or murder. The suicide rate on death row is 133 per 100,000. There have been 176 commuted sentences. 2,403 inmates have been released, retried, or re-sentenced. From 1976-2002, out of 944 executions, 776 executions were by lethal injections, 153 were by electrocution, 11 were by gas, three were from hanging, and two from a firing squad. Currently, lethal injection is being used by 37 of the 38 states that sanction the death penalty.

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California, Nevada, Wyoming, Maryland, Missouri, Arizona, Oregon, Colorado, New Mexico, Mississippi, and North Carolina use gas. The electric chair is the primary form of execution in Alabama, Arkansas, South Carolina, and Virginia, and it is the only method in South Carolina. 64 percent of Americans are in favor of capital punishment. 56 percent prefer the death penalty to life in prison. 41 percent believe it deters murder, but 53 percent didn't think there was much effect, 36 percent wanted more executions while 21 percent wanted less executions.

I interviewed five people about the death penalty and four of them were for the death penalty. They believed that the death penalty should be the sentence for killing and rape. Three out five believed lethal injection was the most effective execution method and the other two thought the firing squad was the most effective method of execution. Three thought electrocution was the least effective method of execution, one thought the gas chamber was the least effective method of execution, and the last one thought hanging was the least effective method of execution. Four of the five thought the inmates would feel remorse or would be scared while being executed, one thought the inmates wouldn't care or feel any remorse while being executed. All five thought the executions should hurt, and all but one thought the executions should hurt.

There are many positive things about the death penalty. Though there's not a lot of evidence to prove it, many people believe that the death penalty frightens other killers from doing anything bad. But if reducing the amount of future murders is all that matters, then it wouldn't be logical to execute the murderers who would be unlikely to repeat their crimes or inspire "copycats’.

I believe you shouldn't execute someone just because it might stop future crimes from happening, but also to represent the past victims. A criminal wants to get something he doesn’t have or didn't earn by force, at the cost of someone else. The harm and injury the victim felt should be reflected proportionally back to the person who caused it. This is called retribution. Retribution can be good in two ways. It upholds innocent human life, and because a policy of reflecting full harm back on the criminal frustrates his goal, which is to profit at someone else's expense.

A lot of people don't think there should be a death penalty, but think about it, if a criminal bears lower costs than what he imposed on the victims, other criminals are encouraged. They know they would be able to gain more from the crime than any costs to bear. Those are some of the positive things about the death penalty, but there is also some negative things about the death penalty.

Some people think the death penalty is racist against African-Americans and other ethnic groups. There is the fact that poor people get the death penalty because they don't have good representation, which is why some law firms are starting pro bono projects. This heightens the law firms respect levels and lets poor people have good representation. When a person of a high social status is the victim of a violent crime there is a public outrage, but when people of a color are killed, or when homeless people are killed, no one seeks to avenge their death. This is a major problem that I think everyone should help try to fix.

People also believe that all life is equal value. If this were true, then it would be illegal and wrong for an innocent person to kill an aggressor, even in self defense. Only human predators could gain from such a policy, and only the innocent could lose. I think if everyone knows about the death penalty and the pros and cons of it, then there would be a lot less oppression because more people would stand up and take a stand for what they believe in.

Works Cited

1. Bedinotto, Robert James. "The Death Penalty is Moral." Opposing Viewpoints in Social Issues 2000: 167-174.
2. "Capital Punishment" Wikipedia. 2006 ed.
3. <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/death_penalty>
4. Prejean, Helen. "The Death Penalty is Immoral." Opposing Viewpoints in Social Issues. 2000: 175-184.

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